struggling to eat 1200 calories
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I would recommend that you start exercising and eatting 1200 calories minimum. At the rate you are going you are going to have a very hard time losing weight, and your metabolism is crashing. Im 5'3", started at 147, down to 135, and eat 1600 calories a day. I lost 12 lbs without really trying, so what I'm trying to say is you need to find a balance of diet and exercise if you want to see results.0
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I wouldn't eat something late in the day just to bump the calories up unless I was hungry. Nothing wrong with a bedtime snack! What I would prefer to do is add a little something earlier in the day, like switch from skim milk to 2% milk or add a tablespoon of chopped nuts to my oatmeal or cereal. Switch from diet salad dressing to regular, or add a little shredded cheese to lunch. Things like that.
I agree, for years I was never hungry and probably ate less than 1200 calories a day. My family was always on me for not eating enough. Now I'm trying to lose weight because my body started to store every single calorie I take in. Trust me the starvation mechanism built into all of us wins every time and you will progressively gain more weight. I wish I was 26 and dealing with my eating habits; it's tougher when you get past 60. I'm pushing myself to take in a 1400 calorie minimum every day, most days I fall 50 or so short but at least my body isn't pulling from muscle to survive. Make small changes, eat balanced meals, have a treat once in awhile. pile on extra calories early in the day so that you burn them for fuel all day. Since I started following these basic rules I have lost 41 pounds with 19 to go.
I'm no expert by any means but have exactly the same problem you do. Ignore the smart remarks that have been posted here because they're simply jealous that you are adding to your intake not subtracting from it.
Best of luck!2 -
Took a look at the diary and I see nothing wrong with what and how much you are eating. Maybe throw in a half avocado with those salads and might get you up to your 1200 calories. Looks awesome to me.0
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The one thing I would suggest after looking at your diary is to incorporate more healthy fats into your diet. Avocado, nut butters, coconut oil, etc. They'll get your calories up during the day and provide a lot of other added benefits too. :-)0
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To paraphrase what people have said in the past in response to posts like this, if you're 166 pounds, you've had a lot of practice eating much more than 1,200 calories a day. But if the food is healthy, 1,000 or 1150 is fine. There will be no long term consequences other than your losing weight.
No long term consequences? What about an increase of muscle loss? Not getting enough nutrients? Not fueling your body properly? 1000, 1100, 1150, 1200... is not enough food.
OP, did you really just consume soy sauce for lunch one day a few days ago? Are you sure you are tracking correctly? A lot of days you aren't even meeting 1000 calories. You should be eating between your BMR and your TDEE which I'm guessing is higher than 1200 calories. Consistantly eating too little will increase muscle loss, make it harder to lose weight and make it much harder to keep it off. Less muscle means a higher body fat % and it creates a slower metabolism.1 -
If you're struggling to eat 1200 and losing weight, how did you end up with weight to lose? Honest question.
Lol. It's possible. I've been averaging 1100 a day and don't want anymore. To answer your question, for me anyways, alcohol has a lot of calories and me and my red wine bottle became too good of friends. Leastways, until I put on 15 pounds that I'm now taking off. Since being on here, I've realized food is not my issue. Wine and margaritas are. Oh how I miss my friends. :-(1 -
What are the quick added calories you have for breakfast every day? Are you sure that is accurate?0
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If you're struggling to eat 1200 and losing weight, how did you end up with weight to lose? Honest question.
Do you realize you ask this in EVERY low calorie question forum ?? Is it really honest , is my honest question !
It's a fair question to ask, isn't it?0 -
Stop eating "diet" food. Problem solved.
this.
if all i ate was celery and kale, i'd have a hard time reaching 1200 calories too.1 -
You're going to hurt your metabolism if you maintain this.
Google the "Minnesota Starvation Experiment".
A good summary is located here: http://eatmore2weighless.com/the-starvation-experiment/
Are you suggesting that it doesn't matter that the men in the experiment were already lean with low body fat.
While walking 3 miles everyday, they ate 1500 calories per day for 3 months.
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When you first start to take control of your eating and exercise it can become all consuming, which is a good thing, because now you are taking control and realising that your weight before was due to you over eating.
Your diary looks good and you are monitoring what you are putting into your mouth and you are obviously making changes.
You now recognise that you are not eating just for the sake of it and want to only eat if you feel hungry. Well done
Just make adjustments to your diet to bring your calories up a little more.
