Increasing Calories - What to expect & why you need patience...

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  • ANewLucia
    ANewLucia Posts: 2,081 Member
    This is good reading. I've read it before, but I needed to read it again today after weighing in over the past few days and seeing some numbers I had hoped never to see again. Yikes! I just keep telling myself that this is part of the process, that it is worth it. I know I didn't gain 4 lbs of fat in 3 days, so it's gotta be water weight and my body responding to the radical changes I am making. My consolation is that my measurements have not gone up. They haven't gone down either, but I believe that will come...if I can just keep the faith...

    Exactly, if my scale says 4lb gain, I think did I eat 14,000 cals over the last week or so...the answer is always NO. Lifting, sodium, TOM, and the body just adjusting all affects what the scale will say:-)

    Keep up the great work and keep the faith indeed. Know that your body is thanking you for the fuel and will start to show you not just on the scale, but in how you feel, your clothes, measurements...please keep us posted!
  • KeriA
    KeriA Posts: 3,268 Member
    I have set my calorie goal up and just a couple weeks ago decided to go all the way to maintenance. Last night I ran a net calorie report and realized that my net calories weren't really up that much. I think this last week is better but since I raised them supposedly above my BMR I find the net calories don't look like they were above my BMR most of the time. In otherwords I just wasn't eating as many calories as I thought. I often leave just some exercise calories on the table to adjust for inaccuracies in estimating calories burned or eaten so this may be some of the reason. So it may not be as bad as it looks but I think it shows that it takes a while to adjust to eating more. Sometimes it is hard to stop and take the time and get something that is healthy to eat. It takes some getting used to to stock more healthy options. Also for me there is the year and a half of trying to eat less to combat. So I recommend checking this out if you are just starting to eat more after eating at a larger deficit. It makes me wonder too how much I really was eating when I had it set on 1400 or 1500. Was it under by that much? Was my deficit larger than I thought? Anyway I need to be more diligent in eating more often and enough. Another reason I guess to give this some time to work.
  • moylie
    moylie Posts: 195
    This is good reading. I've read it before, but I needed to read it again today after weighing in over the past few days and seeing some numbers I had hoped never to see again. Yikes! I just keep telling myself that this is part of the process, that it is worth it. I know I didn't gain 4 lbs of fat in 3 days, so it's gotta be water weight and my body responding to the radical changes I am making. My consolation is that my measurements have not gone up. They haven't gone down either, but I believe that will come...if I can just keep the faith...

    In the same boat as you! I just joined this group. Lost 33lbs. doing 1400-1500 net, then nada, nothing, zilch since DECEMBER!! For March, I decided to go maintenance for two weeks (1825), then back down to 1500 for two weeks. Stepped on the scale after four weeks and it was UP BY FIVE POUNDS! uggggggggh. Well, in March I started lifting heavy twice a week regularly, plus running 3/wk. Hoping that my body is adjusting. I also just read a bunch of posts from helloitsdan, and according to Fat2Fit, I should be eating between 1880 and 2100 net for my activity level (closer to the 2000 level. I'm terrified of eating that much, since I already "gained" in March. That's why I joined this group. Looking for others doing 1800-2000 daily.
  • ANewLucia
    ANewLucia Posts: 2,081 Member
    This is good reading. I've read it before, but I needed to read it again today after weighing in over the past few days and seeing some numbers I had hoped never to see again. Yikes! I just keep telling myself that this is part of the process, that it is worth it. I know I didn't gain 4 lbs of fat in 3 days, so it's gotta be water weight and my body responding to the radical changes I am making. My consolation is that my measurements have not gone up. They haven't gone down either, but I believe that will come...if I can just keep the faith...

    In the same boat as you! I just joined this group. Lost 33lbs. doing 1400-1500 net, then nada, nothing, zilch since DECEMBER!! For March, I decided to go maintenance for two weeks (1825), then back down to 1500 for two weeks. Stepped on the scale after four weeks and it was UP BY FIVE POUNDS! uggggggggh. Well, in March I started lifting heavy twice a week regularly, plus running 3/wk. Hoping that my body is adjusting. I also just read a bunch of posts from helloitsdan, and according to Fat2Fit, I should be eating between 1880 and 2100 net for my activity level (closer to the 2000 level. I'm terrified of eating that much, since I already "gained" in March. That's why I joined this group. Looking for others doing 1800-2000 daily.

    Oh well, you found a gaal that eats 1900 daily, on some workout days I not only make sure to net BMR but often times Net my cut or even more if I am hungry..lol. I have gone as high as 3100 before. I don't worry about the scale at all anymore. I am actually thinking of upping my daily to 2000 because I really am just not satisfied anymore at 1900.

    When lifting heavy, gains come with the lifts, also with high sodium and TOM to. So be careful of when you are weighing.

