Should I Increase My Calorie Intake?

[legnarevocrednu 47]

The past week I have been averaging between 450 and 600 calories a day. I have not lost ANY weight. I just entered the soft food stage as of today, but I'm wondering if I'm not getting in enough calories. I'm technically supposed to be taking in 1200, but I'm not sure how to do that. I have three meals a day every 4 to 5 hours and am not really hungry between meals. Are the amount of calories I'm taking in at this point adequate for the stage I'm in? Should I be eating more calories? I know I'm still healing and shouldn't worry about weight loss, but I still think I should be losing if I'm eating right and staying under my calories. I'm really not sure how to take in more calories at this point. Should I not be worrying about this yet? I return to "normal" food in a week. Maybe this is something I should think about then. I'm just wondering if the reason I'm not losing weight is becasue I'm only eating half the calories I should be. Thanks!!

[futuremodel 1]

I might not give you the healthy advice but I was where you are now and I was eating all the right things but not consuming enough calories and not loosing weight. One day I decided to eat a candy bar to give myself the calories. After that I began to lose weight again slowly.

[Patriceaa 16]

The only problem with candy bars is all the sugar. I am not saying you are 'wrong' I think everyone does things a little differently. I think it might be wiser to maybe add some more fruit, it has more calories and healthy carbs...and veggies & cheese ~ and a treat here and there. I do think you might want to try upping your calories to stimulate weight loss though, your body is probably in starvation mode so it is hanging on to what you intake and storing it.

[xavier 153]

Dont make any decisions based on one measly week and what it showed on the scale!

[Corrigan 75]

Here's an article I was given that helps explain temporary weight gain, loss and stalls:

Our bodies use glycogen for short term energy storage. Glycogen is not very soluble, but it is stored in our muscles for quick energy -- one pound of glycogen requires 4 lbs of Water to keep it soluble, and the average glycogen storage capacity is about 2 lbs. So, when you are not getting in enough food, your body turns first to stored glycogen, which is easy to break down for energy. And when you use up 2 lbs of glycogen, you also lose 8 lbs of Water that was used to store the "easy" 10 lbs that most people lose in the first week of a diet.

As you stay in caloric deficit, however, your body starts to realize that this is not a short term problem. You start mobilizing fat from your adipose tissue and burning fat for energy. But your body also realizes that fat can't be used for short bursts of energy so it starts converting some of the fat into glycogen, and rebuilding the glycogen stores. And as it puts back the 2 lbs of glycogen into the muscle, 8 lbs of water has to be stored with it to keep it soluble. So, even though you might still be LOSING energy content to your body, your weight will not go down or you might even GAIN for a while as you retain water to dissolve the glycogen that is being reformed and stored. I hope this helps.

[sam3841 57]

You should use my fitness play to track calories, it also figures the calorie amount you need to hit your goal weight. It tracks your weight and adjust the calorie goal for each day according to that weight. It also gives you a message when you are done journaling if you eat to few calories or too many. The problem with not eating enough calories is that it is difficult to get the required nutrients and while the strike quoted above is accurate, it fails to mention a prolonged date of starvation in a human body which already has a high fat content. This state involves the body treating every meal as its last meal and converting it directly to fat. Fat is actually very healthy in correct amounts. The physical trainer I work with, demands that I eat 1500 calories in small meals. This amount revs up the metabolism and keeps it going strong. He recommends a Protein Shake in the morning and at night, since ideally the body should run on Protein. I hope this helps.

[legnarevocrednu 47]

I have been using my fitness pal for months.

I'm sooo excited! I was able to push my calorie intake up to 875 yesterday (just by having my 3 small, healthy meals and adding a Protein drink) and I've lost 2 pounds since then! It's amazing! I also exceeded my protein goal for the first time! Things are looking up!

[betheboo 40]

I have had the periods of time where I lived on 300 cal/day for up to a month, not b/c I was trying to starve buy b/c I just wasn't hungry. I didn't loose squat! Granted I'm not much better now, I eat around 600~700, but I loose consistantly. My trick to getting my calorie intake up... Avacado's! I eat one every day. They are high in cal, 350 for a medium one, & they are full of great fats & Vitamins . Not to mention they are delicious!