Calories?

duckykissy

I'm just curious about others with Hashis/hypo. I'm 27, 5'5'' female who works in early childhood education casually, so I spend work days on my feet, running around, etc. Because of this MFP wanted me at like 1900ish Calories, but I set myself down to 1660, with a goal of trying to eat closer to 1400 unless I had very active days. That's been working pretty well for me, and I'm slowly seeing results, but I'm wondering what others in a similar situation are doing.

How many calories is your goal? Where did MFP place you?

lindsey1979

I don't track calories per MFP's standards. I use the BodyMedia Fit device which calculates my calories and then I back track from there -- and I've found it be pretty much on point with my weight loss calculations using that.

For me, I'm 5'9" and my weight varies from 175-195 (right now I'm at 185, trying to eventually get back down to the 160s as that's a solid size 6-8 for me -- and it's the size that governs it more than anything for me). If I have an absolutely no-activity day (think sick at home and watching TV), I burn about 1900 calories. A desk job day is about 2100-2200 calories. On most days, because I walk a lot (6-9 miles) and lift heavy 3x week, I tend to fall in the 2700-3100 range depending on the day. I tend to eat between 1500-2100 calories per day depending on the day.

thedaydreamer92

I'm 22, 5' 4" and weigh about 180. My goal is 130. I work at Wal-Mart part time and go to college full time. During the warmer months, I'm way more active because it's Wal-Mart's busy time and I'm outside a lot with my husband - - mainly walking and bicycling. However, right now, I don't work as much, so I am a bit more lazy. MFP put me at 1,200. Most days I eat around 1,500-2,000. I recently became vegan and am in a no fast food challenge with my friend, so I'm able to maintain that 1,200 easier now.

Fuzzipeg

An observation.

If anyone is regularly light on their daily protein this will be counter-productive in the long run. Protein is involved in producing all our hormones and enzymes. One thread posted by a member reporting on her appointment with her endocrinologist, for hashi, proffered higher protein lower carbs. I have long been of the opinion, a calorie is only worth the nutrition it provides, not just how it "burns". A calorie is a unit of heat.

Please, thedaydreame, live well on all the nuts you can, to keep your protein up. Down side the protein is higher calorie than conventional methods.

jules92761

My endocrinologist also recommended a higher protein lower carb diet. Not drastic like the 20 net carbs of Atkins, but more lean meat, fruits and veggies limit the pasta and rice, etc. I did South Beach a couple of years ago and I felt much better - more energy, no mid afternoon slumps, and actually had enough energy to push myself to exercise most everyday. It's hard for me to stick with though because I'd much rather eat a bowl of cereal than a piece of meat.
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lindsey1979

To follow up on the Fuzzipeg protein issue, the other benefits of protein are that they take more energy to digest/process. So although 1 gram of protein is 4 cals, it has a net effective of essentially 3.2-3.4 cals. So when you eat more of your cals from protein, you will be increasing your caloric burn.

Secondly, there are quite a few studies out there showing that a certain amount of protein best helps your maintain your lean body mass (LBM -- muscle) when in a caloric deficit. So essentially when you're cutting calories to lose weight, if you get a sufficient amount of protein, more of that weight you lose will be be body fat rather than muscle. Now, what amount that is varies, but the one I personally opt for is 1 g per 1 lb LBM (or an easy rule of thumb is 0.7 g per lb bodyweight).