    You may want to think about doing a reset where you eat your maintenance calories daily for about 8 wks, then do a 15% cut to start the weight lose process. Just a thought....
  • moylie
    moylie Posts: 195
    [/quote]

    When lifting heavy, gains come with the lifts, also with high sodium and TOM to. So be careful of when you are weighing.

    You may want to think about doing a reset where you eat your maintenance calories daily for about 8 wks, then do a 15% cut to start the weight lose process. Just a thought....
    [/quote]

    I figured it was because of lifting, but I am still discouraged since my measurements haven't changed in a month, either. I aim for not more than 2000 on sodium, plus I am overdue for TOM. Interesting on the reset. My MFP maintenance is on the low end of what Fat2Fit says, so I suppose that's doable. Really, 8 weeks, though???? And then a 15% cut of my TDEE? I'm starting to get really confused by all the freakin' numbers. LOL. Also, on exercise days, do you just eat back to your BMR? Helloitsdan suggests up to 200 over your BMR. My goal is still to lose more bodyfat. I'm roughly 24-26%, depending on the website I use. Last "official" Omron handheld I did said 24%. Not sure what's realistic for my age (40). 22%? 20%? Also, I have my macros set to 40/30/30, which has been fairly easy, but I could still add more protein. Having a tough time get those last grams in at the end of the day. I eat nuts, beans, chicken, low-sodium jerky, cheese, greek yogurt, natural protein shakes, hard boiled eggs... any other suggestions?
  • naonah
    naonah Posts: 119 Member
    Great to read these posts! Makes me feel I'm not alone...until i have results to back me up, kind of difficult to explain this "eating more" concept to people.

    I'm on week 3 at 1800/day. Would like to go to maintenance (~2000) but right now I feel like a gupy who's over feeding and am afraid to blow up like one! Although I havent stepped on a scale, my clothes are feeling a little tight (not good, but was expected) but I'm also PMSing, feeling bloated and a little backed up :ohwell: and haven't been exercising this past month. So the odds are not in my favor. Waiting to get passed this TOM and getting a bit more active to see how I'm REALLY feeling.

    I must say though, that I sleep like a champ and feel good/happy all around ever since I've increased my cals.

    Thanks for all the support and guidance!
    Nadia
  • 31prvrbs
    31prvrbs Posts: 687 Member
    I'm also eating 1900-2000 cals for a deficit right now. I put on about 5-10lbs during TOM, that's just a fact that I observed over the years, so I just have to ride it out. I was up 10 at the beginning of this week, slowly creeping back down, but still up around 3-4lbs. Once you live this way for a while, you get a better understanding of how to use the scale as just another tool.

    We are women. The fluctuations will always be there, and some things affect them more than others.

    I'd suggest investing in a good digestive enzyme for the ladies that are upping cals, because your body may need some assistance as it learns to adjust. That is a huge area that begins to lack when we eat low cal for a while, so patience is required for your body to re-learn how to deal w/having the right amount of food. In the beginning, it's still trying to figure out exactly how to allocate to the food to areas that it previously shut down/minimized when we were eating less. Once the "delegation" of nutrients pans out, it becomes a smoother process.

    *****And ladies that are lifting weights*****, especially if you are new to lifting weights. EXPECT a "gain" on the scale whenever you start a new program. Weight lifting changes your body because when you lift weights, you put minor tears in to the muscle. The muscle then repairs itself to become bigger, stronger, tighter. Water is pulled into the muscle as a natural bodily reaction in order to "protect" this muscle while it undergoes the repair. Water weight is actually a pretty good indication that you hit the muscle hard, and it's now doing it's thing. Don't despair, your body is at work making you look leaner, tighter and sculpted in the long run. It's all good... :wink: If you're feeling a little overwhelmed by the water weight, or you feel bloated the day after weights, just do a short cardio/yoga session, and drink extra water, to release any "excess" lactic acid or water from the muscle. Some will still remain (as it's still necessary for repair), but some of the excess will be flushed and you will not feel so "pudgy".
  • DynamicDiva
    DynamicDiva Posts: 138 Member
    Thanks for the wealth of information. This was a really great read and I will continue to remind myself to be patient with me while increasing my calories. I have finally brought my calories up to 1500 after joining the group around 3 weeks ago. I'm now hungry in the mornings, where before I could go to 10 am and 11 am and be ok. Now my stomach growls by 7:30 am. Thanks for sharing all of your knowledge.
  • DynamicDiva
    DynamicDiva Posts: 138 Member
    Good morning pals. I woke up with my stomach growling at 6 am this morning. Thought I might sleep in some with the kids on Spring Break for school, but no such luck. I have increased my calories to 1500 and I have become more hungry now, than I have been before. So here's the deal: I did the calculations for Insanity and my regular calorie intake should be 1495. And then with adding in the Insanity program, I am supposed to be at 2041. Could I still be sending myself into starvation mode? Should I increase my calories a little more. I've always worked out on an empty stomach, and now it seems as though I can't. I hungry more frequently than I have been before and I definitely don't want my body holding on to the things that I eat. Help me.
  • 31prvrbs
    31prvrbs Posts: 687 Member
    Good morning pals. I woke up with my stomach growling at 6 am this morning. Thought I might sleep in some with the kids on Spring Break for school, but no such luck. I have increased my calories to 1500 and I have become more hungry now, than I have been before. So here's the deal: I did the calculations for Insanity and my regular calorie intake should be 1495. And then with adding in the Insanity program, I am supposed to be at 2041. Could I still be sending myself into starvation mode? Should I increase my calories a little more. I've always worked out on an empty stomach, and now it seems as though I can't. I hungry more frequently than I have been before and I definitely don't want my body holding on to the things that I eat. Help me.

