Eating far below BMR and not losing weight
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I wouldn't bump right up to 2,000 calories a day - do it in baby steps and see what happens...if you are truly eating 1,000 now your body will be in shock if you double that. Try bumping up to 1,300 for a week and then start adding 100-200 every week until you get up to 2,000.
Also, make the crockpot your friend - there are 100's of recipes out on the internet, even ones where you can put everythign together and put it in the freezer and then when you are ready to cook it you just throw it in the crockpot and you are good to go.
Good luck!
Yeah good point. I'll try to increase it by 200 calories/day each week0 -
It sounds like you have the body type of solo runners I saw at the Grande Cache death race. All muscle, tendon, and bone. Loved to run. Crazy to run. http://winnipegbarefootrunners.blogspot.ca/2012/09/the-canadian-death-race-views-from.html
At least I hope to get that body back!
It's been annoying running in a hilly area lately with all this excess fat weighing me down. Feel like I'm climbing a mountain with a 50 pound backpack on0 -
geniusgamer wrote: »I honestly don't know why 1000 is unhealthy in my case, given my health and how I feel.
1000 calories of the right stuff can meet your mineral and vitamin requirements, essential fats and proteins. Not trivial to achieve though unless it's some form of complete nutrition plan you're following.
You can probably supply 1500 - 1800 cals/day from current fat reserves but this will decline as you lose. A big deficit may be OK at a BMI of 29.5 but less so as it falls.
I'm always interested in cases like yours, 90% of people will dismiss you as a liar or whatever or have some crazy theory. It would be cool to have your RMR measured and understand what's actually happening.
An open diary might satisfy the curiosity of observers. What does your macro split look like ?
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geniusgamer wrote: »I honestly don't know why 1000 is unhealthy in my case, given my health and how I feel.
1000 calories of the right stuff can meet your mineral and vitamin requirements, essential fats and proteins. Not trivial to achieve though unless it's some form of complete nutrition plan you're following.
You can probably supply 1500 - 1800 cals/day from current fat reserves but this will decline as you lose. A big deficit may be OK at a BMI of 29.5 but less so as it falls.
I'm always interested in cases like yours, 90% of people will dismiss you as a liar or whatever or have some crazy theory. It would be cool to have your RMR measured and understand what's actually happening.
An open diary might satisfy the curiosity of observers. What does your macro split look like ?
He said he's been at a plateau for all of 5 days. I think we know what's actually happening.0 -
Yeah, 5 days is the width of a path not a plateau.0
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geniusgamer wrote: »I honestly don't know why 1000 is unhealthy in my case, given my health and how I feel.
1000 calories of the right stuff can meet your mineral and vitamin requirements, essential fats and proteins. Not trivial to achieve though unless it's some form of complete nutrition plan you're following.
You can probably supply 1500 - 1800 cals/day from current fat reserves but this will decline as you lose. A big deficit may be OK at a BMI of 29.5 but less so as it falls.
I'm always interested in cases like yours, 90% of people will dismiss you as a liar or whatever or have some crazy theory. It would be cool to have your RMR measured and understand what's actually happening.
An open diary might satisfy the curiosity of observers. What does your macro split look like ?
Oddly enough, the prepackaged meals may have helped OP out in this. Always a meat, a starch, and a fruit/veg in those. So, at least some variety. Plus any vitamins/minerals it may have been fortified with. Could have been worse. Still not a good idea, which OP seems to be realizing.
Also, OP, think about it this way. One of your goals is to reattain your former athletic ability, yes? Think how much better off you will be if you have sufficient fuel for your workouts between now and when you've lost the weight. Or would you rather make up for lost time because you weren't capable of putting in the effort you would have otherwise?
As for easy to prepare food, try a selection of the following:- Raw fruits and veg (try roasting for easy cooked prep)
- If you find the raw stuff is spoiling too fast, frozen fruits and veg
- Pasta - toss in chopped up veg and/or meat and/or cheese, make the pasta <= 1/2 of the meal (I personally like sausage + cherry tomato + broccoli or spinach + asiago or parmesan)
- Baked chicken - seriously, you can throw chicken pieces (breast, leg, etc) in a pan in an oven at 350 for 20-45 minutes with no seasoning (keep a close eye on it). Take that out and use it in chicken salad, pasta dishes, etc. If you do this skin on, you'll probably want to remove it - it usually doesn't get nice and crispy.
