Starvation diet on accident?

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BeccaLou1987
BeccaLou1987 Posts: 6 Member
in Food and Nutrition
Hi all,

I'm afraid I'm ruining all of my hard work of diet and exercise by not eating enough calories. I have breakfast every morning (usually a couple scrambled eggs with a piece of whole wheat toast or granola with berries and skim milk) and lunch every day (most of the time a tuna sandwich, again on whole wheat, with soup, salad, and fruit). This usually adds up to about 600 - 700 calories total between the two meals. The trouble comes at night. I work out after I'm finished with work at 7, so by the time I get home for the day it's close to 8:30. I've read so many times not to eat after 7:30 and don't want to undo any of the work that I've just done, so I'm afraid to eat. Most nights I usually just go with a protein shake. This puts my caloric total for the day at usually less than 1,000 calories. I'm terrified that I'm slowing down my metabolism by not getting enough calories. Is this a valid concern??? The last couple times I've stepped on the scale I've gained weight. Is this muscle that I'm putting on?? I'm 27/F, 5'6" and about 190lbs, so I've got plenty of fat to lose. I'm wondering what's up. Why is the scale going up??? I'm way under my BMR in just caloric intake, and then burning about 500 just working out, not to mention working in retail and being on my feet all day. What's up? Any ideas?? Help!!

Replies

  • Koldnomore
    Koldnomore Posts: 1,613 Member
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    Work out less or eat more...

    WHEN you eat makes no difference, that's a myth. When I was first starting out I regularly had a 'snack' (about 400 cals) before bed very night. I still do though it's smaller. Your body doesn't magically change food into fat after a certain time. Also, You are not gaining muscle in a deficit it's likely water retention from working out - that's normal. Don't be scared to eat.. honestly.

    Read:
    http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/595473-why-the-scale-goes-up-with-a-new-workout-program-must-read
    http://www.bodyrecomposition.com/fat-loss/why-big-caloric-deficits-and-lots-of-activity-can-hurt-fat-loss.html
    http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/1077746-starvation-mode-adaptive-thermogenesis-and-weight-loss
  • tonedthighsbubblebutt
    tonedthighsbubblebutt Posts: 40
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    You should eat more, especially if you're working out. Do you know what you TDEE is? Taking that number and subtracting 20% will give you a good number to shoot for. Personally, I don't worry about eating at night. If that's when you can eat, that's when you should eat. Why not take something small that you can eat right after your workout? You could eat a handful of almonds or a granola bar on your way home. You could also try incorporating small snacks throughout your day to better meet your calorie goals.

    Edit: you're also probably not adding muscle mass while eating such a large deficit. It's more likely natural fluctuation or water retention
  • BeccaLou1987
    BeccaLou1987 Posts: 6 Member
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    I figured out my TDEE is 2370, 20% below being 1896. This is pretty close to my BMR (1620). I've got my goal calories in the journal set for 1430 but at the moment I'm struggling to hit 1000, let alone 1200 or even close to my 1400 goal. Weird thing is that I'm not hungry at all. Normal?
  • _HeartsOnFire_
    _HeartsOnFire_ Posts: 5,304 Member
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    Take a spoon, add peanut butter and eat. :flowerforyou:

    Yes, eat more.
  • MissMollyMN
    MissMollyMN Posts: 74
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    who cares if you aren't hungry, find your daily amount of calories you need to be eating and eat them.
  • meshashesha2012
    meshashesha2012 Posts: 8,326 Member
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    open up your diary, i think the two meals you listed are more calories than you think they are.
    the MFP database isnt 100% accurate. i just recently found something that was a 600 calories difference between real life and fantasy database.

    also how long have you been at this? it's possible that you're retaining water depending on your workouts but it's pretty much guaranteed that you arent building muscle. although people new to exercise can build new muscle in a deficit, it's only something like 1-6 pounds over the course of a 6 months or so
  • Ready2Rock206
    Ready2Rock206 Posts: 9,488 Member
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    Hi all,

    I've read so many times not to eat after 7:30 and don't want to undo any of the work that I've just done,

    Complete BS. Unless you're a gremlin - then you better be careful. If you're not a gremlin, eat dinner!! What time you eat dinner makes no difference.
  • diannethegeek
    diannethegeek Posts: 14,776 Member
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    1. It's okay to eat after 8pm.

    2. Hunger isn't the only indicator of whether or not you're eating enough and it's not even a reliable one. When you stop feeding your body it can stop sending out as many of the hormones that signal hunger.

