Counting calories

People say not to eat unless you are hungry. So what if you don't get hungry enough to eat your allotted calories for the day.
For example I allow myself 1000 cal a day, what happens if I just don't have the hunger to eat the thousand calories. Many days I am satisfied with 700 because much of what I eat is filled with veggies. I have been making myself eat at least 850 and it has been months now but I am unsure of how to rectify this.

Then I was reading another post about throwing food away when you are finished. So what about when I have dinner and I have calculated how many calories and I just can't finish it and end up throwing away 200 calories. So now I am down to 800 instead of the 1000 that I was aiming for.

It may not seem like a serious problem but I just don't know what to do.
I have been filling in with a snack that is a higher calorie at night but I am finding that I am way too full when I go to bed just so I can get my calories in. That seems counter productive.

Now I am going to bring one more thought into the equasion. In the last 9 weeks I have only lost 25 pounds where I would have doubled that in the past. (recent past) And I am wondering if it is the low amount of calories. People talk about going into starvation mode, though I have never had my body slow down it's losing. However I have never stuck to a diet this long either. 9 months and counting.
Sorry this is so long, it is just weighing on my mind and there is a lot of experience out there to be had.
Thanks to everyone willing to share.

Thu. Jan 10, 1:56pm

yes or body and your brain and other vital organs are probably going on starvation mode. Try adding some more filler like oatmeal in the morning or flax seed to meals,olive oil to salad, eat a handful of almonds during the day. this will give you more of the good calories and fule that your body needs and it will signal for it to start burning the fat away.

Thursday, January 10, 2008, 2:00 PM

I suggest adding nuts, too! Walnuts, natural peanut butter, cashews, almonds...Your body is definitely in panic mode (starving). Be good to yourself, OP. Be lean and healthy!

Thursday, January 10, 2008, 3:33 PM

You very likely have an eating disorder.

1000 calories leaves adults undernourished. You should feel painfully hungry, but you don't? That disconnect in your brain happens because you've messed things up so badly with undereating that you don't even recognize hunger, physiologically or mentally.

Please see your doctor...though somehow I doubt you will until your hair starts falling off and your nails flake away from malnourishment.

Thursday, January 10, 2008, 3:50 PM

I third adding a handful of nuts, which are rich in omega 3's (great for healthy everything) and amount to about 200 cals or so.
It also seems to me that 1000 cals is too low- could you maybe up the cal intake with some of the suggestions here and burn a couple hundred cals off with exercise?
Congrats on sticking to a diet this long- just be careful and add good, healthy cals in slowly-- upping the cals all of a sudden could make the scale go up temporarily and discourage you!
Granola would also be good in the morning...:)
Take care of yourself,
CJ

Thursday, January 10, 2008, 4:27 PM

As someone who suffers an eating disorder myself, I've been seeing a dietitian for some time now, and yes - you're on way too low a calorie amount. The body goes into starvation mode when the intake drops below 1200 or so calories. Then, it starts to STORE fat in the body, in case of further famine. All you're doing, is slowing your metabolism down. You aren't feeling hungry - as I never used to, when eating very little - because your digestive system is packing up. To conserve energy, the body slows the metabolism, neglecting non-vital parts to keep you alive. This involves slower digestion = constipation (even when eating tons of fibrous fruit/veg, as I was), hair loss, constant coldness...yeah, I won't preach anymore.

Thankfully, my dietitian literally saved my life (along with tons of therapy.) But as a result of a slowed metabolism from years of food restriction, I've now accumulated more abdominal fat than I can ever be comfortable with. It's a daily struggle to get myself to eat the recommended amount. I was also over-exercising while restricting, which worsens the situation - makes the starvation process speed up. Far from making me fitter/stronger, the exercise simply gnawed away even more calories, taking away my fat, and then my precious muscles. That - unsurprisingly - slowed my metabolism even more.

