Is there such a thing as too few calories?

Stephanie0523

Stephanie0523

Cathlete
I have been trying to lose weight the past several months, and it's been going well. I do Cathe workouts daily (40-60 minutes) and try to stick to 1200-1300 calories (three meals, one snack and TONS of water and diet tea). However, the weightloss has leveled off, and my hunger has seemed to increase. Is it true that eating more calories will help me lose more weight? Or should I decrease the calories?
 
Yes. Eating more calories will help you lose weight. DO NOT reduce your calories any further. If you do, your body will go into starvation mode and will actually begin to store fat. Increase good calories: lean protein, fruits, vegetables, and natural fats. Try to stay away from too many starchy carbs (especially at night) BUT you still should include things like oatmeal, yams, brown rice, and whole wheat bread. Hopefully this helps. Also, try to drink plenty of water to flush out the toxins. And, if nothing else, try to increase your activity, even if its only a walk around the block after dinner...just stay active & moving!

Kristen
Ohio State U. masters student in Exercise Physiology :)
 
yes there is such a thing. if you are working out hard and your body doesn't have a lot to run on it is going to start to break down muscle to compensate. also with such few cals your metabolism slows and it holds onto whatever fat you still have as a defense mechanism b/c it is not getting enough to fuel your current workout. and if you are truly hungry then your body is trying to tell you something and you need to listen. i myself did this when i was losing all my weight 8 yrs ago. i was scared to increase my weight but i did it slowly. i added 100 cals every couple of weeks and allowed my body to adjust. to my suprise it restarted my weight loss and i was still losing while eating 1600 cals a day. i'm 5'3 by the way. i also noticed i was less tired and had so much more energy for my workouts. food is fuel and not the enemy. its the types of foods that matter. so when you add in cals make sure they are from protein, healthy fats, fruits and veggies. good luck
 
Yes, Yes, Yes!!!!! I highly recommend that you read the ebook, Burn The Fat, Feed the Muscle. It will explain everything in detail. You must feed your body in order to burn fat. By eating so few calories a day, you are slowing down your metabolism.
 
Thanks guys. This helps. I really appreciate the suggestion of adding 100 calories at a time and allowing my body to adjust. You all said not to eat many carbs at night, and I'm guilty of eating LOTS of fruit at night and a carb with dinner. I eat a lot of protein during the day to give me sustaining energy (I have two boys, ages 5 and 2). However, I do my exercising usually around 6 p.m. or late afternoon, and I had heard that it's OK to eat carbs later if you exercise later.

Thanks again!
 
Eating too few calories is known as "starvation".

:D

Just kidding. Think of food as fuel. What happens when a car doesn't have any fuel in its tank? It doesn't start. Now, how fast does a high performance engine burn through fuel versus a low performance engine? Pretty darn fast, right? See, as you build more muscle, your body becomes a high performance engine and will burn through fuel (food) more quickly than if you were full of blubber. This means that as your body becomes more high performance, you have to put more high performance fuel in your tank.

Be careful not to eat a lot of starchy or sugary foods, such as white bread, white flour products, potatoes (sweet or white), corn, carrots, apples, bananas, etc. These foods can increase your hunger pangs, even when you've just eaten shortly before. Eat lots of green veggies, lean protein, and berries.
 
>Thanks guys. This helps. I really appreciate the suggestion
>of adding 100 calories at a time and allowing my body to
>adjust. You all said not to eat many carbs at night, and I'm
>guilty of eating LOTS of fruit at night and a carb with
>dinner. I eat a lot of protein during the day to give me
>sustaining energy (I have two boys, ages 5 and 2). However, I
>do my exercising usually around 6 p.m. or late afternoon, and
>I had heard that it's OK to eat carbs later if you exercise
>later.
>
>Thanks again!

keeping carbs around workouts is perfectly ok. since your working out at 6 you need carbs after to replenish your glycogen stores. and since you are having fruit i say its more than ok.
 
I was doing the 1200 calories and working out 30 mins or more a day with a rest day or two.I was maintaining my weight, exhausted and grumpy! So I ate when I was hungry and I lost weight, felt stronger and energy everywhere! I realized personally if I am hungry I will eat but I be careful on what I eat... and I am almost to goal weight now. Hope it works for you to.. duck
 
After the birth of my DS I had a lot to loose.
I ate only one apple and one lean frozen dinner a day.
I stopped loosing weight!
Then I went to Weight Watchers and ate all day long.
I lost 6 pounds the first week.
 
As crazy as that sounds it is true. I have been working as a personal trainer and aerobics instructor at my school for 2 years now and you wouldn't believe the amount of my clients that will show up to train without having eaten breakfast or any type of small snack before training. If your body gets too few calories it will acutally hold onto more calories as a protection mechanism hence the reason for the platuea. Try eating 6-7 small meals per day. This sounds like a lot but it will keep you full throughout the day and acutally make your body more efficient at using calories.
This is my first time posting so let me know if it helps!
Good Luck!

nkuangel
 
nkuangel,
Thanks for the info! I have been trying to eat a little more, especially on big workout days. It has worked for me too. I'm glad I posted this question!

Thanks again for the tips!
 
All GREAT advice. I would add that If you plan to finish all your eating 2 to 3 hours before bedtime you'll REALLY see results. Exercise and follow all the suggestions here and the speed with which the weight comes off will blow your mind. You should see me four hours before bedtime - with my bowl of oatmeal. After a filling bowl of oats I have no problem lasting food-free through those three pre-bedtime hours AND I don't awake hungry during the night. So eat something that fills you up and sustains you as your last meal and avoid eating 2-3 hours prior to bed.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

Our Newsletter

Get awesome content delivered straight to your inbox.

Top