    If you're waking up hungry, that typically is based on what you ate the night before. Try having a small snack closer to bed time. Something slower digesting, so that your body doesn't burn it off within the hour. If I go to bed without eating something, I'm ravenous the next morning. So forget what you heard about not eating late at night. If you're eating, say, every 2-3 hours, then basically, your body is expecting it. On time, every time, for as long as you are awake. Days that I'm up at like 5-6 am and don't get to bed until 11pm or so, I eat about 7-8 times.

    Also, if you should be eating 2041, then, yes, I suggest that you start working up to that number. Insanity puts up some crazy burn #s and you have to eat to sustain those types of workouts. If you are hungry, eat. The new goal is for your body to trust you, in order for that to happen, you need to respond when it communicates to you. Or else, yes, you risk it being in starvation mode. Keep your eating times constant, so that it knows exactly when to expect food, and then provide it with the right sources of food. The hunger is a good sign that your body has begun to trust you, and is letting go of the food a lot faster than before.

    Don't fear the hunger, embrace it. Your furnace has been turned on, and your metabolism is doing it's thing...

    Kiki
  • msmith2020
    msmith2020 Posts: 365 Member
    I am on day 4 of eating 1700 calories.

    The first day I got up there, and quick, I was thinking to myself "already? Its that easy? Oh Lord I'm doing something wrong.." But then i did have a hamburger for dinner that night,
    The second night I didnt even tough 1,000 calories, I was in the ER that afternoon from doubling over pain that I have had for roughly 2 weeks, I did find out though that I have a 6.5 cm cyst on my right ovary- so that pain pills I was on made me a little loopy and not so hungry, for those of you, hopefully not many who have had this- surgery is to be determined
    Last night I ate, and ate, and ate till I was 200 short of my 1700 and my stomach hurt so bad I thought I had eaten 3500 calories!! I guess that glass of wine didn't help any... Lol but it did help on calories! Tonight I am again, logged up till Dinner with still 700 calories to eat. I don't really know where I am going to get the calories but I know it will be through healthy means.

    I guess I am like very other woman in this group, when they get about 300 short of their 1700-1900 calories goals and we are thinking to ourselves "yes! I am short today!" When really we should be thinking "What can I add to my daily diet that will help increase my calories but by fueling my body with nutrients?" Lol I am guilty of trying to stay under that number.. by a few hundred. I guess If I upped my breakfast and lunch calories (which really is hard bc my brain is training to stay under a certain number per meal so as to stay under 1440) It will be a lot easier to finish off the day as close to my calories as possible.

    But though all the calculators out there tell me something different regarding my BMR, TDEE etc etc etc... and it is frustrating :noway: and confusing:grumble: and you kinda want to cry:sad: bc the last think you want to do is eat MORE than what you need to eat to lose weight... I have found one, I am going to stick with it bc I know this is what I need to do.:drinker:

    And thank you :flowerforyou:
  • mrscooks1
    mrscooks1 Posts: 16 Member
    I am on day 4 of eating 1700 calories.

    The first day I got up there, and quick, I was thinking to myself "already? Its that easy? Oh Lord I'm doing something wrong.." But then i did have a hamburger for dinner that night,
    The second night I didnt even tough 1,000 calories, I was in the ER that afternoon from doubling over pain that I have had for roughly 2 weeks, I did find out though that I have a 6.5 cm cyst on my right ovary- so that pain pills I was on made me a little loopy and not so hungry, for those of you, hopefully not many who have had this- surgery is to be determined
    Last night I ate, and ate, and ate till I was 200 short of my 1700 and my stomach hurt so bad I thought I had eaten 3500 calories!! I guess that glass of wine didn't help any... Lol but it did help on calories! Tonight I am again, logged up till Dinner with still 700 calories to eat. I don't really know where I am going to get the calories but I know it will be through healthy means.