- Roast chicken. Lots of recipes for whole roast chicken. Crazy good, little prep work, about 45min - 1hr cooking time.
- Soups
- Hamburger
- Frozen meals. There are some pretty good ones out there. Ignore the 'preservatives are toxins' crowd. There's nothing wrong with having a frozen dinner, just don't have one at every meal.
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OP I weigh once a week...but because I am pretty consistent with exercise and my intake (logging here as accurately as possible take a look if you want) I don't flucuate a whole lot I may not lose every week but then I will whoosh and it could be 1-1.5lbs gone never to be seen again.
As for eating a lot I agree reverse up to 2k but keep in mind I lose on that...I maintain on 2300 so I suspect you could eat a lot more...even my husband who is around your age maintains on about 3500 and he's a gamer with a bit of exercise and a somewhat active job...
Now my son...20 and a welder so always on the go...can eat massive amounts of food and still lose...
If you want to run fuel your body esp now that you are not obese...you will thank us later.0 -
First of all .. eat something. At 230 lbs and 1000 cal you are not doing yourself any favors. A person your size should eat probably a min of 700 cal a day more than that.
The reason that you are not losing weight is cause your body is freaking out cause you are not feeding it. Give it something to sustain itself with and you will probably find it will straighten things out. But it may take a bit for that to happen.0 -
geniusgamer wrote: »Check your sodium, it's most likely off the chart with all of that frozen diet food. Swap one packaged meal a day out for something homemade and keep it low-sodium. Sodium -> water retention -> weight stall.
Could you suggest something easy to prepare? I have so little time these days. It's why those diet meals are so convenient
Hey Genius - A good site is www.Allrecipes.com. You can search by ingredient, and they have all the prep and cook time listed for each meal.
You can also copy the link to each recipe you choose into the MFP recipe import page, and then have it AUTOLOG the food to your database! simple!!
My only suggestion when you have the MFP search for the ingredients - you review each one manually to be sure it pulled the right one.
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I wouldn't waste your time weighing frozen dinners unless you're really curious. Even if it's a whole 20% off, then you're eating 1200, not really an explanation for a plateau.
I think the reason 5 days feels like a plateau is because all those days of frozen meals and 1000 calories is a tough, dull regimen and you want to see results daily, right? There will always be 'plateaus' after large drops in weight like you experienced, I think.
I think you'd be more patient with the normal ups and downs if you did eat more and not just pre-made meals. But then again you said you feel fine and are not feeling deprived, so maybe I'm just projecting how I'd feel eating frozen meals.
Good luck!0 -
Im the same I have 1000 cal or less a day I work out near enough every night half hour runs im not loosing weight and im gaining muscle my legs are massive dont understand were im going wrong so I feel your frustration!!0
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You might want to check out the site www.eatmore2weighless.
Also consider using the calculator here: http://scoobysworkshop.com/calorie-calculator/
Maybe my story can help a little or give you a different perspective. I don't really care for eating and tend to forget meals. Carefully logging what I normally eat to appetite, I determined I was eating about 1400 per day, and exercising 4-5x a week, and GAINING weight. Also found out I had nutritional deficiencies. A lot of them.
I did some research and decided that since my BMR is about 1400 and I exercise a lot, I really could be damaging myself by not eating enough. When exercise calories were added in, my net per day was usually about 900-1000 cals. So if my body needs 1400 calories just to exist and breathe, and I'm giving it a net of 1000 .... I'm hurting myself and need to change something.
So, I did the metabolic reset recommended at the EatMore2WeighLess site, and upped my calories to 2200 a day. That's an increase of over 5000 calories a week! Now ... if we went only by the numbers, and I was overeating at 2200 calories, I should have gained roughly 1.5 pounds per week (800 extra cals a day x 7 days = 5600 cals and 3500 = a pound). And over the last 3 months of doing this, I should have gained an extra 15+ pounds. What happened instead is, I feel better and I lost 2 pounds. (I need to lose 25, but am not trying to right now, concentrating on fixing my metabolism. According to the calculator site I linked, when I think my metabolism is fixed, I'll drop calories by 15% and should lose. I cannot speak to that because I haven't gotten to this point in my journey yet!)