    3. You can work your way up slowly, but do start eating more. 1200 calories is the bare minimum recommended for a sedentary woman for a reason. You aren't sedentary. You should be eating even more.

    4. If you can't eat more then you need to eat smarter. Look for more calorie dense foods that you can add to your diet. Nuts, nut butter, avocado, full fat dairy, cheese, Greek yogurt, dark chocolate, protein shakes and smoothies, juices, etc. With some planning, you can boost each meal by a few hundred calories without having to eat more food.
  • iMikky
    iMikky Posts: 30
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    From what I heard, everybody is different. In 2012, I went from 205 to 169 in about 2 months by eating about 700 a day, lots of exercise. That sounds amazing but the weight came back on. Even odder, when I was at my heaviest of 238, I went down to 205 in about 1-2 months without too much exercise. It sounds illogical so do what works for you. I'm pretty muscular now so I have to eat 1700-2000 and burn about 200-500 to lose weight. I don't really like to track my success on MFP, I only joined because they had a calorie database. Just keep trying different things until you hit the jackpot. Good luck!!!
  • tonedthighsbubblebutt
    tonedthighsbubblebutt Posts: 40
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    Despite not feeling hungry, your body still needs those calories. How much weight are you trying to lose? If it's not a significant amount, you probably won't require that large of a deficit to still see results. Perhaps you could try a 500 cal deficit first?
  • SezxyStef
    SezxyStef Posts: 15,268 Member
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    Hi all,

    I'm afraid I'm ruining all of my hard work of diet and exercise by not eating enough calories. I have breakfast every morning (usually a couple scrambled eggs with a piece of whole wheat toast or granola with berries and skim milk) and lunch every day (most of the time a tuna sandwich, again on whole wheat, with soup, salad, and fruit). This usually adds up to about 600 - 700 calories total between the two meals.

    As one poster said ...perhaps but double check that
    The trouble comes at night. I work out after I'm finished with work at 7, so by the time I get home for the day it's close to 8:30. I've read so many times not to eat after 7:30 and don't want to undo any of the work that I've just done, so I'm afraid to eat.

    Total BS...and eating wont undo what you did...you burned calories but you still should eat to fuel your body.
    Most nights I usually just go with a protein shake. This puts my caloric total for the day at usually less than 1,000 calories. I'm terrified that I'm slowing down my metabolism by not getting enough calories. Is this a valid concern???

    No what you are doing is not fueling your body.....
    The last couple times I've stepped on the scale I've gained weight. Is this muscle that I'm putting on?? I'm 27/F, 5'6" and about 190lbs, so I've got plenty of fat to lose. I'm wondering what's up. Why is the scale going up??? I'm way under my BMR in just caloric intake, and then burning about 500 just working out, not to mention working in retail and being on my feet all day. What's up? Any ideas?? Help!!

    With this it is probably water weight esp if you have started new exercise. You do not gain muscle eating less then 1000 cals a day...you need to eat at a surplus for that.

    Ideas eat more food to fuel your body. I suspect your TDEE is about 2000-2300 (we have similar stats) -20% of that and eat those calories everyday.

    Make sure you eat your protien, if at 8:30 you are tired try to precook meals that you can warm up, or prepackaged healthy choices like skillet meals with lots of veggies.

    Keep in mind too that cooking a skinless boneless chicken breast takes about 20mins. Eggs and bacon are always good, smooties with added protien.
  • SezxyStef
    SezxyStef Posts: 15,268 Member
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    From what I heard, everybody is different. In 2012, I went from 205 to 169 in about 2 months by eating about 700 a day, lots of exercise. That sounds amazing but the weight came back on. Even odder, when I was at my heaviest of 238, I went down to 205 in about 1-2 months without too much exercise. It sounds illogical so do what works for you. I'm pretty muscular now so I have to eat 1700-2000 and burn about 200-500 to lose weight. I don't really like to track my success on MFP, I only joined because they had a calorie database. Just keep trying different things until you hit the jackpot. Good luck!!!

    Yah no there is not "different things to try"

    Eat at a reasonable deficet and you will lose weight.

    Exercise (cardio) for heart health and the ability to eat a bit more if you want

    Resistence training like weights to maintain LBM and gain strenght.
  • jkwolly
    jkwolly Posts: 3,049 Member
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    I figured out my TDEE is 2370, 20% below being 1896. This is pretty close to my BMR (1620). I've got my goal calories in the journal set for 1430 but at the moment I'm struggling to hit 1000, let alone 1200 or even close to my 1400 goal. Weird thing is that I'm not hungry at all. Normal?

    Eat more.

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