still having trouble with calories

so I've started eating crazy healthy, but can't consume the amount of calories needed. I work out for at least an hour(cardio) everyday, but just can't eat that much. For example:

Breakfast:  2 scrambled egg whites

yoplait original strawberry yogurt

Lunch:  6" Subway veggie sub

Dinner: 6" veggie sub.

I'm not tired or hungry and as far as I'm concerned, you shouldn't eat if you aren't hungry.  Does this mean that I need to go find something to eat just to get calories in?  I'm really confused.

why we eat a MINIMUM of 1200 calories:

Here is a very rough scientific break down provided by a dietician for a 5' 2", 19 year old female weighing approximately 100 pounds, sitting around all day and doing nothing:

-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)

If you are older, or taller, or weigh more, then you should probably eat more than 1200 calories.  Regardless, right now you are not eating nearly enough, and it is not very balanced.

If you have been eating a calorie load this low for some time then your body has become used to eating not enough calories -- you will have to retrain your body.

Eat more at breakfast, this should be one of your biggest meals -- 300-400 calories.

Eat a couple of snacks during the day -- each one about 150-200 calories

Subs, while good occasionally, will not offer an appropriate calories load nor the nutrients needed for good health.

You should be looking at a balance of about 25-30% fat, 15-20% protein, and 50-60% carbohydrates.

You may lose weight for a while on your current calorie load but eventually you will stop, and then you will need to lower the calories even more to get a loss, and then more -- and so on.  Eventually all that leads to binges ...

Stay off the roller coaster and up your calories now

I'm still trying to figure out how you consider that "crazy healthy" .. looks more like just "crazy" to me

1) I do agree thats not crazy healthy, although I wouldn't dare call you crazy. (That's just rude.) Crazy healthy to me would be if you said I ate fish, veggies, fruit, nuts, eggs, yogurt, milk.

But regardless FYI those subs have like 350 cals each and if you aren't allowing snacks in between you are just slowing your metabolism which will come back to bite ya in the butt.

Your efforts are great. And alot of ppl are uneducated about nutrition. It's okay. Up until recently I thought those ridiculous fad diets were the answer. You know the ones that say "JUST EAT CABBAGE FOR A WEEK." Or "ELIMINATE A CERTAIN FOOD GROUP." (such as carbs, and whatever.)

Aside from all of that, I wish I could say I have trouble getting my cals in. I've had my limit by 4 pm everday but if you are eating right such as those food groups previously mentioned you'll find the same to be true for you.

Good luck. And this is a support group. I wouldn't even acknowledge the negativity.

Ps- I'm going to go out on a limb and say the forementioned comment was not meant in jest. Perhaps in a way to make you realize that your eating habits are by no means healthy.

Original Post by odie03:

Ps- I'm going to go out on a limb and say the forementioned comment was not meant in jest. Perhaps in a way to make you realize that your eating habits are by no means healthy.

Actually, I was not trying to be rude, maybe a bit firm, but not rude. The "crazy" comment was a play on her "crazy healthy" label she gave to her eating habits. Under a 1000 calories with I'd say about 80% or more coming strictly from carbs with absolutely NO balance of nutrients... well It's just not in me to label that as "sane"

The fact that the main reason for the OP desire to lose weight seems to be (now I'm not stating fact, just the vibe I get from your other posts) it to make her ex fiancee jealous. This may be leading her to "extreme" measures in order to shed pounds faster, which sadly is probably going to come back to haunt her.

Sorry if I seem a bit harsh, but I see too many people on these forums talking about malnourishing themselves in order to lose a few quick pounds.

Yeah, no offense but I am not finding your choice of nutrition to be crazy healthy at all.  It is seriously lacking in nutrients and calories. I looked up the 6" veggie sub and it has only 230 cals in it. Combine that w/ the other things you are eating and I think you might be eating 700 cals per day.  Not the right way to get the old metabolism going.  And honestly since Subway doesn't provide a list of ingredients in their bread on their website, I seriously doubt that it is a whole grain type of bread.  Lack of appetite can be and probably is a sign (in your case) of your body going into conservation mode.  If you are interested in learning about how to fuel your body correctly I would be happy to give you some pointers. I also know there are a ton of other members on this site that are extremely knowledgeable so if you want some more info let us know.

