Clean eating, not enough calories

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Does anyone have any tips on how to get more calories in to a clean eating diet?
I basically eat lean protein, veggies, fruit, eggs/egg whites and sometimes almond milk and protein powder. Occasionally nut butters, oats, yogurt and bread.
I eat 4-6 meals a day and feel full and sometimes force myself to eat when I'm not hungry to get my calories up.
I generally get 1100-1300 a day and workout 3-5 days a week moderate intensity mix of weight training and cardio.
I am trying to lose the ~10lbs I gained after my wedding and its not coming off...I think I need more calories...
How do you get enough calories without feeling stuffed from so much low calorie food? There has got to be a trick.

Replies

  • Meerataila
    Meerataila Posts: 1,885 Member
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    Homemade trail-mix is a quick way to get enough calories (in my case often more than enough). Just throw some raisins, raw nuts, and maybe your choice of berries in a bag with a dash of salt. But weigh them first, or you might end up with the opposite problem.
  • spoiledpuppies
    spoiledpuppies Posts: 675 Member
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    It sounds like you might already be eating more than you think. I'm not a believer in the idea that you're not losing because you're not eating *enough*. Try cutting calories, and you'll probably lose the weight.
  • Sued0nim
    Sued0nim Posts: 17,456 Member
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    ^^^ what she said

    Do you weigh everything and log everything ?
  • trogalicious
    trogalicious Posts: 4,584 Member
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    Does anyone have any tips on how to get more calories in to a clean eating diet?
    I basically eat lean protein, veggies, fruit, eggs/egg whites and sometimes almond milk and protein powder. Occasionally nut butters, oats, yogurt and bread.
    I eat 4-6 meals a day and feel full and sometimes force myself to eat when I'm not hungry to get my calories up.
    I generally get 1100-1300 a day and workout 3-5 days a week moderate intensity mix of weight training and cardio.
    I am trying to lose the ~10lbs I gained after my wedding and its not coming off...I think I need more calories...
    How do you get enough calories without feeling stuffed from so much low calorie food? There has got to be a trick.
    1. If you're not losing, you're not at a calorie deficit.
    2. If you're not accurately weighing your food, you may be eating more than you think.
    3. If you don't wanna feel full of "low calorie food" then just eat the full fat non-"diet" variants.
    4. Doesn't matter if you eat 33 meals a day or 2, if you're eating too much.. you won't lose.
    5. There aren't tricks. There's diligence, science, math, and patience.
  • ChelseaWelseyKins
    ChelseaWelseyKins Posts: 272 Member
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    It sounds like you might already be eating more than you think. I'm not a believer in the idea that you're not losing because you're not eating *enough*. Try cutting calories, and you'll probably lose the weight.



    If she's really already at 1100-1300 a day she DOESN'T need to CUT calories.
    Add some nuts and trail mixes into your daily intake, but like above, WEIGH them. Gradually increase calories and see if you notice a change. If not, you might just need some patience. If you only have to lose 10lbs, odds are it's going to be hard to lose it. The fitter you are, the harder it is to lose weight. Give it time and keep working out and eating right. Eventually it should come off.
  • nomeejerome
    nomeejerome Posts: 2,616 Member
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    Does anyone have any tips on how to get more calories in to a clean eating diet?
    I basically eat lean protein, veggies, fruit, eggs/egg whites and sometimes almond milk and protein powder. Occasionally nut butters, oats, yogurt and bread.
    I eat 4-6 meals a day and feel full and sometimes force myself to eat when I'm not hungry to get my calories up.
    I generally get 1100-1300 a day and workout 3-5 days a week moderate intensity mix of weight training and cardio.
    I am trying to lose the ~10lbs I gained after my wedding and its not coming off...I think I need more calories...
    How do you get enough calories without feeling stuffed from so much low calorie food? There has got to be a trick.
    1. If you're not losing, you're not at a calorie deficit.
    2. If you're not accurately weighing your food, you may be eating more than you think.
    3. If you don't wanna feel full of "low calorie food" then just eat the full fat non-"diet" variants.
    4. Doesn't matter if you eat 33 meals a day or 2, if you're eating too much.. you won't lose.
    5. There aren't tricks. There's diligence, science, math, and patience.

    this
  • _Zardoz_
    _Zardoz_ Posts: 3,987 Member
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    It sounds like you might already be eating more than you think. I'm not a believer in the idea that you're not losing because you're not eating *enough*. Try cutting calories, and you'll probably lose the weight.



