What do you eat to maintain your MFP?

steveman99
steveman99 Posts: 27
edited December 17 in Health and Weight Loss
I have been given some sound advice, that I should be maintaining the 1810 calories MFP has set forth for me.
In the past month, since I started, only two times, maaaaaybe three times have I gone past that. Generally, I try and hit the 1200 calories milestone. This HAS lost me 8 lbs in the last month. I'm going to say something now that will likely make me look stupid in some of your eyes, but all along I thought that was THE MOST CALORIES I WAS SUPPOSED TO HAVE!!! 1810.
So, my question to you all is, what kinds and types of foods are you all eating to maintain your caloric intake?
At 1200, many times, most times, I am full. I'm told that I need to eat every bit of my calories for me to start losing weight, but I have not eaten properly for so long, I just don't know what to eat. Am I going to have to do what my mother did, start cooking unprocessed foods? I joke, kind of.
Please do not be apprehensive at being blunt.
Thank you.
Stephen

Replies

  • Whiltierna
    Whiltierna Posts: 2 Member
    I take time for a morning snack since I get to work so early in the day. To make sure my lunch isn't at 10a and at normal noon-ish, I have a 2bar package of Oats and Honey Nature Valley bars with 2 tablespoons (1 serving) of creamy Jif peanut butter spread between the two bars. This way, it's 190 calories each (380 total), protein and fiber to tie me over to lunch, and doesn't weigh me down at work. It also causes me to drink an extra cup or two of water!

    Then I add a salad to every dinner meal, and if I need more calories by then, then I add some stuffed olives.

    Other than that, I just insert fresh fruit and veggies where I can!
  • steveman99
    steveman99 Posts: 27
    I take time for a morning snack since I get to work so early in the day. To make sure my lunch isn't at 10a and at normal noon-ish, I have a 2bar package of Oats and Honey Nature Valley bars with 2 tablespoons (1 serving) of creamy Jif peanut butter spread between the two bars. This way, it's 190 calories each (380 total), protein and fiber to tie me over to lunch, and doesn't weigh me down at work. It also causes me to drink an extra cup or two of water!

    Then I add a salad to every dinner meal, and if I need more calories by then, then I add some stuffed olives.

    Other than that, I just insert fresh fruit and veggies where I can!
  • steveman99
    steveman99 Posts: 27
    I take time for a morning snack since I get to work so early in the day. To make sure my lunch isn't at 10a and at normal noon-ish, I have a 2bar package of Oats and Honey Nature Valley bars with 2 tablespoons (1 serving) of creamy Jif peanut butter spread between the two bars. This way, it's 190 calories each (380 total), protein and fiber to tie me over to lunch, and doesn't weigh me down at work. It also causes me to drink an extra cup or two of water!

    Then I add a salad to every dinner meal, and if I need more calories by then, then I add some stuffed olives.

    Other than that, I just insert fresh fruit and veggies where I can!

    Thank you.
  • dewgirl321
    dewgirl321 Posts: 296 Member
    Hi Steve. Great job so far! It seems like you haven't been eating much, which can work for a while if you have a lot to lose, but you can stall if you don't eat enough as you get closer to your goal weight.

    Great options to add: cottage cheese, almonds, greek yogurt, avocado, whole grain bread, cheese, chicken breast, tuna

    You may want to make your diary viewable to obtain more / better feedback.

    Have you increased your activity, or are you focusing solely on improving your nutrition?
  • Jennfur2610
    Jennfur2610 Posts: 67 Member
    I pack a lot of fresh fruits and veggies during the day. I love to munch on stuff so this is really helpful and fill me up quick. I know this sounds dumb, but I drink a TON of water during the day which has really helped with my appetite.
  • steveman99
    steveman99 Posts: 27
    Hi Steve. Great job so far! It seems like you haven't been eating much, which can work for a while if you have a lot to lose, but you can stall if you don't eat enough as you get closer to your goal weight.

    Great options to add: cottage cheese, almonds, greek yogurt, avocado, whole grain bread, cheese, chicken breast, tuna

    You may want to make your diary viewable to obtain more / better feedback.