The things you are eating right now aren't bad. Let me put that out there first.

Next, why don't you try to incorporate other food groups aside from veggies and bread?  You should aim for 2-3 servings of dairy products.  2-3 servings of fruit.  Some sort of protein (usually about 6 oz. I'm guessing the eggs are only about 2 oz).  I would add in snacks consisting of fruit, low-fat cheese, perhaps milk, almonds or other nuts.  Are you vegetarian? If not, why not go for a turkey sub instead? Get some extra protein in.

That being said, 700 calories per day is not healthy.  You have a good foundation of foods in there, it just needs to be filled out.

Original Post by tyrdrop:

The things you are eating right now aren't bad. Let me put that out there first.

Next, why don't you try to incorporate other food groups aside from veggies and bread? You should aim for 2-3 servings of dairy products. 2-3 servings of fruit. Some sort of protein (usually about 6 oz. I'm guessing the eggs are only about 2 oz). I would add in snacks consisting of fruit, low-fat cheese, perhaps milk, almonds or other nuts. Are you vegetarian? If not, why not go for a turkey sub instead? Get some extra protein in.

That being said, 700 calories per day is not healthy. You have a good foundation of foods in there, it just needs to be filled out.

They are not bad, but they are not really great either. The egg whites are good, the veggies on the sandwich are good too. Yogurt is good....but regular Yoplait is LOADED w/ sugar and a bunch of other crap that I can't pronounce. And, I have eaten Subway and I can tell you that their wheat bread is not 100% whole wheat bread. It is basically white bread in disguise and it has the look and feel of cardboard. Anyway, you are right to encourage this person to incorporate other healthy things into his/her diet, you won't get an argument from me there. But, really other than the eggs and veggies they really need to go back to the drawing board and start over.

I do apologize for any assumptions, but I think we all have her best interest at heart. I sincerly think I've had enough of BS today due to the breast implant discussion on the fitnes link in which numerous girls feelings were hurt. Can't we all just get along? Lol.

So in retrospect, I just want to say that all of you girls have wonderful advice to give and I do appreciate the comraderie we SHOULD ALWAYS have here.

thanks guys. I GREATLY appreciate all of the info/advice. I would like to clarify that I do eat fruits, veggies, fish, dairy, etc.  That is just what I had TODAY. 

Let it be noted that "crazy healthy" is just my way of saying that I no longer have any desire to binge or eat sweets, candies, burgers, etc.  I probably should have said "on program".  Either way, that one post was correct about the fiance, but I'm not eating fewer calories to lose weight fast. I understand that the only effective way to do it is slowly.

I am simply just not hungry enough nor educated enough to plan out my day correctly. and I appreciate and take every post to heart. As mentioned above, this is a support group and I think that all comments, positive or negative, are very insightful. After all, I am trying to learn and am open to any suggestions.

Thanks so much.

Why not have whole eggs instead of just whites? They're not unhealthy, just higher in fat, and would add more protein and calories to your diet.

1. You are not eating enough calories, you already know this, but you're confused because you're not feeling hungry, this is probably a symptom of being busy and not being accustomed to eating regularly.  This would be great if you were getting enough calories, but under 1200 is not nearly enough, 1200 per day is barely enough for most women.  The concerns on this start with enough to fuel your body and allow it to function well and continue onto the quality of nutrition that is available in such low amounts of calories.  At a minimum, you need another 300 calories, closer to 500 by my rough guestimate.  Calcium?  It doesn't just come from pills.  Vitamins, you're probably getting most of those from the veggies, but several of them won't do you any good unless you're also getting enough fat in your diet.  You're also missing protein and healthy fats not to mention whole grains.
2. To add more calories and nutrition, if you're a vegetarian, start snacking on edamame, it covers protein nicely.  You could also do green beans and rice, cheese, nuts would give you protein and healthy fats.  You could add some fruit, apples are high in fiber and good for you, bananas make a nice start to the morning.
3. You will have to play with your eating and diet to get to the point where you're eating enough but you don't feel stuffed.  If you were doing it on your own, you wouldn't need to use this site.  I'd recommend having breakfast, lunch, and dinner in addition to 3 snacks of 100-300 calories everyday.

