Struggling to hit calories
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nowmartin2001
Posts: 16 Member
Is anyone else struggling to hit their calorie intake? Mine is set at 1790 for a day to lose weight. I'm a 6ft 2 guy weight about 213lbs. After I've done my cardio for the day (4x a week) I really struggle to hit the daily recommended amount of 1790 calories. Does anyone else find it hard and does anyone have any tips etc to help me hit my goals?
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Replies
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Calorie dense foods........nuts, nut butters, avocado, olive oil.
http://community.myfitnesspal.com/en/discussion/10142490/a-list-of-calorie-dense-foods/p14 -
This isn't a real problem, or the real problem isn't what you think it is. If you need to lose weight, you know how to eat more. But if you're new to calorie counting, you may be logging incorrectly. You have to log the right entries, in the right amounts, and do it always, and for a long time, for calorie counting to have the desired effect. If you're eating back exercise calories, eat back half.7
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Not to sound crass, but how did you gain weight if this is a struggle for you to reach this calorie limit? Are you weighing your food and are you sure you are logging correctly (no homemade or generic entries)?6
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Peanut butter3
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Eat more calorie dense food with a focus on protein. It sounds like a pain in the *kitten* but you could also eat more frequently. For your current bodyweight, you could be around 2300-2500kcal/day and still be in a deficit if you're active.
You're pretty tall and without knowing your bf%, it seems you may be naturally lean with just some body fat to lose, though I could be wrong. Cardio seems to blunt hunger in a lot of people and strength training seems to increase appetite.
Besides fat loss, do you have any other goals; i.e. get stronger, build muscle, perform better at a sport, etc.?1 -
Nope, I would happily eat 2500 if I could except I wouldn't be slim anymore lol
Silly question maybe but how did you get overweight (not that you're actually much overweight given your height) to begin with if you can't eat 1790 cals now? 1790 is a low day for me on maintenance and I'm only 5ft 2.
As above says choose calorie dense foods, nuts and peanut butter are my go to except I usually don't have the calories to spare...2 -
Thanks for the replies everyone. I understand that I have obviously eaten more than 1790 calories to have gained weight in the first place. All my meals were very bad and since I've started eating better quality foods and higher levels of protein I feel a lot more full all of the time. I guess I will just eat more even if I don't feel too hungry.3
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i think this happens pretty often when people are just starting to lose weight. most cases i've seen on here it stems from a total diet overhaul. instead of eating what you ate gaining weight, you try to change everything all at once. eat a ton of veg, lean proteins, stay away from carbs and sweets. and that's well and good, but when you've increased fiber and protein sometimes you get full super fast. add some treats back in and you may find that you can hit your goal more easily and that your diet is more sustainable.7
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Eat more calorie dense food with a focus on protein. It sounds like a pain in the *kitten* but you could also eat more frequently. For your current bodyweight, you could be around 2300-2500kcal/day and still be in a deficit if you're active.
You're pretty tall and without knowing your bf%, it seems you may be naturally lean with just some body fat to lose, though I could be wrong. Cardio seems to blunt hunger in a lot of people and strength training seems to increase appetite.
Besides fat loss, do you have any other goals; i.e. get stronger, build muscle, perform better at a sport, etc.?
I would say I'm fairly lean yes. About 99% of my excess weight is stomach and chest area. I've ran a few marathons so I suppose my main goal is to keep beating my best times.2 -
nowmartin2001 wrote: »Thanks for the replies everyone. I understand that I have obviously eaten more than 1790 calories to have gained weight in the first place. All my meals were very bad and since I've started eating better quality foods and higher levels of protein I feel a lot more full all of the time. I guess I will just eat more even if I don't feel too hungry.
Stop thinking food is good or bad, that'll help...6 -
nowmartin2001 wrote: »Is anyone else struggling to hit their calorie intake? Mine is set at 1790 for a day to lose weight. I'm a 6ft 2 guy weight about 213lbs. After I've done my cardio for the day (4x a week) I really struggle to hit the daily recommended amount of 1790 calories. Does anyone else find it hard and does anyone have any tips etc to help me hit my goals?
YES! and i'm a tiny person and all i need is 1200 calories a day and i'm dying over here to get to a 1000. i just can't eat this much food even though i loooove food
6 -
Or you could prevent "falling off the wagon" by eating all the foods you like in moderation. Demonizing foods (calling them "bad) intensifes our desire for them. No foods or meals are in themselves bad, it's about amounts and frequency, balance and context. Forcing yourself to eat "healthy" food will have the opposite of the desired effect. And keep in mind that hunger can need some time to catch up on you, but it will; you're in the honeymoon phase and no phase lasts forever.4
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nowmartin2001 wrote: »Thanks for the replies everyone. I understand that I have obviously eaten more than 1790 calories to have gained weight in the first place. All my meals were very bad and since I've started eating better quality foods and higher levels of protein I feel a lot more full all of the time. I guess I will just eat more even if I don't feel too hungry.
