Calorie intake!!!

Hey y'all. I was just wondering what you do and what you think about my calorie intake. I am concerned about only losing 7 lbs this past month. I started keeping track of my calories and have discoverd that I am consuming about 1200 calories a day. At 5 months out, is this okay? I eat a shake for breakfast (300 cal), lunch (200-300 cal), a snack of fruit or beef jerky (70-80 cal), dinner,usually only 3 oz of meat with veggies (last night was a 250 cal dindin) and then another snack of sugar free fudgecicle or other sugar free snack (100-150 cal). I also typically have a small snack when I get home from dinner, about 100 calories, this might be crackers or a small spoon of peanutbutter, or nuts. No wonder my weightloss has slowed. I am gonna try to cut out the home from work snack and possibly the after dinner snack too. Anyway, what do y'all think. I don't feel like I am overeating. I am choosing healthy snacks. My nutritionist wants me to eat 5-6 small meals a day. I appreciate and desire your opinions. Hugs, Robin

Hi Robin. I think it's tough to decide if you're eating too much based on one measurement alone. It might be more important to see how those 1200 calories are divided. What percentage of your daily intake is protein, fat and carbs? Those numbers might give you more information and also indicate what kind of changes you could make to see different results. In my most humble (and certainly not professional!) opinion, 1200 calories per day is not too many especially if you are exercising. I'm at work, or I would post the daily recommended percentages that my nutritionist gave me. Please let me know if you would like that information and I'll write myself a note to send it to you when I get home this evening. Also, 7 pounds lost in a month is really not cause for concern. I'll be lucky to lose five pounds this month. We are definitely slowing down which is both normal and healthy! - Stephanie

Stephanie, Yes, please send me that information. I know that my protein intake is pretty good. Maybe I'll try tracking on fitday.com to see if I can get an accurate picture of all the totals. Your right, this might help. I am exercising for about 45 min 4x a week. Still trying to get in an extra 2 days a week but just can't seem to manage it, YET! Thank you. Hugs, Robin

I don't think you should be relating your slowed weight loss to the fact your eating 1200 calories.... can you even imagine what you were eating before???? I think almost all of us had a VERRRRYYY slow 5th month--- it's a normal thing, it's a slow month for most. I eat about 800-1000 calories a day... and thats where my nut wants me.... even eating 800 calories a day last month I only lost maybe 7-9lbs... My honest opinion on what you posted is that your protein shake is FAR FAR too high in calories-- 300 calories for a drink is a lot..... early out that was good, we needed that.... but now it's time to start cutting back on those calories. In our support group there are quite a few 3-4 year graduates who still do protein shakes, they will only do about 120 calories for 30g protein... they never mix with milk, more extra calories.... I think you may want to re-assess how many calories your consuming by drinking and cut back.... I suggest you consult with your Nut and see where you should be.

Hi Darlene, For the protein shake, the powder itself is 220 cal, then I add 1/4 cup OJ (25-30 cal) and either a two inch piece of banana or 1/4 cup sliced frozen strawberries, another 1/4 cup of water and ice cubes. I can't do milk as it makes me sick to my stomach. The powder is the only protein mix I have been able to find that I can tolerate, and it's zero carbs, 50 g of protein. I think when I see my nut, I'll take her the protein breakdown and see what she thinks. I know that I shouldn't be overly concerned at this point, as I am still losing. Like you said we almost all had a slow month so maybe that is just the way our bodies are adjusting. Thanks for the input. It means a lot to me. Hugs, Robin

I didnt mean to make it sound like your consuming too many calories either, cause 1200 isnt all that much, especially if your exercising--- your body NEEDS calories... As you progress though that protein shake could end up being a staller or weight gainer cause it's so high in calories... maybe now our tatest have settled down you may want to look around and start trying different powders..... like I said, the general rule of thumb seems to be no more than 120 calories for a 30g scoop-- most of our support groups uses Matrix Chocolate, they drink it heated with warm water & a little peppermint SF syrup-- they say it tastes just like a hot chocolate..... (Just my opinion) but I think your wasting your time with the 50g drink... our bodies only absorb about 30g of protein at a time... so that other 20g of protein powder is just wasted calories.... even if you save some and drink it later, protein powder looses it's effectiveness..... My advice is to cut back to a 30g protein powder, and lower those calories....

Maybe I'll try to use only 1/2 the protein powder and that'll save 110 calories. I just might try the Matrix you suggested. I just don't have a lot of tolerance for the taste of protein shakes. It took me til I was 3 1/2 months out to find the one I use now. I did wonder about the calories in it. Thanks for the advise Darlene. I am taking it. I always enjoy your posts for recipes. I have tried a few and they have all been great!

Robin - I use the Unjury powder (I alternate between chocolate and vanilla) - it has 20 grams of protein per scoop and I mix it with Simply Smart milk - which has 10 gr of protein and then put it in the freezer for about 3-4 hours and make it slushy, creamy like. That has 180 calories - 90 for the protein and 90 for the milk. I only have one of them a day and get the rest of my protein from meals. Just another suggestion! I am between 800 and 1000 calories per day. I agree with Darlene in that I think month 5 is slow for all of us....our bodies are still probably in shock from dropping from 70-100 or more pounds (depending on the person)! Barbara

Hi Robin. Below is the information from my nutritionist. I tried to put it in the chart format that she did, but the messageboard doesn't support tabs and things. I hope this is somewhat readable!******************************************************* Food Group/ Servings per day/ Calories/ Carbohydrates/ Protein/ Fat Meat- 4/ 220/ 0/ 35/ 12 Milk- 2/ 180/ 24/ 16/ 0-6 Vegetable- 3/ 75/ 15/ 6/ 0 Fruit- 3/ 180/ 45/ 0/ 0 Starch- 3/ 240/ 45/ 9/ 0-3 Fat- 3/ 135/ 0/ 0/ 15 Totals 1030 calories/ 129 carbs/ 66 protein/ 27-36 fat Percentage of totals 47% carbs/ 25% protein/ approx 28% fat What is a serving? Meat - Lean meats (7 grams protein, 3 grams fat and 55 calories) 1 ounce of meat, fish, poultry, or cheese, 1/2 cup of beans, peas, lintils, 1/4 cup of cottage cheese Milk - Fat free/low-fat (12 grams carbs, 8 grams protein, 25 calories) 1 cup milk or yogurt, 1/3 cup fat-free dry milk Vegetable - (5 grams carbs, 2 grams protein, 25 calories) 1/2 cup cooked vegetables or vegetable juice, 1 cup raw vegetables Fruit - (15 grams carbs, 60 calories) 1 small to medium fresh fruit, 1/2 cup canned or fresh fruit in fruit juice, 1/4 cup dried fruit Starch - (15 grams carbs, 80 calories) 1 slice bread, 1/2 cup pasta, 3/4 cup dry cereal, 6 saltines, 1/3 cup of rice Fats - (5 grams fat, 45 calories) 1 tsp. regular margarine or vegetable oil, 1 tablespoon regular salad dressing Important Facts: - Your body needs a minimum of 100-130 grams of carbs daily - Your body needs a minimum of 20 grams of fat daily for normal function - Even if you follow the above guidelines exactly, you still need to take your supplements (Mulitvitamin daily, 600 mg calcium daily, 1000 mcg vitamin B12 twice per week or 500 mcg vitamin B12 daily, 50 - 66 mg iron (for menstruating females) daily with vitamin C to help with absorption ********************************************************* Of course, this is HER idea of what daily intake should include. I'm sure other professionals have other ideas. I hope this helps! - Stephanie