As you progress you will find that you can still lose weight and eat more.0 -
Stop eating "diet" food. Problem solved.
:flowerforyou:
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here.. lots of healthy awesome recipes (and a few not so healthy ones)
http://www.myfitnesspal.com/blog/Confuzzled4ever
eat away!0 -
I found this thread while trying to figure out for myself how to get to over 1200 most days without feeling like I am stuffing myself as well. My goal is 1500. When I am paying attention, weighing my food and portioning out with meal plans etc. I have to force myself to eat more to even hit 1000 calories let alone 1200. I actually have an ongoing joke that I have to have a glass of wine or rum some nights to hit 1200. Healthier foods fill me up super fast. Give me junk food and I and down 1200 calories in a burger and fries without blinking. Right now I feel almost sick full, after squeezing in a bowl of greek yogurt with almond butter, honey, almonds and cocoa powder to get to a whopping 1179 for the day (and yes, with a glass of wine added for the night). I don't eat many times a day and have to actually remember to eat - not because I feel hungry - but because it is necessary. Everyone is different. I just need to find that one person like me that has found the trick to more calories which will result in a better metabolism which will aid in weight loss.0
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marathongal wrote: »I found this thread while trying to figure out for myself how to get to over 1200 most days without feeling like I am stuffing myself as well. My goal is 1500. When I am paying attention, weighing my food and portioning out with meal plans etc. I have to force myself to eat more to even hit 1000 calories let alone 1200. I actually have an ongoing joke that I have to have a glass of wine or rum some nights to hit 1200. Healthier foods fill me up super fast. Give me junk food and I and down 1200 calories in a burger and fries without blinking. Right now I feel almost sick full, after squeezing in a bowl of greek yogurt with almond butter, honey, almonds and cocoa powder to get to a whopping 1179 for the day (and yes, with a glass of wine added for the night). I don't eat many times a day and have to actually remember to eat - not because I feel hungry - but because it is necessary. Everyone is different. I just need to find that one person like me that has found the trick to more calories which will result in a better metabolism which will aid in weight loss.
People often feel there are only two options - eat calorie dense “junk” food or eat nutrient dense, filling, “healthy” food. Why can’t you still eat a burger and a small order of fries? Or some of the other things you were eating prior to deciding you needed to make a change? There are lots of calorie dense options and not all of them are “junk”, take the advice in this thread. Don’t choose “diet” or low fat foods. Eat full fat dairy, cook with butter/oil, add avocado, cheese, nuts to a salad, eat fattier cuts of meat, or if all else fails and you’ve eaten a balanced nutrient dense diet nothing wrong with some ice cream or any treat you fancy to help get you to goal.
Also, are you exercising? If so you should be eating more than the 1200 bare minimum calorie target.
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marathongal wrote: »I found this thread while trying to figure out for myself how to get to over 1200 most days without feeling like I am stuffing myself as well. My goal is 1500. When I am paying attention, weighing my food and portioning out with meal plans etc. I have to force myself to eat more to even hit 1000 calories let alone 1200. I actually have an ongoing joke that I have to have a glass of wine or rum some nights to hit 1200. Healthier foods fill me up super fast. Give me junk food and I and down 1200 calories in a burger and fries without blinking. Right now I feel almost sick full, after squeezing in a bowl of greek yogurt with almond butter, honey, almonds and cocoa powder to get to a whopping 1179 for the day (and yes, with a glass of wine added for the night). I don't eat many times a day and have to actually remember to eat - not because I feel hungry - but because it is necessary. Everyone is different. I just need to find that one person like me that has found the trick to more calories which will result in a better metabolism which will aid in weight loss.
Odds are your metabolism is just fine. If you're truly struggling to get to your calorie goal then you might want to consider some more calorie-dense options (that isn't necessarily wine or "junk" food).4 -
Are you allowing yourself treats? Restricting yourself too much can sometimes make it difficult and lead to binges. If you can control the portion sizes a planned cookie, cake, small serving of ice cream, etc can make it easier to stick to your goals.0
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marathongal wrote: »I found this thread while trying to figure out for myself how to get to over 1200 most days without feeling like I am stuffing myself as well. My goal is 1500. When I am paying attention, weighing my food and portioning out with meal plans etc. I have to force myself to eat more to even hit 1000 calories let alone 1200. I actually have an ongoing joke that I have to have a glass of wine or rum some nights to hit 1200. Healthier foods fill me up super fast. Give me junk food and I and down 1200 calories in a burger and fries without blinking. Right now I feel almost sick full, after squeezing in a bowl of greek yogurt with almond butter, honey, almonds and cocoa powder to get to a whopping 1179 for the day (and yes, with a glass of wine added for the night). I don't eat many times a day and have to actually remember to eat - not because I feel hungry - but because it is necessary. Everyone is different. I just need to find that one person like me that has found the trick to more calories which will result in a better metabolism which will aid in weight loss.