Just make sure you are logging correctly. Invest in a food scale if you aren't currently using one before eating just to make a calorie goal.2 -
kommodevaran wrote: »Or you could prevent "falling off the wagon" by eating all the foods you like in moderation. Demonizing foods (calling them "bad) intensifes our desire for them. No foods or meals are in themselves bad, it's about amounts and frequency, balance and context. Forcing yourself to eat "healthy" food will have the opposite of the desired effect. And keep in mind that hunger can need some time to catch up on you, but it will; you're in the honeymoon phase and no phase lasts forever.
QFT0 -
nowmartin2001 wrote: »Thanks for the replies everyone. I understand that I have obviously eaten more than 1790 calories to have gained weight in the first place. All my meals were very bad and since I've started eating better quality foods and higher levels of protein I feel a lot more full all of the time. I guess I will just eat more even if I don't feel too hungry.
Just make sure you are logging correctly. Invest in a food scale if you aren't currently using one before eating just to make a calorie goal.
I am defiantly logging correctly. I do have a food scale. I guess I am fairly new to the calorie counting side of a diet/ lifestyle change. I do appreciate all the input everyone has given me1 -
TavistockToad wrote: »nowmartin2001 wrote: »Thanks for the replies everyone. I understand that I have obviously eaten more than 1790 calories to have gained weight in the first place. All my meals were very bad and since I've started eating better quality foods and higher levels of protein I feel a lot more full all of the time. I guess I will just eat more even if I don't feel too hungry.
Stop thinking food is good or bad, that'll help...
Would you not consider takeaways and pre made foods etc as bad? Or is that still approaching things from the wrong direction?0 -
nowmartin2001 wrote: »TavistockToad wrote: »nowmartin2001 wrote: »Thanks for the replies everyone. I understand that I have obviously eaten more than 1790 calories to have gained weight in the first place. All my meals were very bad and since I've started eating better quality foods and higher levels of protein I feel a lot more full all of the time. I guess I will just eat more even if I don't feel too hungry.
Stop thinking food is good or bad, that'll help...
Would you not consider takeaways and pre made foods etc as bad? Or is that still approaching things from the wrong direction?
No they are not "bad" foods. You're calling them bad foods and it makes your feel like you're doing something wrong.3 -
Getting quite tired of reading "How'd you get fat in the first place if you can't reach a calorie intake" that are regularly in these type of threads. Ever heard of making a life choice to only eat health foods? Eat processed foods for a week, then switch to fresh foods for the next week. Even if you eat the same amount of calories both weeks, the difference in energy is incredible. Low nutrient, high calorie food makes you feel like crap and it's hard to eat 1500+ calories a day of fresh food because it's so filling.
"So just eat small proportions of high calorie foods". That's not easy for everyone, and can definitely throw some people off their diet. If I get a taste of chocolate cake, i'll eat the whole cake. If I buy a bag of almonds, I'll eat the whole bag when watching TV.
OP: Just do what works. If you aren't feeling constantly hungry, you aren't under eating enough to cause problems. If you are concerned about not getting enough of a certain vitamin, take a multi-vitamin.9 -
kommodevaran wrote: »Or you could prevent "falling off the wagon" by eating all the foods you like in moderation. Demonizing foods (calling them "bad) intensifes our desire for them. No foods or meals are in themselves bad, it's about amounts and frequency, balance and context. Forcing yourself to eat "healthy" food will have the opposite of the desired effect. And keep in mind that hunger can need some time to catch up on you, but it will; you're in the honeymoon phase and no phase lasts forever.
Exactly. Not all "health food" is healthy, nor is all "junk food" garbage.
@nowmartin2001 since your goal is to perform better for marathons, but have some torso fat to lose, do some resistance training. It doesn't have to be traditional lifting (calisthenics can also be pretty intense), but pure focus on consistent cardio is catabolic to everything besides fat (think muscle, tendons, cartilage, etc.). Ideally, you want to retain as much muscle and lose fat. Resistance training and progressively overloading will retain/reduce the amount of lean mass lost while shedding fat. Proper protein will be synergistic with that. It also supports your running.2 -
nowmartin2001 wrote: »TavistockToad wrote: »nowmartin2001 wrote: »Thanks for the replies everyone. I understand that I have obviously eaten more than 1790 calories to have gained weight in the first place. All my meals were very bad and since I've started eating better quality foods and higher levels of protein I feel a lot more full all of the time. I guess I will just eat more even if I don't feel too hungry.
Stop thinking food is good or bad, that'll help...
Would you not consider takeaways and pre made foods etc as bad? Or is that still approaching things from the wrong direction?
No. Takeaways are high in fat (generally) and so are more calorie dense, so I have to take more care to fit them in my week calorie and macro goal, but that doesn't make them bad, it makes them yummy.
The majority of food is pre made these days unless you farm your own livestock etc. So of course it's not bad.7
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