Hi rtsandlin, welcome to Calorie Count Plus!

The first thing I want to say is that you have come to the right place since you are trying to eat healthy and lose weight healthfully! As I am sure you know by now, Calorie Count Plus' mission is to promote healthy and sustainable weight management.

I understand from your post above that you are confused as to how to eat healthfully but also get enough nutrients and calories, right? So we can help.

Firstly, like the others have said above, you should never eat less than 1200 calories a day, and most likely you eventually need to eat more to keep your metabolism going. Aim for a deficit of no more than 500-1000 calories which will lead to a 1-2 lb loss per week .... which is really pretty good!!

For starters I recommend you immediately increase your calories to 1200 calories a day minimum. Can you do this for yourself and your health?

I also recommend you eat many small meals rather than one big meal. Eating small meals keeps your metabolism going through the day and has been reeported to help with weight loss and may help you not get too stuffed.

So in addition to the egg-whites/yogurt and two subway sandwiches eat some snacks between meals. Like smwhipple said, edamame is a great snack, as are almonds too. Definitely try and get some fats and proteins.

From there you should likely increase it to whatever is deemed to be the right target calories for you. You can determine that using the Tools on this site. To learn more about this site works check out the Weight Loss Forum Resources thread at the top of this forum or the Unofficial Guide to Calorie Count in the New Members Forum. This site will help you determine the optimal amount of calories you should be eating to lose weight healthfully.

In addition to the great info CoachK posted above, here is some information on why 1200 calories is so necessary:

From Mary Hartley, Calorie Count's Director of Nutrition: "By eating {so few} calories, you will not get enough energy, protein, fiber, vitamins, minerals and other components of food. In time, you could become malnourished, which can cause severe health risks such as respiratory infections, kidney failure, blindness, heart attack and even death."

Here is a brief reason why never less than 1200 from the Advice section of Calorie Count Plus, under the Q&A tab:

Why must I eat at least 1,200 calories a day when I want to eat less?

In order to get the daily food servings you need for a balanced diet, it takes about 1200 calories a day. With careful planning, you could have a balanced diet on 1000 calories, but the restrictiveness of a very low calorie level can lead to binging and weight cycling, which will take you further from your weight loss goal. What's more, very low calorie diets can cause excessive muscle breakdown and metabolic adaptations, which can drive down your calorie requirements. In the end, you'll need fewer calories to maintain a higher weight

Here is some info from the Calorie Count Library on why eating many small meals is good for your metabolism:

• Mini-meals and Metabolism

GOOD LUCK and please let us know how we can help! And get those calories up!

http://www.phord.com/cc/

check out this page its a good place to go for looking at a good amount to eat and burn in exercise

I know it is a diet book but I've been on just about all of them and this one is the healthiest most realistic things I've seen. Bill Phillips Body for Life recipe book has great recipes, educates about good (realistic) portion sizes, and the recipes are all easy to make and balanced. You can also check out bodyforlife.com. I use the program on calorie count plus but I use the recipes and lots of suggestions from bodyforlife.com

I use to have a really hard time eating all my calories as well. It actually takes practice if you are not use to eating that much/often. Some days I still have trouble so I can understand where you are coming from but you DO need to eat more. Try drinking an ensure as a snack, maybe some juice that isn't loaded with sugar even. I dunno, I do the ensure thing myself. Instead of just 2 scrambled egg whites why not take 3 or 4 egg whites and turn them into a tasty omelet with low fat cheese and veggies? You just need to find little ways to mix things up and incorporate healthy calories into your diet. I know its hard when you are just starting out but you will get the hang of it. You definitely don't want to fall too short of your BRM while working out on top of it. Instead of losing weight you could just end up maintaining or gaining. Not to mention you'll get tired, cranky, and feel well like crap and probably end up giving up or binging.