[Emme]

Originally Posted by KatieC87

That's why I've kept my Jell-O chocolate pudding (but gave up entire sleeves of Chips Ahoy! hehe).

Love this! I love the 60 calorie Jell-o sugar free pudding and usually have one a day. It's my little "chocolate" fix for the day so I don't feel like I am depriving myself. Great attitude!

[ChickieChicks]

Hi!

I had/have the same issue. I am you size, started at 173, and did 1200 cals clean for the first month. But everytime I excercised (hard) I felt like crap and eventually my weight started to stall out. 1/2 the people I talked to said, "DOn't add calories! I didn't" and the others said, "You're starvnig yourself, add calories!" It was all so confusing to me.

I didn't WANT to add calories, but I also didn't want to lose weight solely with a food deficit, b/c I am very short and can easily look "skinny-fat" if I don't work out. I want to be all-over healthy, so I knew excercise had to stay. My dad had a great idea. He was a serious runner his whole life, and helped me find a compromise I could live with. So my calorie intake is still 1150-1250, but on days where I workout and really burn it up, I add a protein shake. It's 190 cals, fat-free, no sugar and 30g of protein.

It has made a world of difference, and it also helps me to vary my calorie intake, instead of stayin gat 1200 every day for weeks on end.

[UrthWurm]

It was interesting to read the varied responses to your inquiry. I'm actually in pretty much the same boat. My story is I lost about 70 lbs straight out the weight loss gate on my first go at it. Then I hit a major plateau and didn't budge for the longest time. I slowly fell off plan and gained about 10 lbs back. I've since recommitted to my weight loss journey, and I've found that I simply cannot eat what the calorie calculators and general public suggest. I'm sticking to 1200/day, sometimes a little less, sometimes a tiny bit more, and exercising fairly hard 6 days a week. I'm actually dropping lbs and seeing progress and I'm so glad to be doing so again. My advice is if it's working for you, keep doing it. If you feel tired or lethargic, or your weight starts to stall, THEN switch up your routine. Good luck to you, and congrats on your major success so far!

[fattymcfatty]

I can't workout on an empty stomach. I run 3 miles every other day, and do it in the morning, before my 2 year old wakes up. I eat a small banana. Potassium is great, yes they have carbs and sugar but it is natural. I used to hate them, but I like what they do for me.

[Michelle2008]

Katie - some great stuff here and from much wiser folks than I. But if it helps I have been trying to keep to around 1000 - 1200 calories a day but often dipping to 900. I joined a gym today and worked out for about an hour and My body as made it very clear to me that it needs more food!

I have been losing weight steadily and am intruding exercise for health reasons mainly - I can lose weight okay on diet alone - but I have add to introduce a few healthy snacks today just to stop from feeling light headed!

Good luck with it - although you seem to be doing great already