NET Calories and Exercise = Lots of food

spackham
spackham Posts: 252 Member
edited September 24 in Motivation and Support
Does anyone else on here struggle with having to eat enough calories on days you exercise? Even mentally, it is so hard for me because I worry, "What if my actual calorie burn is lower than it says?" or "What if I go out to dinner and will need those extra calories at night?" Sometimes my net is 500-800. Not always but still not good. My nutritionist said that I should not eat under 1000 net if I exercise that day and if I don't exercise, not under 1200. I am so worried about eating too much that I don't eat enough. Now I am at a plateau and it's all my own fault.

Replies

  • in_it_2_win_it
    in_it_2_win_it Posts: 144
    kinda on the same boat
  • erickirb
    erickirb Posts: 12,294 Member
    Buy a HRM to calculate calories burned more accurately.
  • ski3r4life
    ski3r4life Posts: 206
    I haven't hit a plateau yet, but I just started. Today I went running for 80+ minutes, and I ate only 1300 calories today... Net calories is 500 today... but I am not hungry!?? And don't WANT food. Is it ever good to force feed yourself???
  • ski3r4life
    ski3r4life Posts: 206
    That is an excellent suggestion, and that is something I should do myself!
  • Nolextreme
    Nolextreme Posts: 9 Member
    Are you wearing a HRM to get a more accurate count of how many calories you are actually burning?



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  • roxie0920
    roxie0920 Posts: 41
    When I need to get in some calories and I don't want to eat a lot, I have a serving of Blue Diamond Almonds. They have a wide variety of flavors and one serving (about 26 nuts) packs nearly 200 calories! Yes, they are high in fat, but let's not forget that it's good fat! My favorite flavors are Hanabanero BBQ and Vanilla Bean.
  • AHealthierRhonda
    AHealthierRhonda Posts: 881 Member
    I eat when i am hungry and try to choose wisely. I exercise at night so usually I have a bowl of cereal afterwards or sometimes I splurge and have ice cream. I never eat all the cals I burn. My daily allowance is 1350. I usually eat around 1250 a day. If I exercise I might eat as much as 1390. I just go with what my body tells me and amke the right choices, like I said.
  • Cori615
    Cori615 Posts: 100
    What i sometimes do is eat half of my exercise calories just in case
  • erickirb
    erickirb Posts: 12,294 Member
    I haven't hit a plateau yet, but I just started. Today I went running for 80+ minutes, and I ate only 1300 calories today... Net calories is 500 today... but I am not hungry!?? And don't WANT food. Is it ever good to force feed yourself???

    Don't force feed yourself, just make different food choices that are higher in calories. Higher % fat milk products, add olive oil to soups and sauces. Add Avocado to salads and sandwiches. eat full fat or higher fat yogurt, cheese, salad dressings etc. have a glass of juice in place of 1 glass of water. nuts, seeds and dehydrated fruit make great snacks.

    You don't have to eat more food to ingest more caloires.
  • sauza
    sauza Posts: 159 Member
    Oh man you have got to eat. Not only will your metabolism slow down if you don't, there comes a time when after enough starvation your muscles, for lack of a better term, deteriorate. I am shocked at the decline of my physique due to calorie deprivation. Believe me it was not intentional. I flipped out over a few pounds and started working out even harder than usual while not increasing the calories. Not only did I end up fat. I have ended up sloppy and weak and unhealthy. I used to be a personal trainer, now I need one.

    Not to say force yourself to eat when you are not hungry, I am always under the suggested amount because I can't pack anymore in, BUT I don't leave myself weak or hungry.
  • ladyhawk00
    ladyhawk00 Posts: 2,457 Member
    One option people don't think of often enough is: Cut back on your burns. I'm not saying don't exercise. But if you're having a hard time eating enough, burn less. Gradually increase intake (just 25-50 cals more per meal/snack adds up) and increase burns. If you aren't used to eating a lot (of healthy food), you need to build up to it.

