I'm a little confused plz help

Umm So hi, my daily calorie intakes is almost always less then 1400 calories per day. Once in a while I might go a little over but very rare. I walk/jog about 30minutes-120mintues average sometimes even much more. Depending on how much time I have in my busy schedule. But no matter what I do, I don't seem to lose any weight, most of my friends say I should try to do like pushups, curlups, and yoga like stuff, but I don't have time. So I'm wondering if I'm going at this the right way? oh and also is it bad to have like a snack even after u eat?

You're 13 years old and I'm very worried about what you're doing because you're starving yourself.    Your young body is trying to grow and develop.  You're going to get taller, for example.  Dieting and malnutrition are not a good idea.

Please, before you go any further, check your weight, height and age through this chart... http://www.bcm.edu/cnrc/bodycomp/bmiz2.html If the chart tells you that you're a healthy weight... show this to your parents.   If the chart tells you that you are clinically overweight then ask your parents to take you to your doctor to get their advice.  Even if the chart tells you that you're overweight, don't cut calories ... instead, keep trying to be as active as you can and talk to your parents about getting a healthier diet instead.

That doesn't mean eating 'diet foods' but it does mean eating plenty of fresh vegetables, fruit, wholegrain foods, meat, fish, dairy products and other good things.   This site may be helpful to talk to your parents about.... http://www.eatwell.gov.uk/agesandstages/teens /..... it's good advice for teens on how to get a healthier diet.

But really, stop cutting calories... you're not losing weight as it is and you're going to make yourself really, really ill.  It's not worth it to lose 5lbs that you probably don't actually need to lose.

You are not starving yourself as long as you are eating healthy there is nothing wrong w/ that. You must keep in mind that if you are 13, your weight is going to change. You may gain weight instead of losing weight due to hormones etc. You should actually be eating 5-6 small meals per day to get your metabolism going. For example:

Breakfast: Eat oatmeal OR Special K cereal w/ maybe a piece of toast or a granola bar.

Then about 2-3 hours later you should have a small snack like maybe a banana and some yogurt OR a hardboiled egg etc...

Then your next meal should be lunch. If you eat a sandwich try to avoid mayo it's probably the worst thing you can eat. And you should include some fruit and maybe a small salad w/ a vinaigarette dressing (try to stay away from ranch and bleu cheese dressings) Subway is a great place to get a healthy lunch

Then 2-3 hours later another small snack maybe some broccolli and carrot sticks OR another piece of fruit etc...

Dinner: Try to avoid carbs at night, that usually keeps weight on people. If you are going to eat bread or pasta try to eat it at lunch time. Dinner should be Chicken or Fish w/ Veggies.

So if you follow a diet like this you should start to see a difference within a few weeks. But like I said...you shouldn't focus too much on the scale right now because your weight is going to fluctuate. And you HAVE to eat more than 1200 calories a day OR your body goes into starvation mode and it will hold onto EVERYTHING you eat. You won't lose weight at all. Also, You are supposed to eat more calories if you work out. So if you burn 200 calories when you go for a jog then you should actually be eating 1400 calories. Make sense?

Original Post by bdhamilton07:

You are not starving yourself as long as you are eating healthy there is nothing wrong w/ that.

 A 13 year-old child should not be on any kind of diet whatsoever unless directed to and supervised by her doctor.  This kid's parents (who want shooting, quite frankly) are putting pressure on her to lose 5-10lbs and her response is this terrible starvation diet.... It's heartbreaking because we've all been 13 and we all know that it's totally normally in the middle of puberty and growth-spurts for young girls to go through all kinds of changes in shape. 

'Starvation mode' is nothing compared to 'starvation'... and the attendant problems of anxiety, depression, malnutrition and of course the ever-present risks of eating disorders.  Have you any idea how dangerous it is to tell this young girl to 'avoid mayo', 'avoid carbs at night' (complete and utter rubbish) and say 'you should actually be eating 1400 calories'.....? Please think a lot more carefully before you write this kind of misleading stuff to an impressionable kid.  She doesn't need diets, she needs someone to look out for her.

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I wasn't telling her to be on a diet. I gave her an example of what healthy eating looks like and that it is better for your body to eat 5-6 meals per day.  And mayo isn't very good for anyone. I am not telling her she needs to lose weight in fact I put right on there that she shouldn't even pay attention to the scale because at 13 your weight and body change due to hormones and growing.

I remember being 13 and I wish I had known to eat 5-6 meals per day because when you do, you have WAY more energy and you feel a lot better. I was not encouraging her to be on a diet, but all kids need to eat healthy (at any age).  I didn't know her parents were putting pressure on her to lose weight. I was basically telling her about healthy eating not losing weight. Sorry if I offended you.

Original Post by bdhamilton07:

what healthy eating looks like

What healthy eating looks like for a 13 year-old kid is different to a full-grown adult.  They need more fats in their diet for a start because their brains are still developing.  They don't need high fibre because that can mean their bodies can't absorb enough vitamins from their food.  Above all they need all types of food.... yes, broccoli and carrot sticks but yes, some chocolate as well.  Start a clearly upset and nervous child down the road of 'avoiding carbs at night' and being frightened to eat mayonnaise or ranch dressings at this age and you stand a very good chance of ending up with a full-blown anorexic a few years later.

You haven't offended me.  The OP is just the latest in a long line of children that appear on this website, confused, upset convinced they're fat and convinced they need to starve.  That offends me.

Ok I am glad you are not offended. I wasn't trying to upset you. It just seemed that this girl wanted to know what "healthy" eating looked like and I was just giving her some examples. I agree though that girls shouldn't starve themselves ever whether they are 13 or 30.

I was just trying to help her and give her knowledge on the subject.