General meal plan:
Coffee with milk and sugar
Green smoothie with protein powder and chia
Some sort of whole grain + protein (oatmeal and almond butter; toast with an egg; avocado toast)
Some sort of salad or soup with protein
Dinner varies widely, pasta with greens or lean protein plus grain and veg sides or grain bowl

I eat mostly vegetarian and only drink a couple times a week.

Np here. Quantity matters of course but seems adequate well rounded to me but then again diet is individual . I definitely undereat according to macros (I struggle to get anywhere near enough protein) and dismissed it for ages because I’m small with an actually documented slow metabolism…but now hitting early 50s I have been now dealing with all kinds of mineral and vitamin deficiencies (hair loss, low zinc, all, vit D, anemia) and while doctors are ruling out very bad stuff they think it’s just years and years of not eating enough. my diet is similar to yours, though I usually skip breakfast and have only the smoothie at mid day and dinner or a piece of toast with protein and dinner…lately dinner has been like a bowl of soup too and I realize I eat less than my 83 yo mother by a lot.

if you’re really worried see an rd. I am supposed to start working with one although I’m putting it off because I knowit’s going to be rough to start as I do have a fear of gaining weight. It’s weird to be malnourished but not particularly underweight and thinking I’m eating “healthy”.

What app are you using, OP? I'd like to start tracking macros.

Undereating does NOT lead to weight gain. I would suspect that either what you posted as your general menu is offset by occasional 5000 calorie binges or you are not accounting for some higher calorie snacks. If you were eating as you describe 100% of the time you would be underweight. And yes, your metabolism adjusts on low calories to try to live of the little you eat, but not to the point that you start gaining. If that was true famines would be a non-issue.

How are you calculating how many calories you need? Some tools overestimate calories expended on exercise, so that may also be why you're gaining.

Anonymous wrote:Eating low calorie can actually slow the metabolism and inhibit weight loss. If that’s your objective and you haven’t been meeting it, try eating more for a few weeks and see if it helps you shift weight.

This is a hard lesson but I've found it to be true! As OP says, counterintuitive

Thanks, all. I guess I do need to be eating more, especially with the level of exercise. It just seems so counterintuitive.

Anonymous wrote:Are you weighing your food? I don't bother closely tracking, say, lettuce, but it is so easy to eat 4 TB of almond butter and assume it is 2 TB.

Yes, I am. Weighing in grams.

Are you weighing your food? I don't bother closely tracking, say, lettuce, but it is so easy to eat 4 TB of almond butter and assume it is 2 TB.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Are you losing weight on that diet? I probably eat twice as much as you do to maintain my weight. I am a fairly small person (average height/115 pounds).

I would not have trouble eating any number of calories you put in front of me although I probably keep it in the 2000 to 2200 range most days and eat mainly real food. I can be hungry 2 or 3 hours after polishing off a 3 course restaurant meal.

No. If anything, I am steadily gaining.

Then you’re not eating enough. Are you exercising? A body needs fuel to operate.

Anonymous wrote:Are you losing weight on that diet? I probably eat twice as much as you do to maintain my weight. I am a fairly small person (average height/115 pounds).

I would not have trouble eating any number of calories you put in front of me although I probably keep it in the 2000 to 2200 range most days and eat mainly real food. I can be hungry 2 or 3 hours after polishing off a 3 course restaurant meal.

No. If anything, I am steadily gaining.

Are you losing weight on that diet? I probably eat twice as much as you do to maintain my weight. I am a fairly small person (average height/115 pounds).

I would not have trouble eating any number of calories you put in front of me although I probably keep it in the 2000 to 2200 range most days and eat mainly real food. I can be hungry 2 or 3 hours after polishing off a 3 course restaurant meal.

Eating low calorie can actually slow the metabolism and inhibit weight loss. If that’s your objective and you haven’t been meeting it, try eating more for a few weeks and see if it helps you shift weight.

General meal plan:
Coffee with milk and sugar
Green smoothie with protein powder and chia
Some sort of whole grain + protein (oatmeal and almond butter; toast with an egg; avocado toast)
Some sort of salad or soup with protein
Dinner varies widely, pasta with greens or lean protein plus grain and veg sides or grain bowl

I eat mostly vegetarian and only drink a couple times a week.

You'll have to post what you eat in an average day for us to give input. I've found that when I'm not eating enough calories it's because I'm not eating foods high enough in healthy fats and protein. When I focus on nutrient dense meals with protein, healthy fats, and fiber I have no problem getting to 1500-2000 calories.

I recently started tracking macros (and nutrients). I’m not necessarily trying to lose weight, just generally tracking to make sure my diet is balanced and nutritious. I love the app I’m using, and find it very helpful… I realized pretty quickly that my diet was kind of out of whack, so the tracking is helping me to achieve better balance.

But the app is looking for substantially more caloric intake than I am currently getting. I work out every day, so that adds leeway, but even with my settings set for a weight loss calorie deficit, I’m still not really hungry enough to achieve the minimum calories the app wants.

Has anyone else experienced this? Any tips?