Are you eating a lot of high volume low cal foods?
How much weight have you been losing per week?
Have you had a checkup recently?1 -
1200 is pretty low, so the scale should be moving for you nicely. All this calorie counting and so on is to get a result. If your results are what you are hoping for, keep doing it! I wouldn't force anything, that small margin could easily be inaccurate tracking, which happens for a variety of reasons. If what you're doing is working, I say keep it up!0
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bgonzalez1120 wrote: »If you're struggling to eat 1200 and losing weight, how did you end up with weight to lose? Honest question.
well about 2 weeks ago I was eating whatever I wanted whenever I wanted and how ever much of it I wanted I just recently started paying attention to what I eat.
Many people have this problem when they first start. They cut out all the high calorie foods and add in low calorie foods. They are actually eating more food than before...just a lot less calories. Find something such as peanut butter...add a small dessert and bring your calories up. You will adjust over time and be back on track.
To add...I have been at this off and on for a few years...I am just coming off a spell where my calories were too low but I wasn't hungry. I had backed off slightly on my bread/pasta to lower my carbs slightly and increased my vegetables and fruits. I had to add more food to get my calories back up.0 -
If you're struggling to eat 1200 and losing weight, how did you end up with weight to lose? Honest question.
It happens to many people when they give up calorie dense food in favor of nutrient/lower calorie foods. It takes a while for some people to figure it out.
I got fat off of lots of cheese crackers(whole box full at a time)...I was under eating when I replaced those snacks with fruit/vegetables. I was eating more volume but far less calories. It took a while to adjust and get my calories correct.2 -
thisismeraw wrote: »
OP, did you really just consume soy sauce for lunch one day a few days ago?
Small omissions of a calorie dense meal once or twice a week will bump OP's calories into the perfectly fine zone. OP, what's missing from this lunch?0 -
bgonzalez1120 wrote: »Alright.... pretty sure I'm about to get yelled at by strangers here but I have an honest question. I'm 26 weigh 166 lbs and I'm 5'3. I currently am not excerising but cooking my own meals and meal planning. I have found that with eating every 2-3-4 hours I have a hard time reaching the 1200 calorie goal. I never eat less than 1000 but usually bounce between that and 1150 and i'm honestly not starving at all. Do I force myself to eat the extra 150-200 calories? even if that means a snack right before bed? I am loosing weight doing what i've been doing but i'm scared of long term concequences of not eating the 1200 calories. Thank for your help!!!
I'm not a fan forcing yourself to eat when not hungry, but at the same time our body can ADAPT to too little food and too much food. That's why people can still feel hungry when they eat too much, and not feel hungry when they eat too little.
All that has happened to you is that you have adapted to too little calories, and you are correct to worry about the long term consequences because it will hurt you in the long run for sure.
1680 calories is your estimated TDEE. That is based on an average of all the expert calculations, which are all over the map, all correct, yet all estimates. It's a great number for you to remember for your height and gender, for life, even though it's only an estimate and your metabolism will ebb and flow daily and with the seasons of life. It won't vary from that plus or minus but a couple hundred calories in either direction. You can always adjust this number with years of accurate data. Your body will always give the truth more than a calculator.
So, with that number... TRUST THIS... You can't possibly gain body fat unless you go over that number.
Anything under that is a deficit for body fat. It doesn't have to be 1200, it can even be a deficit 1600-1700 with a good workout. But since you don't workout, maybe 1500-1600.
When you have adapted like you have, it's hard to break out of so I would just add in a little bit of higher calorie foods with your small snack meals that you already eat; butter, coconut oil, avocado, beans and legumes, nuts, dried fruit, cheese, things that are delicious that will add energy and richness to your foods, enjoyable and will help you to feel better and heal from such low calories.
Ignore the mean people. Mean people suck for sure. The world is full of them.
Best of luck to you.
Roberta
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