Not eating enough!

Amortentiax
Amortentiax Posts: 27 Member
edited November 24 in Food and Nutrition
okay, so I'm sure I can't be the only one with this problem. I can never seem to eat enough calories! Like today I have over 800 calories left that I'm supposed to eat but I just can't. Is this normal? And is it okay not to eat those?

I've read before that you should at least be close to your goal to lose at a healthy rate. And if you don't eat enough, your body will hold onto things... Is this all true?! Help!

Replies

  • queenliz99
    queenliz99 Posts: 15,317 Member
    Add peanut butter, avocado or ice cream to get to your calorie goal.
  • Unknown
    Unknown
    This content has been removed.
  • brianpperkins
    brianpperkins Posts: 6,124 Member
    Your body does not hold onto things if it isn't fed enough. It is basic physics ... matter cannot be created from nothing. You end up losing lean body mass as it consumes itself for fuel ... muscle (to include skeletal muscle) and damage internal organs such as the heart, liver, etc. You can lose bone density if you don't provide your body with proper nutrition ... hair loss, brittle nails.

    Look at calorie dense foods to get closer to your goal. Lose at a healthy rate. Do things the smart way versus risking permanent damage.
  • Meganthedogmom
    Meganthedogmom Posts: 1,639 Member
    Are you trying to lose weight? If so, how did you gain weight if you are unable to eat "enough" calories?

    What did you eat before you started tracking your food?

    Also, are you tracking accurately - weighing your food?
  • OsricTheKnight
    OsricTheKnight Posts: 340 Member
    I think MFP is a bit aggressive on encouraging to eat back your exercise and exactly balance things. As long as you're getting enough nutrients and a basic allowance of 1000kcals/day, I wouldn't go out of your way to eat high-calorie foods just to hit a number.

    If you're short on protein or fats and over on carbs, according to your pie chart (not the absolute numbers) you might eat a bit more of what you're short on to try to it 50/20/30 or whatever your macro goal is.

    Osric
  • brianpperkins
    brianpperkins Posts: 6,124 Member
    OsricTheKnight wrote: »
    I think MFP is a bit aggressive on encouraging to eat back your exercise and exactly balance things. As long as you're getting enough nutrients and a basic allowance of 1000kcals/day, I wouldn't go out of your way to eat high-calorie foods just to hit a number.

    If you're short on protein or fats and over on carbs, according to your pie chart (not the absolute numbers) you might eat a bit more of what you're short on to try to it 50/20/30 or whatever your macro goal is.

    Osric

    The OP is 800 calories below what MFP gave as a goal to lose weight. If she's at a one pound per week goal, that means a 1300 calorie deficit rather than a 500 calorie deficit ... if she's at a two pound per week goal that is 1800 rather than 1000. Let's use the lower assumption until the OP clarifies her goals ... for that 1300 calorie deficit to be less than 25% of her deficit requires her TDEE to be at least 5,200 calories ... quite the daily burn.

    For reference, Scooby's triggers a warning that one should seek medical advice when looking to consume TDEE-25%.
  • jaywirth88
    jaywirth88 Posts: 66 Member
    I have the same issue! I eat nutrient dense foods and work out A LOT! My brain is hardwired to think "work out more, eat less" even though i feel like im eating plenty. Try a protein powder or something for some extra calories
  • brianpperkins
    brianpperkins Posts: 6,124 Member
    edited September 2015
    jaywirth88 wrote: »
    I have the same issue! I eat nutrient dense foods and work out A LOT! My brain is hardwired to think "work out more, eat less" even though i feel like im eating plenty. Try a protein powder or something for some extra calories

    Considering that your diary right now shows you at 1700 calories under your MFP goal for today ... it doesn't seem that you are in a position to give advice on how to healthily approach this issue.

    The only hope is that your logging is off.
  • jaywirth88
    jaywirth88 Posts: 66 Member
    Logging isn't off, I haven't had dinner yet and I did an extra run on top of my normal gym workout
  • RodaRose
    RodaRose Posts: 9,562 Member
    Add some calories: feta cheese, nuts, peanut butter, chicken or egg salad sandwiches, hummus, deviled eggs, granola, salmon, pasta,, corn, rice, sunflower seeds, dried fruit.
  • brianpperkins
    brianpperkins Posts: 6,124 Member
    jaywirth88 wrote: »
    Logging isn't off, I haven't had dinner yet and I did an extra run on top of my normal gym workout

    So, if your log is accurate, you netted 127 calories yesterday and were over 1000 below your MFP daily goal.
  • mhollencamp102012
    mhollencamp102012 Posts: 165 Member
    meganridenour wrote: »
    Are you trying to lose weight? If so, how did you gain weight if you are unable to eat "enough" calories?

