Struggling a bit, should i have a bigger lunch and breakfast?

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I normally have coffee and a hardboiled egg if anything for breakfast, and will have some chicken with a vegetable for lunch. I can have 1200 calories per day, and will end up having 500-600 calories left for dinner, but by the time i get home i end up binging and eating way more than that. Would having a bigger lunch prevent that?
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Replies

  • janejellyroll
    janejellyroll Posts: 25,763 Member
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    It could. Are you having binges because you are so hungry when you get home?
  • Afura
    Afura Posts: 2,054 Member
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    Have you tried getting a afternoon snack in (something with fiber and/or fats), if it is like @janejellyroll asked? Or is it just that you have no willpower when you get home?
  • maea5040
    maea5040 Posts: 36 Member
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    Afura wrote: »
    Have you tried getting a afternoon snack in (something with fiber and/or fats), if it is like @janejellyroll asked? Or is it just that you have no willpower when you get home?

    Ill usually have baby carrots as a snack, but I also have no willpower when i get home.
  • MzManiak
    MzManiak Posts: 1,361 Member
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    You don't snack at all? Are you absolutely certain 1200 calories is right for you? Are you not exercising? I would suggest to try having a protein bar when you got home, see if that curbs the desire to binge.
  • KrysGettinFit
    KrysGettinFit Posts: 131 Member
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    I try to have a snack in the morning after breakfast, I will have a smoothie, then a few hours later PB on a celery stick, then lunch..then another snack after lunch and it will usually carry me over until dinner. It doesn't seem that you're eating enough during the day and then just go way overboard when you get home. Do you meal prep dinner so you know what you're having ahead of time? Usually if I say "I'm going to have this for dinner" I won't go too overboard and binge eat after because all day I've got it in my head that I know what I'm having. It helps, maybe just a funky mind game I play with myself but it does help.
  • MzManiak
    MzManiak Posts: 1,361 Member
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    Looking at your diary, I can tell you, you either do not eat nearly enough, or you are not logging it... in which case, you really don't know how much you're eating and I really don't know which macros you are trying to binge on.
  • quiksylver296
    quiksylver296 Posts: 28,442 Member
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    No fats and very little protein. I would freak out and binge, too. @maea5040 - You don't give your stats, but I would suggest perhaps switching your weight loss goal from 2 lbs per week to 1. Use the extra calories it gives you to add in some healthy fats and more protein -they'll help you feel fuller, longer.
  • maea5040
    maea5040 Posts: 36 Member
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    MzManiak wrote: »
    You don't snack at all? Are you absolutely certain 1200 calories is right for you? Are you not exercising? I would suggest to try having a protein bar when you got home, see if that curbs the desire to binge.

    I do snack throughout the day, and will usually have baby carrots, sweet peppers, or some fruit.
  • candylilacs
    candylilacs Posts: 614 Member
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    I think mid-afternoon snack of protein. An apple and jif-to-go!

    Breakfast like king, lunch as a farmer, and dinner like pauper. Breakfast is 500-600 calories!
  • janejellyroll
    janejellyroll Posts: 25,763 Member
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    maea5040 wrote: »
    MzManiak wrote: »
    You don't snack at all? Are you absolutely certain 1200 calories is right for you? Are you not exercising? I would suggest to try having a protein bar when you got home, see if that curbs the desire to binge.

    I do snack throughout the day, and will usually have baby carrots, sweet peppers, or some fruit.

    Why don't you try a snack with some protein and fat? Many people find these to be more filling than plain fruits or vegetables.

    Also, are you sure that 1,200 isn't too aggressive for you?
  • kshama2001
    kshama2001 Posts: 27,906 Member
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    How tall are you and how much weight do you want to lose?
  • AlisonH729
    AlisonH729 Posts: 558 Member
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    Agree with all that 1200 might just be too ambitious. And we will all tell you there is absolutely nothing wrong with reevaluating your goals in favor of something slower but more sustainable. :smile:
    maea5040 wrote: »
    I do snack throughout the day, and will usually have baby carrots, sweet peppers, or some fruit.
    Just a few easy additions to the snacks you're already eating: hummus, Greek yogurt mixed with Ranch dressing (or the seasoning to taste), Greek yogurt mixed with peanut butter (or again, PB powder to taste) is nice with apples. Cheese sticks are great. Nuts.

