Not eating enough

Today I only ate 890 calories and at the end of the day today I pressed complete my diary and it said it would not post because my calories were to low and it was unhealthy and that the minimum calories a women should eat a day is 1,000 calories and it's not like I'm trying to starve my self. today all I ate was fruit and vegetables witch don't have a lot of calories and I don't feel hungry . Should I eat only when I'm hungry or should I eat to a certain amount of calories ?

Replies

  • astrampe
    astrampe Posts: 2,169 Member
    Eating 890 calories IS trying to starve yourself, and trying to live on fruit and vegetables is not very clever if you are not a rabbit.... Eat real food, fat, protein and carbs, and eat more to fuel your body. Nobody older than four should live on 900 calories... Go read the stickies at the top of the message boards please!
  • StaceyWhatsit
    StaceyWhatsit Posts: 24 Member
    If I eat more than 1000 calories I can't lose weight, yet MFP recommends I eat about 1200 calories, I tried to stick to that goal and I couldn't lose weight so I went to my doctor who said to lower my calories as much as I want but to ensure I drink plenty of water to flush my kidneys. Go to your doctor if you plan on keeping up that diet or if you are concerned but the odd day not meeting your calorie goal won't hurt you.
  • Barbados1965
    Barbados1965 Posts: 33 Member
    Ashley try to hit your daily protein target to help preserve you muscle. Just eating fruit will not give you enough protein. Marco level of importance protein, fat then carbs. Make sure to take some vitamins to compensate for reduction in food intake.
  • Owlie45
    Owlie45 Posts: 810 Member
    If you're not allergic add some nuts or peanut butter. Apples with some peanut butter is my favorite.
  • sobifit
    sobifit Posts: 3 Member
    the problem might be because you eat too often not enaugh amount of food like you eat every hour one apple (just guessing) and you feel full but if you eat when you woke up and try not to eat like 5-6 hours straight I'm sure you'll feel hungry as hell and will add atleast 400-500kcal of real food and then there is left dinner.. :D
  • slideaway1
    slideaway1 Posts: 1,006 Member
    Yeah, I have days where I cant eat as much as I should. Im not hungry and I might have 1000 cals to spare. It almost feels wrong to stuff yourself, makes you feel greedy. It's not the end of the world as I know some days I can eat loads and easily make up the deficit. Although I know this is not optimal. That is a great idea to just eat a tiny bit of high calorie food like peanut butter if you really want to hit cal targets. I prefer to just listen to my body and trust that I will hit my overall targets on a weekly basis. If my appetites poor today, it's usually firing on all cylinders the next day.
  • malibu927
    malibu927 Posts: 17,565 Member
    If I eat more than 1000 calories I can't lose weight, yet MFP recommends I eat about 1200 calories, I tried to stick to that goal and I couldn't lose weight so I went to my doctor who said to lower my calories as much as I want but to ensure I drink plenty of water to flush my kidneys. Go to your doctor if you plan on keeping up that diet or if you are concerned but the odd day not meeting your calorie goal won't hurt you.

    Unless you're older and extremely short, there is no reason why one shouldn't lose on 1200. You just have to be more accurate.

    OP, one day under won't hurt you, but if you continue to undereat consistently it can cause muscle loss and serious health problems.
  • zoeysasha37
    zoeysasha37 Posts: 7,089 Member
    Being that low once won't hurt ,but it shouldn't be something that happens often.
    Are you able to hit your macros with only 900 calories? Are you sure your getting adequate nutrition with 900 calories?

    Like I said , one day won't hurt but its not recommended to do frequently
  • SaffronSunrise
    SaffronSunrise Posts: 182 Member
    Make sure that you're weighing your food so that you're logging as accurately as possible. I wasn't weighing anything before I started MFP and when I started weighing, it was a real eye opener. For example: Jimmy Dean Turkey Sausage. The package states that one serving size is 4 links (68 grams). When I weighed it, 3 links were 70 grams. Maybe not a huge difference in a day, but if I ate 4 links every day and logged 1 serving, it could really add up and eat into my deficit.

    I'm going through a stressful time right now, so I have days when I'm not eating as much as I should, but I try to hit my goal as close as possible the next day because I don't want it to become a habit. Peanut butter has been a big help because it is so high in calories that a little bit goes a long way in getting me closer to the calories I should be eating.