Having a hard time eating all my calories on KETO

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Hi,

I'm new to KETO and to MFP. I am usually starving and craving on diets but amazingly this has not been the case on KETO. I am actually having a hard time eating my recommended caloric intake and hitting the high amounts of fat required. Has anyone else experienced this on KETO? Here is my plan but I often have 100-350 calories still to consume.

Net Calories Consumed* / Day 1,250 cal/day
Carbs / Day 16.0 g
Fat / Day 97.0 g
Protein / Day 78.0 g

Replies

  • FIT_Goat
    FIT_Goat Posts: 4,224 Member
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    Is there a particular reason your calories are so low? You have to be pretty tiny for 1200-ish calories to make sense. What is your estimated TDEE?

    I know you're saying you have a hard time eating that much, but you should probably be aiming even higher. Without seeing your diary and knowing exactly where you're falling short in calories, it is hard to offer specific advice.

    I guess you should consider adding more butter, cream, eggs, cheese, etc. in your meals.
  • blushingbride2bee
    blushingbride2bee Posts: 39 Member
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    I am only 5' 1" so that is probably why my calories are low. In MFP it says this should help me lose 1 lbs per week, so not too drastic. I'm not sure maybe because of the KETO type diet I am just not used to eating as much fat and dairy.
    What is TDEE?

    Thanks for replying! I am still trying to figure out how all the message boards work on MFP.
  • I_love_frogs
    I_love_frogs Posts: 340 Member
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    I used this site http://keto-calculator.ankerl.com/ to figure out my calories and ratios ...hope this helps a little bit!
  • FIT_Goat
    FIT_Goat Posts: 4,224 Member
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    TDEE is an estimate of how many calories you burn on a daily basis, after all activity and everything else is taken into account. Your numbers suggest that yours was around 1,750 calories. I don't give much credit to those sorts of calculations. I would suggest trying to eat at least 1500-1600 calories a day, at least at the start. After you have become adapted, if that amount of calories doesn't give you the losses you want, then consider lowering it.

    I tend to average about 300-500 more calories a day than the base formulas suggest that I should. More importantly, when you're making the change, the less stress you put on your body the better.
  • dsb188
    dsb188 Posts: 121 Member
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    I was at one point leaving big deficits in upwards of 600 and 1000 calories. Once I started eating more I started losing weight so much faster. As long as it isn't a massive amount you should be okay.

    I would say add some cheese, kielbasa, ground beef, BACON into your diet. Seriously for the first week I ate buffalo wings and ranch dressing everyday. Chicken wings are a good source too.

    Goodluck
  • Leonidas_meets_Spartacus
    Leonidas_meets_Spartacus Posts: 6,198 Member
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    Try eating more fat and forget what MFP says and even TDEE. They are all estimates which are not very accurate. Listen to your body . Fats are calorie dense, try adding coconut oil, butter or heavy cream to your diet.
  • blushingbride2bee
    blushingbride2bee Posts: 39 Member
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    Thanks for the advice everyone! I used the website you sent me (I_love_frogs ) and it calculated my TDEE kcal Base Metabolic Rate 1391 and then 1669 kcal total daily energy expenditure. So how much of a deficit do I need to lose 1 to 1.5 lbs per week?
    I usually try to eat the calories earned from exercise.
  • I_love_frogs
    I_love_frogs Posts: 340 Member
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    LOL honestly? No idea....I am new starting out too :)

    This was just linked on Reddit keto forums and it seemed really helpful in figuring out what the optimum ration of fats/pro/carbs should be for you.

    I'm just following what they recommend...and I am not really watching cals atm. I am more concerned with keeping my ratios in check, and at least eating my base metabolic rate. Calorie checking can always come later for me. My understanding from what I have read is that the fats will help to naturally get your body to not overeat so much by making you feel full etc. So I am just going by that .
  • busywaterbending
    busywaterbending Posts: 844 Member
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    you are doing fine. Just add some exercise for a deficit and be sure to start adding carbs in the last meal of the day by week 5.
  • Skoster1
    Skoster1 Posts: 134 Member
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    In your profile it says:
    I don't give advice unless asked.

    I think that's probably a wise policy.
  • crepes_
    crepes_ Posts: 583 Member
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    Increasing calories and fat can be difficult when you're not too hungry. Just have to make your foods more calorie and fat dense. Try full fat mayonnaise with some tuna topped with whole milk cheese. Almonds and macadamia nuts are very calorie dense and have great macro ratios. A spoonful of peanut butter (Peter Pan is the lowest carb I've found) or almond butter can help, too.

    If you drink coffee, try adding heavy cream. If you're feeling particularly like trying something new, there's also a bulletproof coffee. Look it up for tips. It's typically coffee with added fat in the form of butter or coconut oil. Sounds strange, but it's a frothy and delicious drink. It has to be blended and consumed relatively quickly otherwise it gets gross, haha.
  • suzettewhatever
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    Im totally new to keto but I noticed no one answered your question about deficit. A pound of loss can be roughly calculated as 3500 calories or 500 calories per day.

    You and I are roughly in the same boat. Im 5 feet tall, have 30ish lbs to lose and have a desk job. I am probably older than you, I am 47.

    My best advice is to not listen to those people telling you that your calorie goals are too little.
    Most people dont realize how little calories a small person needs. There is a big difference between a 5'6 woman and a 5'1" woman. We are NOT all alike.

    However this means your diet has to be very high quality to get all of your nutrients in. That can be really tough if you arent hungry. One thing to do is add fat bombs or bullettt proof coffee to your diet. This will help you get your calories closer. to your bmr.
    You arent hungry because you are using your own fat stores for fuel. Thats a good thing and just what you want.
  • blushingbride2bee
    blushingbride2bee Posts: 39 Member
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    Thanks for the advice. Yes, it is true my friends cringe at a 1200 cal diet but I am a lot smaller to start with. I am slowly getting the hang of Keto, this is week 5! I took the advice and I upped my calories to 1300 and it seems to be the magic number right now. I think I will slowly change calories down once my loss slows down. :)
  • kamaperry
    kamaperry Posts: 885 Member
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    I still count calories a little. Just to stay in check, but really if you are following LCHF, the calories will take care of themselves. Just make sure you are eating enough of what your body needs.