    If she's really already at 1100-1300 a day she DOESN'T need to CUT calories.
    Add some nuts and trail mixes into your daily intake, but like above, WEIGH them. Gradually increase calories and see if you notice a change. If not, you might just need some patience. If you only have to lose 10lbs, odds are it's going to be hard to lose it. The fitter you are, the harder it is to lose weight. Give it time and keep working out and eating right. Eventually it should come off.
    Ypu missed the highlighted bit. She is unlikely to be actually eating 1100-1300 calories. She is probably not weighing and measuring her food accurately
  • ajax041813
    ajax041813 Posts: 136 Member
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    I would try adding plenty of healthy fats to your diet. Avocados, great source of healthy fat, they also have protein and can be high in calories. You can add it to a smoothie and split it up to drink a little through out the day. Sometimes I cut one in half, and give my fiancée and I basically a quarter of an avocado on whatever we are eating. I try to use the other half at the next meal for us as it does turn brown, doesn't affect the taste, and I haven't found a great way of preventing the brown from happening. I've tried lemon juice and apple cider vinegar to no avail. The other healthy fats I recommend are olive oil as salad dressing, or drizzled on top of anything really. Coconut oil for cooking anything in, I get refined so it doesn't taste like coconut.

    The reason I recommend healthy fats, is you will easily be able to up calories if that is your goal AND they satiate your appetite. Ease into adding them as your body will need time to adjust. This has worked wonders for me. Hope this helps you!
  • DeguelloTex
    DeguelloTex Posts: 6,652 Member
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    I am trying to lose the ~10lbs I gained after my wedding and its not coming off...I think I need more calories...
    When you can't save enough money, do you think you need to spend more in order to do so?

    As above, if you're not losing, you're not at a deficit.
  • zoeysasha37
    zoeysasha37 Posts: 7,088 Member
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    If your not losing, your not eating at a deficit. Regardless if your eating clean or not. Tighten up on your weighing and measuring and see how it goes.
  • geebusuk
    geebusuk Posts: 3,348 Member
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    Your diary is closed, so we can't get an idea of what you do it.
    We'd also need to know what you define as 'clean' to give a good answer.

    I'd say; icecream to add calories.

    If you wouldn't define ice cream as 'clean', how about if you make it yourself?
  • supermodelchic
    supermodelchic Posts: 550 Member
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    If you want help with your meals you should open your diary ,so we can see what your consuming , I eat pretty clean meals check out my meals in the past week , you can see how I get my calorie's:smile:
  • teabee17587
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    i have read your post and a few others but from what im getting you are eating to much without realising or you are messuering your food and are eating too little so in that case you should swap oats for some muesli which is dense in calories and dont worry about making it your self because it is pretty close to natural anyways

    im also going to take a random shot in the air and say that you haven't been at the diet long enought to see any weight loss and if you keep up what you are doing for a few more weeks everything should work out
  • albayin
    albayin Posts: 2,524 Member
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    in for all black and white science...
  • wood385
    wood385 Posts: 9 Member
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    I measure pretty much everything using measuring cups, bowls, spoons... except meat.
    I am planning on purchasing a food scale in the very near future.
    The size of a deck of cards=4oz meat is what I've been doing. Or if its a 20oz package I split it into 4-5 portions. I count out individual almonds, baby carrots, celery sticks... But maybe a food scale would be the answer.
  • trogalicious
    trogalicious Posts: 4,584 Member
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    I measure pretty much everything using measuring cups, bowls, spoons... except meat.
    I am planning on purchasing a food scale in the very near future.
    The size of a deck of cards=4oz meat is what I've been doing. Or if its a 20oz package I split it into 4-5 portions. I count out individual almonds, baby carrots, celery sticks... But maybe a food scale would be the answer.
    not saying that it's the answer, but it's gonna give you a MUCH clearer picture of what you're actually eating.

    If nothing else, weigh and log your meal like you normally do. Use cups, bowls, spoons, whatever. Then log the same meal using a scale. Check for the differences.
  • Sued0nim
    Sued0nim Posts: 17,456 Member
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    I measure pretty much everything using measuring cups, bowls, spoons... except meat.
    I am planning on purchasing a food scale in the very near future.
    The size of a deck of cards=4oz meat is what I've been doing. Or if its a 20oz package I split it into 4-5 portions. I count out individual almonds, baby carrots, celery sticks... But maybe a food scale would be the answer.

    Yes you need a food scale because measuring by volume is notoriously inaccurate - there's a video somewhere about how inaccurate but you're talking potentially 100s of calories out

    Good luck