So from my experience, what some folks are saying here is true. YOU CAN eat too little, a large deficit is not better than a small deficit.
Not trying to start any battles between those who believe differently from what I'm stating here, just sharing because it might help the OP
. Peace. 0 -
[/quote]geniusgamer wrote: »Do you weigh everything you eat using a food scale? If not, you're most likely eating more than you think, which is why you could have been eating over 3000 calories without realizing it.
No. I eat diet meals smartones/leancuisines/healthychoice/etc.
They have a nutrition label that says exactly what the total calories for the whole meal is. So that's what I log.
Why would I need to weigh it? I'm not preparing my own food.
In the past during my huge weight loss, I would prepare some food, and in those situations I absolutely would weigh it.
Most frozen meals generally weigh less than the packaged gram weight states; however, frozen burritos for example I've found could weigh 20-30 more grams than it's supposed to.
The only other item I've found that weighs less than the pre-packaged weight is yogurt in individual cups (i.e. Chobani or Dannon).
Since your diary isn't opened there's no way to know what you're actually eating & how your diary entries look.
Things a lot of people don't realize they're overeating would be cereal & ice cream (it's sad how small a portion 1/2 cup actually is), nut butters, cheese, & dressings.
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just picked up on this thread, it is a subject that has fascinated me to be honest, so much so i have written a short book about it ( due to come out in about two weeks)
I believe the calculations for BMR are accurate however i question the activity level calculations that are used when working out TDEE0 -
Another thought for you, I would have calculated you at 2233 BMR. From my own experiments and research I have experienced a similar thing. I wasn't losing weight but I did lose fat during this time. I do not hold with the general belief that you should not eat under BMR as people who are a lot more qualified than I am still argue amongst themselves as to how best to calculate it. A quote once said "rules are for the obedience of fools and the guidance of wise men" so i adopt this line of thinking.
I agree with what a lot of people are saying in that you are eating too low. I am carrying out further research at present and have opted for my BMR minus a deficit to see how that goes.
Should you wish to try it I would suggest 2233 minus say 500 giving 1733 per day with a target loss of one pound per week.
Please feel free to add me should you wish
Good luck0 -
Yeah, you'll gain back every single pound and some 20-50 extra pounds for torturing your body like that.
I was put on a diet kind of like that and my gallbladder just said NOPE and ruptured. Not fun.0 -
johnelwell wrote: »Another thought for you, I would have calculated you at 2233 BMR. From my own experiments and research I have experienced a similar thing. I wasn't losing weight but I did lose fat during this time. I do not hold with the general belief that you should not eat under BMR as people who are a lot more qualified than I am still argue amongst themselves as to how best to calculate it. A quote once said "rules are for the obedience of fools and the guidance of wise men" so i adopt this line of thinking.
I agree with what a lot of people are saying in that you are eating too low. I am carrying out further research at present and have opted for my BMR minus a deficit to see how that goes.
Should you wish to try it I would suggest 2233 minus say 500 giving 1733 per day with a target loss of one pound per week.
Please feel free to add me should you wish
Good luck
Even with a poorly estimated BMR - you do know what BMR means, right?
And yet you would suggest a deficit from BMR?
Keep researching - but suggest you experiment only on yourself, don't suggest to others.
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There has never been anything published anywhere to my knowledge that even suggests an overfat person should avoid eating below BMR, despite my asking for support for that argument from Heybales and others for (literally) years. And my posting support that refutes that.
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Oh sure, if lab measured stats and under Dr supervision and no existing health issues and no attempt to lose weight in last 9-12 months just like study participants, and constant supervision for exercise and amount eaten, and possible end results are known, sure that can happen.
And none of that applies in this case, and rarely does in the forums.
Really best to start from the lowest possible level and hope for the best? Like starting at BMR and removing deficit? Not even attempting to start at TDEE and remove deficit, and then adjust as needed?0 -
I suggest you take a different route.
This route is just ridiculous.
Plus watch this.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QHHzie6XRGk 0 -
WalkingAlong wrote: »There has never been anything published anywhere to my knowledge that even suggests an overfat person should avoid eating below BMR, despite my asking for support for that argument from Heybales and others for (literally) years. And my posting support that refutes that.
