I think I have been too eager to lose 3lbs this week that Ive been eating under a thousand kcals, I know its stupid. I just wanted to ensure that Id reach my end of march target.
I've only lost 1lb and can usually lose 2 or 3lbs if Im lucky.
grr
or I guess I went to the gym saturday, tuesday and Im going again today, muscles expand and all but I think not eating enough has doone this.
what do you guys think?
my fitday link it to the left showing what I've been eating, monday and tuesday where something under 700kcals each

Does anyone have any advice to impart?

Eat more!

Seriously Under 700kcals is not helping you at all. If you want a toned, trim body then eat WELL (plenty of fruit and veggies and whole grains and lean meats) around 1200-1500 kcals I would say, lift weights and do some cardio.

If you lose 2 or 3 lbs, some of that will be muscle. Muscle takes up less space than fat and actually burns calories. So losing muscle is a BAD IDEA! It's best to aim for a 1lb a week loss.

Starving yourself will not get the body you want, you'll just be flabby but light. Train with weights and it doesn't matter what the scale says because you'll be firm and toned all over.

Also I just had a look at your fitday.

You're getting quite a LOT of fat and hardly ANY protein. You need to bulk up with veggies (you seem to get plenty), try and cut out the apple turnovers, the softmints, galaxy. Limit yourself to just 1 piece of decent chocolate a day (like Lindtt) Instead of processed stuff like Ryvitas try cottage cheese with oats, or an apple with a teaspoon of peanut butter. Try a nice chicken stir-fry (or tofu if you're veggie) with brown rice. Try to limit things like bread to 1 serving a day. So that's one whole wheat roll or one slice of bread.

You might also want to try having more than 5 peanuts and one raisin as a snack... a measured portion of peanuts and raisins would have filled you up and done you more good than the softmints

Also try and cut out mayonnaise, it's empty calories. If it's a packaged sandwich you can buy plenty of healthy ones with low fat yoghurt instead of mayonnaise. Why not take your own packed lunch wherever you go - I tend to always have at least 2 apples and raisins in my bag

Oh and stay away from stuff that's labelled "low fat" like Snack-a-jacks and seasons and whathaveyou. They are EMPTY calories. Your main calories should be coming from WHOLE foods (the closest to nature you can get). The more whole foods you eat, the more calories you burn whilst digesting them...

Sorry for the tome... You did ask

I've always heard that 1-2 lbs a week can be considered healthy and sustainable. I would definately agree that you need to up your HEALTHY calorie intake: your body can go into starvation mode when you get that low, and it can permanently affect your matabolism. You need lean protein for your body to take the exercise you are doing and build muscle, which will help you lose weight in the long run (you burn more calories sustaining muscle than fat).

I haven't had a chance to look at your fitday, but try carrying around oranges or clementines for snacks- they come with their own wrapper, so they won't mush all over your bag. Try to work in some lean protein: maybe some tofu, lowfat cottage cheese, or beans?

If you don't let yourself eat enough, you'll lose energy, and get tired of what you are doing. Make sure that the way you are losing is something you could sustain in the long run! You can do this, just give yourself the right to a little more healthy food in the process

angeleyezx, I'm in total agreement with 2frustrated. Most nutritionists will tell you to stay at 1200 cal or above per day, and that's not taking exercise into account, unless you and your doctor have discussed another plan. Eating less will kill your metabolism. Doing so for a longer period of time will start to have long-term detrimental effects to your health. 1 to 1 1/2 pounds loss a week is a healthy rate to lose. Remember we are doing this to improve our bodies, not damage them. I admire your willpower but I'd say definitely up the calories. Good luck!

I agree with everyone, you should be eating AT LEAST 1200 calories a day. Any less and you risk going into starvation mode, which means your body will store all the calories that you DO eat and you won't burn much. Plus you're actually making your metabolism slower by starving yourself. You need your protein (which will make you feel fuller longer) and lots of veggies. You should never really feel hungry-- eat till you're satisfied, but don't overdo it, at the same time. Losing more than 1 or 2 pounds a week can wreck your health, and even though you may be thinner, you'll look sick instead of healthy. It's really not worth it just to get finished with your weight-loss goal a week or two early.

I do disagree with 2frustrated, though, about cutting out the mayo-- yes, it has lots of calories, but also has lots of good fats, which you NEED. Also, dieting shouldn't be torture-- if mayo is going to make your food taste a little better, as long as you don't go overboard, I say fine.

Also, about your March goal-- you don't have THAT much to lose, so I think trying to lose 12 pounds in a month is too ambitious, plus you won't be healthy with such quick weight loss. If I were you, I'd shoot for maybe 5 or 6 pounds a month, tops. Just some thoughts... hope you give it some thought!

Hey everyone.
I basically know this stuff and would be replying in the exact same way if someone else posted this.
Im usually good with 1100 kcals a day healthy etc, but this month omg I would love to go through this month and be only a couple of lbs away from my goal.
today Im pretty much back on my 'Im eating healthy' plan. I just went low to try and give everything a kick start, I was too deperate for it.

In respones to 2frustrated and anyone who may have looked at my fitday and was like 'geeze no wonder she's not losing any weight, look wat shes eating'
I dont usally eat like that, apple turnover, veryrare treat that my mum bestowed upon me I had a bad weekend in general trying to cook for my family and feeling bloated after eating too much.
the softmints, I have 1 pack a week, my nan brings me em which I share and she also gets me a belgium bun which I love once a week.
The galaxy was a cube of a friends to try the new haznut one and gosh is it the best eva(but didnt know how to enter one cube onto fitday.)
Wednesday I had a job interview that didnt go terribly well so I grabbed a tuna bagette from greggs and wasnt sure how to enter that so tried to enter the max it would be.

