Your diet and your mood

brcossette
brcossette Posts: 89 Member
edited November 19 in Health and Weight Loss
I started my journey three years ago and weighed 316 and have lost almost 100lbs and as people like us who have lost a lot of weight on MFP all know with every ten lbs lost it asks you if you want to adjust your calorie limit. My limit bottomed out last November at 1400 and since then i was having a very hard time losing more weight. Well after talking with a health coach at work last week she made me realize that i was eating too few of calories per day 1400 for my height and weight 6'0 and 220. She recommended i bump up that number to 1600 and eat back about 200-300 of what i'm burning each day. I did that and have started losing weight again and noticed my mental health was improving as well so thats what leads me to this question. I'm curious as to what everyone's experience is with diet and mood. Does what or how much you eat during the day have an impact on how you feel?

Replies

  • CoffeeNBooze
    CoffeeNBooze Posts: 966 Member
    It's most definitely true for me. I am noticing more and more foods that make me feel good and energized and those that leave me with feeling like I didn't eat anything! And as for how much, I just feel weak and listless if I eat too little...definitely a big difference.
  • DemoraFairy
    DemoraFairy Posts: 1,806 Member
    I've never really noticed what I eat affecting my mood, other than being hungrier if I eat a lot less.

    The only difference I've noticed is when I tried low carb one time, just to see if it had all those great benefits for me that other people say it does for them. I hated it and gave up after a few days, and was much happier when I got to eat lots of carbs again!
  • KarenJanine
    KarenJanine Posts: 3,497 Member
    Definitely - If I under-eat I quickly become irritable, weak and lethargic.

    Sounds like you have a good health coach who has given you some great advice.
  • Harlequin1983
    Harlequin1983 Posts: 30 Member
    If i dont eat, I get hangry. Lol The foods that I do ear keep me energized, but i feel like im opposite. My mood effects my food intake and what I eat more. If i have a bad day, I want to eat everything in sight! Good bad or otherwise. I wish I could eat to maintain my energy and feel good physically, and not eat to "feel better" emotionally.
  • brcossette
    brcossette Posts: 89 Member
    DemoraFairy wrote: »
    I've never really noticed what I eat affecting my mood, other than being hungrier if I eat a lot less.

    The only difference I've noticed is when I tried low carb one time, just to see if it had all those great benefits for me that other people say it does for them. I hated it and gave up after a few days, and was much happier when I got to eat lots of carbs again!

    This is interesting because i read something recently on webmd about this and it made me rethink my dietary habits that have made me shy away from eating too many carbs. Yes the high protein/low carbs helps burn fat and keep you from feeling hungry but it also affects my mood and sex drive.
  • DemoraFairy
    DemoraFairy Posts: 1,806 Member
    brcossette wrote: »
    DemoraFairy wrote: »
    I've never really noticed what I eat affecting my mood, other than being hungrier if I eat a lot less.

    The only difference I've noticed is when I tried low carb one time, just to see if it had all those great benefits for me that other people say it does for them. I hated it and gave up after a few days, and was much happier when I got to eat lots of carbs again!

    This is interesting because i read something recently on webmd about this and it made me rethink my dietary habits that have made me shy away from eating too many carbs. Yes the high protein/low carbs helps burn fat and keep you from feeling hungry but it also affects my mood and sex drive.

    I just meant I felt better because I got to eat sandwiches again, and I really like sandwiches. I was getting a bit bored of salads every day lol. I don't think my mood was depleted by the macro composition of my diet, just by the fact that I didn't get to eat the foods I liked.
  • brcossette
    brcossette Posts: 89 Member
    DemoraFairy wrote: »
    brcossette wrote: »
    DemoraFairy wrote: »
    I've never really noticed what I eat affecting my mood, other than being hungrier if I eat a lot less.

    The only difference I've noticed is when I tried low carb one time, just to see if it had all those great benefits for me that other people say it does for them. I hated it and gave up after a few days, and was much happier when I got to eat lots of carbs again!

    This is interesting because i read something recently on webmd about this and it made me rethink my dietary habits that have made me shy away from eating too many carbs. Yes the high protein/low carbs helps burn fat and keep you from feeling hungry but it also affects my mood and sex drive.

    I just meant I felt better because I got to eat sandwiches again, and I really like sandwiches. I was getting a bit bored of salads every day lol. I don't think my mood was depleted by the macro composition of my diet, just by the fact that I didn't get to eat the foods I liked.

    I understand. Here's a link to the article i mentioned http://www.webmd.com/food-recipes/how-food-affects-your-moods Granted you didn't restrict them for very long but obviously there is some corelation between carbs and mood according to this.
  • Bizurke51
    Bizurke51 Posts: 190 Member
    brcossette wrote: »
    I started my journey three years ago and weighed 316 and have lost almost 100lbs and as people like us who have lost a lot of weight on MFP all know with every ten lbs lost it asks you if you want to adjust your calorie limit. My limit bottomed out last November at 1400 and since then i was having a very hard time losing more weight. Well after talking with a health coach at work last week she made me realize that i was eating too few of calories per day 1400 for my height and weight 6'0 and 220. She recommended i bump up that number to 1600 and eat back about 200-300 of what i'm burning each day. I did that and have started losing weight again and noticed my mental health was improving as well so thats what leads me to this question. I'm curious as to what everyone's experience is with diet and mood. Does what or how much you eat during the day have an impact on how you feel?

    Yea I'm convinced the amount of calories you eat can affect your mood. Being in a calorie deficit made me depressed. Ultimately the depression is why I recently decided to stop dieting. It's been 3 weeks and I've increase my budget by 250 calories and I feel MUCH better. Still not 100% but getting there
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