I don't get it... "hard to make calories"?

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  • LauraMarie37
    LauraMarie37 Posts: 283 Member
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    I hear you...and I'm one of those annoying people. :-D Now I LOVE food, and think about it constantly. Let's get that out of the way. 1200 calories alone would starve me. I workout though...in fact after losing the weight I became an instructor....so netting 1200 is a ton of work. Because it can't be yummy junky food...or lots of carbs (wish it was! LOL!) Today I'll burn over 1000 calories, so I have to eat at least 2200 calories. And it can't be candy or fries. So it actually is challenging...crazy as it sounds. I could eat all that with a big Thai take-out, but the sodium/fat etc would be hurtful. It's such a crazy balance. Exercise is key...not the amount I do, but in order to not be eating like a mouse it's the only way to give more wiggle room and still lose weight. :-)

    See, I have no problem with eating yummy junky food, as long as it's only every other day or so. Mmmmmm thai takeout. Maybe this weekend when I know I have a 1000-calorie burn coming up...

    I can always find something else to eat, I just need to track so that I make sure I eat enough. Otherwise I totally fall into the starve during the week/eat like food is going extinct (lol I love that phrase!) on Saturday pattern.

    I also have a terrible tendency to make alcohol (wine!) a large percentage of my calories two or three times a week....hmm, not so good. Well, delicious, but not so good FOR me. Maybe when I move away from New York I'll change...

    Final thought - some (not all) of the "I can't make it to 1200" people on here strike me as orthorexic. You know: "I can't make it to 1200...and I won't eat meat...or milk...or vegetable oil...and I don't like nuts...or avacados...or high-fiber bread...or dark-colored beans...". To me, that seems unhealthy.
  • graysmom2005
    graysmom2005 Posts: 1,882 Member
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    Hmmm..... these are alll interesting thoughts. Thanks everyone!

    I am not a big fan of working out though, and when I do I usually burn about 300 and I am sweating buckets. So maybe that's where it is hard for me. I don't have a lot of exercise calories to "eat back", if any.

    I am also flabergasted at some people's calorie burning ability! 700 - 1000 calorie workouts?? What are you doing? How do you get such a high calorie burn??

    1000 calories is from two spin classes...not in one go. :-) Spinning is by FAR one of the highest bangs for your buck calorie wise. I don't think I've done anything else that has burned as much in such a short period of time. Even now I burn around 450 in 45 minutes. Before I would burn between 500-600 in 45 minutes. It's great, and goes by so, so fast. I'd recommend it! :-)
  • Chuckw40
    Chuckw40 Posts: 201
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    Since I am limiting carbs and don't eat any junk food at all I find it hard to meet my goals on a daily basis. I eat 2 eggs and 3 slices of bacon plus a banana at 6am and don't feel at all hungry until about noon. I then eat a huge salad for lunch and feel very satisfied until about 7pm. Up to this point in the day i am only at about 500 calories with 1100 more to go. Dinner is usually about 400 calories which still leaves about 700 calories I have to eat before bed.

    I usually make up at least some of the remaining calories with some almonds or beef jerky but salt is also an issue so I have to limit those as well.
  • FearAnLoathing
    FearAnLoathing Posts: 4,852 Member
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    I have a hard time getting to 1200 myself,after exercise its even harder.I never had a problem with overeating and that is not how I gained weight.Im not a big eater I never have been.
  • FearAnLoathing
    FearAnLoathing Posts: 4,852 Member
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    It drives me crazy when people post something like "I can't eat my 1200 calories" because obviously, none of us got to this point by not being able to eat enough food

    It drives me crazy when people say crap like this,because not EVERYONE gained weight from overeating
  • dls06
    dls06 Posts: 6,774 Member
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    Eating the calories is not hard it's eating the right things to stay within all your goals.
  • leighton1245
    leighton1245 Posts: 125
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    Hmmm..... these are alll interesting thoughts. Thanks everyone!

    I am not a big fan of working out though, and when I do I usually burn about 300 and I am sweating buckets. So maybe that's where it is hard for me. I don't have a lot of exercise calories to "eat back", if any.

    I am also flabergasted at some people's calorie burning ability! 700 - 1000 calorie workouts?? What are you doing? How do you get such a high calorie burn??

    I go on one run or cycling for a 1 1/2 hrs and burn 1100 calories and im very in shape it has to do what the activities you do and the rate you are doing them. I have a very hard time hitting my caloric intake on those days which is about 3 days a week I set myself at 1700 so a total of 2800 calories if i ate everything i burned but I only eat back about 1/2 of that, although I do have a very clean diet.

    The best thing IMO for everyone that feels hungry between meals is snack but healthy there isnt one hour out of the day you wont catch me with food in my hand of some sort rather it be apple, oranges, nuts what have you it works. :) Hope that helps someone.
  • Cait_Sidhe
    Cait_Sidhe Posts: 3,150 Member
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    I guess I'm one of those annoying people too. But like Fearanloathing, I did not get here by overeating. I've never been a big eater. I had a really low metabolism and a disability (still have the disability, but I'm able to work with it now) and never exercised.
  • rlysrh
    rlysrh Posts: 244
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    I used to not understand how anyone could find it hard to meet their 1200 calorie goal either but now I'm starting to get it. after 6 weeks of this my body is finally adjusting, I'm not starving all the time between meals any more and I can feel really full after just eating a 250 calorie sandwich for lunch. And also instead of constantly using the idea of eating as something to look forward to throughout the day I've been thinking "I don't really fancy eating anything from the cupboard".
    But yeah I can see both sides really (:
  • TinaS88
    TinaS88 Posts: 817 Member
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    My daily goal is 1310. I have to watch what I eat otherwise I will easily go over. I could only imagine how many calories I was really consuming before tracking it.. I don't think I ever want to know!! LoL... You are DEF. not alone in this!!
  • LittleMissVintage
    LittleMissVintage Posts: 142
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    I used to have a hard time. It was mental though. I basically thought I couldn't have good meals anymore so I restricted myself watt too much, then I felt guilty eating anything that contained more than like 200 calories.
  • fteale
    fteale Posts: 5,310 Member
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    It drives me crazy when people post something like "I can't eat my 1200 calories" because obviously, none of us got to this point by not being able to eat enough food

