not really hungry, but under caloric level.

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midgey86
midgey86 Posts: 7
in Health and Weight Loss
Hey, I just start MFP last week. I am trying to lose 15-20 pounds. I am 4'10 and weight 130..I am supposed to eat 1200 calories a day. I have been working out a lot, and burning about 250-400 calories a day. I also work night shift at a hospital, so I sleep during the day. I have noticed that I have not been eating my 1200 calories..only about 900 of them. I know this is dangerous, but at the same time I am not hungry. I dont know if its just because at work i'm running around and do not really have time to eat, so the hunger passes or what. I also think in the back of my mind I am thinking "if i limit how much I eat, I will lose the weight faster"...even though i DO know that it is not true (because your metabolism slows way down). Anyone have any suggestions???

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  • lunaephiliac
    lunaephiliac Posts: 64
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    you're not hungry because your metabolism is already dead. not permanently, but you will need to eat more to wake it up. I would actually suggest upping your calories to 1800 or so for a week at least. your appetite will come back in a rush, and believe it or not- you will feel way better.
  • mojiwoji
    mojiwoji Posts: 23
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    When I was having trouble raising my calorie intake, I started having trail mix for a snack. I needed more calories and protein, and nuts added both of those. If you're not eating 1200 calories, you might not be getting all the nutrients you need. Look at what nutrients you're missing and find a snack that is concentrated with it; it'll probably add the calories you're missing as well.
  • Sabss1
    Sabss1 Posts: 4
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    can anyone suggest what to eat to boost metabolism?
  • ambie35
    ambie35 Posts: 853 Member
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    I second the trail mix idea.
    Things like nuts,avocado,and cheese are high in healthy fats.They help boost your cals,and you don't have to eat s lot of them
  • tigertchr23
    tigertchr23 Posts: 418 Member
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    I second the trail mix idea.
    Things like nuts,avocado,and cheese are high in healthy fats.They help boost your cals,and you don't have to eat a lot of them.

    ^ Well put!
  • agetlostgirl
    agetlostgirl Posts: 20
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    I only eat between 500-700 calories due to chemo I know Im supposed to drink ensure but I have that same thought in the back of my head I will loose weight faster
  • bcattoes
    bcattoes Posts: 17,299 Member
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    You could try drinking calories while at work - low sodium V8, lowfat milk, soy milk, almond milk, yogurt drinks, meal replacement shakes, etc (watch for too much added sugar). Also shoot for nutrient dense high calorie foods like nuts, nut butters, avacado, dry roasted edamame, etc. These will get your calorie count up without actually eating more.
  • lizzybethclaire
    lizzybethclaire Posts: 849 Member
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    Wow, I had that problem too when I first stared MFP. Now I treasure every calorie! but seriously, you need to eat your calories. I ended up undereating and while I lost weight at first I ended up hitting a plateau and gaining 14 pounds back (which took me 6 weeks to lose) when I upped my calories again. I try to eat all my calories everyday, watch my salt, and drink plenty of water. My weight losee may only be 1.5 to 2 pounds per week, but at least it is safe and steady.
  • mangorabbit
    mangorabbit Posts: 219 Member
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    Well, what I was going to say has already been said, but, opt for some more calorie-dense foods (nuts etc ...trail mix...) many are snack/pocket friendly and will help get you to your caloric goal.

    A day or two sporadically of landing under 1200...not a huge deal. A consistent lifestyle of that is kind of rough on things.

    Good luck, be well, and breathe!!!! ^_^
  • XanderWiFi
    XanderWiFi Posts: 11 Member
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    Anything and everything.

    Eating chocolate is preferable to letting your body go into "hibernation mode" or "starvation mode" where your body starts retaining fat. Just give it anything to metabolize so it is reassured that a famine is not coming. Of course, the healthier the better.

    Night shift is also unnatural for humans. It affects the way our thyroid functions and actually makes us feel hungrier even though we are not. Something to keep in mind in case things go the other way. I remember 12 hour nights as an RN...like working the twilight zone.
  • jmvh59
    jmvh59 Posts: 97
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    Everybody has got some really good advice, but is your 900 calorie a day routine working for you? If it is, I would not necessarily change it. The 1200 calorie minimum rule is pretty universal, but you are probably in the bottom 1 percentile for height, so I would suspect you may be the rare exception to the rule. If you are well under your calories yet not losing, your body has probably shifted into starvation mode and you need to feed it to restart your metabolism.

    I, personally, have experienced the best weight loss results when I vary my food intake. For example, this past week, I ate practically the same things all week, then last night my wife and I went out to Texas Roadhouse and shared a single dinner and appetizer. I probably consumed 3000 calories in that half-meal (well it was more like two-thirds). I have been doing a lot of exercise, running most days and going to rugby practice and playing two matches on Saturdays, so I usually don't eat through all my calories in a day. I went about 1500 calories over on Friday because of that single meal but the overall net calories for the week will be under my goal, mostly because I will burn nearly 3000 calories on Saturday.

    I will end up losing more weight than MFP predicted, probably because that one big meal helped stoke my metabolism. Granted, I've got a LOT of muscle mass under this fat. I'm 6 feet tall and weigh 293 pounds but look more like 240ish. I've really done some rambling here, but the point I'm trying to get at is that you've got to do what works for you. Experiment a little. Listen to your body. Eat when you're hungry but don't stop counting calories. Don't push yourself too hard when it hurts, but recognize that it always hurts when you first start out or make changes.

    I hope this advice was helpful.

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