Anecdotally, I have been at eating at approximately BMR-500 (BMR actually tested, is 1850) for 6 months now and have lost 87.3lbs. I started with a BMI in the mid 50's however. I plan to keep eating at such a rate until it stops working. I have had a full physical since I began my journey, my health is good and I feel better than I have in nearly a decade.
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geniusgamer wrote: »I know the starvation mode stuff is a myth.
Well, starvation mode itself is not a myth. Multiple biochemical/metabolic phenomena occur when someone dramatically eats less glucose, and one of the typical responses is a lowering of the basal metabolic rate. (For instance, did you notice that you tend to feel colder than normal?) When people say it's a myth, I think they're referring to misuse of the term, giving it a far exaggerated effect.
I don't think you're lying. Everyone is different. I've been in a monitored unit multiple times with girls around my body size, and we all needed very, very different meal plans. People just gain/lose at different rates; it's the darndest thing. And people can keep saying that everyone's roughly the same when it comes to caloric efficiency, and yet the empircal evidence begs to differ.
Just be patient:) I would actually recommend eating more calories for your height. For a whole sleuth of reasons that are beyond the scope of this thread, I strongly recommend working with a reasonable diet that won't put your body into shock.0 -
nicsflyingcircus wrote: »Anecdotally, I have been at eating at approximately BMR-500 (BMR actually tested, is 1850) for 6 months now and have lost 87.3lbs. I started with a BMI in the mid 50's however. I plan to keep eating at such a rate until it stops working. I have had a full physical since I began my journey, my health is good and I feel better than I have in nearly a decade.
Well, they likely tested RMR first of all, unless you slept at the lab, they woke you in early morning, and either hooked you up or put a hood on you, and let you go back to sleep. That would be BMR.
And if they tested RMR, I've yet to hear of one where they didn't spit out an estimated TDEE too, either based on asking you questions about daily life, or they didn't care and assumed and it was on the report anyway.
So really eating at RMR - 500, or the TDEE on the RMR report less 500?
And had your RMR tested lately?
That's nice an average daily deficit of 1673 for that weight lost is working for you.
(87 x 3500 if just fat / 26 weeks / 7 days = 1673 deficit if only fat, which it's obviously not)
But guess what, if really losing that much with what you think is a 500 cal deficit - you got a bad awaking coming.
Might want to go for a bodyfat test to see how much LBM you have now before it gets even worse, so you can compare later.
And yes, it most definitely will stop working.
Did you know you can drive long distance on tires that are 10 psi below recommend, without there seeming to be any problem?
But the overheating from extra tire flex, and extra friction wear massively shortens the life of the tire.
Just because things seem fine don't always means things are best.0 -
I think that the nutritional content of those 1000 calories is what is important. If those calories are nutrient rich, then the weight should still come off, if it is just 1000 calories of whatever then that might be causing the plateau. I am no expert, just my opinion. Good luck!0
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A man of your size shouldn't be eating 1000 and under calories in a day, you'll make yourself ill.0
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Anyone mention yet how terrible this idea is?geniusgamer wrote: »Followingsea wrote: »OP, what's your plan for maintaining at your goal weight?
Basically, once I hit my goal weight of around 210 or whatever I'm going to weigh each morning. If I'm under the weight, I eat what I want. If I'm over, I diet that day.
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PS - which side of gamergate do you fall on? Just curious.0
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What's wrong with dieting when you're overweight?
Anyone mention yet how terrible this idea is?geniusgamer wrote: »Followingsea wrote: »OP, what's your plan for maintaining at your goal weight?
Basically, once I hit my goal weight of around 210 or whatever I'm going to weigh each morning. If I'm under the weight, I eat what I want. If I'm over, I diet that day.
Anything is a controversy here.
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You really don't see the problem with this?Basically, once I hit my goal weight of around 210 or whatever I'm going to weigh each morning. If I'm under the weight, I eat what I want. If I'm over, I diet that day.
If you don't, you might want to think about why.0 -
WalkingAlong wrote: »
What's wrong with dieting when you're overweight?
Anyone mention yet how terrible this idea is?geniusgamer wrote: »Followingsea wrote: »OP, what's your plan for maintaining at your goal weight?
Basically, once I hit my goal weight of around 210 or whatever I'm going to weigh each morning. If I'm under the weight, I eat what I want. If I'm over, I diet that day.
Anything is a controversy here.
Living a healthy lifestyle is preferred to yo-yo dieting only when you put on weight.
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