Making up for "cheating"

Because it's a disordered way of thinking about food.

Precisely.

This is not the way to form and maintain a healthy relationship with food. You're punishing yourself now by trying to adhere to a completely unrealistic 900 calorie budget.

The best thing to do, from a mental standpoint, is leave this in the rear view mirror. That is how you move on, and this is the best way to deal with any "setback".

The next-best thing, if it really bothers you, is to add a bit of exercise instead. Go for a long walk today and tomorrow. Walk for an hour. Burn some extra calories that maybe you would not have.

But for heaven's sake, don't punish yourself. Restricting yourself to an unrealistic budget like 900 calories is only going to push you further into binge eating land. And you don't want to go there.

Huh, people really don't want to answer your question! When I'm cutting back for a few days I mostly just eat healthy sandwiches - for example, 2 slices of 35 calorie potato bread, 3 oz deli chicken, 15 grams miracle whip, maybe some mustard. Ends up at around 200 calories, and I'll have around 4 of those with a few big portions of vegetables. That way I'm still eating all day, just nice high protein, very low calorie food

Edit because so many typos

I understand what you mean, but for me I can't stand eating under 1600 for more than 2 or 3 days. I like food and when I do that for so long it starts to feel overly restrictive and I'm actually more likely to give in, versus just 2 days where it's all or nothing. I'm good at doing it and getting it over with and then returning to normal eating.

I'm not your friend. I've been doing this since I started dieting. I've just never had a cheat this big. The only difference is that I have a smaller number to work with.

ETA : I never binge and restrict. I restrict and continue eating normal when done. that's the difference.

Ok, here's the problem. You say you can't handle eating at a deficit long term, and that you have a history of going over your calories after a few days of restriction and then cutting back drastically to make up for it. That is a disordered eating pattern, not to be confused with an eating disorder.

So here's my advice - log this weekend and move on. Don't drastically restrict your calories to "make up for it." Instead, reduce your calorie deficit to something that is manageable for you, and eat that higher calorie goal every day, even if it means the weight comes off more slowly. Work your favorite foods into your calorie goal and get out of this "cheating" mentality. If you have a day when you go over, then log it and move on. Those days happen, and are going to happen when you transition to maintenance. It's only a problem when it stops being an occasional thing and becomes an all-the-time thing. You're not going to gain weight eating over your calorie goal occasionally, just like you don't lose weight because you had a salad for lunch one day.

I understand what you mean, but for me I can't stand eating under 1600 for more than 2 or 3 days. I like food and when I do that for so long it starts to feel overly restrictive and I'm actually more likely to give in, versus just 2 days where it's all or nothing. I'm good at doing it and getting it over with and then returning to normal eating.

I'm not your friend. I've been doing this since I started dieting. I've just never had a cheat this big. The only difference is that I have a smaller number to work with.

ETA : I never binge and restrict. I restrict and continue eating normal when done. that's the difference.

Ok, here's the problem. You say you can't handle eating at a deficit long term, and that you have a history of going over your calories after a few days of restriction and then cutting back drastically to make up for it. That is a disordered eating pattern, not to be confused with an eating disorder.

Where exactly did I say that??? I said I eat restricted for a few days AFTER overeating, and then I eat NORMALLY after restricting. :-/ By "give in" I mean I leave the surplus as is and just eat normal without ever working it off (which is what got me fat in the first place). I don't mean I give in and eat like a bazillion calories.

You know what, I'm not going to fight with you about this. It's not worth my time. If you read the paragraph I wrote below the one you quoted above, I provided suggestions that might help you in the future. If you want to consider the suggestions, fine, if you don't, that's fine, too. I really don't care. Have a good weekend.

:-/ ...

I didn't realize eating lighter for a few days after a fun weekend is an eating disorder. Okay then.

It's not an eating disorder at all...some people just love to be judgmental. If you oopsied...then you oopsied, it happens, and going light for a couple days is fine if that is what works for *you*.

10 large Mission tortilla chips and some salsa is under 200 calories

Spinach and parmesan cheese is very filling and very low cal....parmesan has 24 cals per TBSP (the brand I have anyway) and spinach is 7 cals per cup

eggo nutri-grain waffles are tasty and those are 140 calories for 2 of them

water...water and more water

Oh and green tea (plain)

chicken breast, plain...

1/2 C. cottage cheese and some pineapple...etc

My normal calorie intake is 800-900 a day, period...I really don't care what people say about "thou shalt not eat below 1200 calories"....my bohonkus! I eat 1200 cals and I gain weight. I eat 900 cals and I lose weight.

What works for YOU (if you're consuming the nutrients *your* particular body needs)....is what you should do.

No two people are alike...and placing some umbrella over *everyone* who wants to lose weight...is ridiculous.

Ok so you want low calorie meals...

Breakfast - egg white omelet with veggies, or plain oatmeal
Lunch and dinner - fish or chicken breast with veggies, or egg white omelet
Snack - plain Greek yogurt with fruit

Instead of scaling back on food, why don't you maybe exercise more the next 2 days? Also, nobody is perfect. You're not going to eat perfect everyday. Leave it be and continue eating your daily calories. It's a new day. You don't punish your body for the past.

Instead of scaling back on food, why don't you maybe exercise more the next 2 days? Also, nobody is perfect. You're not going to eat perfect everyday. Leave it be and continue eating your daily calories. It's a new day. You don't punish your body for the past.

But isn't exercising more "punishing your body"? It's essentially creating the deficit in a different way

Given how you say you eat, I'd drop the snacks or just have veggies instead of your usual.

For me I'd probably switch out some starches and fruit for extra veggies. Meat plus veggies is really filling and low calorie. Wouldn't work if you are sensitive to cutting carbs or have some big workouts planned (which obviously is not advisable on such low cals), but the easiest way for me to cut cals. I don't think it's a big deal for a couple of days if you don't have a binge/restrict thing and aren't seeing it as self punishment.

I find that on days where I have surprise calories left at the end, I've eaten a lot of lean protein, greek yogurt, cottage cheese, beef jerky. I've found I'm quite the obligate carnivore and any type of protein is extremely filling for me. If I eat a lot of carbs I just get hungrier faster. So a day where I am trying to go a little leaner, I will aim at protein protein protein.

Oh, for gosh sakes - the OP just asked for a simple 900-calorie menu. It's a totally reasonable request on a weight-loss website, for a petite woman's who's just overindulged.

(Personally, I maintain at 1600, and lose slowly at 1200 - so 900 is not particularly extreme)

Anyway, to answer your question - here's a 950 calorie day with about 60 grams of protein. I put it as a "sample menu" on tomorrow's food log. You can see it here:
http://www.myfitnesspal.com/food/diary/PlumpKitten?date=2014-09-03

Breakfast - egg white & veggie omelet, wheat toast, coffee with skim milk
Lunch - chicken breast & green salad
Dinner - tofu & veggie stir-fry & rice

It's lean, but not exactly starvation.
If you're hungry but still want to maintain those levels, throw in a a piece of fruit / yogurt - and then go for a run.
Good luck!

Oh, for gosh sakes - the OP just asked for a simple 900-calorie menu. It's a totally reasonable request on a weight-loss website, for a petite woman's who's just overindulged.

:yawn: