Hello all!
First off let me say this is a great forum with tons of information! I consider myself very lucky to have found it.
I am new to the boards and I have done some searching/reading, but I am still confused on the whole calorie intake deal, and what might happen if I consume too little.
First off I am 6'3 around 185-190. I work out 2-3 times a week, with two of the days being composed of 1 hour of fairly hard-core weight lifting accompanied by 2 hours of full contact jiu-jitsu and self defense and cardio (push-ups, sit-ups, etc.) My job is fairly sedentary (I sit at a computer).
During the last year I have really tried to focus on eating healthier, but have experienced a decrease in energy, I feel fairly grumpy, and not seeing the body changes that I want to see. I caught wind of how important calorie count is, and I started looking at my daily routine. I think my calorie count is too low, and I wanted to see if you all agree.
For example, yesterday for breakfast and lunch, I ate a combined 500 calories. I didn't eat again until after my workouts. For dinner I had a salmon fillet and an artichoke (not sure of the calorie count for that meal). That calorie count is pretty standard for me. I assume that it ended up being around 1000-1500 that day.
My question is:
#1 is that count too low?
#2 could that low calorie intake be responsible for decreased energy and desire for a nap around 5pm. (I eat lunch at 1pm and don't eat again until 8-9pm)
#3 If it is too low, are there any resources on how to eat more calories and eating/snack/meal ideas out there to help me out?
I don't want to look like a body builder, but I do want to increase muscle and have increased energy.
Can anyone help or point me in the right direction? Any information would be greatly appreciated! Thanks everyone!
-chaz
Hey clink! Welcome to the weight gain forum, you've come to the right place!
you are definitely not eating nearly enough and I'm sure this is why you have less energy. You're lucky those are the only effects you've experienced so far, but if you continue this way you risk suffering far worse.
you need to eat at regular intervals throughout the day to keep your energy up and also make sure you're getting enough in. You should never go from 1pm to 8 or 9 without at least one snack in between. This is probably why you crash around 5. You're VERY active, even if your job is sedentary. Why are you eating so little??
and what are you eating for breakfast and lunch that only equals 500 cals? I'm 5'8 and dont workout and my breakfasts are still around 700 cals at least. I eat about 5 or 6 meals a day and get b/w 2500 and 3000 cals. So for someone with your stats and activity levels you probably need at least 3000. This won't make you into a body builder but will sustain the activities you enjoy and give you better results. Right now any exercise you do is probably causing your body to eat away at muscle.
Try and get a good mix of protein, fat and carbs in each meal. Start off with a good breakfast because that will rev you up for the day. You can make oatmeals really high calorie by coking it in milk, adding nuts and dried fruit. Have eggs, avocado, bagels. Peanut butter has saved my life! If you eat meat go for lean cuts of beef, chicken, fish is really healthy and has good fats. Cook things in olive oil for more healthy fats. Drink juice or milk rather than water. Pastas with cheese and cream. There are a ton of resources on this forum so check out the high cal foods list. And i'm sure more people will respond with more advice.
As explained above, that is too low for someone your size and with your level of activity. Like running a car on no fuel, you're just coming to a standstill. It's very easy to eat too little when you switch to eating more healthily because you lose a lot of the high-calorie sugary, fatty foods that are not particularly healthy! New vegetarians often have a similar problem when they omit meat and fish. Make up those calories with healthy high-calorie foods and you redress the balance.
Lots of good advice above. Best of luck
Hi,
Essentially, you've drastically lowered your calories to a point that your metabolism is grinding to a halt. It's called "starvation mode" by most. An adult female needs 1200 calories minimum, a teenage girl or an adult man need 1500 calories minimum, and a teenage boy 1800 calories minimum. Your metabolism will likely be shot thanks to undereating.
It is, however, reversable. It sounds hard, but you'll want to get to a calorie intake that is more appropriate for your size if you really want your metabolism to kick back into gear. Can I ask your age? I'll be able to give you some solid numbers to work with if I know your age, but as a general target get your calories up to 2500 and then go up from there. You'll probably need closer to 3000 or more given your activity level and size! It looks like a lot but this IS a doable number - I have had to eat 3000 to 4000 calories regularly in weight gain and haven't done it with gainer suppliments or anything like that.
At first this may physically be trouble for you as the stomach sometimes shrinks to adapt. As such, both to help you manage your foods, to make it easier to digest and to help your metabolism, I suggest:
- High calorie, low density foods. These are foods that are as the name says - high in calories but low in bulk. These are not only vital in the sense that they can still easily be broken down by a stomach trying to mend itself but also because they add calories without adding bulk. Examples of these would be whole fat dairy, nuts and nut butters, avocado, oils like olive oil and canola (rapeseed) oil as two examples, oily fish, dried fruit and dense fruit like bananas as just a handful of examples. There are two threads stickied at the top of this forum: Support Recipes - while aimed more at recovering disordered eaters these may still help you - and The Official High-Cal Food List.
- Eat your meals spaced out over the day - aim for about five to six total. Breakfast, a mid-morning snack, lunch, an afternoon snack, and dinner, or switching one of those snacks for an evening snack would be an example. This is both to make it easier on your stomach and to help rev your metabolism. If it is easier for you, devise a meal plan routine by yourself or with your nutritionist and stick with it.
- This is an important one: do not weigh or measure yourself for two weeks when upping your calories. Why? Because our body will hold to a large amount of water initially. This water shows up on the scale, but is not a true indication of weight gain and will flush out after two weeks.
- If you eat a steady 2500, and then find you are maintaining or even losing weight, you will need to increase. Do not think about this just yet - just get to 2500 first.
The physical dangers that come with undereating are numerous. Due to the lack of proper nutrition, you put yourself at risk of osteoporosis, of loss of sex drive in males, hair loss, electrolyte problems, a weakening of the immune system, low blood pressure, blood disorders such as anemia, heart problems, and even death. Yes, the last one's a scary one, but it's still possible.
The mental woes that come alongside can be just as devestating - as you have apparently experienced in your grumpiness! Depression is common in undereaters, as well as distorted perceptions and problems like Body Dysmorphic Disorder. As you begin to eat more your moods should improve and your tiredness should go away.
Do not worry about nutrition at this point. You will probably have a higher intake of everything compared to others - and really, comparing yourself to anyone else at all isn't the way to go. The only thing I personally think is worth watching when upping calories is salt and trans fat, but as for numbers of other nutrients and food groups? Don't worry about it. Aim for carbs, proteins, fruit or veg, healthy fats and dairy in all your meals over the day, get enough fibre, and take a full multivitamin as a buffer, and you'll be fine. And make sure you have the right balance - a fillet of salmon and an artichoke isn't a meal! Where're the carbohydrates?
Keep up your weight lifting but be aware: cardiovascular exercising is completely counter-productive during recovering one's metabolism unless you are willing to eat back everything you burn. If your doctor, nutritionist or another professional tells you not to exercise at all, not even weights or yoga/pilates, then listen to them.
Due to the length of your undereating I would go speak to your doctor and have some blood tests and health checks done.
If you have any further questions please ask.
- Ellie.
Wow! Thank you all VERY much for all of the fantastic (and admittedly, somewhat disturbing) information that you provided. What a wonderful wealth of information!
Ellie, I am 30 years old. I knew I forgot to add something onto my intro.
I am so glad I found this site. I think that GI-Jane hit it on the head when she mentioned that the switch to "healthy" eating seemed to necessitate the elimination of a lot of calories, when in fact, there is a distinct line between cutting out sugar or empty calories, but keeping up good ones. I must admit that I have also gotten somewhat caught up in the "all carbs are bad" fad, and I have probably been missing out on a ton of calorie opportunities there. That fact probably is a big part of the problem. There is so much info about how to cut calories, but until now I haven't realized the need for them. Only lately have I begun to think of the body as an object that needs fuel to run properly. I guess getting into my 30's was a bit of a wake-up call.
I have experienced some of the symptoms that you addressed above, though thank goodness not the really bad ones (I am so glad I am finding out about them now!). I feel like a car that's running on fumes. To be honest I thought it was the fact that I was not getting enough sleep. But for the past 6 months I have been getting around 7-8 hours, so that obviously wasn't the problem.
This is really great news and I can't thank you guys enough for the info and the help. I will definitely check out the links that you posted, Ellie. Its a great start! You guys are life-savers!
Based on this I am going to try to put together a hypothetical meal plan and see how it works.
You're welcome! ^^ Just aim for a good balance. Carbs aren't bad at all if you eat the right kinds.
Example Sources of Healthy Carbohydrate:
Wholegrains - eg oats, whole grain bread, brown rice, quinoa, corn (to name just a few!)
Starchy vegetables - eg sweet potato (or yam), other variations of potato, radishes
Fruits - eg bananas, apples, pears, berries, plums, peaches, pineapple
Dried fruits - eg figs, dates, prunes, apricots, raisins and sultanas
Other natural sugar sources - eg honey
As well as healthy starches sugar is good for you from the right sources as long as, like with all things, you eat in moderation - we do still need some to function well!
Now, then. Per this About.com calculator, as a 30 year old, 6'3 male at 187lbs (taking the middle number), you have a BMR of 2474 calories a day when sedentary. So you definitely want to be hitting 2500 bare minimum, but with your activity level I would put you more at moderately active, which is closer to 3000 calories. So my guess was about right! :]
I'd still go get a check up from your doctor, juuust to be on the safe side, but I'm glad you're finding this all helpful!
When I wasn't eating enough, I would feel weak or tired, with not enough energy to get through the day. I also would have VERY long periods - two weeks or longer - where I'd bleed only a little, but continuously.
As far as what to eat? I like larabars (not too filling, all-natrual raw fruit and nuts, about 200 cals each) and KIND bars (nuts and no refined sugars, pretty filling). If you don't wanna have to look around for those? A good calorie booster is 2 tablespoons of natural, no sugar added peanut butter and one "Jello Single", chocolate flavor. Take a bite of both at a time, and you'll fall in love. Plus, its got about 300 easy cals.
Sometimes it's OK totext in a restaurant.
Text food Spaghetti to
HEALTH (432-584) for full calorie information. FREE!
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