I have a question for all of you calorie counters. I am trying to stay between 1300-1600 calories per day (I like room to fluctuate). But today, it is almost 10PM..I have only eaten about 820 calories..and I am not hungry.

I have eaten normally today.

Breakfast:Banana
Lunch:Roast Beef Sandwich on whole wheat with cheese and mayo
Snack: Reduced fat Cheez-It crackers
Supper:LC Roasted Chicken and Spinach

Is it OK to have days like this? I know you aren't supposed to go below 1200 calories..but I don't want to eat just for the sake of eating.

OK Just for the record I am eating a bowl of cereal just to bump my calories up to a reasonable amount..I don't like seeing such a low number. Guess I will stay up awhile longer tonight LOL.

But..the question remains..is it OK to have days like that?

Try eating something more substantial for breakfast (like for breakfast have oatmeal, fruit, yogurt.). That one's hard for me because I'm always on the run...I usually grab a yogurt, eat it while driving, and eat a granola bar or nutrigrain or something during my first class. And maybe have something other than a sandwich for lunch (i.e. for one lunch: sandwich, small salad, some kind of fruit or veggie?)

Nothing wrong with having under days once in a while...it won't ruin you. Just like going over a few hundred won't make you gain 5 lbs.

p.s. it would also be a good idea to squeeze in an extra snack time. not only does it push up your metabolism, it'll get some more calories in.

I think it depends on how often you have those days. I'm a lot like you - I'll count my calories and find myself below 1000 and am satisfied. But I go ahead and eat something to bump myself up. It's not just the calories that I need, but the nutrients that come along with the extra food. So after dinner I add up my calories for the day and if I need more, then I plan on a snack and I eat it whether I'm hungry or not. I know that sounds contradictory to what we've been taught, but sometimes it goes in the opposite direction.

That's just how I do it

It's really not OK. The nutritionist and doctor I spoke with have said that you need to make sure you get your nutrition at a pretty regular rate throughout the day. Also, the WHO and other organizations have defined less than 1200 calories as being in a state of starvation. You can check with a doctor or nutritionist if you want to be sure, but they would most likely tell you to plan out your day so that you are getting enough calories at each meal -- not just to meet a certain number by the end of the day.

For instance if you eat a banana for breakfast, that's about a hundred calories depending on the size of the banana. Then about 4 hours later you have lunch. I'm guessing that the sandwich was around 350-400 calories. Then you had a snack at some point, which might have been around 100 calories, and the lean cuisine which was probably about 180-210 (I can't remember exactly how much is in the one you had but I eat it once in a while).

If you were to draw a graph of the amount of energy that you are providing to your body throughout the day, you will see that you aren't giving yourself very much until lunch, when you have about half of your calories for the day, and then you are restricting again for the rest of the day. Except for when you do something that gets your heart rate up -- exercise for example -- you are regularly using the same amount of calories, so except at lunch time, you have deprived yourself all day.

Even if you aren't hungry, your body is starving on those days when you are under 1200.. I know from personal experience that a state of starvation does NOT induce hunger and over time it can cause some serious, serious health problems.

If you plan ahead for it, and regularly get enough calories throughout the day, then you won't end up with any short days.

Thanks guys. I know I don't eat enough for breakfast..I am just lucky to remember to grab anything at all. I used to never eat breakfast. I USUALLY try to eat a banana on the run in the mornings before class, and have a granola bar in my purse for a snack before lunch..but it just didn't work out that way today.. SIGH. Breakfast on the weekends I do usually eat more..Usually some oatmeal or grits with wheat toast and milk..then a fruit a little later.

I just have weird days where I am not that hungry since I started this diet. Then I have other days where I want to eat everything in the house LOL. Fortunately I don't..But I think about it.

Oh and I usually at more at lunch because it is the meal closest to my workouts during the day..and I rationalize to myself that I need more calories then since I am using the most energy then..even though that may be totally wrong lol.

depends how often you dip so low -- just like how we would sometimes have splurge days and that can be OK as long as it's occasional, I think it's alright to have a low calorie day every now and then, as not as you're not doing it to make up for a splurge, feeling hungry in the process or doing it too often.

I'm not going to weigh in on whether you should or shouldn't, but I did have a question.

You said some days you aren't hungry and other days you eat a lot. Do you tend to eat a lot following days like today? That might signal that although you aren't hungry on one level, your body isn't really getting enough.

I just meant those days are days I get alot of cravings for no-no foods..I don't necessarily eat alot.. My fitday says I am averaging about 1650 calories a day so that isn't too bad is it?

AquaWarlock: I do try to cut back the day after I have a splurge (say I end up with 1800 calories for the day, I will try to make sure I don't go over 1300-1400 the next day), but it's a conscious effort and it's not like I am trying to dip down to an unhealthy number of calories..I just want to average out what I ate.

wyllen: To answer your question,the actual loss of hunger doesn't generally follow any type of pattern. But then again I am only a few weeks into this so time will tell.

Thank you guys for all your responses so far! I want to get this weightloss thing right this time around LOL.

I think it is okay to have a "range" calorie wise...like having 1200 one day, 1400 the next, etc. but I don't really think it should be extreme-like 800 one day, and 1800 the next. A lot of times, you may not feel hungry on the low day...but the next day you are ravenous because of the low day. It actually sets you up for future cravings, and possible binges. It can create a high-low cycle that you really want to avoid.

I also wanted to make a note on the nutrition aspect of having these low days-for instance, your calories were so low that you had ONE fruit serving, ONE vegetable, and only ONE dairy serving, and two very small servings of protein.

Nutritionwise, this day was not very good. With 400 extra calories added to get you up to 1200, you could have had another fruit, another vegetable, another dairy, and a small protein. This would have been much more nutritionally balanced.

The way that the low day was, you did not get enough calcium (bones), enough protein(muscle fuel), or enough fruits/veggies (antioxidants, vitamins, cancer fighting properties). You may have felt satisfied...but your body did not get the nutrients that it needed for health.

It isn't all about getting thinner...it is also about better health. Your body is like a vehicle-and our vehicles need certain things to run properly (gas, oil, antifreeze, coolant) and they can't run properly without ALL of these. Food in our bodies works the same way.

I LOVE nuts, which are good for you but high calories for such a small amount....on the days I know I'm not eating enough and really not hungry ...I'll have a serving or 2 of nuts/seeds in the afternoon..... I try not to go under 1200 calories ever. I'm not as strict as some are with calorie counting...like I never count my skim milk for coffee which is probably an extra 100 a day, If I steal a couple baby carrots from the fridge I probably wont write that down either....So even on days when I only record 1000 calories, I'm pretty sure I had a little more than that. Thats why i usually write down ish after my calories...

I agree with Justme, nuts are a wonderful way to add some heart-healthy calories to your day if you don't feel you've had enough. That and you don't feel like you're having to sit down to a meal if you're just not hungry enough to eat. They're a great way to make up some extra calories.

I try and stick to around 1200 calories, but I too have days where I don't come close to that and I simply don't feel like eating anymore. So I'll have some nuts or a couple of pieces of reduced-fat cheese or even just a glass of milk. Especially chocolate milk, that hits the spot every time and gives me some extra calories. I buy the Hershey's Lite syrup (50% less sugar than the regular) and will have a glass of that in the evenings if I'm way under my calories. But the occasional day of only eating about 800-900 calories when I just don't want anything else, I usually don't worry about it and just go about my normal eating the next day, making sure I don't go too far OVER this time.