I'm trying really hard to eat 1200-1300 calories like the calorie counting sites say you should but Im finding it impossible to eat that much!

See, I don't eat enough and its lowered my metabolism and caused my body to horde the calories it does get so Im trying to stay in my diet, lose the weight, and boost my metabolism... this is what I plan on eating today.

Breakfast: 3/60 calorie low-fat waffles = 190 calories <-- 3 because my son didn't eat his! LOL oops.
Lunch: Can of Campbells Soup = 175 calories
Dinner: Can of Campbells Select Soup (200) + Grilled Cheese (120)
Snack: 2 toast with butter (90) glass of milk (100) = 190 Calories
Orange medium = 62 calories

Total 937

And this will more than fill me up, I just don't know what to do. I know that to lose the weight I need to eat more and eat healthier foods BUT.... I don't like veggies or meat and the best way for me to get them is thru a soup and those don't have alot of calories.

Suggestions?

The obvious answer is fat. Have you tried avocado (a slice on a sandwhich, for example). It has a smooth creamy texture, and packs alot of nutrition.
Also spreading out your meals into smaller meals will help.

You could try adding little things like crackers in your soup. Or a small dessert. And I would suggest drinking more milk, 2-3 glasses a day. ARe their other fruits you like? You could add an apple or something to breakfast and lunch. Good luck.

Go for a swim. It both burns calories and makes me ravenously hungry.

Well...if you're going to try and get most of your veggies through soups, I would suggest that you make your *OWN* soup, rather than rely on the canned ones, which generally have a ton of sodium in them (and by "make your own soup" I am NOT talking about the Cabbage Soup Diet soup...unless you actually LIKE that stuff...it's been YEARS and I still have to gag every time I think about it!!!)

Soup is actually not that difficult to make and can be really tasty - there are lots of recipes here at 3FC. A good minestrone, with lots of veggies, some beans and such, can be really tasty!

(not to mention the aroma of it cooking filling the house is sooo nice...)

Another tasty way to get your vegetables in would be to try a stir-fry.

Also...instead of going for frozen or canned veggies, try FRESH. I'm convinced that a lot of people who think they hate vegetables have mostly limited themselves to the canned or frozen ones. Fresh veggies are SO MUCH tastier.

You can also try to add a small 100-150 calorie snack between lunch and dinner, I have had to do that several times.

Just what I was thinking. And if you are not going to eat meat you need to get some protien in! Soy products are great sources for protien. Also, if you really are stuck in a rut, the only way to increase your metabolism is to INCREASE your caloric intake (I think a week or two). That will jumpstart it and then you can go back to cutting calories.

One last thought -- are you positive that you're counting your calories correctly? Myself, I'd have a hard time coming up with a 120 calorie grilled cheese sandwich or two pieces of toast with butter for 90 calories.

Meg I was curious about that also, since usually 1 slice of bread is like 70 cals, then butter is HIGH in calories 1 tablespoon of butter is 100 calories also...so 2 pieces of bread (reg not light bread) and 1 tablespoon of butter would be 240 cals in my calculation.

You're right Meg! I just skimmed over that part and noticed the thing about not liking vegetables.

I think for a typical grilled cheese sandwich, you're talking at least 300 calories - a slice of bread (not that light crap) actually averages about 90 calories depending on size and type; a slice (1 oz) of your typical American cheese is 100 calories, then add on some more calories for the butter...

Is this a diagnosis from a doctor or dietician, or is this just an assumption?

The concept of "Starvation Mode" has been discussed several times here at 3FC - here's a recent thread you might find interesting. (personally, I think that the "starvation mode lowering my metabolism" thing is overused - look at weight loss surgery patients for example - during the first 6-18 months after surgery generally they will eat significantly less than 1,000 cal/day and they manage to lose HUGE amounts of weight...I'm not advocating eating less than 1k of calories a day but just using that as an example.)

