How to divvy up calories?

Allegi32
Allegi32 Posts: 302 Member
edited November 11 in Health and Weight Loss
MFP gives me about 1400 calories per day and I admit, I'm having issues - I can't understand the people who can't eat enough food! LOL

I need to eat every few hours or I feel absolutely awful, so I try to eat 5 meals throughout the day - 3 major meals with 2 smaller snacks. But it seems like every time I get past lunch, I only have like 300 calories to eat, and then I I feel so helpless. I don't feel like I'm making unhealthy choices for the most part (the last week hasn't been great, though, probably out of frustration), so I'm not sure how to eat fewer calories without feeling weak and hungry. As it is, I still go to bed starving every night and I want to have a plan I can stick to long-term, not a quick fix.

Help!

Replies

  • taso42
    taso42 Posts: 8,980 Member
    The several meals a day thing helps a lot of people (including me). But some people do better with 3 meals a day. So try both ways and see what works.

    Another thing that helps fullness is protein. Shoot for plenty of protein. The MFP default is way low. Shoot for 1g per lb of body weight.

    Plan ahead. Use the food diary and start adding foods to tomorrow's diary... play around with it until it looks sensible. Planning ahead is critical. After a while, you may get into a routine and be more able to "wing it".

    After a few weeks, your body should get used to the calorie levels and you won't be going to bed hungry. If you still are, then something may be off. Either too few calories, or not eating the right foods to feel satiated.

    Good luck! :flowerforyou:
  • IveLanded
    IveLanded Posts: 797 Member
    My day is about 1200 calories and is divided up into 6 meals that are essentially equal, calorie wise. 200 calories of oatmeal for breakfast (which is VERY filling), a larabar for snack, a spinach salad with chicken for lunch, a protein smoothy for snack, and usually meat and veggies for dinner, and then an apple with some almond butter for dinner.

    For me another key to making sure I avoid feeling hungry is having protein in almost every meal, if not EVERY meal. Sometimes my snack is a handful of cashews and raisins if I'm down on protein for the day.

    For me, the equal division has really helped as well as having lots of protein. Protein, for me, is filling. Leafy greens are also super filling and I throw in a handful of spinach of kale into virtually everything I can.

    Staying hydrated is important. Being dehydrated can make you feel hungry so I'm ALWAYS sipping water. Along those lines, one trick I have if I've eaten too many calories early in the day is I'll sneak in a diet soda. The carbonation makes you feel fuller. ;)
  • IveLanded
    IveLanded Posts: 797 Member
    I peeked at your food chart.....lower your carbs and fat and raise your protein. Losing the half and half alone will give you a 150-200 extra FOOD calories to work with a day! I went cold turkey to black coffee and black tea and, hey, at least I'm getting my caffeine fix.
  • momof2winsplus
    momof2winsplus Posts: 137 Member
    I have to strategize. I get 1600 cal per day, so I try to eat 300 for Breakfast, 400 for lunch, 600 for dinner, with 2 - 150 cal snacks. I only drink calorie-free. Mostly water, but some diet drinks, too.

    If I know I will overeat, I make sure to exercise to cover it.
  • amandamickey
    amandamickey Posts: 49
    I checked your diary too and agree with IveLanded - you definitely need to decrease carbs and increase your lean protein intake (grilled chicken breast, fish, tofu, greek yogurt, etc). And get rid of that half/half - you don't have to go black completely, but maybe just a splash of milk would save you lots of calories every day.

    Also, another tip is to eat more vegetables/salads. If you eat a large salad for lunch with tons of veggies in it and some lean protein (such as chopped up chicken breast), you will find yourself feeling full for a longer period versus eating a lunch consisting of mainly carbs and "empty calories" (foods without much nutritional value such as protein, fiber, etc). Same for dinner - serving of protein, lots of veggies, and keep carbs minimal if you can (but we all crave those bad boys every now and again).
  • Allegi32
    Allegi32 Posts: 302 Member
    Thank you all! I do have my macros set to 40/30/30 and I try SO HARD to get in more protein...a couple of eggs for breakfast, cottage cheese or greek yogurt for snack, and chicken or meat for lunch/dinner. I'm not sure how to get more in? Bigger portion of protein and fewer carbs per meal?

    I hear you on the 1/2 and 1/2....I use the low fat so it's not terrible, but it does add too many calories per day. I admit this is the hardest thing for me to give up - harder than sweets/junk in fact! I will work on cutting that back - and getting more sleep so that I don't have to keep loading up on caffeine!
  • amandamickey
    amandamickey Posts: 49
    Thank you all! I do have my macros set to 40/30/30 and I try SO HARD to get in more protein...a couple of eggs for breakfast, cottage cheese or greek yogurt for snack, and chicken or meat for lunch/dinner. I'm not sure how to get more in? Bigger portion of protein and fewer carbs per meal?

