Calorie question

Steve S

Full Member
Morning all. What are you all taking in calorie-wise?

I'm beginning to wonder if calories DO count in my case. 'They' say that you should eat 10-12x your body weight (lbs) in calories to maintain, and about 500 less than that a day to lose 1lb a week.

I've still lost nothing on aggregate and I'm not losing inches.

I'd be jolly grateful to hear about your calorie deficit if you track such things. :)
 
I've never counted calories on Atkins mate, but I think the old adage counts, if you consume more than you burn, you won't lose.
 
That's what I'm thinking Jim, but I'm not getting the 'full' signal often enough.

I might have to train myself to have more restraint as I'm sure that my average 2600-3000kcal is way too much, although it appears to be ideal for maintenance. :D

I did okay yesterday so I'll go for it again today and for the rest of the week. :)
 
I have to say Steve i was gobsmaked at your calorie intake 3.5k is huge but then you are excerising a lot also.

The book recommends at least 1500kcals and no more than 1800kcals but i guess thats for sedentry ppl.

Maybe try cutting out 1000kcal for one week to see how you get on with 2500kcals?

Gotta be worth a try, what Jim said is correct no matter what diet you are on.
 
Thanks for your input guys, it's much appreciated! :)

I think we may have finally found the answer to my problems. As I mentioned before, I've been averaging around 3000kcal on a daily basis, and it's probably a testament to the Atkins diet that I'm even managing to stay at the same weight!

I've been examining why I'm eating so much stuff. I think it's got a lot to do with my head not believing that smaller amounts can fill me up. If I just go with it though, the results are really surprising. I brought a MiM and pate for a mid-morning snack, but when it was 'time' to eat it I found that I wasn't actually hungry. I brought a couple of bockwurst to go with the cauli cheese, but having just eaten the cauli cheese, I'm full and don't need the other food at all. :)

I'm going to have to learn over the next few weeks to just trust the process and see that I can be just as full on less food. :)

People have said I exercise a lot, but it's only 40 minutes or so a day. The rest of the day I'm sat on my arse at a desk so I can really best be described as sedentary.

As I write this I'm feeling myself not being at all hungry. I don't NEED any more food. My diary for today is accurate, and I'm on schedule to eat a lot less calories today.

Watch this space! :D
 
Sedentary sounds good to me. :)
 
I find if i eat something i'm not keen on, i tend to stay 'hungry' even with large portions. If i ate as you said cauli cheese, even a small bit i'd be satisfied. I think eating something you enjoy is the key on any plan.

Also on the calorie thing, i use caloriecounter.com and ensure that activity burn calories are at least 500 more than calories consumed.
 
I hear you on the hunger thing, Marysu. I've got to let my chemistry (fat satiety) tell me when I'm full instead of waiting until I'm busting. Hard to do after a lifetime! :D

I use fatsecret for a similar tracker. :)
 
I don't count my calories, but I know my 2 shakes have about 170cal each in them, and then it's just my evening meal & sugar free jelly
 
Try Atkins mate. What plan are you on, and welcome I see it's your first post. :)
 
Yup, its the latest version of the book. I defo recommend you getting an atkins book!
 
Hi Steve

Telling my head to behave is one of my big hurdles - and not eating when I'm not hungry! I had drummed into me for years, "finish your plate, think of starving Biafrans", and so on - and it is an odd feeling to think, "oh its dinner time but I'm not hungry, so I'm not going to eat".

Jim and the others are so right - just eat when you feel hungry, no matter time what the clock says, and you don't need to eat everything you've prepared. Some days I'm more hungry than others, so I have stuff ready to snack on, and other days I don't need a snack at all.

I also have a glass of water at every meal and when I'm sipping on it I try and stop eating to see if I'm full. Must be the caveman instinct - eat everything because you don't know when your next meal is going to be :)

Susie x
 
I also have a glass of water at every meal and when I'm sipping on it I try and stop eating to see if I'm full.
Nail. Head. Hit. :)

I've been thinking more about this. I've remembered that one of the prime reasons I did Cambridge was that it took food out of the picture for me. There were the sachets and that was it. Now I'm eating again I have to train myself to eat only until I'm full.

Like you say, a childhood spent being told to clear my plate has left its mark. It's quite a subtle impression, but a powerful one! I tried training myself a few years ago on a low fat diet, but I was never satisfied with the amount of food. This low carb method definitely works but I have to learn to recognise the satiety signal. :)
 
Yep me too. My alarm that's supposed to go off to say "You're full" must be in for repair lol - the other night I cooked two lamb chops and even though I was full after one, I ate the other one as well!

Why? Because it was there. :)

The same principle applies to bottles of red wine...
 
Lol, love the red wine comment!
I just stop now, I even left a Debbie & Andrews chipolata the other day :O
I just have too many extra carbs on the booze :(
 
ah yes Susie, I'm the same with a bottle of red wine. LOL.
 
A fiver for a bottle of wine? you must tell me where that is Bren, is it a wetherspoons?
 
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