Should I be eating more?
 

I've had the same routine for a few weeks now. I eat breakfast in the morning, usually granola. Then I go to work for 8 hours, all of which I'm on my feet and moving. And then I eat again at dinner. Chicken and vegetables usually. I don't drink anything but water and occasionally coffee.

I haven't seen any results, and I wonder, maybe I need to eat more throughout the day to keep my metabolism going?

I thought with eating so little and walking around for 8 hours a day would be a good solution to my weight loss. Hmm.. :?:

You need to eat more frequently to keep your metabolism up. Most sources I've seen/heard/read say ideally you should not be going more than 2-3 hours without eating, and you should split your calories up over 5-6 small meals to maximize your metabolism and stabilize your blood sugar. Plus, you don't have to deal with hunger, which is a bonus. Depending on how much granola you eat and whether you eat it with milk, you *may* be within an acceptable range of calories, but probably not. And you're definitely not getting sufficient levels of the macronutrients you need if you're only eating those few foods in such small amounts.

And granola is usually high in sugar and not too high in fiber - not as high as a whole grain high fiber cereal anyway. I eat shredded wheat - high fiber and 0 sugar. By eliminating the high sugar granola and switching to a lower sugar higher fiber cereal you'll not only feel fuller longer, but you'll also have more calories to budget throughout the day for more meals.

But yes going 8 hours with no food is bad for your metabolism, bad for blood sugar, and I'd imagine it's uncomfortable to be so hungry! :) Think nutrition/heath first, weight loss second - the one follows the other for long term success.

I'm kind of like you - I'm on my feet all day, with barely a chance for a break to eat! Count your calories for your breakfast and dinner... if it's in an acceptable range for you and you're not hungry, try adding in some exercise. If it's super low (under 1000 calories), try to sneak away for a quick lunch (I know I have a hard time with this most days, but a banana, string cheese, etc. are helpful!) for something to break up the day.

Hope that helps!

Aren't you hungry??? I would be STARVING.

Yes, I think you should eat 1200 at least - add a snack or small lunch at work.

Remember NEVER NEVER skip meals and there are 3 meals in a day, breakfast lunch dinner. You need to start eating while at work. You can lose weight this way but it leads to dangerous eating disorders and can screw up your body chemistry.

I second what benchmarkman said.
I was counting your meals to see if i miss the "lunch" somewhere but i think i didn't.
So start eating 3 meals per day if you don't have time. 3 main meals.

ummmm.....YESSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSS...I'd be famished....don't skip your meals...if you want your metabolism higher you'll have to eat!

I've been listening to the Jillian micheals podcasts and one thing I've heard her say over and over again is that losing a few lbs (less that 30 or so) is TOTALLY different than losing 100 lbs.

What that means is your body doesn't really FEEL unhealthy because it has the fat stored it needs. If you dip down to really low calories it thinks, ok this is panic time gotta hold on to all this. But if you are eating at a reasonable level....maybe 1600 calories for your activity type, your body feels like everything is cool and doesn't have to hold on to excess fat.

Also I was on a plateau for months! Then I got my GWF and realized because my job is active I burn alot more calories than I thought. I upped my intake and I have lost almost 5 lbs in 2 weeks. YEAH!

Candice

How do you work that long without eating?? I think I'd fall over or faint! Your body is probably going into starvation mode and storing every calorie you are eating at breakfast/dinner. Maybe try having a little snack around? Almonds maybe?

-Aimee