"You're not consuming enough calories"... Please help me.
rchupka87
Posts: 542 Member
Dear GOD - Please someone help me with this. EVERY single day, I get that message when I complete my food diary. Maybe I am trying to read my goals incorrectly. Should I only be focused on Calories, or should I be watching Fat and Carbs and Protein too? I am finding it extremely difficult to reach my Caloric goal without going over in some other category... I see "FAT" and "CARBS" and they are red, and I start freaking and stop eating. I keep reading in all of the boards that everything is Calorie, and calorie defecit.
Should I ignore every thing else, and just eat my calories so my body doesn't go into starvation mode? I really don't understand.
Please help me.
Should I ignore every thing else, and just eat my calories so my body doesn't go into starvation mode? I really don't understand.
Please help me.
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Replies
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Eating enough is more important than the macros. Macros matter, but really only protein, try and meet that one.0
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You should open up your food diary so we can see how you're doing. I go into the red zones often on my diary and it doesn't mean that I am eating too much. You should really focus on getting enough protein, eating back exercise calories and at the very least, your daily allowance. Try to stay around your daily target for carbs/fat, but don't beat yourself up and starve if you go over. Sodium is another big thing that you should really try to stay under because it can make you gain water weight, but other than that, give yourself some flexibility!0
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Okay I am having the same problem too so I always leave a extra 100 calories or so. Or maybe just regain it back through excercise. Whats important is for instance,
Say you go over on your Protein but you have a little Carbs left over. That makes up for it in a way, because a lot of diets (like The Atkins- not something I'd recommend but you lost weight QUICK) stresses alot about lowering carbs and dramatically increasing your protein!
Hope that helps :-)0 -
Eating enough is definitely more important than the macros - but I believe that the macros are important - so I choose foods which fit both! xx0
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I know what you mean. Every day I am under on carbs and over on protein, but protein is what keeps me full. I go by calories and have been doing well so far!0
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I always try to stay under on my calories, sugar & sodium. I'm not too worried about carbs or fats, however I do try to not go over them more than 15-20g. Everyone is different, if you're still losing weight even though you're going over, that's great, but dont cheat yourself on calories b/c that is what is most important, along with protein, because you will starve your body & it will ruin your metabolism.0
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For the most part, I try to stay under calories, carbs, fat and sodium. I try to purposely overeat fiber and protein. If I do go over on the other stuff but an under on calories, I don't beat myself up about it... I just try to evaluate what it was that I ate that pushed me so high in that catagory and reevaluate that food choice.0
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Focus on the calories and make sure to reach that goal. The macros are a little bit weird on this website and if they don't suit the way you eat, go to the tab home, then click goals up top, change manually and change the percentages to anything that fits better.
Personally i've upped my protein and reduced the carbs, but i'd suggest suiting it to what suits you. Never stop eating because you're over on those! Sure, don't eat too much fat, it's not really healthy, but definitely don't stop eating before you've reached at least 1200 calories.0 -
You can change your macros to suit your needs. Click on goals and change the percentages.0
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I totally agree with Lisa on this one...
Have you tried changing your FAT/CARBS/PROTEIN percentages to 40/30/30 mix, the 40 being either Carbs or Protein?0 -
To me, eating your caloric goal (getting above 1200 min) is more important than the macros. I do track my carbs, fat, protein, and just started tracking my fiber & calcium to make sure I'm getting enough of the last two.
If you tend to eat more fruit, you will go over in carbs. However, if you are eating a lot of pasta, bread, etc,, are you eating whole wheat/whole grain or white?
Without seeing your diary, it is difficult to help you more, but definitely try to get your caloric intake up to around 1200 if you aren't already.
Best of luck on your journey & feel free to friend me if you wish.
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Dear GOD - Please someone help me with this. EVERY single day, I get that message when I complete my food diary. Maybe I am trying to read my goals incorrectly. Should I only be focused on Calories, or should I be watching Fat and Carbs and Protein too? I am finding it extremely difficult to reach my Caloric goal without going over in some other category... I see "FAT" and "CARBS" and they are red, and I start freaking and stop eating. I keep reading in all of the boards that everything is Calorie, and calorie defecit.
Should I ignore every thing else, and just eat my calories so my body doesn't go into starvation mode? I really don't understand.
Please help me.
Your diary is not public so we can't see if you are eating the right foods. If you are not constantly reaching your calories goal, you may not be eating the right foods, and/or not exercising much.
Review your diary, be honest about it and ask your MFP friends, the ones that can see your food diary, to give you more inputs and recommendations.0 -
Honestly, I only focus on keeping the calories where they should be.
I do check the other stats but I use them more as guidelines in checking out the "quality" of the food I am eating. If I'm in the red on one though, so be it 0 -
Dear GOD - Please someone help me with this. EVERY single day, I get that message when I complete my food diary. Maybe I am trying to read my goals incorrectly. Should I only be focused on Calories, or should I be watching Fat and Carbs and Protein too? I am finding it extremely difficult to reach my Caloric goal without going over in some other category... I see "FAT" and "CARBS" and they are red, and I start freaking and stop eating. I keep reading in all of the boards that everything is Calorie, and calorie defecit.
Should I ignore every thing else, and just eat my calories so my body doesn't go into starvation mode? I really don't understand.
Please help me.
Start by reaching your calorie goal. Once you're doing that consistently you can focus on tweaking your diet to meet your macros.0 -
If you are staying under 1200 calories but going over on fat and other things, you are eating alot empty calories, try focusing on healthier foods and leaner proteins, veggies and whole grains. This will allow you to pack more good stuff into your day without going over on your macros, except for protein its ok to be over on protein!0
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You can change your macros to suit your needs. Click on goals and change the percentages.
