Daily calorie intake

I have been reading about minimum amounts to eat per day to lose weight and to not put your body in to starvation mode; this being 1200 minimum

My average calorie intake has been around 900kcals per day and i'm not starving myself at all.

On an average day

BREAKFAST:

quarter of a pint of a smoothie followed by 2 pieces of fruit (usually a tangerine and / or plum)

or:

Alpen Light Bar & Fruit

LUNCH:

Half tin of soup

or:

80g Prawns, Lettuce, 1 tbs seafood sauce

DINNER:

100g Chicken or Frying Steak, Rice Noodles, Peppers, Onions, Mange Tout, Spices

or:

Chicken Drumstick or Cod with salad and 2tbs of vinergrette

3 SNACKS PER DAY: (EXAMPLES)

Weightwatchers cake bar

50g Nuts ie Walnuts or Pistachios

14g Raisons

Good For You Yogurt

Fruit

I was wondering whether the food items that you add to the diary are 100% correct or if i should add some more fat to my diet to bump it up a bit!

Im just confused as from what im eating im always full and can't see how this would put my body in to starvation as is suggested due to the fact im eating under the calorie intake per day

have you looked at the analysis page? if you hover your mouse over the date it will tell you what % of your RDA your getting of important vitamins and minerals ie vit a, c, iron, calcium

if these are low than you definately need to eat more food

You might feel full, but on 900 calories your body isn't getting enough energy or nutrition to function.

Here's some data about where your calories go:

-The heart needs 12% of the calories (144 cals)
-The kidney needs 12% of the calories (144 cals)
-The Liver needs 23% of the calories (276 cals)
-The brain needs 23% of the calories (276 cals)
-The skeletal muscle needs 30% of the calories (360 cals)

So, essentially, you're starving these vital organs even if you feel fine.

This doesn't seem like very much food at all.  I would be starving with this.   You may not feel hungry, but once your body goes into conservation (starvation) mode, you won't feel hungry as your appetite and metabolism are in an altared state.  Your body will begin to eat itself (and not in a good way), you will hold onto fat, but burn muscle, your body will shut down processes it can live without.  You will lose much more than weight if you continue to do this.  Obviously, you know you need to eat more, but I see from your profile that you have a history of bulimia, so the best thing for you do to would be to go to a nutritionist that understands your history and work out a plan, or at the very least, talk to your doctor.

If you are under 21 you can not take the recommended calories on here, because you need more to fuel your body's growth until your early 20s.  I would recommend adding calorie dense items like nuts, carbs, or oils to bump up your calories without feeling like you are stuffing yourself.  And add slowly, say, 200 calories every other day until you reach a reasonable number.  1200, unless you are a 5'2" sedentary middle aged woman, is probably not enough either, so find out what you burn, subtract 500 and aim for that.  You will lose slowly, but surely and you won't be putting your health at risk to lose weight.

What are you current stats? 

edit:  Littleitsy - I can eat 10 different vitamins and 3 oranges, get all my RDA of vitmains and minerals every day, but still be starving.  RDA of vitamins and minerals is a poor judge of diet in this case.  If my liver doesn't get enough calories to process these vitamins and minerals, it doesn't make a damn bit of difference.

AGE: 22

HEIGHT: 5'2"

WEIGHT: 166lbs

EXERCISE: At desk working 8 hours everyday but try and do some skipping at home and walking as much as possible

Original Post by thermal:

  You may not feel hungry, but once your body goes into conservation (starvation) mode, you won't feel hungry as your appetite and metabolism are in an altared state.  Your body will begin to eat itself (and not in a good way), you will hold onto fat, but burn muscle, your body will shut down processes it can live without

 Totally agree. I wouldn't add more 'fat' to your diet, simply more food. It doesn't have to be food that will fill you up too much, another handful of nuts here or there, using half-fat/full-fat milk instead of fat-free, a full tin of soup with a slice of wholemeal bread/roll, a larger piece of chicken/fish/meat- these will help you up your cals without feeling like you've bloated yourself?

What you're doing is getting your body used to existing (not living!) on meagre rations, and when it comes to maitenence time you'll have big trouble trying to keep your weight down as no-one can live healthily like this long-term?

Thanks for the advice :)

One more thing, if you go over your calorie intake one day do you cut back on the calories the day after or just jump back into your normal routine?

don't try to compensate one day's calories for an others, just write it off and go continue eating healthy.

one problem i see with your food choices is lack of veggies.

good luck!

Original Post by bexxxxyboo:

One more thing, if you go over your calorie intake one day do you cut back on the calories the day after or just jump back into your normal routine? 

I just get back on track. Think of it as training for life after you reach your goal weight. There will be occasions when you have a blow-out (parties/weddings/holidays etc.) but 'normal' people don't starve for a week afterwards to off-set the effects? You may gain a little, but it's usually temporary so chalk it up to experience and look forward!

Cutting calories can cause a lot of health problems in the long run.  Especially for as low as yours are, you should be very concerned.  I can't imagine that you're having your period (or if you are, it probably will stop soon) and cutting calories has also been linked to hormone imbalances (I have this problem & am being treated for it), etc.  Your body really needs all of those extra calories.  Hope you're able to find some more healthy foods you like and bump it up.  :)