enough calories?

bmorebatman
bmorebatman Posts: 50 Member
edited September 23 in Health and Weight Loss
hey ya'll. so i'm pretty new here :) and have a question...
i have only really taking advantage of this site for about a week, and i'm noticing i'm finding it kind of difficult to reach my daily calorie goals as outlined by mfp *especially* on days i exercise. I am set at 1200 cal a day. I'm definitely being more conscious of what i am eating (i look back to the few days i logged in about a month back, and i ate less food, but mostly crap) and i drink a lot of water, and i haven't ever felt hungry.
so far i've been burning between 200-300 calories a day, and so that sets my intake to around 1400-1500. i've brought myself within a hundred calories of that everyday this week, but i am eating when i'm not hungry in the evening to do so. i'm worried about slowing down my metabolism! today for example, i burning 250 this morning, and now its 11pm and i am still 400 calories away from my goal!
i feel really silly posting this! i just don't want to load up when i'm not hungry...

Replies

  • alyssa83202
    alyssa83202 Posts: 334
    watching.
  • NightOwl1
    NightOwl1 Posts: 881 Member
    Try your best to get as close to your goal as possible. If you are 400 calories below a day here or there, it's not the end of the world. But do realize that consistently taking in less than 1200 net calories will actually be the thing that slows your metabolism, not eating at night.
  • thecanface
    thecanface Posts: 1,180 Member
    i am going through the same thing, except i am some times 900 calories under! i cant get myself to eat when i am not hungry, and when i am hungry i eat alot of veggies so the calories dont add up quick enough, and on top of that i burn 300 to 400 calories a day, when i am eating around 700 calories. any answers would help!
  • CineMachine
    CineMachine Posts: 8 Member
    I feel the same way! After dinner.. before bed, I have to mow down on and force something down to get within 150 - 200 calories of my 1200 goal!

    Eat some more snacks throughout the day - cereal is a good snack before bed!
  • bmorebatman
    bmorebatman Posts: 50 Member
    Re NightOwl1 --- it's not the eating at night slowing down my metabolism i'm worried about, its the caloric intake.
    Re thecanface --- that is definitely the same thing i'm doing!

    i feel so much better than i did even three weeks ago with this simple change, but i am kind of worried its unhealthy in the opposite direction. i am meeting (or closer to) more of my nutrient goals, and not a zillion over my carbs which was the old way. balance?
  • Nixb19
    Nixb19 Posts: 22 Member
    Try your best to eat those cals, maybe even plan your meals for it to give you that extra push or sometimes maybe treat yourself to a jamba juice or starbucks coffee. I know it's hard, I have a difficult time myself, I actually found eating like a zone bar helps to fill in calories (they are generally 180-220cals each) plus they actually taste good. Mint Chocolate Dark Chocolate are the best. Like the gentlemen said, eating under your net cals will eventually turn into your body going into starvation mode and slowing your metabolism. You can do it :)
  • Nixb19
    Nixb19 Posts: 22 Member
    You won't slow your metabolism down by not eating enough calories. If you eat too many and don't exercise you will and if you don't eat enough you will. I would know, I have hypothyroidism and when I was diagnosed with it, I was eating 900 cals a day and exercising.
  • mjd0109
    mjd0109 Posts: 152
    You could always get some of your calories from juice, or make simple changes to what you eat. For example, if you make shakes you could throw in a couple tablespoons of Greek yogurt or even eat some as a snack. Greek yogurt is about 110 calories a cup and has a lot of protein and low in sugar. Nuts are also calorie packed and good for you, maybe sprinkle some on a fruit salad! Slight changes to each meal will make a big difference.
  • Jonya1271
    Jonya1271 Posts: 8 Member
    Maybe you should change your lifestyle. Like when it asks if you are sedentary, lightly active or moderately active and all that, maybe you clicked on a setting that's not the most accurate one, so it gave you too many calories. Or maybe the choice of what your goal is isn't right, as far as when it asks you if you want to gain a pound a week, or gain a half pound a week, or stay your same weight, or lose a pound etc. It's just a thought. I'm new to this too, so I'm still learning all of the bells and whistles. But that was one thing I was not really clear on. There are a few things on here that maybe could have been explained better. Another thing I have been kind of fuzzy on is the only cardio exercise I've put on here so far, which is the treadmill. The setting that they have for "treadmill" is a very general one. It doesn't ask how fast you are going, or whether it's uphill or flat, just how long you were on it. The calories this thing gives me for doing the time I've been on is considerably more than the treadmill itself says I've burned. So I have to look to see if there is a more accurate choice I can pick. Let me know if this helps. :smile:
  • NoAdditives
    NoAdditives Posts: 4,251 Member
    When I started here I was in starvation mode. I was only getting 400-700 calories a day, depending on exercise. When I started with a goal of losing 1 pound per week I had a daily calorie goal of about 1450, with exercise putting me around 500 calories over that. It was difficult to eat 2-3 times the amount of food I'd been eating. I was used to eating so little that I just wasn't hungry. But, I knew that I needed to eat more if I wanted to be healthy. Over the first week I made myself eat more. I ate more often, added in a little more food to each meal, whatever I had to do in order to meet my calorie goal. And after that first week my appetite returned and it's been easy for me to eat enough.

