I know we're not supposed to worry about calories, but I feel like I'm just not getting enough. Here's my menu for today:

breakfast: string cheese (I'm awful at getting breakfast in) 86 cals, 1.1 carbs
lunch: grilled turkey burger with cheese, 2 cups veggie stir-fry 396 cals, 8 carbs
dinner: grilled turkey burger with cheese, 2 cups steamed buttered veggies 468 cals, 8 carbs
snack: 5 slices pepperoni 128 cals, 1.1 carbs
I'm also putting a tbsp of mayo and mustard on each of the burgers which comes out to about 206 cals.

Total calories: 1284, Total net carbs: 18.2
My percentages are fat 63% carbs 8% protein 30%

I think my cals should be closer to 1400, which they could be at 1400 if I added a splash of olive oil somewhere. There's not really anywhere to add it to, though...I thought about in my stir-fry but that makes it taste weird to me and I enjoy it less. Any ideas?

I would add some sort of meat to your breakfast, maybe? I have a hard time with breakfast too! I have coffee in the morning once I get to work, and that seems to carry me a long way. I then have a couple of hard boiled eggs and some sort of breakfast meat usually.

How about having some tuna made with mayo? I think the mayo would add some fat and calories.

Instead of stir fying with olive oil (I agree it makes it tasted weird) how about using butter?

Just a couple of quick thoughts off the top of my head. Could you add in some nuts somewhere as a snack?

Phoenix!

Thank you! I don't mean to shoot down your suggestions...but I absolutely despise tuna! Chicken salad is good and I eat that occasionally but I don't always have canned chicken on hand. Stir-frying in butter is a great idea...I think I'll do that for tonight's dinner. I tried to stir-fry in olive oil the other day and it was edible but definitely made it taste worse than not using anything. I actually intended to put mayo on my turkey burger for lunch but ended up only using mustard, so that's even less cals for the day! .

The weather is getting nicer and I'm wanting to eat leaner foods...maybe that's nature's way of putting fat on in the winter and then taking it off in spring.

I'm trying to stay away from nuts for a while, at least until I get under 200. I just got a big bag of flaxseed today so maybe a one minute muffin for breakfast smothered in butter could be an easy way to eat breakfast with no mess and add extra calories, now that I think about it.

ROFL -- no problem on the tuna! You either love it or hate it, I completely understand! Chicken salad works too! I take the rotisserie/roasted chickens or chicken/turkey breasts from the store and make my salad out of those.

I rely alot on butter and mayo to get the fat and therefore the satisfied/full feeling. I hear you about nuts too; I have to be careful with nuts and with cheese! Cheese I can get totally out of control with; nuts are a little better.

We all need to find our own way and it is amazing how we each figure it out eventually!

Phoenix!

Linsy, I count carbs, AND calories AND use portion control and here's WHY;
The 1st time I did Atkins, I had great success...60 lbs in 3 months with NO problem. I ate as much of the allowed stuff as I wanted. Now eventhough I was losing weight, I wasn't really learning how to eat correctly and I gained it ALL back.. THIS time, I am not going to set myself up for failure. By the time I am through losing weight, I will have shrunk my stomach significantlly (both with diet and exercise).

Now, as far as you needing more calories, if you are eating less than 1800 per day, you probaly do need to up it. I found that when I try to eat less, I stall. But as my activity level and muscle mass has increased, I need more calories to keep my metabolism revved.