    It drives me crazy when people say crap like this,because not EVERYONE gained weight from overeating

    Ok. Overeating or not moving around enough.

    No one gains weight from undereating. You may make yourself ill, but you won't gain weight.
  • catcrazy
    catcrazy Posts: 1,740 Member
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    I think those saying they have a hard job eating 1200 calories are, more often than not, new to this...I made a similar post...my first post. I was going at it all gung ho....salad salad salad salad...I could NOT eat 1200 calories just by eating salad and I pretty soon wised up. I'm on 1200 calories still and with the amount of veggies I eat I'm full on 1200, its only when I have crud, red meat or starchy carbs that I am in danger of going over.
  • c2sky
    c2sky Posts: 487 Member
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    I think it depends on what you're eating. In general, I haven't found it "hard" to meet my calories, but if I wasn't tracking I think I would be consistently under. This is just because I've been really focusing on eating healthy, unprocessed foods lately. For example, oatmeal for breakfast, white bean soup with carrots and hummus, lenitl curry, garden salads with nuts and seeds etc, a lot of these things are not high in calories. Also, I try to eat most of my exercise calories, so i do sometimes have to find other things to snack on in order to get enough calories.

    That being said, when I get hungry when I'm at the mall, and get some french fries, or when I have something like a bagel with peanut butter for breakfast, I have to plan the rest of my day out better, otherwise I'll go over in calories.

    I eat a lot of the things you mentioned in your first paragraph, and I find many of those things to be high in calories, i.e. nuts, hummus, oatmeal, bean soup....maybe not high in sugars or fats like lasagne or chocolate cake, but they're still pretty high. So are you just eating super small portions or ????????????
  • FearAnLoathing
    FearAnLoathing Posts: 4,852 Member
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    It drives me crazy when people post something like "I can't eat my 1200 calories" because obviously, none of us got to this point by not being able to eat enough food

    It drives me crazy when people say crap like this,because not EVERYONE gained weight from overeating

    Ok. Overeating or not moving around enough.

    No one gains weight from undereating. You may make yourself ill, but you won't gain weight.

    So then what about starvation mode,isnt everyone always saying if you eat low calorie you will gain weight and more when you go back to eating a normal amount? Please do not act like you know everything about everyone because i most definatly did not gain weight from over eating and not moving enough.That might be how it happened for you but not me
  • LauraMarie37
    LauraMarie37 Posts: 283 Member
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    I used to have a hard time. It was mental though. I basically thought I couldn't have good meals anymore so I restricted myself watt too much, then I felt guilty eating anything that contained more than like 200 calories.

    YES. This. I know a lot of hardcore athletes who are very into "nutrition" and consequently eat like that becuase they think they are being extraordinarily healthy. It makes me sad because I think you need to have a unhealthy attitude towards your needs, what your body tells you, and your own happiness in order to live like this for a long period of time - but I see this in so many people.
  • Valtishia
    Valtishia Posts: 811 Member
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    I am one of those people. Some days its no problem.. but most days its hard. I am not concerned so much about it right now since its not causing any issues with my weight loss, and seems to even itself out between low and high days. I am however concerned about once I get to my goal weight and I need to start eating maintenance calories. I am not quite sure I will be able to do it, but just like losing weight, I will have to work at it :)
  • yiffanarff
    yiffanarff Posts: 123 Member
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    I eat a lot of the things you mentioned in your first paragraph, and I find many of those things to be high in calories, i.e. nuts, hummus, oatmeal, bean soup....maybe not high in sugars or fats like lasagne or chocolate cake, but they're still pretty high. So are you just eating super small portions or ????????????

    Yes, I tend to eat recommended portion sizes (easier to track that way!). For example, I'll eat about 2 tablespoons of hummus, at most a quarter cup of nuts, etc. The largest part of my diet is made up of fresh fruits, vegetables, and, to a lesser extent, complex carbohydrates. :)

    ETA: I should say that even with small portions, I did find it difficult to stay under in calories (and meet my nutritional requirements) when I was on 1200 calories a day (on days when I didn't exercise). Now I'm on 1500, and that is sometimes tough on my rest days, but on exercise days, I'm usually up to about 2000 or more calories per day that I'm "supposed" to eat. I'm usually under in calories on those days.
  • mamagooskie
    mamagooskie Posts: 2,964 Member
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    I never find it hard to eat my calories.....and my workout calories.....heck I'd even borrow calories from other people if I could most of the time!
  • bmw4deb
    bmw4deb Posts: 1,325 Member
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    I eat lots and lots of veggies, along with several other items, i usually hit
    or come very close to my 1200 however with the zumba 3 days a week weight training 3 days
    a week plus walking-jogging eveyday, I have a real hard time eating my excercise calories.
    I have come to the understanding if i wanna eat more i move more.

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