Constantly under 1200 calories :(

cbabe6377
cbabe6377 Posts: 13
edited September 24 in Food and Nutrition
I've been on this site for almost five weeks now, and have been right on track with losing weight. I've never calorie counted in my life, and since eating healthier I find I'm not getting enough daily calories. Also certainly not able to eat exercise calories back!! How can I up my caloric intake in a healthy way without out going over protein. My protein is constantly high!! It states to intake 45 and I'm usually over by double!

Replies

  • JennLifts
    JennLifts Posts: 1,913 Member
    Add some nuts, olive oil, find some recipes that are more calorically dense for the meal they pack ;)
  • warrenp
    warrenp Posts: 2
    Maybe try to cut out some of the dairy. I didn't realize how much protein was in milk and cheese until I started using this site. Good luck!
  • catcrazy
    catcrazy Posts: 1,740 Member
    Don't worry about protein, its set very low on here. Similarly don't worry about going over on fibre either. You can set your carb/fat/protein ratios yourself, a popular one is 40/30/30. Mine is set for 40//25/35

    Google "carb/fat/protein ratio for weight loss" and have a read
  • staceybyerly
    staceybyerly Posts: 10
    I'm having the same issues. Still losing about a lb. per week and am not hungry, so I'm not worrying too much about it. Maybe you're just eating "smarter" and filling up w/lean protein and high fiber. Are you hungry or not losing? If you answer yes to either one of those, I'd make adjustments.
  • christy_frank
    christy_frank Posts: 680 Member
    You WANT to go over in your protein. I do not know why they do not stress that here, but I actually upped my protein goal but cannot reach it. I try though.
  • ladyhawk00
    ladyhawk00 Posts: 2,457 Member
    Definitely need to increase intake. I looked at your diary and your protein isn't a problem. As mentioned, the protein goals are a bit low, so being over should not be an issue unless you have kidney problems.

    You need to increase healthy fats. Fish, natural oils (olive and canola), nuts (almonds, pistachios, walnuts) and avocados are sources of healthy fats. Oils are a great thing to include in many things - can use them for cooking, in salads, etc. Also might try making a good protein shake/bar part of every day. You can get in a lot of healthy cals with them (peanut butter, oil, eggs, dairy). The healthy fats are vital to many body systems.

    Also, try just increasing each meal/snack by 25-50 cals. It adds up.

    Keep working on it. :wink:
  • hearicomeseptember
    hearicomeseptember Posts: 3
    I am in the same boat as you are. Except I don't double my protein. I am always under my calorie goal, but am usually real close like 30-50 ponts. I joined on Feb. 7 2011 and have lost 7 pounds so far. So I guess as long as I am losing I am not going to be real concerned. I just try to get close to all the numbers without going over. Good luck!
  • cbabe6377
    cbabe6377 Posts: 13
    I'm not hungry at all! I have issues because I'm a very picky eater!!! I don't eat fish whatsoever.....or avocados...I eat almonds almost everyday. I was worried about my protein intake, but glad to hear it's low on here...I bought whey protein last week, but was afraid of using it since I'm always over...I can def add a protein shake with peanut butter and banana in it...that will help my calorie level a bit.
  • cbabe6377
    cbabe6377 Posts: 13
    I cut my 1% milk intake to one or two glasses a day...from like five or six!! I love milk!! I've cut out all soda, and now just drink water. I'm not a cheese person at all...unless it's a slice of zpizza. All organic cheese pizza one slice. Or a tiny bit of cheese on my chipotle chicken bowl no sour cream.
  • callipygianchronicle
    callipygianchronicle Posts: 811 Member
    There’s nothing wrong with being high in protein. The categories to watch out for are fat, sodium, and possibly sugar (depending on the source of your dietary sugar). Before you add anything in, make sure that you’re not actually coming up short because you’re forgetting to count things (butter and oil used for cooking, condiments, beverages, etc.).

    But looking at your diary, you have a decent calorie allotment of 1500+ most days, which is similar to my own. I’m not suggesting i’m an example of stellar eating, but scrolling through my diary might give you an idea as to how you can allot more calories throughout the day. I have a feeling you may thing this new meal plan is more restrictive than it actually is, and especially with your added exercise, you can eat more.

    I noticed on a few days you seem to only eat one meal of any size. Many people have success eating smaller meals spread out 5 to 6 times a day, which is something you might want to try, too (there are many benefits, including preventing you from skipping meals).
  • cbabe6377
    cbabe6377 Posts: 13
    I bake my chicken in oven without oil...but I guess I could use olive oil to cook it. I don't use condiments of any kind. I only drink one to two glasses of 1%milk and only water. I don't use butter at all....
  • cheangela
    cheangela Posts: 173
    Sweetie, it looks like you're doing great. CatCrazy is totally right, everyone has a different opinion on what ratio of calories works for them. If your body is happy and feeling satiated then don't question it, relish in the fact that you're not facing the struggles so many of us have. If you start craving fatty stuffs, start tossing your steamed broc in a little olive oil and add a wee bit of high-quality grated parmegiano stuffs. Just be careful to not over heat your olive oil, all of its benefits are negated by high temps. Don't worry, your super powered body-machine will holler if it's craving something. If you're that worried about it, MCT oil was a great addition to my smoothies (sounds odd, I know) and threw an extra few cals into the good old piehole.
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