Daily Intake

I've often wondered that as well. I know back when I WAS starving myself by eating only ice chips and drinking diet Dr Pepper and 1 meal a day, I wasn't all that hungry either, but I know that was only because I tricked my body into thinking I had eaten with the ice chips.

This will seem like a rant, but really I'm just excited to talk about something I sort of understand! Bear with me. :flowerforyou:

You shouldn't stuff yourself, as long as you're eating 1,200 calories a day. That is the absolute bare minimum a person needs to sustain themselves. If you're not eating that well, you're doing serious damage to your body. It will cling to every calorie, convert every calorie it can straight into fat, and you'll never be able to be healthy or gain/maintain the muscle your body needs to take care of itself. Lower carbs isn't really related to the caloric intake issue. Your body also needs carbs, but your general energy supply comes from calories.

When I was first taking nutrition science classes at my university, they told us to think of our bodies as our vehicles, like a car. Each day you're going somewhere, and it's going to take you 1,200 units of petrol (the calories) to get there. If you're not hitting at LEAST that number, your car will not only not reach its destination but if you continue running it without fueling it (hypothetically...good luck getting your real car to run without gas ) it will wear down until it eventually breaks altogether.

On another note, as my nutrition science classes were part of my archaeology degree, when we study ancient bones, we can tell exactly when, down to the month, a person didn't get enough to eat. Stress lines appear on their bones which indicate it. You actually are never fully grown--you get a brand new skeleton every decade or so. So remember that you're constantly powering your body to regenerate itself, and if you don't do so adequately, you can do permanent damage. You don't want archaeologists digging you up and using you as an example to their students of a person who didn't take care of their body!

If you're having trouble meeting those calorie goals, maybe try adding in some high-cal foods which can still be healthy for you, such as fruits.

You're doing great! Just remember that if you're not eating 1,200 calories, most nutritionists agree that you are hurting your body.