Reply #104: It's not always about calories, it's what those calories come from

[conflictgirl]

I ate between 1000-1400 calories a day (no exercise) and was still 30 pounds overweight. I actually kept track of my calories too, I wasn't rounding down or anything.

The problem was that the calories from the things I did eat were from processed food. Eggo waffles or Frosted Mini-Wheats for breakfast (the latter of which contains high-fructose corn syrup, BTW), Lean Cuisines for lunch, rice-a-roni and a chicken breast for dinner. No second helpings and reasonable portion sizes. I'd split a bag of light butter microwave popcorn with my husband for a snack and have a diet soda with it. I could not lose weight at all even though my actual caloric intake was low.

I actually lost weight when I increased my caloric intake slightly (to about 1500-1800 calories a day) when the food I ate was unprocessed. I could make homemade ice cream with whole milk, baked potatoes with butter, and ate all kinds of stuff that the experts tell you not to eat. But it wasn't processed stuff and I think that's what makes the difference.

So I do know first-hand that it is very possible to consume small portion sizes and have a low calorie diet, and still gain weight. It depends a lot on what specifically you're eating.