    I hear you on the 1/2 and 1/2....I use the low fat so it's not terrible, but it does add too many calories per day. I admit this is the hardest thing for me to give up - harder than sweets/junk in fact! I will work on cutting that back - and getting more sleep so that I don't have to keep loading up on caffeine!

    Those are all great protein sources, but if you need more, I suggest checking out a protein powder that you can mix in your yogurt or put into a blender with some ice and fruit for a yummy morning smoothie! There are some really great ones out there that pack a huge protein punch!

    And I hear you on trying to get more sleep.....I have been saying that for so long I'm sure that I sound like a broken record now! :wink:
  • Captain_Tightpants
    Captain_Tightpants Posts: 2,215 Member
    Sounds like the protein angle is already covered. There's a couple of other ways to feel fuller too...

    1) Fiber - I put some benefiber in my water and it helps me feel fuller all day.
    2) Eat more - not enough calories? simple, work out... voila... magical extra calories to eat :drinker:
  • hannahagraham
    hannahagraham Posts: 26
    Ahh, I have similar issues..
    -Drink pleenntty of water, and treat yourself with other good tasting drinks like Crystal Light, or diet soda.
    -Make sure you're getting enough protien in your diet to help you feel fuller.
    -If you find yourself running low on cals by the afternoon, exercise to earn some more for later on.
    :)
  • mrsjennifermaffei
    mrsjennifermaffei Posts: 469
    You havent learned enough tricks yet lol. Breakfasts can be filling but low cal with 2 eggos or 3-4 eggs as they have 60-70 cals each. Snacks like 100 calorie popcorn or 90 calorie fudgsicles or even veggies with hummus. Get creative.
  • DaveMXF
    DaveMXF Posts: 52
    I looked at your diary, and I agree with increasing the protein. I'd even challenge you for 4 weeks to change your ratios to

    45/35/20 - Protein/Carbs/Fat, totally commit to it, no exceptions. You might even be able to bump your total calories up to 1600 if you are exercising enough.

    Just my .02
  • reddi2roll
    reddi2roll Posts: 356 Member
    I think if you eliminate the additional coffee and just have one in the morning you will have a lot more options. If you can drink the coffee black then bring it on but that would never be an option for me so I only have it in the morning. Agree with adding more protein which you should be able to do if you have more calories to play with.
  • dawnagetsfit
    dawnagetsfit Posts: 81
    I read somewhere about Hemp protein powder having a great calorie/carb/protein ratio. I found the Nutiva brand (not the "Hi-Fiber" kind) was 15g protein, 9g Carb, 8g Fiber, 3g Fat and 90 calories per serving. I bought some to sample because I'm also trying to find ways to get more protein while lessening the carb load.. This protein powder looks to be a good match!

    ETA - The Nutiva brand is also Organic and free of additives
  • NicoleH734
    NicoleH734 Posts: 3 Member
    I love eating all day, but have restricted myself to Breakfast, Snack, Lunch, Snack and then Dinner. What seems to be working for me is...
    Morning - Carbs like cereal, oatmeal, toast with dairy milk or yogurt, i try to eat this around 9:30 or 10:00 so I'm not starving.
    Snack - Fruit - banana or an apple with peel is filling or berries with yogurt
    Lunch - Salad with Protein (hard boiled egg, salmon, tuna) & salad dressing
    Snack - Veggies with dip - I love the 100 cal packs of hummus from Costco.
    Dinner - Protein with salad & veg
    And of course I always leave enough cals for a glass of wine when I get home from work. Try drinking hot tea or green tea after every meal ... it works pretty good. If you can eat mostly veggie in the afternoon, it is filling but isn't a lot of cals. Good luck! Stick with it!
  • AirCircleI
    AirCircleI Posts: 334 Member
    I am also at 1400 cals per day and I could never keep to that alone (even though I only eat clean foods and loads of protein, minimal carbs and sugars).

    So I exercise to get more calories. I am not comfortable on less than 1600, but I keep mine set to 1400 and exercise 6 days a week, and even on my rest day I go for a walk or something easy to give myself some more calories to eat comfortably. That seems to be working well for me - gives me the motivation to exercise every day and also keeps me losing.

    If you can, try exercising (even just walking) 20-30 minutes a day to give yourself some more calories to play with.
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