    What did you eat before you started tracking your food?

    Also, are you tracking accurately - weighing your food?

    This question baffels me. How did u gain weight if you can't eat enough calories....

    Obviously at one time she could eat enough calories and didn't move too much (not being rude just speaking from my own experience) but the whole purpose of MFP and changing your lifestyle is just that...changing your life style...when you start eating better foods that are good for you and have more of what you need you tend to stay full longer... And if you are doing things right you do not eat when you are not hungry which would mean not over eating on calories...I have the same problem as the OP now that I am eating better and healthy food and not binging on empty calories and a crap ton of carbs...I find it hard to reach my goal on most days.....this is not hard to figure out...and it really makes my day when someone ask's this question..

    OP sorry if this is not the case for you, maybe you put on weight for other reasons...but the majority of us here put it on because we made poor choices in food and lack of exercise
  • brianpperkins
    brianpperkins Posts: 6,124 Member
    mhollencamp102012 wrote: »
    meganridenour wrote: »
    Are you trying to lose weight? If so, how did you gain weight if you are unable to eat "enough" calories?

    What did you eat before you started tracking your food?

    Also, are you tracking accurately - weighing your food?

    This question baffels me. How did u gain weight if you can't eat enough calories....

    Obviously at one time she could eat enough calories and didn't move too much (not being rude just speaking from my own experience) but the whole purpose of MFP and changing your lifestyle is just that...changing your life style...when you start eating better foods that are good for you and have more of what you need you tend to stay full longer... And if you are doing things right you do not eat when you are not hungry which would mean not over eating on calories...I have the same problem as the OP now that I am eating better and healthy food and not binging on empty calories and a crap ton of carbs...I find it hard to reach my goal on most days.....this is not hard to figure out...and it really makes my day when someone ask's this question..

    OP sorry if this is not the case for you, maybe you put on weight for other reasons...but the majority of us here put it on because we made poor choices in food and lack of exercise

    Overeating is not healthy. Going so far to the other end of the spectrum where one cannot provide the body with what it needs to meet minimal nutritional levels is not healthy either. Looking at your post ... "binging" is not healthy behavior ... in fact it is indicative of several disorders. "Empty calories" is another term that overlooks that a calorie is nothing more than a unit of energy and that the body needs a certain amount of those to fuel itself. Sometimes the more calorie dense, less nutrient packed option is actually the right choice ... nothing wrong with "empty calories" then ... it comes down to understanding what the body NEEDS and providing it.
  • 3dogsrunning
    3dogsrunning Posts: 27,167 Member
    mhollencamp102012 wrote: »
    meganridenour wrote: »
    Are you trying to lose weight? If so, how did you gain weight if you are unable to eat "enough" calories?

    What did you eat before you started tracking your food?

    Also, are you tracking accurately - weighing your food?

    This question baffels me. How did u gain weight if you can't eat enough calories....

    Obviously at one time she could eat enough calories and didn't move too much (not being rude just speaking from my own experience) but the whole purpose of MFP and changing your lifestyle is just that...changing your life style...when you start eating better foods that are good for you and have more of what you need you tend to stay full longer... And if you are doing things right you do not eat when you are not hungry which would mean not over eating on calories...I have the same problem as the OP now that I am eating better and healthy food and not binging on empty calories and a crap ton of carbs...I find it hard to reach my goal on most days.....this is not hard to figure out...and it really makes my day when someone ask's this question..

    OP sorry if this is not the case for you, maybe you put on weight for other reasons...but the majority of us here put it on because we made poor choices in food and lack of exercise

    That is not necessarily true. A number of things influence hunger, including drastically cutting calories.
    Hunger is not necessarily a reliable indicator of whether you are eating enough. People who are overweight often experience hunger when they do not need to eat more. People who are literally starving often don't experience hunger.

    Eating to little can supress appetite.
  • diannethegeek
    diannethegeek Posts: 14,776 Member
    http://community.myfitnesspal.com/en/discussion/10142490/a-list-of-calorie-dense-foods/p1
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