    Have you increased your activity, or are you focusing solely on improving your nutrition?
    How do I make my diary viewable?
  • dewgirl321
    dewgirl321 Posts: 296 Member
    Fitnessfrog.com can be helpful for figuring out your BMR (you should eat more than this) and your TDEE (Total Daily Energy Expenditure). I have found it helpful (as do other MFPers) to calculate these numbers individually rather than strictly using the MFP calculation for calories needed.

    You can go to Settings and scroll down to the bottom to make your diary viewable by friends or the public.
  • dewgirl321
    dewgirl321 Posts: 296 Member
    After seeing your diary, I would suggest protein bars and shakes. They can be more satisfying than Quaker chewy bars (which I love). I get Pure Protein bars from Walmart, but Oh Yeah! bars are yummy too. I hope you have been eating more than you've been logging because you haven't logged much!
  • steveman99
    steveman99 Posts: 27
    After seeing your diary, I would suggest protein bars and shakes. They can be more satisfying than Quaker chewy bars (which I love). I get Pure Protein bars from Walmart, but Oh Yeah! bars are yummy too. I hope you have been eating more than you've been logging because you haven't logged much!
    Nope, just eating as reporting. I can't eat much more. I can some days, other days no way.
    But like I've said, I've not been eating properly for a very, very long time. I don't even begin to know where to start, when it comes to good home cooking.
  • beattie1
    beattie1 Posts: 1,012 Member
    I had a look at your diary too - at least half the time there's no dinner logged and you're eating around half the calories you should be, sometimes less than that. Are you just bad at logging or are you starving yourself? I suggest that you eat at least the calories MFP suggests - you shouldn't be eating so little, it's not good for your long term health. At least one normal meal per day is called for here.
  • steveman99
    steveman99 Posts: 27
    I had a look at your diary too - at least half the time there's no dinner logged and you're eating around half the calories you should be, sometimes less than that. Are you just bad at logging or are you starving yourself? I suggest that you eat at least the calories MFP suggests - you shouldn't be eating so little, it's not good for your long term health. At least one normal meal per day is called for here.
    Now come on...I think you have a bit of an exaggeration there when you say about half the time I don't eat dinner. You only went back a couple or few days, and that was the ONLY time I missed dinner. Take another look.
  • beattie1
    beattie1 Posts: 1,012 Member
    Cooking from scratch like your mother did isn't that difficult, I do it almost every evening. There are cookbooks for men that start with the basics and don't assume that you know ANYTHING! I sent each of my sons off to university with one and they can all cook to some extent now.

    If you really can't bring yourself to cook, or are too short of time, how about trying some of the ready-prepared meals that are so convenient? At least they have the calorie count on the packaging, so you would know what you're getting. At the moment you're eating ******* all!
  • beattie1
    beattie1 Posts: 1,012 Member
    I looked back for 2 weeks - you haven't eaten dinner for the last several days, and you did have a few at the week-end, but the week before is a dinner-free zone as well.
  • wendykayt
    wendykayt Posts: 8 Member
    Hey there Steve, I took a quick look at your diary and I would strongly urge you to pay attention to the sugar in the items you're choosing to eat. It's reeeeeeally hard to keep those sugar grams down, but you need to make some healthier choices even though you are still under your caloric limit. I have struggled with that because I love fruit so much - if you look at my diary you'll see I tend to be over a bit too. But through MFP I'm learning which foods get me into more trouble than others. Feel free to add me as a friend if you're looking for more people to share diaries with. My diary is open to friends.
  • kmjenkins
    kmjenkins Posts: 396 Member
    I'd stick with everyone else and say eat dinner! :smile: Once you get to the point of stabilizing your meals/eating times if you are still having trouble getting in your calories switch to "full flavors" i.e. 2% or whole milk, nothing reduced fat/calories. Still eat nutritious food, just skip the reduced fat/calorie items and you'll hit your calories sooner than you think.

