Meal Prepping and not getting enough calories.

conoroneill4613
conoroneill4613 Posts: 4 Member
in Food and Nutrition
Hi I’ve been losing weight since late November and went from 112-99 kg with minimal exercise due to exams but eating well and for the new year I started tracking again and meal prepping for two meals a day and then eating a protein bar and a bowl of cereal after the gym in the morning. I do about 40 minutes of cardio and 60 minutes of sport. I have been struggling to get over 1200 calories a day. I have been eating chicken and broccoli as the prep meals. Any ideas how to increase caloric intake but I would prefer to avoid carbs. Thanks

Replies

  • try2again
    try2again Posts: 3,562 Member
    edited January 2019
    smolmaus wrote: »
    In what way are you struggling? Eat more chicken. Or other protein. Eat fats like avocado, peanut butter, actual butter.

    Also I hope you mean last November and you haven't lost 13kg in 6 weeks.

    To expand on this thought,"healthy eating" requires both quality and quantity.

    Are you eating back your exercise calories? (you are supposed to)

  • callsitlikeiseeit
    callsitlikeiseeit Posts: 8,626 Member
    if you are not weighing your food on a scale, then you may be eating more than you think you are.

    not eating enough will never be a problem for me. i do love my food and am always happy to have peanut butter. LOL
  • try2again
    try2again Posts: 3,562 Member
    https://community.myfitnesspal.com/en/discussion/10142490/a-list-of-calorie-dense-foods/p1
  • conoroneill4613
    conoroneill4613 Posts: 4 Member
    smolmaus wrote: »
    In what way are you struggling? Eat more chicken. Or other protein. Eat fats like avocado, peanut butter, actual butter.

    Also I hope you mean last November and you haven't lost 13kg in 6 weeks.

    Thanks for the advice and I meant to say I was 112 at my heaviest and 107 on the 20th of November but I don’t know how to edit it’s my first post
  • conoroneill4613
    conoroneill4613 Posts: 4 Member
    callsitlikeiseeit wrote: »
    if you are not weighing your food on a scale, then you may be eating more than you think you are.

    not eating enough will never be a problem for me. i do love my food and am always happy to have peanut butter. LOL

    I weigh all my meals as I cook my lunches and dinners for the week on a Sunday to bring with me to school and have breakfast at home. I have no self control when I’m tired so don’t bring money with me to remove the inability to resist temptation
  • janejellyroll
    janejellyroll Posts: 25,763 Member
    conoroneill4613 wrote: »
    callsitlikeiseeit wrote: »
    if you are not weighing your food on a scale, then you may be eating more than you think you are.

    not eating enough will never be a problem for me. i do love my food and am always happy to have peanut butter. LOL

    I weigh all my meals as I cook my lunches and dinners for the week on a Sunday to bring with me to school and have breakfast at home. I have no self control when I’m tired so don’t bring money with me to remove the inability to resist temptation

    Can you make your meals bigger? Or bring snacks with you to school?
  • Cahgetsfit
    Cahgetsfit Posts: 1,912 Member
    I wish I had that problem LOL! I only struggle to hit calories if I'm really really REALLY sick lying in bed dying sick.

    Now, why no carbs? Because it's trendy or because you think it will make you fat or because you actually have some sort of medical condition that requires you to not eat carbs?

    chicken, broccoli - and some rice or potato. drizzle olive oil on it. yum.

    This notion of "healthy" being eating chicken and broccoli is a very very old skool bodybuilding-ish way of thought and will not magically make you lose weight. Eat other veg, eat other proteins. Eat chicken thighs - fattier and keeps you fuller longer and has more calories.
  • conoroneill4613
    conoroneill4613 Posts: 4 Member
    Cahgetsfit wrote: »
    I wish I had that problem LOL! I only struggle to hit calories if I'm really really REALLY sick lying in bed dying sick.

    Now, why no carbs? Because it's trendy or because you think it will make you fat or because you actually have some sort of medical condition that requires you to not eat carbs?

    chicken, broccoli - and some rice or potato. drizzle olive oil on it. yum.

    This notion of "healthy" being eating chicken and broccoli is a very very old skool bodybuilding-ish way of thought and will not magically make you lose weight. Eat other veg, eat other proteins. Eat chicken thighs - fattier and keeps you fuller longer and has more calories.
    I just don’t like soggy food starchy which is inevitable after being in a fridge for 4 days after being cooked
  • wilson10102018
    wilson10102018 Posts: 1,306 Member
    Probably the healthiest high calorie food that can be added to your diet is peanut butter. At 6 calories per gram, a single piece of celery with a generous filling of peanut butter in the groove can add 400 calories to your daily count.
  • Cahgetsfit
    Cahgetsfit Posts: 1,912 Member
    rice or pasta shouldnt get soggy in the fridge after a few days
  • try2again
    try2again Posts: 3,562 Member
    Cahgetsfit wrote: »
    rice or pasta shouldnt get soggy in the fridge after a few days

    Just the opposite... it dries out.
  • rheddmobile
    rheddmobile Posts: 6,840 Member
    edited January 2019
    Add an ounce or two of healthy fat to your prep and you should be good. Avocado, nuts, olive oil, dressing, cheese.

    There are some carbs which are more prep-friendly than regular rice. Quinoa, for example, or roasted chunks of sweet potato. Orzo pasta, steel cut oats, and pearled barley will all last several days in good condition. Legumes, which are about half carb and half protein, are also good in prep.
  • apullum
    apullum Posts: 4,838 Member
    conoroneill4613 wrote: »
    Cahgetsfit wrote: »
    I wish I had that problem LOL! I only struggle to hit calories if I'm really really REALLY sick lying in bed dying sick.

    Now, why no carbs? Because it's trendy or because you think it will make you fat or because you actually have some sort of medical condition that requires you to not eat carbs?

    chicken, broccoli - and some rice or potato. drizzle olive oil on it. yum.

    This notion of "healthy" being eating chicken and broccoli is a very very old skool bodybuilding-ish way of thought and will not magically make you lose weight. Eat other veg, eat other proteins. Eat chicken thighs - fattier and keeps you fuller longer and has more calories.
    I just don’t like soggy food starchy which is inevitable after being in a fridge for 4 days after being cooked

    Your pasta/grains won't be soggy from sitting in the fridge. They'll be dried out unless they're in some liquid. Then they might get soggy if they're soaking up the liquid.

    I would personally not want to prep pasta or grains that far in advance specifically because they would be dried out. Instead, I'd recommend getting a small, cheap rice cooker and letting it cook your rice while you're getting ready in the mornings. Rice cookers are also great because they can do other things, like steam veggies, in addition to cooking rice. They're a nice appliance for a student to have.

    You can also buy frozen or shelf stable precooked rice, but it's cheaper to cook your own.

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