How is 1200 Calories enough?

[myrori 55]

Ok I have to admit I have not been adding up my calories so I just went and did it, Today I had 550 calories and I would say that pretty much represents my days.

For Breakfast

Protein shake: 110

snack greek yogurt with berries 145

lunch 3 turkey meat balls and some green Beans 150

A bite of a bagel (not typical) 35 calories

dinner 2 Asian spring rolls (trader joes) 100 calories

Each meal I could not get any more food in, so now I am am making myself have some apple with almond butter.

How do I get more calories in if I am full??? I frustrated because I am in a stall and I am sure it is from starvation mode.

I excerise 30 minutes in the morning doing step aerobics on the Wii.

[Globetrotter 1,340]

Ok I have to admit I have not been adding up my calories so I just went and did it, Today I had 550 calories and I would say that pretty much represents my days.

For Breakfast

Protein shake: 110

snack greek yogurt with berries 145

lunch 3 turkey meat balls and some green Beans 150

A bite of a bagel (not typical) 35 calories

dinner 2 Asian spring rolls (trader joes) 100 calories

Each meal I could not get any more food in, so now I am am making myself have some apple with almond butter.

How do I get more calories in if I am full??? I frustrated because I am in a stall and I am sure it is from starvation mode.

I excerise 30 minutes in the morning doing step aerobics on the Wii.

liquid calories are the easiest, make a Protein shake in the morning with real milk, Peanut Butter, banana, and a couple of different chocolate Protein powders. Top it off with some SF whipped cream and you've got yourself a protein dense, calorie rich meal.

[Globetrotter 1,340]

Well, I am in a stall right now, 12 days so far, so I looked up my weight loss stats by month on my online diet tracker. Boy, did I get a nasty shock - I lost the greatest amount of weight in a single month when I averaged 608 calories a day! Here's the breakdown -

Surgery 14 July

Started tracking online end of August, by which time I had lost 24 lbs

Aug - 1 pound

Sep - 17 pounds

Oct - 13 pounds

Nov - 4 pounds

Dec - 12 pounds

Jan - 6 pounds

Perhaps it was because it was the 2 months out point and that's a highwater mark, I don't know. But in the month of September I lost 17 (!!) pounds and though it varied the average calorie intake was 608. As for my exercise, at that time I was strictly doing the treadmill for 30 minutes of gentle walking.

Granted, the dates I have to go by are just when I entered loss so the month of sept spills a little into either side so really I probably lost 15lbs rather than 17. The month of December, you will notice, was great with 12 pounds lost and what did I do? Ate what I pleased, rich Christmassy foods, did the elliptical for 30 minutes (most days), didn't track my foods at all.

I'm starting to think that the weight training is holding back my weight loss. I know it is guarding against floppy skin and muscles but maybe I'm supposed to save the weights until I've lost the weight??

[chilo1 62]

Well, I am in a stall right now, 12 days so far, so I looked up my weight loss stats by month on my online diet tracker. Boy, did I get a nasty shock - I lost the greatest amount of weight in a single month when I averaged 608 calories a day! Here's the breakdown -

Surgery 14 July

Started tracking online end of August, by which time I had lost 24 lbs

Aug - 1 pound

Sep - 17 pounds

Oct - 13 pounds

Nov - 4 pounds

Dec - 12 pounds

Jan - 6 pounds

Perhaps it was because it was the 2 months out point and that's a highwater mark, I don't know. But in the month of September I lost 17 (!!) pounds and though it varied the average calorie intake was 608. As for my exercise, at that time I was strictly doing the treadmill for 30 minutes of gentle walking.

Granted, the dates I have to go by are just when I entered loss so the month of sept spills a little into either side so really I probably lost 15lbs rather than 17. The month of December, you will notice, was great with 12 pounds lost and what did I do? Ate what I pleased, rich Christmassy foods, did the elliptical for 30 minutes (most days), didn't track my foods at all.

I'm starting to think that the weight training is holding back my weight loss. I know it is guarding against floppy skin and muscles but maybe I'm supposed to save the weights until I've lost the weight??

I too was thinking that because I started weight training, only light weighst, but I decided I'm going to continue because i need to set a routine now and it makes me feel really good about myself

[Globetrotter 1,340]

Day 14 of my stall. Average carb count this month: +/- 50

Average cal count this month: +/- 850

Going to try to cut down my carbs or at least change them up. I've been letting some Pasta creep in, in the form of Cafe Steamers balanced meals, along with chocolate pudding cups, popcorn, and all the carbs packed into some Protein bars (!!!). I'm going to go back to getting my carbs strictly from vegetables and fruit - no more yogurt or pudding or milk or accidental Pasta or bite of english muffin with breakfast, those things are for goal-achievers and maintenence keepers. =( =( =-(

[Globetrotter 1,340]

I'm trying to get back down to eating only 600 calories a day but I am discovering that without liquid Protein bullets or low-carb Protein powders, it is next to impossible to get 80 grams of protein while only taking in 600 calories! I miss vegetables sooo much; peppers, cucumbers, radishes, fresh peas, fresh carrots straight out of the ground, heirloom tomatoes, arugula, spinach, leeks, yams, chard, kale, baked squashes. And real cheese with no additives or anything, just bacteria and time. Same goes for yogurt, and I miss real pure unadulterated meat; fish, rabbit, pork, real chicken that hasn't been pumped full of steroids and antibiotics. I miss heirloom grains and real genuine butter and fruit that gets bruised and goes bad because ripe fruit was not meant to last forever.