    So. Sometimes, you just have to make yourself eat a few more bites or squeeze in another snack. Most people aren't supposed to force themselves to eat, it sets up bad habits. But, for those who need to re-train their bodies, it's necessary. Don't make yourself feel sick from being too full, but do add in a little more food where you can. Pretty soon your body will adjust and eating the right amount of food will feel normal.
  • Nixb19
    Nixb19 Posts: 22 Member
    The setting that they have for "treadmill" is a very general one. It doesn't ask how fast you are going, or whether it's uphill or flat, just how long you were on it. The calories this thing gives me for doing the time I've been on is considerably more than the treadmill itself says I've burned. So I have to look to see if there is a more accurate choice I can pick.

    Try what I do: Add your own exercising info on the site. I started running on the treadmill and I actually will post to my cardio the cals the tread tells me I burn instead of what the computer says.
  • NoAdditives
    NoAdditives Posts: 4,251 Member
    You won't slow your metabolism down by not eating enough calories. If you eat too many and don't exercise you will and if you don't eat enough you will. I would know, I have hypothyroidism and when I was diagnosed with it, I was eating 900 cals a day and exercising.

    A. You contradicted yourself, so your meaning isn't clear: "You won't slow your metabolism down by not eating enough calories." " if you don't eat enough you will."

    And B. Yes, your metabolism will slow down if you don't eat enough. When your body doesn't have enough calories to burn it starts to conserve energy wherever it can. It slows organ function (which is why long-term starvation causes permanent organ damage), digestion slows so your body can get the most nutrition out of the food you do eat (just like during pregnancy), and it stops burning fat.
  • TrainerRobin
    TrainerRobin Posts: 509 Member
    i am going through the same thing, except i am some times 900 calories under! i cant get myself to eat when i am not hungry, and when i am hungry i eat alot of veggies so the calories dont add up quick enough, and on top of that i burn 300 to 400 calories a day, when i am eating around 700 calories. any answers would help!

    Peanut butter, almond butter, nuts, avocados, beans (e.g., kidney, etc. on salads). That'll help.
  • TrainerRobin
    TrainerRobin Posts: 509 Member
    You could always get some of your calories from juice, or make simple changes to what you eat. For example, if you make shakes you could throw in a couple tablespoons of Greek yogurt or even eat some as a snack. Greek yogurt is about 110 calories a cup and has a lot of protein and low in sugar. Nuts are also calorie packed and good for you, maybe sprinkle some on a fruit salad! Slight changes to each meal will make a big difference.

    Good advice, too!

    :)
  • sey930
    sey930 Posts: 6
    I dont understand why 1200 is the magic number. If we are all different sizes why would we all have the same absolute minimum requirement?
  • nsquire67
    nsquire67 Posts: 2 Member
    well i feel the same as you. my calorie goal is also 1200. i had two vigorous workouts today which gave me an additional 800 plus calories. I ended the day with an excess of 800 calories and I find myself eating just to use up calories. should I not be doing this?????
  • Nixb19
    Nixb19 Posts: 22 Member
    You won't slow your metabolism down by not eating enough calories. If you eat too many and don't exercise you will and if you don't eat enough you will. I would know, I have hypothyroidism and when I was diagnosed with it, I was eating 900 cals a day and exercising.

    A. You contradicted yourself, so your meaning isn't clear: "You won't slow your metabolism down by not eating enough calories." " if you don't eat enough you will."

    And B. Yes, your metabolism will slow down if you don't eat enough. When your body doesn't have enough calories to burn it starts to conserve energy wherever it can. It slows organ function (which is why long-term starvation causes permanent organ damage), digestion slows so your body can get the most nutrition out of the food you do eat (just like during pregnancy), and it stops burning fat.

    I saw that mistype. I think I meant to say you won't slow your metabolism down by eating the burned cals. cause she was saying that she was afraid that the calorie intake based of what she burned would slow it.

