How many calories should I eat?

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missheather
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How many calories should I eat?

Post by missheather »

I have struggled with weight entire life and go from one extreme to the next...I've been 98 lbs....I've been 300 lbs. I'm 5"8" and currently 247.5 lbs

I am trying to stick between 800-1200 calories/day now. Trying to fit in some exercise...I have 3 small kids and fitting in exercise is tough.

So, I'm trying for once...to not diet...but have a calorie limit and judge what I am about to stuff face with by how many calories do I want to use up for it.

I find different info about calories. I have been sticking with the calorie thing for 8 days now. I was at 800 two days...1000 two days....1200 the rest of the days. SO WHY HAVE I GAINED 3 LBS!
JasonLeGree
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Post by JasonLeGree »

I dont think I know everything, But Dont think of eating healthy as a diet, think of this as a life change, Just make small changes at first, like for me I eat 6 meals a day right now, small portions, and I try to eat it without cooking oils or butter.

For example
This morning I had 3 egg whites with a little bit of ketchup for flavor and 1 whole wheat toast dry, and i drink 4-6 bottles of water while eating.

Make sure you allways sit down and eat, and enjoy your food, dont rush your meals or eat in the car, sometimes you have to. But try to give yourself at least 20min per meal, since that is how long it takes your brain to process that you are full.

Not to many calories from breakfest and I am quite full afterwards.

one tip above all else is DRINK WATER, i find water fills me up. I dont feel hungry as often when I am allways drinking water, I allways have one bottle full with me at all times. In case i get the urge to eat, I drink some water.
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Boss Man
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Post by Boss Man »

Your metabolic functions are probably a bit skew whiff.

3 things I can think of worth trying.

1. eat 6 small meals a day spaced 2.5-3 hours apart.

2. leave your caloric intake alone for longer. If your body has gotten used to a non- healthy level, like 800 calories a day, it will view more Calories as potentially excess, so you need to give the body time to adjust, to a higher caloric intake.

If you increase by about 200 calories every 2 days, you might not let it do that. So don't increase your calories again, until you've stayed at least 1 week on the current amount of 1,200.

Thne I would increase again, and keep increasing weekly, until you hit about 1,800.

So you should be eating 1,800 calories the average amount for a woman, in about another 3-4 weeks minimum.

Hopefully that helps.
missheather
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Really?

Post by missheather »

1800 a day...are you serious! :shock:

I was thinking I was pushing it at 1200? Is 1200 a day not okay?
caden0925
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Post by caden0925 »

If you dont consume enough calories per day, and you said you do about 1200?Thats deffinately not enough. it can cause your organs and other body parts to stop working properly. If you want to know how many calories you should have a day try this website.

http://nutrition.about.com/od/changeyou ... lguide.htm

It will tell you how many calories a day you need to maintain your weight, and to lose weight. Also another site that helped me a lot is

http://caloriesperday.com
Last edited by caden0925 on Tue Mar 06, 2007 8:10 pm, edited 1 time in total.
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Boss Man
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Post by Boss Man »

Nope 1,200 is not enough.

Look at it another way, when you finally get to 1,800 calories, by eating 6 times a day, you'll only be having 300 calories a meal.

That's only the same as having 1 good sized Chicken Breast, a large Baked Potato, and a small amount of Almonds for afters.

So depending on what you choose to eat, 300 calorie meals, 6 times a day needn't seem as if you'll be eating a bucket full of food each time, you won't be.

Though as I say, keep your 1,200 calories constant for a week, so the body has chance ot get used to them, then add 200 more and keep it like that for a week, then eventually you'll hit 1,800 in about 3-4 weeks.
SarahPT
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Post by SarahPT »

Wow, you are increasing calories WAY too fast. I sometimes work with women who have a history of undereating and I never have anyone increase by more than 50 calories a week, sometimes slower. Your body has no idea what to do with those calories. Please don't try to add 200 cals a week either. Your body is in a very fragile state and won't take well to that. Most of the time when people give advice to women who have been undereating they don't understand the fragile state the body is in, as well as the mind. Weight gain caused by increasing calories too fast can lead to frustration and return to old habits of undereating.

1200 is often what people in comas are fed. You are far more active than a person in a coma and need much more. I thin k it's a bad idea for you to use any of those online calorie calculators. It's not taking in to account all the personal factors that determine your calorie needs. As a nutritionist I ask people a couple pages of questions and take MANY things in to account before determining the right calorie level for them. It would be detrimental to do otherwise. Those things get so many people off on the wrong foot...

Sarah
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