    Simply put, if you can't eat enough to fuel your burns, you're burning too much and your body will rebel. Slow down and work into it gradually.
  • amyrrobinson
    amyrrobinson Posts: 5
    I was over-estimating the number of calories I burned. I went and purchased a Heart Rate Monitor (HRM) that allowed me to put in my age, weight, height, and gender. Even knowing what I actually burn, I am only eating about 1200-1400 BEFORE working out. Which means I'm in the same position you are. I'm actually netting less than 1000 calories a day. There are times I feel like all I'm doing is eating just to try and hit my 'number'. There are days, when I seriously want to eat more. But always in the back of my mind I'm worried about not having enough of a deficit to lose my weight. I worry too about not getting enough, but even after a year, have not found what the balance is between eating enough and still having a 3500 calorie deficit at the end of the week. There are weeks my body does whatever it wants even though I did, mathematically, what I was supposed to do. I know this doesn't really help too much, but you aren't alone.

    As for that lovely plateau, try tricking your body for a week. Eat a little more, work out a little less, or change your workout. Maybe even go a few days without working out. It might help shock the body into burning again. I have to do this every few months. And I have to switch my workouts up or my body gets use to them.
  • meggonkgonk
    meggonkgonk Posts: 2,066 Member
    I'm looking at your profile and if you have lost 22lbs since december, you are proly not at a true 'plateau' - which can last months. 22 lbs is a little over 7 lbs each month- on the higher end of healthy pace- you body is likely recovering from such a dramatic change. I agree with getting an HRM if you are burning loads- I really only get up near 1000 on my long run days- most workouts for me are 100-500 cals.

    As for the poster on "force feeding" you should incorporate more calorie dense foods into your diet. Especially when you are eating a calorically restrictive diet, your body will stop sending hungry messages to you, assuming they will be ignored/inconvenient, so its not always enough to just eat when you are hungry.

    For anyone who does workout at night- remember to up your cals throughout the day so you dont have to eat ALL of your exercise cals back at once.
  • erickirb
    erickirb Posts: 12,294 Member
    I was over-estimating the number of calories I burned. I went and purchased a Heart Rate Monitor (HRM) that allowed me to put in my age, weight, height, and gender. Even knowing what I actually burn, I am only eating about 1200-1400 BEFORE working out. Which means I'm in the same position you are. I'm actually netting less than 1000 calories a day. There are times I feel like all I'm doing is eating just to try and hit my 'number'. There are days, when I seriously want to eat more. But always in the back of my mind I'm worried about not having enough of a deficit to lose my weight. I worry too about not getting enough, but even after a year, have not found what the balance is between eating enough and still having a 3500 calorie deficit at the end of the week. There are weeks my body does whatever it wants even though I did, mathematically, what I was supposed to do. I know this doesn't really help too much, but you aren't alone.

    As for that lovely plateau, try tricking your body for a week. Eat a little more, work out a little less, or change your workout. Maybe even go a few days without working out. It might help shock the body into burning again. I have to do this every few months. And I have to switch my workouts up or my body gets use to them.

    You don't have to have a 3500/week deficit maybe aim for 1800-2500 instead. Slow and steady wins the race.
  • meggonkgonk
    meggonkgonk Posts: 2,066 Member
    One option people don't think of often enough is: Cut back on your burns. I'm not saying don't exercise. But if you're having a hard time eating enough, burn less. Gradually increase intake (just 25-50 cals more per meal/snack adds up) and increase burns. If you aren't used to eating a lot (of healthy food), you need to build up to it.

    Simply put, if you can't eat enough to fuel your burns, you're burning too much and your body will rebel. Slow down and work into it gradually.