    And yes, I know it'll slow down, that's how I ended up with hypothyroidism (or so says the dr :-/)
  • bmorebatman
    bmorebatman Posts: 50 Member
    This is great guys!
    So how about a part B to the question...
    Do I have to/should I be eating back my exercise calories if the food calories for the day = 1200
  • afteil
    afteil Posts: 162 Member
    1200 calories per day is the supposed minimum that you should eat. After you workout on this site it tells you to eat back the calories saying that you "earned" that many by working out. However, if your goal is to lose weight, then eating back the calories that you just burned seems counterproductive. As long as you are getting the vitamins that your body needs and are eating around 1200 then you should be fine. The biggest thing you need to watch out for is your protein intake, because your body needs protein to help the muscles repair from the workout, and depending on the types of foods you eat (if you dont eat a lot of meat/animal products and dont mix enough of your veggies with the proper grains to make complete proteins) then your body wont heal the muscles as fast and can ultimately work against you.
  • slansdown
    slansdown Posts: 94
    These are the posts that I do not understand. How did people who don't know how to eat 1200 calories in a day get overweight? I am not in judgement, but in pure curiosity. To gain weight, a person would have to eat extra (like 2200+) every day. If you are really struggling to eat 1200 calories per day and that is how you have always been, and you are overweight, I think a doctor's visit is in order.
  • afteil
    afteil Posts: 162 Member
    A lot of people cut seriously back on calories when they start recording it. If your goal is to eat healthier and you have a complete diet change when you start losing weight, and you start recording it, then it can be harder for you to get that 1200. Like, before joining the site and making a goal to lose weight you could be eating whatever and not realizing how bad it is, but after choosing to lose weight and joining a site like this to track your calories, it puts a lot in perspective and makes you stop eating a lot of the bad things that you were previously eating.
    So *now that shes joined the site* she might be having trouble, but before she joined you dont know what kind of food she ate or whether she was always struggling with keeping her calories up.

    Edit: that also doesnt account for the other reasons for gaining weight, like inactivity, stress, having children, etc
  • bmorebatman
    bmorebatman Posts: 50 Member
    A lot of people cut seriously back on calories when they start recording it. If your goal is to eat healthier and you have a complete diet change when you start losing weight, and you start recording it, then it can be harder for you to get that 1200. Like, before joining the site and making a goal to lose weight you could be eating whatever and not realizing how bad it is, but after choosing to lose weight and joining a site like this to track your calories, it puts a lot in perspective and makes you stop eating a lot of the bad things that you were previously eating.
    So *now that shes joined the site* she might be having trouble, but before she joined you dont know what kind of food she ate or whether she was always struggling with keeping her calories up.

    Edit: that also doesnt account for the other reasons for gaining weight, like inactivity, stress, having children, etc

    this is true for me. i recorded for a few days before... about a month ago. i ate a whole lot less food throughout the day but it was a ton of crap and i ended up +300-500 over my goal "limit"... (and i wasn't even being completely honest with the diary). i am trying to pay real attention to actual portion sizes, which has been making the huge difference for me, knowing what i am actually supposed to eat, and then realizing that i am actually full when i finish that. rather than filling my bowl and mindlessly eating until its empty. i'd also eat "family style" with my boyfriend a lot and race-eat to make sure "i got my share" and end up so full i was sick and not even realize it.
    my weight loss history has definitely been a pattern of extreme cut backs (i'm only going to eat chicken noodle soup and green beans today! or i'm only going to eat 10 of my ww points today!... like if some is good, more must be better!) and then periods of really pay no attention to it at all, 30 lbs later...
    i also stopped drinking a year ago, and in this year i have dropped 15 lb simply without the alcohol in my diet. no other changes at all. so that is the momentum i am starting with. and while i am bmi-wise overweight, my main goal is not to be a skinnyminime, it is to repair my body. i really don't want to start off on the wrong foot by going backwards for my metabolism when i'm trying to do right by it. :smile:
  • Nixb19
    Nixb19 Posts: 22 Member
    These are the posts that I do not understand. How did people who don't know how to eat 1200 calories in a day get overweight? I am not in judgement, but in pure curiosity. To gain weight, a person would have to eat extra (like 2200+) every day. If you are really struggling to eat 1200 calories per day and that is how you have always been, and you are overweight, I think a doctor's visit is in order.


    For some people, there is a medical condition called Hypothyroidism (there is also hyperthyroid), basically, your thyroid glands stop producing the hormones needed to produce metabolism. So, if you don't see a dr and get it checked out, it doesn't matter how much or how little you eat and/or exercise your body will just store it. Before I had got onto my thyroid pill, I went from 170 pounds to 218 in just a few months. I was eating 900-1200 calories a day and exercising as well (mind you not eating those cals back). I also never ate fast food during that time either. But I do agree, if a person can't lose weight off 1200 cals or even 1500, and instead gains, going to the dr is the first thing.
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