    I guess I am like very other woman in this group, when they get about 300 short of their 1700-1900 calories goals and we are thinking to ourselves "yes! I am short today!" When really we should be thinking "What can I add to my daily diet that will help increase my calories but by fueling my body with nutrients?" Lol I am guilty of trying to stay under that number.. by a few hundred. I guess If I upped my breakfast and lunch calories (which really is hard bc my brain is training to stay under a certain number per meal so as to stay under 1440) It will be a lot easier to finish off the day as close to my calories as possible.

    But though all the calculators out there tell me something different regarding my BMR, TDEE etc etc etc... and it is frustrating :noway: and confusing:grumble: and you kinda want to cry:sad: bc the last think you want to do is eat MORE than what you need to eat to lose weight... I have found one, I am going to stick with it bc I know this is what I need to do.:drinker:

    And thank you :flowerforyou:


    I hope you are feeling better. Keep it up with the calories. I have to eat 2260 daily so I understand, but it can be done :smile:
  • canroadrunner
    canroadrunner Posts: 203 Member
    Check out the what do you eat thread for some good suggestions.
  • anewjob
    anewjob Posts: 8
    Wow... Thanks. I've been a low-cal eater and my body must be catching up. Thanks.
  • ANewLucia
    ANewLucia Posts: 2,081 Member
    Wow... Thanks. I've been a low-cal eater and my body must be catching up. Thanks.

    Yes hun, your body is thanking you...jumping up and down...:-) Keep up the great work!
  • apee34
    apee34 Posts: 14 Member
    This was a great read!!! I have been notorious for not eating enuf calories, starving myself since the 6 th grade now i'm almost 35 yrs old. I watched my mom for yrs go on diets and not eat anything for maybe days. I just thought this was the way to lose weight. It worked ok i stayed thin until i got to my 20's then the pounds started adding up over the yrs. the harder i tried the more weight i would just gain back if i lost anything in the first place. It wasnt until a few yrs ago that i learned that i need to eat to lose even though my husband had been telling me this for yrs. I ended up losing 30 lbs in 3 months by actually eating, and then things would get crazy or whatever reason i would slip back into my old habit of skipping meals again and not eating enuf calories. I am now on this journey once again to lose the weight and this time i'm not going to let myself slip back into my old ways of not eating. I actually have found that weeks when i feel like i have ate like a "pig" are my best weightloss weeks, bc my body is getting what it needs and lets go of the extra.
  • Howbouto
    Howbouto Posts: 2,121 Member
    Thank you for the information, but I am finding eating at 2400 calories is much harder than eating at 1700 calories! I don't get this. I have gone over numerous times since starting eat more to weigh less. And tonight I'm at 2235 in calories and I'm starving. My diary is open. I didn't track yesterday (holiday I give myself the day off). Is this normal? Is it because my metabolism increasing my body is responding with hunger? Any ideas? I've been reading Good Calories Bad Calories and I'm convinced this is the way to go. I have a Fitbit, it always adds a ton of calories back, but because it adds an ridulous amount of calories I disregard it. Maybe I shouldn't disregard it?
  • ANewLucia
    ANewLucia Posts: 2,081 Member
    Thank you for the information, but I am finding eating at 2400 calories is much harder than eating at 1700 calories! I don't get this. I have gone over numerous times since starting eat more to weigh less. And tonight I'm at 2235 in calories and I'm starving. My diary is open. I didn't track yesterday (holiday I give myself the day off). Is this normal? Is it because my metabolism increasing my body is responding with hunger? Any ideas? I've been reading Good Calories Bad Calories and I'm convinced this is the way to go. I have a Fitbit, it always adds a ton of calories back, but because it adds an ridulous amount of calories I disregard it. Maybe I shouldn't disregard it?

    I treid to view your diary but it is closed. It sounds like maybe your carbs are to high and protien low but I would have t see.
  • Howbouto
    Howbouto Posts: 2,121 Member
    Sorry I opened it to public, I had listed as friends only!
  • ANewLucia
    ANewLucia Posts: 2,081 Member
    No worries...ok I think you could boost your protein a bit more..you had 260 cals of yougurt but it gave you only 8 gr of protein, maybe try switching t greek yogurt which wuld be about same cals but 22 or so gr.

    Also you could be hungry bcause you had a good burn and need the food. Right after your workout you should gie the body a good dose of protein. I take my protein powder and shaker everywhere. My shake is mixed and ready o gulp right after my workout...30gr. Then I eat within that same hours usually.

    I say if you are hungry eat some type of good protein. You have carbs to spare...so not too hard to figure out what. Unlike myself, I'm over on carbs...