Already Discouraged

Hi there!

Personally, I find that I have to log my calories the day before and I am pretty sure a lot of other people using the site do the same thing! It makes it so much easier to keep track and you will be less likely to go over because you know your limit! Usually when I plan my calories for the next day I leave myself about 200 leftover *just in case*! That way if I eat something the next day that I hadn't planned to, I'm probably still within my calorie goal!

I think thats totally normal. I would start looking at the past few days and see where you can make some changes. Add more fruits and vegetables, and cut out anything that caused you to go way over in your calories.

Its hard when you first realize how much you are eating! It was quite the wake up call for me. The best way to combat this? Plan your food for the day in advance or add it before each meal, be aware of everything going in your mouth, and be wary of the calorie counts. Nutrition is knowledge! Don't get discouraged. Take it as a learning experience and a challenge!

Don't let yourself get discouraged. A lifestyle change is a learning process and takes time to adjust and adapt. Try making healthy versions of favorite recepies and cut out liquid calories like soda and juices to keep calories lower.
Good luck!

I too made my goal to lose a pound a week. I've had to cut things down, like my mocha intake. It isn't easy, cause I'm used to having three a day and now I either have one or just black coffee. The people around me are probably noticing the lack of chocolately coffee that I'm consuming but it's worth it to see that first pound shed off in my first week. As well, I didn't eat out for the first week, made everything at home. Keep trying, it works if you can cut bad things out and meet your daily target.

I think you've receieved some very sound advice from the people who have told you to plan before hand. I know for me, that is the only way I can do it. I too, just had a wake up call about hte amount of caloires that I'm consuming. I'm so thankful for this site, and the tools I've acquired so I can get healthier!

I often go over my calorie count, but the benefit of this site is it gives you knowledge, and knowledge is power! If you see a trend, it gives you the ability to change even the smallest thing that can have a positive impact, like choosing better snacks or cooking with better low calorie ingredients. I still eat chocolate every day! But I no longer eat anywhere near as much bread as I used to. A simple change, but an effective one! Don't get discouraged, use the site a tool to learn.

Good luck and keep it up!

It's amazing how many calories some foods have. You can cut down it just takes making different choices. Stay away from fast food. (one of my big problems) I have not tried near as hard as I should and have lost some. I do find if I log it first it makes a big differnce. I have often changed my choices when I see what they add up to. You can do it. You've already taken the 1st step.

Cutting out breads, pastas, and sugars will immediatly amp up your losing. If you want a sweet drink- try splenda or some other sugar substitute or drink a diet soda... If you MUST have chocolate- get the 90 calorie granola bars as a treat. The 90 cal greek yogurt has also proved very rewarding for me. I miss chips and pasta the very most, but every once in a while I will save up as many calories as possible so that I can have some pasta or bread for dinner. It's like everyone else said... it's all about learning. I have only been doing it for about 3 weeks and somehow my body is already getting used to the smaller portions and lack of sugars and carbs... and I seem to crave them much less. Good luck!!!! You CAN do it! :-)

Hi Ashley, don't be discouraged so early. Your first few food entries are so that you can see what foods you accumulate every day and then you can adjust your intake to still cover your planned calories but staying low on your saturated fat and sugars. I keep track of my calories,carbs, protein, saturated fat and sugar. The last two I make sure I don't go over the reccommended allowance. I don't worry if I'm a little over with protein at the end of the day and I make sure I drink all my water and more. I haven't been doing it very long but it is easy. Make sure you eat your rec. calories and at least some of your exercise calories back. Make up your calories with nuts, avocado,plain rice crackers, plain corn chips or a small banana. Even a hard boiled egg or some chicken breast to snack on. Read lots of the forum entries and you will get plenty of ideas. Stick with it and good luck

Let this be the START of your journey and not the DESTINATION. You now have very valuable information that can help you make tiny corrections to your health & fitness plan. That's what it's all about. It's not about starting out perfect, but learning what mistakes you are making and then using the available tools to correct them.

That said, do you still feel discouraged?

Hey already discouraged, I've only just started here but have discovered my normal eating plan was actually really healthy. The foods that were adding up to weight gain and calories were the foods I knew were unhealthy. I was eating those between my main healthy meals.

Don't give up, you can do this! It takes loads of self control and yup I plan my meals the day before.

Absolutely was in the same boat. 1450 calories is very easy to go over. It really isn't a lot of food. I got on the Nutrisystem food plan, you may want to look into it. You don't have to go full boar like I am, but they have AWESOME chocolate bars and snack foods that help you throughout the day with not going over. I'm trying to use those tricks too with drinking water before a meal and also taking those chewable fiber pills, because it acts like a sponge and fills you up, or using a smaller plate when eating dinner... portion control.

Welcome to MFP! I agree with the others... the first step is just being aware of what you are eating (even if you set your calories to maintenance at first if going over is too discouraging). Then you can start to make small changes and figure out where to change your diet or bump up the exercise.

Some of the keys for me (I've been on here about 10 months... trying to lose a pound a week here too):

1) Plan ahead! At this point I don't always log my food in the day before, but I do usually try to have a good idea of what the calories for dinner are. I am at home so I have the luxury of tweaking things during the day as well... if I was away from home working all day I think it would be even more necessary for me to plan out lunch and snacks.

2) Part of what helps me to plan ahead is to do menu planning for the week. I've been doing it for a year and have built up a list of quick and easy recipes that I know are healthy... though I love to explore and cook so I often do new recipes too. It is great for me to have some standbys that I know are healthy and I can throw together quickly when needed.

3) Load up on vegetables -- easier said than done somedays but they really are an easy way to get nutritious food without a lot of calories.

4) Look at other peoples food diaries. No one eats the same but I love looking at other's food diaries for inspiration. Mine is public if you want to take a peek.

5) Oh and eat breakfast! I don't always eat a lot... but I have learned that getting too hungry is a sure way for me to overload on calories and make bad decisions.

6) Get support! Make some MFP friends and encourage each other along. I never would have made it this far without MFP buddies.

You can definitely do this, just take baby steps! Good luck!

Good Idea, I didn't think of doing that. I find it's kinda fun to tick off my calories and see how creative I can make my dinner with the left over calories. I guess I have to play the game with myself to have fun at this