Eating more ...

FatimaRekan
FatimaRekan Posts: 6 Member
edited December 2024 in Food and Nutrition
How do you force yourself to eat more? I never have an appetite and I find it hard to meet my calorie intake...I retain a ton of water. Advice would be very appreciated.

Replies

  • TavistockToad
    TavistockToad Posts: 35,719 Member
    peanut butter and other high fat foods that have less volume
  • cathipa
    cathipa Posts: 2,991 Member
    What is your goal? Are you trying to gain weight?
  • kimny72
    kimny72 Posts: 16,011 Member
    Agreed, nuts and nut butters, cheese, oil and butter can pack lots of calories in small volume. Also think beverages like fruit juice and shakes/smoothies.

    I'd add, if you consistently have to force yourself to eat and retain a ton of water, a physical and blood work is in order if that hasn't happened already.
  • FatimaRekan
    FatimaRekan Posts: 6 Member
    I am trying to lose weight, I used to drink a lot so I’m sure that has a lot to do with it. I’m not a big eater but being Bosnian we do have bread with bread and a side of bread. But when I try to eat more nutritious food I’m not able to need the calorie intake. It’s not just about eating anything I’m really wanting to improve my overall health. I always had a very fast metabolism at 31 my body all of a sudden was like yeah...not doing that anymore 🙄
  • FatimaRekan
    FatimaRekan Posts: 6 Member
    edited January 2019
    I’ve had a full physical there’s nothing out of order not with my thyroid or anything like that. Even tho I didn’t eat a lot or often I ate very unhealthy food so I’m assuming my metabolism is slow because I don’t eat or eat five lbs of bread type foods.
  • FatimaRekan
    FatimaRekan Posts: 6 Member
    I just changed my diet I am entering everything as accurately as possible. I think I’m going to pick up a food scale so I can measure it correctly.
  • cathipa
    cathipa Posts: 2,991 Member
    FatimaRekan wrote: »
    I just changed my diet I am entering everything as accurately as possible. I think I’m going to pick up a food scale so I can measure it correctly.

    Agree with the food scale (very enlightening). Also make sure you are drinking plenty of water. "Unhealthy foods" (i.e prepackaged foods) are typically high in sodium which will cause water retention. Drinking more water helps to flush the sodium and can help with retention.
  • FatimaRekan
    FatimaRekan Posts: 6 Member
    So I am not jumping to broccoli as a main source of nutrition or anything like that. I just want to be more aware of what I’m putting into my body. Have a better understanding of what food does how it affects the body. Just so I can make better decisions and choices. I’m looking to change my relationship with my body not my food. Understanding what does, it affects it will be easier to just be more aware. I really only cut on alcohol and try to eat yogurt in the morning to help improve my metabolism.
  • AnnPT77
    AnnPT77 Posts: 35,133 Member
    Improving one's metabolism is not really an accessible thing.

    As we age, we tend to move less, throughout daily life not just exercise, and to gradually lose muscle mass as a result. Happily, both of those are things we can influence through our behavior.

    There's a thread here about integrating more movement in daily life: https://community.myfitnesspal.com/en/discussion/10610953/neat-improvement-strategies-to-improve-weight-loss

    And one here about increasing muscle mass: http://community.myfitnesspal.com/en/discussion/10332083/which-lifting-program-is-the-best-for-you

    The latter includes things that don't require a gym or special equipment.

    Happily, exercise can help with the water retention, too - not just strength exercise, for that purpose.

    Just food for thought. :)
  • kshama2001
    kshama2001 Posts: 28,055 Member
    FatimaRekan wrote: »
    I am trying to lose weight, I used to drink a lot so I’m sure that has a lot to do with it. I’m not a big eater but being Bosnian we do have bread with bread and a side of bread. But when I try to eat more nutritious food I’m not able to need the calorie intake. It’s not just about eating anything I’m really wanting to improve my overall health. I always had a very fast metabolism at 31 my body all of a sudden was like yeah...not doing that anymore 🙄

    We often gain weight as we age because our activity level dropped. Are you less active now than you were 10 years ago?

    If you are having problems meeting your calorie goals on a particular day, by all means have some bread (and butter or cheese.)
  • apullum
    apullum Posts: 4,838 Member
    It is unlikely that your metabolism is abnormally slow, especially if your physical turned up nothing unusual. It's far more likely that, like many of us, you're simply eating more than you think you are and/or not burning as many calories in exercise as you think you are.

    Neither yogurt nor any other food significantly changes your metabolism. Most things that claim to increase metabolism are not true. There are very few things you can do to change your metabolic rate; one of them is to build muscle, which has a *small* impact on your resting metabolic rate.

    Metabolism slows down *a little bit* as we age. The bigger thing that happens as we age, though, is that we move less. We often have sedentary jobs and aren't as involved in physical activity as we were when we were younger. Exercise burns calories, but that's not the same thing as metabolism.

    My advice would be to stop thinking that you have a slow metabolism, or that you need to do things to speed up your metabolism. Use your food scale to weigh all your food. If you are still not eating enough calories, add in low volume, calorie dense foods, like some oil or butter on your bread, or even a small dessert. Not all of your food has to be "nutritious." As long as you're getting enough nutrients and you have calories to spare, you can have a treat.
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