Great minds think alike!!
Feel free to add me if you need any help x0 -
Dear GOD - Please someone help me with this. EVERY single day, I get that message when I complete my food diary. Maybe I am trying to read my goals incorrectly. Should I only be focused on Calories, or should I be watching Fat and Carbs and Protein too? I am finding it extremely difficult to reach my Caloric goal without going over in some other category... I see "FAT" and "CARBS" and they are red, and I start freaking and stop eating. I keep reading in all of the boards that everything is Calorie, and calorie defecit.
Should I ignore every thing else, and just eat my calories so my body doesn't go into starvation mode? I really don't understand.
Please help me.
Your diary is not public so we can't see if you are eating the right foods. If you are not constantly reaching your calories goal, you may not be eating the right foods, and/or not exercising much.
Review your diary, be honest about it and ask your MFP friends, the ones that can see your food diary, to give you more inputs and recommendations.
She must not be eating even 1200 calories if she's getting the message from MFP that "you're not consuming enough calories"... It has nothing to do with the right foods/exercise. I think she's asking if she should be eating 1200 calories, even if that means going over on macros.0 -
I try to keep my calories and macros in the green. It takes a while to get used to healthier food choices for this to be happen.0
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Clearly I eat enough since I have never received that message. :noway: :laugh:
Seriously, though, my days yo-yo. Some days I'm under by 200 calories, putting me around 1100 net, but those days are few and far between. Most days I'm right at my goal. My macros are all over the place...some days one thing is up, the next day something else is. The good news is, I think this is keeping my body confused. :laugh: When I stop dropping weight, I'll reevaluate. But I do make sure to net 1200 or so almost all the time, as I've seen a lot of posts mentioning that as a bare minimum.0 -
just.eat.
thanks.0 -
Your calories aren;'t meant to be in the green, that calorie target is a goal, by keeping it in the green you aren't meeting your bodies requirements, you are missing the goal.0
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Why do't you take a peak at my diary. I customized my macros( 50 carb,25 protein,25 fat) but I do not follow them to a T. I might choose my last meal or snack of the day to help balance it out a little, i,e, If didn't get enough protein for the day, I will eat something high in protein, etc.
You should be more worried about eating your calories though. You can read my diary to get ideas if you want. FYI, I havent eaten all my excercise calories the last 3 or 4 days but that is not normal at all. I usually have coffee for breakfast and then start eating around noon-9pm. My diary looks weird but I actually graze all day long:-)
Don't get overwhelmed. Don't over think it. Eat 3 well rounded meals and a couple snacks throughout the day and youll get your calories up there.
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try to cut down on carbs and eat more protein decrease bread/ pasta/rice
change from white to wholegrain if you can ( then you get fibre too) and increase proteine.
try to balance your plate.
good luck0 -
Just looking through your diary for the past few days, it looks like you are eating < 1000 calories per day, and exercising on top of it. That really can't be enough fuel for your body. You are eating healthy foods, just not enough of them. Try adding in a greek yogurt and fruit, or granola, nuts - any kind of high calorie, low volume food that contains healthy fats and protein.0
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I only worry about calories and am down 19 lbs so far! Buut I fouund if I am under on calories I stio losing, its really important to eat enough0
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Just looking through your diary for the past few days, it looks like you are eating < 1000 calories per day, and exercising on top of it. That really can't be enough fuel for your body. You are eating healthy foods, just not enough of them. Try adding in a greek yogurt and fruit, or granola, nuts - any kind of high calorie, low volume food that contains healthy fats and protein.
^^ This.
Also, the type of fat (good vs bad) isn't broken down automatically, I believe you can do that under settings.
If I go over in my fats, but I'm eating avocados or healthy proteins, I don't worry about it.0 -
Different intake categories fluctuate so much daily, that you really should analyze it week by week. It may even out more than you realize.0
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Meeting your calorie goal is the most important. Yes, keeping the carbs low or something is important too, but remember that there are GOOD carbs and BAD carbs. MFP can't tell the difference. You need good carbs for energy. Fruits, whole grains, etc will up your carbs, but its better to consume those than processed foods.
And if you just feel that you can't reach your calorie goals, eat foods that are higher in healthy calories. Almonds, avacados, etc are high calorie healthy foods.0 -
First, you have to realize that MFP is supplying you with a suggested Basal Metabolic Rate (the rate you burn calories when at rest), based on averages for your age, sex, height, and weight. It may or may not be accurate. There are machines that your doctor can use to get an accurate measurement of a BMR, but you will probably have to pay to have that done. I was lucky enough to be able to take part in a 8 week study, in which my BMR was precisely calculated by equipment. It turned out to be much lower then the estimated BMR used by MFP. The bad news (at least at first) is that the exercise/caloric rate suggested by MFP was not going to take off weight anywhere nearly as fast as the MFP estimate. Since it was not really safe to lower my calories any more, I needed to increase my exercise. By increasing my exercise, I should (theoretically) also increase my BMR, making weight loss easier. The study ends next week and I will be tested again, so I will find out if my increased exercise over the past 2 months has actually raised my BMR.
My point is--exercise not only helps you to lose weight by burning calories, it also raises your BMR so that you burn more calories even when you are not exercising.0 -
I'm always over on sugar and don't care... The automatic settings aren't always right. My original settings kept putting me in the red for fiber. It said I only needed 15 grams a day. Most other sources say 25 at least.0
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