    *high five*
  • marianeo
    marianeo Posts: 161 Member
    I was in the same boat! I couldn't imagine eating my full calorie allowance because I thought the less calories I eat, the more weight I lose right? wrong! I reached a plateau 3 weeks in and couldn't figure out why. I was eating less calories than I was supposed to, and you know the deal - less calories = more weight loss! I read a few articles and realised that below a ceratin number of calories (seems around 1200) per day, my body went into starvation mode. holding on to everyhing I ate just in case there was no more food coming. Against my better judgement, I increased my calorie intake to 1500 net per day. I was miserable because I was sure there was no way I could lose any weight, but I did - the first week after the calorie increase, 1kg, 2nd week 0.6kg, and I can't wait to see what it will be this week! I know it feels like you are doing something wrong (losing weight by eating more just doesn't make sense!) but give it a try. It will feel uncomfortable at first, but it works....and I was the biggest sceptic
  • spackham
    spackham Posts: 252 Member
    Thanks for all the support. I so need it and it seems most people needing to lose weight don't have a problem with needing to eat enough. I have felt so alone! The mental struggle to tell myself "you need more fuel for your body" is difficult. I am going to use a few ideas already mentioned here. Thank You!!! God Bless You for your thoughtfulness.
  • ktraubert
    ktraubert Posts: 29
    I guess one thing I missed was if you need to eat your exercise calories? I remember doing weight watchers years ago and they said it was optional if you wanted to eat your exercise calories. I don't want to put my body in starvation mode, but right now I've been restricting to about 1200 daily and when I exercise I only sometimes eat more than that, should I be eating all my exercise calories?
  • erickirb
    erickirb Posts: 12,294 Member
    I guess one thing I missed was if you need to eat your exercise calories? I remember doing weight watchers years ago and they said it was optional if you wanted to eat your exercise calories. I don't want to put my body in starvation mode, but right now I've been restricting to about 1200 daily and when I exercise I only sometimes eat more than that, should I be eating all my exercise calories?

    Yes you should be. To hit your MFP goal you must eat them, and even if you didn't have that goal you should eat them.
  • spackham
    spackham Posts: 252 Member
    I know, it is hard! Bottom line is to not go under 1000 in your NET calories if you exercise and not go under 1200 if you don't. So, exercise lets you eat 200 cals less. I like that! There is some good advice here to help us. I am just so glad to know there are other people out there like me.
  • spackham
    spackham Posts: 252 Member
    I guess one thing I missed was if you need to eat your exercise calories? I remember doing weight watchers years ago and they said it was optional if you wanted to eat your exercise calories. I don't want to put my body in starvation mode, but right now I've been restricting to about 1200 daily and when I exercise I only sometimes eat more than that, should I be eating all my exercise calories?

    Thank goodness you started counting calories and stopped counting points! Who knows how long you would have been in starvation mode. How long have you been eating NET under 1000? I hope not too long. My nutritionist said it can take a long time for your body to start working properly again, but it will bounce back.
  • roxie0920
    roxie0920 Posts: 41
    I just wanted to reinforce what someone else stated above. MFP automatically calculates the calorie deficit for you to lose you goal lbs per week. So, even if you do eat back your calories, you should still be under your calorie goal according to MFP.

    My case is a little different. Becuase I am little, MFP won't let me set to anything less than a .5 lb loss per week. I eat 1200-1300 cals per day, but I don't eat back my exercise calories, so that I can up my weight loss to 1 lb per week, but I don't try for more than that. About once a week I'll eat back my calories, and I've found that it does not slow my weight loss at all.
  • meggonkgonk
    meggonkgonk Posts: 2,066 Member
    I just wanted to reinforce what someone else stated above. MFP automatically calculates the calorie deficit for you to lose you goal lbs per week. So, even if you do eat back your calories, you should still be under your calorie goal according to MFP.

    My case is a little different. Becuase I am little, MFP won't let me set to anything less than a .5 lb loss per week. I eat 1200-1300 cals per day, but I don't eat back my exercise calories, so that I can up my weight loss to 1 lb per week, but I don't try for more than that. About once a week I'll eat back my calories, and I've found that it does not slow my weight loss at all.

    Actually Roxie- though I am not sure how small you are- you too should most likely be eating your calories back and only losing about .5 lb per week. When we get closer to our goal weight, loss should slow to give your body the time and nutrients it needs to adjust. Reaching 1200 should generally be a warning sign that your weekly goal should be slowing down (you can also manually adjust your goal to stay at 1300, and just go with however much of a loss that is).

    Caveat to that, however, is that you are obivously approaching this sensibly (without trying to immediately drop a bajillion lbs) and it currently seems to be working for you. I just wanted to throw it out there in case you do hit a wall, you should consider upping your calories.
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