ExRx.net

Been counting calories in/out. I have a program on my phone and based on my height/weight and goal, it gives you x amount of calories and a time frame of when you can expect to lose the weight.

So the program gives me 2700, awesome. I was told I should try and get as close as I can to 2700 in order to not lose muscle, but still lose fat. Is this true? Most days I'm barely over 2k. Should I be forcing myself to eat more?

No necessarily. It depends on what you're eating. As long as what you're eating is nutritious, what you're really doing is supplying the nutrients with food while your body fat is supplying the energy you need. As long as you are active and don't feel lethargic or cold, then your metabolism is probably still going strong. Once in a while, say every few days or so, add in a whack of good carbs like sweet potato or squash and basically eat until you aren't hungry.

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Let thy food be thy medicine, and thy medicine be thy food.~Hippocrates
Strength is the adaptation that leads to all other adaptations that you really care about - Charles Staley
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Thanks TimD

The worst thing in my diet is rice/pasta. I can't get away from it. I always make sure I eat tons of veggies and meat with lunch/dinner, and sometimes breakfast depending on day of the week and wether or not I have time in the morning. After I lift I will have a double serving of meat. Snacks consist of fruits, nuts, and grains. Sometimes I will snack on homemade beef jerky. Always get in my 3-4 liters of water.

No soda, no dairy, no candy, no fast food. I give myself one cheat meal a week, usually I will go out with my wife and get take out chinese food. Occasionally if I have a huge surplus of calories or my sweet tooth is raging I will have a soy ice cream sandwich, or something similar. Everything in moderation though.

That sounds good. Just go by feel. Don't eat more than you think you need. I wouldn't even count calories. Keep the treats reasonable and you should be all right. Try 85% dark chocolate. A small piece will usually satisfy your cravings and there's hardly any sugar in it.

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Let thy food be thy medicine, and thy medicine be thy food.~Hippocrates
Strength is the adaptation that leads to all other adaptations that you really care about - Charles Staley
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Thanks TimD

Counting calories helps me not overeat. I sometimes eat just to eat. I've always been an overeater. That's how I got to almost 400lbs. I'm now 70lbs down. Lost 55lbs within the first 6 months, then just went up and down about 5lbs. Lost 30 when I had jaw surgery, gained it all back. I'm trying to hit 300. I need to get there so I can blast through it and get to 275lbs.

Shawn--losing 70 lb is a great accomplishment! If you can do that, you can make it to 275! Had you told us that before? If so it was a while back. Good going.

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Our greatest fear should not be of failure, but of succeeding at things in life that don't really matter.--Francis Chan

I may have mentioned the jaw surgery weight, but that was gained back pretty quick, so I didn't get to attached to being that low. This 70lbs is recent, a few days. According to my lose it.com mobile phone app, if I continue to follow this path and caloric intake, I should hit 300 by April. Keeping my fingers crossed.

Do you know why?

Yup.

Well, I have suffered from depression and anxiety since I was 12. Eating has always my vice. I thoroughly enjoy eating. I don't eat to fuel my body, I eat because it makes me feel good. If I could afford to, and getting heavy again wasn't an issue, I would eat every meal like it was my last, just to feel that high. The only other things that may equal the feeling, are sex and weight lifting.

thanks for sharing.
My inability to deal with stress lead me to a similar situation. I opened the topic to see if you had dealt with the cause, too.

Stress is another trigger for me. I'm actually getting over shingles brought on by stress. Only time I'm feeling awesome is at the gym. Oh well, looks like I need to lift more.

Shingles being caused by stress is an old myth. It's an infectious disease that can happen at any time (well, only once unless you're immunocompromised, but that's details).

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Our greatest fear should not be of failure, but of succeeding at things in life that don't really matter.--Francis Chan

Well that's good to know. Doctor told me it was brought on by stress.

Well, the virus that causes chicken pox goes undercover in the nerve roots after the episode of chicken pox. Sometime later, and for UNKNOWN reasons, the virus becomes active again, causing shingles. To the best of my knowledge, the association with stress is very slight, if real at all. Many factors that cause immunodeficiency are known to increase the rate of activation, but the factors that trigger the event are not known. Stress is often mentioned, but the honest answer is "we don't know." Most people who get shingles have experienced stress recently, but most people who don't get shingles have experienced stress recently.

Sorry to hijack. It's a pet peeve of mine, doctors repeating myths like this.

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Our greatest fear should not be of failure, but of succeeding at things in life that don't really matter.--Francis Chan

No worries, it's good to know they are full of $h1t.