My homage to food. And now, back to our regularly scheduled calories.

[Lila21 36]

I'm trying to get back down to eating only 600 calories a day but I am discovering that without liquid Protein bullets or low-carb Protein powders, it is next to impossible to get 80 grams of protein while only taking in 600 calories! I miss vegetables sooo much; peppers, cucumbers, radishes, fresh peas, fresh carrots straight out of the ground, heirloom tomatoes, arugula, spinach, leeks, yams, chard, kale, baked squashes. And real cheese with no additives or anything, just bacteria and time. Same goes for yogurt, and I miss real pure unadulterated meat; fish, rabbit, pork, real chicken that hasn't been pumped full of steroids and antibiotics. I miss heirloom grains and real genuine butter and fruit that gets bruised and goes bad because ripe fruit was not meant to last forever.

My homage to food. And now, back to our regularly scheduled calories.

You just made me want to eat a giant salad!

:-))

You can't get the protein powders because you are deployed? But, you are coming back Stateside soon, right?

Hang on until then if that's the case!

[Globetrotter 1,340]

I can get Protein powders, but I have discovered that if I start my day with a Protein Shake, I stay hungry all day, so I try not to depend on them.

[sleevegenie 0]

Seriously...I understand that you are simply unable to eat that much after having surgery, but eventually when the stomach has healed you're expected to only eat 1200 calories? Any nutritionist will tell you that 1200 calories is not enough for the average person (not average as in average = overweight, but average as in what we should be eating). After finding your BMR (basal metabolic rate) which is how many calories your body burns just in the process of lounging about and doing its normal biological functions, you need to figure out how many calories your body expends during your average day. This is why most people should really be eating 1500 - 2000 for their weight-loss programs. Unless you weigh 120 lbs or are just really tiny (like my best friend, one of those naturally tiny people) then 1200 calories isn't really a lot, let alone the less than 1000 that is recommended for the first few months or so. My current worry is that this weight loss is due to malnutrition.

Are there any nutritionists on the forum here? Does anyone else have any data to support the idea that 800 calories is okay? I am now going over the professional literature to see if I can find anything. This just seems potentially scary. I mean, if I am out hiking in the woods (or across Asia which is a hope after graduation) I'm likely going to need more than 2000 let alone 1200...

Thanks!

[sleevegenie 0]

I think the reason we lose weight is because we force the body to use all the stored fat it has to live our daily lives. That's why its so important that we feed the body what the fat we burn doesn't have, which is Protein. I hear you though on the number of calories once we achieve our normal weight. I just found a series on youtube called supersize vs superskinny and they have a large person and a very small person move in together for a week. They have to eat the other person's food for a week. I found this facinating. The thing that got me is these anorexic people they said ate 1700 cals a day and i can't believe it because they ate nothing. I can't imagine how they could live on so little food. So I'm confused by that as well. I think it has changed me somehow tho, for the better ) jeani

[kaneohegirl 2]

think about it tho... calories is one thing and you wonder how ppl survive and yet be healthy...

check out these pics... it emphasizes what ppl spend $ wise but really look at the types of foods that ppl are living on

it kind of drives home that we as a nation really dont have a clue what its like to worry about malnutrition..

until you need to worry about maintenance you need to focus on getting the Protein you need to maintain your muscle mass... if you intend to do extreme activities like hiking in high altitudes or in harsh environments you should talk to a nutritionist about WHAT kind of calories in addition to fat burn you may need to remain healthy.

[NtvTxn 1,262]

In the losing phase, i was averaging 675 calories per day. I reached goal, losing 78 lbs, in just under five months. I am now 11 lbs under goal and am learning to maintain. My dietitian recommended 900 - 1200 calories per day. She said I'd have to experiment to see what worked. I've been able to quit losing when I eat 1050 - 1100. I know that if I were eating 1300 - 1500 calories a day I would see the scale start inching up. Pre-surgery, years ago, my personal care physician and I discussed an 1800 calorie a day diet. She acted like that was a NORMAL amount for a woman who is 5'6" that needed to lose a little weight. At that time, I needed to lose about 25 lbs. I don't think 1800 or 2000 calories a day, a 'normal' diet is possible after having 85% of our stomachs removed. I'd have to eat really high calorie foods and I'd have to do it constantly. I'm eating off and on all afternoon NOW. Not to mention, I really do think I'd gain.