    Good luck!
  • graelwyn
    graelwyn Posts: 1,340 Member
    You will not lose weight and be able to sustain it unless you do it properly, and eating ridiculously small amounts is not the way to go. It is very damaging to your health, and you will only end up regaining anything you lose. This site is about changing your lifestyle, not about starvation diets, to my knowledge.
    I am sure you know how to put rice in a pan to cook, chicken in the oven to roast, or in a pan to boil, soup in a pan, veggies, in pan. That is a start. Wholegrain pasta is easy to make, and there are loads of ready made sauces out there, or just throw some lean minced beef, plum tomatoes, onion, garlic and sweetcorn into a pan and make your own. Baked potatoes are easy. Pierce, stick in the oven for an hour, add some cottage cheese, or beans and cheese, or a can of chili or your own tuna mayo made with a low calorie mayonnaise. You don't have to start off making complex meals, just experiment.

    Get in basics like brown rice, quinoa, baked potatoes, sweet potatoes, wholegrain pasta, ryvitas, and start from there.
    And the best thing would be a simple student cookbook, I have one here for vegetarians and they are brilliant for quick and easy meals.

    No excuses. There are also, as someone said, plenty of ready meals with calorie counts on them. Just check the ingredients and try and avoid the ones with too much salt and sugar in.
  • beattie1
    beattie1 Posts: 1,012 Member
    OK, as challenged, I looked back CAREFULLY through your diary. I went back for a month and made notes.

    I'm not counting today as I guess it's not over where you are, but in the last week (5th - 11th April) you have not eaten dinner 3 times and you were WAY under your calorie goal (less than 2/3 of what you should have eaten) on each of those days.

    In the week before (29th March - 4th April) you did not eat dinner twice and you were way under (2/3 or less of what you needed) on four days.

    22nd - 28th March you skipped one dinner and one lunch and your calorie totals were less than 2/3 of what you need on 3 days.

    15th - 21st March you skipped one dinner and were under your calorie goal by at least 2/3 twice.

    Congratulations on logging the 9 granola bars in one day though! :wink:


    In the past month you have been at or within 10% of your target calories only 4 times. You have been over by more than 10% once. You have been significantly under your target (1200 calories or less) twelve times.

    Basically, you need to eat more, and it needs to be less processed, natural food if possible. The people who posted while I was working on this have given some great suggestions. It's up to you what you do with them.
  • steveman99
    steveman99 Posts: 27
    OK, as challenged, I looked back CAREFULLY through your diary. I went back for a month and made notes.

    I'm not counting today as I guess it's not over where you are, but in the last week (5th - 11th April) you have not eaten dinner 3 times and you were WAY under your calorie goal (less than 2/3 of what you should have eaten) on each of those days.

    In the week before (29th March - 4th April) you did not eat dinner twice and you were way under (2/3 or less of what you needed) on four days.

    22nd - 28th March you skipped one dinner and one lunch and your calorie totals were less than 2/3 of what you need on 3 days.

    15th - 21st March you skipped one dinner and were under your calorie goal by at least 2/3 twice.

    Congratulations on logging the 9 granola bars in one day though! :wink:


    In the past month you have been at or within 10% of your target calories only 4 times. You have been over by more than 10% once. You have been significantly under your target (1200 calories or less) twelve times.

    Basically, you need to eat more, and it needs to be less processed, natural food if possible. The people who posted while I was working on this have given some great suggestions. It's up to you what you do with them.

    Just out of curiosity, have you ever been "taken the wrong way before?"
    Stephen
  • JudyZ
    JudyZ Posts: 23
    Just a suggestion for an easy way to get healthier dinners. I've been using a website called emeals.com. They send you a week's worth of dinners based on your requirements (I chose the low carb...it's pretty healthy). I only make 4 or 5 of them (or less) because there's always leftovers (I have a family of 3). The meals are all simple to make and use simple ingredients. I bought the 3 month plan for $21. I can let it renew or cancel it before my 3 months are up. By that time, I'll have weeks and weeks of menu plans, so I may cancel.

    Oh, and they send you a grocery list too! Very handy! Very easy!
This discussion has been closed.

Categories