    I am anxiously awaiting my afternoon snack which is avocado mixed with cottage cheese. I have some crackers to put it on too.
  • maea5040
    maea5040 Posts: 36 Member
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    kshama2001 wrote: »
    How tall are you and how much weight do you want to lose?
    kshama2001 wrote: »
    How tall are you and how much weight do you want to lose?

    I'm 5'3, 168 lbs, and would like to lose 30 pounds
  • quiksylver296
    quiksylver296 Posts: 28,442 Member
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    I think mid-afternoon snack of protein. An apple and jif-to-go!

    Breakfast like king, lunch as a farmer, and dinner like pauper. Breakfast is 500-600 calories!

    I just want to add that this does NOT work for me. I'm the exact opposite.
  • candylilacs
    candylilacs Posts: 614 Member
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    Since when is chicken salad a pauper's dinner? I mean, you're not going to eat red meats and demand bread. I want to add breakfast as a king, and lunch and a dinner as farmer, but I kind of like dinner like pauper.
  • positivepowers
    positivepowers Posts: 902 Member
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    Afura wrote: »
    Have you tried getting a afternoon snack in (something with fiber and/or fats), if it is like @janejellyroll asked? Or is it just that you have no willpower when you get home?

    I wake up starving so most of my calories are eaten between by lunch. By dinnertime I'm less hungry so typically my dinners are smaller. Because I would eat the paint off the walls if I don't have a snack mid-way between breakfast and lunch, I schedule a snack then. Not much, 150-200 cals. Something like apples and peanut butter, greek yogurt or something like that.

    Maybe if you did that between lunch and dinner it would cut down the unplanned eating.

    The next question is: If you only want to lose 30 pounds, are you sure 1200 cals isn't too low? Just a thought.
  • ASKyle
    ASKyle Posts: 1,475 Member
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    I think mid-afternoon snack of protein. An apple and jif-to-go!

    Breakfast like king, lunch as a farmer, and dinner like pauper. Breakfast is 500-600 calories!

    I just want to add that this does NOT work for me. I'm the exact opposite.

    Ditto. I don't eat breakfast. If I eat breakfast I will still want the same amount of calories for lunch and dinner.
  • ASKyle
    ASKyle Posts: 1,475 Member
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    Since when is chicken salad a pauper's dinner? I mean, you're not going to eat red meats and demand bread. I want to add breakfast as a king, and lunch and a dinner as farmer, but I kind of like dinner like pauper.

    What's wrong with red meats and bread?
  • AlisonH729
    AlisonH729 Posts: 558 Member
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    Because I would eat the paint off the walls if I don't have a snack mid-way between breakfast and lunch, I schedule a snack then. Not much, 150-200 cals. Something like apples and peanut butter, greek yogurt or something like that.

    Maybe if you did that between lunch and dinner it would cut down the unplanned eating.

    I would ransack the house the minute I got home if I didn't have a snack in the afternoon!

    Recently my afternoon snacks have been growing because I've been headed to the gym after work. And then oddly, even though I'm pretty ravenous when I get home my focus goes right to making dinner and not undoing all the work I just put in.
  • Afura
    Afura Posts: 2,054 Member
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    maea5040 wrote: »
    Afura wrote: »
    Have you tried getting a afternoon snack in (something with fiber and/or fats), if it is like @janejellyroll asked? Or is it just that you have no willpower when you get home?

    Ill usually have baby carrots as a snack, but I also have no willpower when i get home.

    Something with a little more oomph. I like baby carrots too, but try adding some peanut butter or cheeses for fats, or a container of yogurt too. Fats aren't necessarily bad. :smiley: