Hey all,

After a few months of ups and downs with healthy eating I decided it would be much easier to lose weight if I stuck to a plan so I have started counting calories. I am using MyFitnessPal which put me at 1200 per day for my weight and height, but now that I am doing my best to eat fresh produce and not junk food I am actually finding it hard to meet the 1200. Does anyone else have this problem? It gets to the end of the day and I am full and I still have calories left!

I have considered that it might be MFP's foods being too low in calories vs what they really are, but I usually take the average of everything they have on there and overestimate if I am unsure. I am worried I am not eating enough and will get sick or not lose weight!

Here is an example of what I ate the other day:

Breakfast: Omelette with mushroom, spinach and olives + cappucino (350)
Snack: Strawberries and feta cheese (100)
Lunch: Salad with noodles and thai dressing (170)
Dinner: Two sushi rolls (350)
= 970

Most days I am only doing about 1100. But I am full by the end of the day! Is it a problem with my counting?

Are you positive about the calories in the sushi? I make my own, and when I calculated them up the first time, I was pretty amazed by how many calories can be in just one roll.

If you are looking to add some calories, you could do what's often recommend for pregnant women - an apple + piece of cheese/glass of milk as a snack.

I have the same problem, so I complete my dinner with peanuts, almonds or nuts, which are healthy and packed with calories. Just a spoonful will take you to 1200. Good luck!

Gawd, I wish I could relate to this. I've never ever ever had trouble meeting my daily caloric allotment, regardless of how healthily I'm eating. I could always eat more.

F.

When I first started calorie counting I had trouble getting to 1200 also. My activity level was severely low though as well, when I started throwing exercise into the mix I was getting light headed so I had to train myself to eat more. Now I have no trouble getting up over 1500 calories.

I had(well still have) depression issues about my weight and I would lose my appetite and just not eat. Then I would get so hungry Id binge on anything and everything. So low calories was "normal" for me-I just wasn't used to the fact I SHOULD have ate breakfast and had that mid morning snack and a decent lunch so I wouldn't binge on dinner.

I had this same problem when I counted calories though for me it was more because I was afraid to get too close to that 1200 calorie limit. I've read a lot of people talking about a larger breakfast if you can pull it off. If you're like me and worried about eating too much (or not getting hungry), that might be the way to go. That way you can knock out your caloric intake earlier in the day.

Well you're 5'2" so 1200 calories is going to go further for you than someone who is 5'7", you need to remember that Us shorter folk usually need to eat less.

If you want to get up to 1200 for sure, plan out your meals so that you KNOW you have your 1200 calories before you even start eating. If you're still coming up short after you plan out your meals, it's very easy to add a small amount of calories to each meal and/or snack which can put you up to 1200.

Adding 50cals to each meal is certainly easier than trying to eat a 150-200cal food item when you're not hungry.

fitx35, I am fairly positive the sushi is correct - it was all vegetarian though which helps

Thanks for all the tips - it's good to know I'm not the only one! I used to a lot of mindless eating so now that I'm actually listening to my body and eating when hungry I've realised I don't need much food at all.

I will do my best to add extra calories where I can, I am worried about going under 1200 as it doesn't seem very healthy to me.

I had the same issue! Now that I track what I eat and listen to my body it's actually difficult to get the amount of calories I need! I shudder to think of how much I was eating before I kept track!

Im using myfitnesspal as well. im doing 1200 even though is wants to change it to 1800 every time i make an edit... but if i was under one day i eat a handful of walnuts. they are awesome. and pretty high calorie.

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Are you getting enough fat? Adding in some good fats will get you up to 1200 calories. I ask this because if I go below 25% fat, my hair starts to fall out and my skin dries out. Adding nuts, avocado or a little olive oil will achieve this.

I struggle with meeting my daily intake as well its soo hard especially if you are trying to do the calories you burn form excersice too. I do not think I have ever managed to do my full amount yet..