Sure these sound like excuses, coz they are, I face that, but I dont think Im not getting enough protein compared as Im meant to have 50% carbs, 35%fats and 15% protein and my protein % is much higher than that.
Thanks for all your ideas and pointers,
I have started eating cottage cheese again, but my protein % is getting higher and my nutritional prof said to be careful of high protein in a diet as it puts stress on the kidneys or liver?


gosh! it looks like Ive written an essay.
My fitday today is more typical to what I was losing the weight on before.

nola, I think I will make my goal lower to 123 so 8lbs, 2lbs a week to lose instead of trying 2.5 or wateva.

Thanks everyone

something Im not to clear on, I cycle everyday so its part of my routine so isnt counted as exercise aparently, but today I was at the gym on the treadmill walking, running, walking extra.
and according to the machines I burned like 200 kcals, should I eat more to fill this or what?

I would say that if you are eating very low 1000's cal wise you should eat a little more if you are exercising more. You can't really trust the calorie counters on those machines, but you worked out none the less.

I eat around 1150 calories per day and work out and burn over 1000 calories at the gym four days per week (even if the machines count too much--they say i burn 1200 per work out usually--then I'm still doing a lot of cardio). I lost on average 2-2.5 pounds per week, which is a normal amount to lose.

I disagree with the people that say that you have to eat more to lose more. And if you eat 1000 calories per day, i think that the starvation mode thing is largely a myth.

Every person's body is different. I am just saying that is clearly doable to eat under 1200 and exercise and still lose weight.

Umm just throwing in my 2 cents here, and please note it is purely out of concern and experience BUT

Eating less than 1200 cals or 1000 cals a day and exercising so you work off all of that is a disordered eating pattern, and can be a prelude to bullimia, where food is purged by exercise. Also beginning or eating a very restrictive diet where your intake is less than 1200 cals (unless doctor advised) can also lead to anorexia nervosa or ed-nos. If you already struggle with body image ideas or self esteem and are trying to lose weight, it can be very easy to fall into obsession and EDNOS or worse. PLEASE be careful about this. I have had experience through friends (and I am ashamed to admit) myself and eating disorders. They are insidious. All you need is to begin to think that eating so little is "normal" and all of a sudden a 1500 cal day is a BINGE no matter how active you may have been or how healthy the food you ate was.

I know anorexics that still lose on 1200 cal a day diets. However it is true that if you lessen your calorie intake significantly and do not increase your activity level, your metabolism will slow down. Also it is possible to cause nerve and tissue damage from under nourishment/vitamin deficiencies - and you don't have to be skeletal for any of this to occur.

It is much better to focus on eating your 5-9 plus servings of fruit and vegetables a day, plus 4 servings of pulses or grains and 1-2 servings of protein and exercising for 30 mins at least on average, than to focus on the pace of your weight loss. Aim to be healthy, fit and happy and the weight loss will happen by itself.

Please take care
NBK

angeleyes, where did you get your recommended %s from? IMHO 35% is a high fat diet and 15% protein is barely scraping enough for essential body maintenance (internal growth and cell repair), espescially if you're only eating a low calories.

And also why wouldn't you count cycling? You do it? You still burn the calories... Why not count it??

Hi, sorry, typed it wrong 55%carbs 15%protein 30%fat
from a nutrional prof Jeff Webb.
A Human physiology lecture said that exercise counts when it is out of ur daily routine. or somin to that effect.
After my horrible week last week, not just from not losing weight I was like mfft I give up and ate like 1700 kcals saturday and 1400kcal sunday and managed to gain 1lb sunday morn and 1lbs this morning.
today I'm eating healthy again and it came to 912kcals and I think I should have something else to eat but considerin that I gained a lbs from 1400kcals I think I should steer clear.
I guess this is turning more into an obsession than Id like to admit

Wow. Where to begin...

angel, I'm sure you did NOT gain a pound from 1400 calories. That is actually humanly impossible since a pound is 3500 calories. By weighing yourself every day, you are seeing the NORMAL human fluctuations in body weight, and you can't react to normal fluctuations. LOTS of things could cause these fluctuations including hormones, exercise, water retention, etc. In order to GAIN an actual pound of fat, you need to eat 3500 calories MORE than what your body burns naturally.

(this part goes out to Lauren, too) When you exercise enough to burn off all (or nearly all) of the calories you eat in a day, you're basically starving yourself. Think about it--1000 calories in and 1000 calories out leaves your body HOW MUCH to burn in order to function? That's right, ZERO! And our bodies NEED calories just to do things like keep the heart beating, fire neurons to think, digest food, BREATH...ya know, the minor things in life

I appreciate all of the comments about starving myself. I guarantee that I am not starving (as in hungry) and I definitely made up for any big deficits that I have over this weekend (i think i must have eaten 4000 calories on saturday and over 2000 on sunday).

I was merely trying to illustrate that you really don't have to eat more to lose more. Yes, I could lose on 1800 with my exercise(a nutritionist friend I talked to this weekend said so). But, I could also lose on 1100 or 1200. My 'too low' calories aren't stopping me from losing. Some people contend that if you eat too little you won't lose. So untrue.

Anyway, the reason that I eat 1200 (bar this pig fest this weekend) instead of 1800 is that I would rather lose quicker so that I could go back to not counting calories everyday. I know, by the way, that maintainers say you have to count forever and watch forever, but I just mean that I don't have to use fitday to keep myself in check (I maintained my 166 pound weight for over a year eating probably 3000 calories per day and exercising).