Help understanding calorie to exercise relationship.

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shayshay01
shayshay01 Posts: 40 Member
in Health and Weight Loss
Question: If I ate 661 cals today, but I just now burned 325- leaving my net at only 336 should I eat something even if I'm not hungry AT ALL... just to keep my calorie intake up???? Can you go into starvation mode even if you never let yourself get hungry?

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  • Heatherbelle_87
    Heatherbelle_87 Posts: 1,078 Member
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    starvation mode is even a controversy on here.

    Plain and simple you need to fuel your bodies needs. Flip that around excercise is a natural appetite supressant. And the caloric counts on here arent always correct.

    Eat when hungry just make healthy nutrition packed choices
  • jrt9999
    jrt9999 Posts: 114
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    Are the numbers you threw out arbitrary? If you only ate 661 calories for the day you would need to eat more even if you did not exercise.
  • Newfiedan
    Newfiedan Posts: 1,517 Member
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    read the first post on this link; http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/225765-how-mfp-works if you still are not clear msg me and I will explain it to you. Do not confuse starvation mode with hunger they are 2 different animals, starvation mode or what I call survival mode readily occurs if you are not careful with caloric intake, 1 or 2 days will not hurt you but 3 or more and it will start to have an adverse effect on your metabolic rate. Here is a link that will explain that mode to you more clearly and whether or not it exists; http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/226600-rename-starvation-mode-to-survival-mode
  • DJmom44
    DJmom44 Posts: 91
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    Newfiedan knows what he's talking about, so I would read what he has to say about it...and jrt9999 is absolutely right. :smile:
  • shayshay01
    shayshay01 Posts: 40 Member
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    Thanks everyone. :-) Yes- Those numbers were real.... but if you could see my diary you would see that I ate ALOT... it's just that everything that I ate is very healthy.... ie- spinach, shrimp, veggies, egg whites, etc. I am afraid of carbs... so I have been trying to stay away from breads and pastas, but it seems that's where most people get their calorie count from. What to do.... ???....
  • north35
    north35 Posts: 70
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    IMO 661 is not enough to fuel your body. You need carbs to feed your brain, just pick healthy ones and try adding more protien. I am off to read the links that were added to this post :)
  • shayshay01
    shayshay01 Posts: 40 Member
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    I tried adding healthy carbs back into my diet... such as whole wheat bread, sweet potatoes, etc. Unfortunately I started to gain weight instead of continuing to lose.... do you guys think that my body just needed time to adjust to the addition and I would have started losing again?.... Also, what is your view on eating late. Unfortunately I don't get off work until 8 so that is usually my dinner time. Then I hit the treadmill for 30 mins. Watch a bit of TV and I'm off to bed around 11 or 12- Then up again at 7:30. Should I be packing dinner to eat earlier at work?
  • ImperfektAngel
    ImperfektAngel Posts: 811 Member
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    ^^^^ I eat dinner at 9pm and have lost 64 lbs ;)
  • Pebble321
    Pebble321 Posts: 6,554 Member
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    Yes, you do need to eat something even if you aren't hungry.
    Under 700 calories a day is nowhere enough to fuel your body for lying in bed doing nothing, let alone living a life and exercising!
    Sure, you want a calorie deficit to lose weight but your body still needs good nutrition to keep it functioning and healthy.

    If this is what you are used to eating i a typical day, I'd suggest increasing this gradually and work out what food makes you feel good. Try some different carbs (fruit, veggies, oatmeal, whole grain bread etc) in small amounts to find out what works for you.

    I wouldn't worry too much about the time of day or exact breakdown on carbs/proteins/fats at this point - but I do suggest planning meals ahead of time so you don't find yourself at the end of the day having eaten almost nothing. This way you can plan some small and healthy meals to have a few times a day, then you won't feel like you are force feeding yourself. Add in a few snacks like nuts, avocado, banana, yoghurt and fruit and it's easy to get a few more calories and lots of good nutrition too.

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