How little is too little?

Hello Everyone!

I am 5"7 and 169lbs. My recommended daily intake is 1400 but I have only eaten 1222 today.

Do you suggest I make this up to 1400? How much less than you daily recommended intake can you eat that is still healthy?

Thank you in advance

Do enjoy a small extra snack rather than miss your target.  One day under won't hurt you from time to time but you won't lose weight any quicker, so it's not helping either.  Consistently undereating puts you in line for weight-loss stalls, overeating when you get the chance, loss of appetite.... all kinds of things you could do without.  Try not to go more than 1000 cals below your daily energy usage

I read somewhere, don't ask me where though, that eating under 1400 calories is not good for you, because of lack of nutrient intake that your body needs, so maybe you could add a powerbar (or any type of other bar) into your eating schedule.

I am sure it is ok for you to be under the recommeded intake once in a while, but making it a habit would be unhealthy, which defeats the purpose of weight loss! :) So my two cent is to find something healthy to make it up to the 1400.

Good Luck!

Penny

Well, it depends.  You don't want to constantly under-eat on a daily basis...but if this is an occasional thing, and it was just kind of a "whoops", then I wouldn't worry too much about it.

It's really only the consistant under-eating that will give you the problems.

An easy way to add in those extra calories would be 1/4 cup unsalted mixed nuts (I find mine at Target). Nuts and seeds are excellent nutrients, but they are dense in fats (the healthy kind) as long as you don't add the extra sodium.  I even like a couple teaspoons of peanut butter - just straight off the spoon - if my sugar isn't too high for the day.  A deficiency from your burn meter of 500-1000 calories per day is the goal - I'm told 700 is the ideal.  Zigzag eating is a popular way to avoid the body getting used to a particular calorie level.  Might want to check out this website: http://www.freedieting.com/tools/calorie_calc ulator.htm