Since I've been counting calories, I've been thinking about how I used to eat. Obviously I wasn't counting then, but I was gaining weight, so I know I was putting way more calories in than I should have been. But now that I am counting, and aiming for 1400-1600 a day, there are times when I feel like I'll have to stuff myself to hit 1400. HOW did I eat so much back then? It just amazes me. I always used to feel like I was "starving" so I would eat. Now, with keeping within the calories, I feel fully satisfied. I guess it just goes to show that our bodies are able to adapt to what we put it through.
I hear all you guys saying that you have to force yourself to get to your calorie allotment. Why oh why does that NEVER happen to me? I have ZERO problems getting there.
That being said, I am amazed how full I really get from eating waaaaay less food then I used to. I could never consume the amount of food now that I used to. I haven't a clue as to how many calories I was eating prior to my lifestyle change. But it was in the thousands. And I don't mean 2 of them or 3.
Christy - my DH has started counting calories with me. He began about a month ago and he is constantly commenting on the same thing. He eats until he is satisfied and finds that he is consistently coming in way low on calories. I, on the other hand, am more in line with Robin. I have no problem getting up to my allotment....but I also have no problem stopping, anymore. And that, to me, is a HUGE victory! I actually STOP!
I'm with you Robin. In over 2 years I have never had a day I had to force myself to eat to get calories in. I also eat more calories than I think many people do, so I'm eating quite a bit of food every day.
I'm fairly certain I was putting away 3-4 thousand calories at minimum "back in the day". I just didn't think about it.
No, I don't have any problems meeting my calories for the day. Of course, I havent given up on my tablespoons of natural peanut butter on celery(110 calories) or my German Whole Wheat bread with a tablespoon of lite Smart Balance (145 calories) I find that my healthy fats do add up quickly. On the other hand, I'm not hungry at all on 1700 calories and I know that I was eating waaaaay more than 1700 calories before I started this journey.
I never have a problem getting in my calories for the day, but I am amazed at how I can actually get really full on heathly foods! That has been a huge revelation for me. I don't even want to think about how many mindless calories I used to eat - YIKES!
I am still hungry at times (despite eating a lot), but I just feel SO MUCH BETTER on a diet that is "mostly healthy" as opposed to my diet before, where the occasional healthy food would be consumed, but it was often a) by chance and b) consumed in large quantity.
I frequently have trouble getting in my calories. Which does amaze me because I had no trouble at all finishing a medium pepperoni, sausage and extra cheese pizza in one sitting just a couple of months ago. And that was probably after having McD's for lunch. I think it would kill me if I tried it now.
I'm pretty well satisfied on 1200-1400 a day. I have to admit, though, that I like the feeling of just being slightly hungry. It makes me feel so much lighter than the packed full stomach I used to drag around.
The thing that astonishes me now is that eating is a hassle sometimes. Seriously! I'll get through my day all the way to dinner, and I've been so busy doing "life" things that I just don't want to bother to eat. I'll check with my body and it'll be "eh...hungry, but I can wait" so I'll get busy doing something else...and then I completely forget to eat! I'll get down to 9 or 10 at night and I don't like the idea of going to bed with a full stomach, so I'll just skip it. What's that about?? Since when did I not care about eating? Since when did I have so much going on in life that I didn't want to stop to eat? Since when did the idea of "grabbing something quick" NOT appeal to me? If it's the choice of fast food or hunger, I'll go for hunger almost every time (unless it's been hours and hours since I last ate--and even then "fast food" means grabbing a salad somewhere). Full and satisfied on much fewer calories, a food-quality snob...this is new!
I don't have a problem getting to my daily calorie goals, but I am still in shock over what I used to eat. I know how I got the calories that high, with lots of fast food and sweets. I just don't know how I could eat that stuff so much! I feel so much better now that I'm eating healthier foods. My IBS is nonexistent most days and I'm not constantly sick to my stomach. It's a good feeling.
I totally agree. The past two days I had to stop at less than 1100 calories because I just WASN'T hungry. I'm trying to make today a high day because I need to make up a bit for what I wasn't eating the past two days, so that my average for the week will be around 1500.
I also think that it is the fact that we are now eating healthy foods opposed to the high fat, high sugared garbage that we were shoveling in. We all know that the body doesn't respond to high fructose corn syrup like it does to natural sugars that are in fruits.
I have no problem eating my daily amount and I'm normally have an empty, slightly hungry feeling when I go to bed. Yesterday, I had three slices of pizza for lunch at a meeting and I wasn't hungry the rest of the day. I ate dinner, which annoyed me big time and that night I went to bed and really missed my empty feeling.
How did I do it??