I'd urgently suggest that you get yourself to a registered dietitian, who will likely tell you that you're eating far too little, and also to a good therapist, as it sounds like you've got some issues around food. Please, I'm not trying to offend you. I'm trying to make you see that this way of life is extremely lethal, and nearly cost me mine. And whatever you do, DON'T think it won't happen to you. I thought the exact same thing. 6 years on and 3 hospital admissions later, I'm still learning. Trust me, putting your body into starvation mode does NOTHING for reducing fat levels, or for increasing bodily health.

Thursday, January 10, 2008, 5:25 PM

OP here
The thing is I see my dr every couple of months due to numerous health issues. He was ok with me having 850 a day but after about 4 months I was so weak I couldn't think. So I raised it to around 1000 yet in my brain I am still trying to stay around 850. Crazy I know.
Exercise is out of the question, last time I tried a couple months ago I opened up a lesion that took me months to heal. I fight wierd stuff.
But I am up and moving and before I lost the 162 pounds I could hardly move. So good is happening.

Now onto other issues. I am experiencing a lot of the things you all talked about. I have lost maybe up to 2/3 of my hair. It is so thin now. And in the last 2 months I have been experiencing constipation that is nothing short of painful. It just seems like my body is fighting me differently than it used to but not in a good way.
I am trying to add more fiber again. I eat tons of veggies and 1 or 2 fruit a day. I use no oil, butter....I use pam or I can't believe it's not butter spray. I eat nuts very seldom, they are a trigger food for me. I love them and just can't say no once I stop.
I can't say I am never hungry but it isn't or doesn't feel normal. About 1 or 2 days a month I want everything in sight but don't give in. Once I get past it, it doesn't come back for a while.
I have started to add calories I am up to just under 1300 today.
It just scares me and worst of all I don't think my dr takes me seriously.
Anyway I REALLY appreciate all the possitive feed back and welcome anything else that would possibly help me.
Thanks

Thursday, January 10, 2008, 11:17 PM

Also...25 lbs in 9 weeks is FANTASTIC. It's technically too fast, even. Of course your rate of loss is going to slow down as you get smaller, that's totally normal.

It sounds like you have a terrible relationship with food AND your doctor. Find a new doctor, preferably a woman in good shape (I'm a big proponent of health care professionals looking the part), who won't just give you a food list and an unrealistic calorie guideline. I'm trying to remember what the specialism is that deals with weight...bariatric medicine? I know we think of that as a type of surgery, but it's a broader term than that. I'm also a huge fan of Registered Dietitians, you really need one to teach you how to eat right so that you don't suffer hair loss, flakey nails, bowel disorders, halitosis, etc.

As for therapy - that's what's going to make the difference between maintaining your loss and yo-yo'ing back to morbid obesity. If you're not ready for it now, start looking into your options so that you're ready to deal with it by the time you cross from "obese" to just "overweight" (BMI of 30)...maybe earlier for you because you obviously came from an astronomical place if you've lost over 160 lbs and still need to lose.

When it comes time to add even light exercise to the mix, see a cardiologist first. Even if your arteries aren't compromised by your old eating habits, obesity enlarges the heart muscle and weakens the valves. You'll need some guidance and maybe even supervision at first.

Thursday, January 10, 2008, 11:36 PM

what are you doing for fat and protien??? Your body needs both. Like, NEEDS.

You could easily up your calorie intake by adding in some good mayo, or butter, or a good unsaturated oil. Many vitamins are fat soluble, meaning if you're not taking in any fat, those vits aren't being absorbed- which would lead to things like hair loss. Even if you're vegetarian or vegan, you still need protein- be it from nuts, legumes, or soy.

SSounds like you don't enjoy your food. While many enjoy their food too much, you should still be able to enjoy eating. I'd dfinitely consider speaking to a therapist/counsellor, and not just your GP.

Friday, January 11, 2008, 1:29 AM

Thank you for posting this thread. I have never eaten very much it has just always been really bad food. So now that I am counting calories I still eat the same amount of food just much lower in calories and I'm not hitting a 1000 calories most days. I know that I am supposed to -especially when I work out but it is hard, I just get full. After reading all this I am aware of something that can get much worse. I want to lose weight so that I will be more confident and healthy and losing my hair isn't what I'm looking for. Thanks for putting this out there. I wouldn't have known until it was too late.