Just judging from the menu you posted today, I would say you really need to work on cutting WAY back on the processed/refined foods and including more UNprocessed fresh foods in your diet. I know, I know, you said "I don't like veggies or meat". IMO the reason you don't like veggies is probably for the same reason I didn't much care for them...when you were growing up you learned to eat the processed crap and developed a taste for it. So what you need to do is to RETRAIN your taste buds to like the good stuff. Yup - it CAN be done and I'm living proof of that. Expriment and find recipes that you like that use vegetables. Include veggies as often as you can (and not just lettuce and carrots...there are INFINITE types of veggies out there...if you have a farmers' market in your area, check it out!). Check in your area to see if there are any cooking classes that you can attend. I noticed that you live in Virginia - there are several Whole Foods Markets in that state - if you live near one I encourage you to check it out as they have a lot of educational nutrition resources - in fact here's a nonprofit organization based in Virginia which is sponsored by Whole Foods called Nutrition Ammunition that might be worthwhile checking out...

An invaluable exercise while you're losing weight would be to keep a careful journal (or log) of what you eat every day. Yeah, I know, what a PITA...but trust me, if you want to lose weight and keep it off, being mindful of what you put in your mouth is CRITICAL. It's those B.L.T.'s - or Bites, Licks and Tastes (thanks MEG for that!) that go undocumented which often mean the difference between losing and gaining weight. Measuring your portions, reading labels, and recording everything you eat is absolutely invaluable - basing your journal on 'recall' can be incredibly faulty as most people end up UNDERestimating their caloric intake (for example, my totals of your menu for today came up to 1,247 calories...not 937).

And don't forget the role of EXERCISE, both in losing weight and MAINTAINING the loss.

Hope that helps.

Hmmm...I definitely have that 40 cal bread in MY frig :-)

What about grains? Like oatmeal for breakfast? I know those 60 cal waffles too! They're in my freezer and I have 'em with SF syrup, BUT they do not fill me up much and I definitely have fruit with them and Morningstar breakfast links (a soy sausage substitute). I rely a lot more on oatmeal & craisins (with 2 links) to get me out the door most mornings.

Uh...you said you got that 3rd waffle from your son. Does *he* eat fruits & veggies??????? Maybe you could learn to like (or tolerate) some of them just to help set a good example for him? (boy how many of us learned bad eating habits young and are trying to UNDO them now?)

First off, if you don't want to make your own soup, then I would switch over to Healthy Choice soups, rather than Campbell's, because they have less sodium in them. They are also a little more caloric, because they are not mostly broth like the Campbell's soups. For instance *runs to get a can out of the cabinet* A can of HC vegetable soup is 260 calories. (The can has two servings, 130 calories each, hence the 260 for the can.)

Another change that I would make now and then if you are wanting to increase your calories, is to switch the toast with butter to toast with PEANUT BUTTER instead. You would be getting a little protein, which is good since you don't like meat, and the fat is a little healthier than what is in butter.

I would also make the low fat waffles an occasional thing. They are fat free, but also pretty much nutrition free-unless you are getting one of the special varieties in the health food section. (Some contain soy, or flax seed, or other nutritional elements in them-but I am guessing that isn't what you are buying, since yours are only 60 calories each.)

Instead of the 190 calorie waffle breakfast...why not have 2 eggs (140 cal.) and a piece/serving of fruit? (Since you only recorded the one orange as fruit all day.) Actually, for only 195, 5 more calories than you had-you could have the two eggs with a cup of strawberries (45 cal.) for a total of 195. It would have more fiber, more protein, and you would also be getting the antioxidants and other natural nutritional properties from the fruit.

If you are still having issues with needing more calories from time to time-it is easier to add a small snack of about 100 calories (a piece of fruit, a serving of yogurt, etc.) to get the calories you are lacking that day.

Try to add in one more piece of fruit each day - melon, berries, or bananas all would be good.

And if you like soups, buy frozen veggies and add a half cup or a cup of veggies to your soups! It's an easy way to make the canned stuff better for you.