The Importance of a Calorie

So...

I've been struggling for weeks and weeks on a few calorie diets.  I've done 1,200, 1,400 and 1,550.  I worked my tail off at the gym.  Didn't make one bit of difference (except I gained a little bit.)  Tired and fed up, I rejoined Jenny Craig last weekend.  They put me on 1,700 as a minimum. So I'm consuming between 1,700 - 1,850, depending on the types of fruit I choose. 

Well, in one week, I lost 3 1/2 pounds and all I had to do was eat more.

I wanted to share this with you guys because some of you are struggling like maniacs too, and the answer to my problem was to eat more. 

Now I'm not suggesting that you go out to Micky D's and chow down on a few Big Mac's.  But adding some healthy calories helped me tremendously.  Maybe it can help you too.

Yay! I am sooo happy for you! You finally found out how to get the weight to start coming off again! Great job. Keep it up!

How are those Jenny Crig meals anyways? I always wondered :]

Better than Lean Cuisine or Smartone's. They're not homemade but some where between Lean Cuisine's and Home Made.  They're pretty good.  They have triple chocolate cheesecake that is to DIE for.  Pretty good food. 

Diets that inclue Triple Chocolate Cheesecake...is simply to DIE for lol.

Congrats, Janina.  I've heard of this strategy before, but I'm hesitant to try it.  For several months I lost at a nice rate eating 1500 calories per day, but that has dwindled to nothing for the past few months.  I'm trying to increase my exercise since I'm not willing to try eating less.  I know stalls can happen, but can they last for three or four months?  Very frustrating.

My mother always said that the human body is a very efficient calorie counter! From what I understand, human beings tend to conserve their calories in certain ways, such as unconsciously decreasing their activity as their caloric intake goes down. If you are sedentary, and not exercising frequently for 30-45 minutes at a time at a rate sufficient to cause perspiration, my guess is that your body has gone into super-efficient-use-of-energy mode and is not gonna give up a pound of saved fat without a fight.
 
Also, a lot depends on what kind of food your 1500 calorie daily diet is composed of, whether you're getting sufficient roughage, whether you are drinking your 64 ounces of water or liquid per day, etc. Shoot for veggies, lots of salads, good, lowfat protein sources, and a minimum of processed foods and sugars (my secret downfall--Curse you, Halloween candy, curse you! )

If I were you I would also look over my diet journal and really take stock. Did you write everything down and the calorie values honestly? Did you have a second helping that you forgot to account for? These things can have a huge impact on weight loss or lack thereof.

Best of luck! I myself am gearing up for Halloween by trying to figure out what amount of candy I could possibly eat that will allow the maximum nostalgic enjoyment with the minimum icky sugared-out feeling. It's probably something lame like 2 pieces of candy corn and a half-eaten Tootsie pop. But the search goes on!

Good luck and keep us posted.

I have a very buttoned up, balanced diet (high protein, low fat, 8-10 daily servings of a wide variety of fruits and vegetables, at times too much fiber!, strict vitamin and mineral supplementation, plenty of water, limited carbs), and I wear a GoWear Fit body monitor that tells me that I expend anywhere from 2300 to 2800 calories a day.  I walk five to eight miles a day (a couple are race walking).  Even if I understate my calories by a couple of hundred (which is unlikely - I'm a very strict food logger), in theory, there should be no reason why I still can't lose a lb per week.  I might be willing to exercise more vigorously, but I'm not willing to eat less than 1500 calories a day.  I have maximized the volume of food I can eat for 1500 - plenty of produce, fat-free cheese, no junk food snacks, no beverages that contain any calories - basically either mostly water or a couple of glasses of fresh-brewed iced tea with Equal (the only times I use artificial sweetener), and that's just enough for me to feel sated during the day.  Hilariously, there has been more than one occasion when I've eaten more calories and have lost weight, but I'm too afraid to try that on a longer-term basis.  I'm pretty knowledgeable about proper eating and exercise, so I'm frustrated by my situation.  I accept that I may very well need to one day accept that it is what it is.  I might not get to a size I'd prefer, but I have the health I want.

Hi Janina, I'm glad you found something that is working for you.

Skylar

I'm not surprised to hear this.
The biggest mistake people make is not eating enough!  When you were eating 1,200, 1,400 or 1,500 you were starving your body so it goes into survival mode.  I did this for many frustrating years!  When I finally got serious I discovered I needed to eat almost 1,800 cals to lose weight...what a shock. 
Of course as you lose you'll have to readjust the number you are consuming but Jenny Craig will help you with that.
Good luck with the plan.

PS- I love their BBQ Meatloaf meal !!!

Could you eat 1800 calories a day even at lower weights (say, 175) and still lose?  I'm half-tempted to try eating 1700-1800 a day myself and see where it takes me.  1500 a day worked well for the first 40 lbs or so (about six months).  The last 10 took quite some time (maybe three-four months), and now I'm down to zip - even though I'm exercising more.

Thanks!