Friday, January 11, 2008, 7:58 AM

I have been there too

Hi OP-
I have a similar story - I started with just losing weight and getting fit, but eventually progressing into a feeling of 1000 calories was too hard to get to and no amount of weight loss was enough.
Thankfully I have a sister who called me out on it after seeing me for the first time in 3 months (and 6 dress sizes smaller) to realize that what I was doing was no longer healthy. Unfortunately I was convinced I could fix it on my own. After 5 months of binge-eating and starving myself, basically complete misery and a suicide attempt I finally got professional help. I only wish I would have done it right from the start.
I firmly believe the ONLY way to come out of this without messing up your body even more is getting professional help. Check out this website: http://www.something-fishy.org/. They are a great resource.

Friday, January 11, 2008, 12:21 PM

I get the sense that this person was or is morbidly obese, so that's why her doctor advised her to eat very little calories and she cannot exercise since she said she gets lesions. I really don't understand why some doctors would place their overweight patients under a 1,000 calorie diet. Why not start them off at say 1,800? I mean they didn't gain the weight from eating 1,800 (I know I didn't lol).

OP, maybe you should boost your cals..and get a better doctor

Friday, January 11, 2008, 12:28 PM

OP here again.
Thanks for the input. I am learning so much.
About the doctor. I probably gave you the wrong impression. He is an excellent dr. A specialist in diabetes. I think he just focuses more on that part of my health than my weight. and to me everything makes a difference to your overall health.
Yes I am still morbidly obese ( I hate that word) and have a long way to go. Consiquently I don't have the option of going to another dr. I think most people don't understand that when you are as heavy as I am you can't just go anywhere and be able to sit down and be comfortable. Most dr offices have arms on their chairs and now I am in a place where I have bursitis in one arm and the other has a frozen shoulder so I can't use my arms to get out of a chair. More information than you all needed I know.

I do eat protien. Usually, almost always it is chicken. I do have fish now and again and once in a great while beef but my digestive system doesn't like beef. Never has.
When I have a fat it is either avacado or the little bit of fat in a meat or sometimes I eat a lean cuisine. Once in a great while I have a cheese that has fat in it but usually it is a fat free cheese and a low fat mayo but I seldom use mayo. If I have salad I usually use a full fat dressing just only 1 Tbs of it. Oh and whatever would be in a tortilla. So I do get some fat just not very much. I cut it out because my cholesteral is so high. And get this, a couple of months ago I had my cholesteral tested again after 7 months of dieting and it went up. Go figure.
Yet in that same time I was able to cut out 1/2 of my diabetes pills. The dr thinks it is a genetic problem more than a food related issue, the cholesteral that is. And my dad had really high cholesteral.

I have been to a therapist for years. Haven't been now in years but it never did anything for my weight issues.
I have been to a registered dietician, at our local hospital and all she told me at the time was to only eat at the kitchen table. I used to snack at the computer a lot. Showed me portion sizes but never really helped me. It is so frustrating to reach out and instead of help I think they look at me and think I am a lost cause.
I am very tempted to take a course in nutrition.

Oh one last thought One poster said they didn't think I liked food.
I love food. I enjoy my meals. I love to play around with recipes and find ways to make my food flavorful and low calorie. I just get full. Sometimes after only a few bites. But I keep eating because I need the calories.

I have fought many differnt types of eating disorders in the past and I think this is just a new one. I am an extremist. It is either one extreme or the other. But I am trying to get out of that.
So that's my story.

Friday, January 11, 2008, 2:43 PM

it sounds like you need unsaturated fats like olive oil and nuts. or Flax seed.

Friday, January 11, 2008, 3:38 PM

12:28 here

Yeah I was going to point that out too. It's not just about getting fat into your diet, but the right kind. Like use olive oil based dressing for your salad, eat avocados, nuts, etc. These have the good types of oil that cut down your risk of heart disease and increase your good cholestoral.

Friday, January 11, 2008, 4:02 PM

bump

Monday, January 14, 2008, 4:33 PM

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