New to this concept and feeling a little nervous.

cls67

I have been unsuccessfully trying to lose weight for the last couple years. I have tried all the methods that have worked in the past but they no longer seem to work. I have been eating around 1200-1300 calories/day. I have tried eating the extra calories that I "earn" through exercise and I have also tried not using them. Nothing seems to be working. During a conversation with a friend she was telling me that her dietitian put her on an 1800 calories a day plan. I have to say, over the last several months she has been losing and looks great. So, although I am nervous and scared to gain weight I decided 2 days ago that I would try it and up my calorie intake to 1800.

Then I happen upon this group, do the calculations and what not that it says to do and it says my BMR is 1546 and TDEE is 2396! I'm scared to eat 1800, cant imagine upping it to 2300!

female
48
5' 4"
163 lbs
exercise 4-5 days a week / 45 minutes to an hour each workout / combination of cardio & weights (ex. Jillian Micheals body shred), ab routines and a Jessica Smith workout.

From what I have been reading on here, people have been successful so I am really hoping I can follow in their footsteps :-)

puraze

It can be a very scary thought; we're so used to the idea that less calories is the way to go. There are so many helpful people in this group, you should take the plunge and see for yourself, worse case is you set yourself back a few weeks, but I think you'll be surprised:)

This method has done wonders for me and best part is it's so sustainable!

bonniejo

I have a diary that I've been keeping of my journey a few posts down if you want to look. What's important to keep in mind is that you will not lose weight by eating more. What you will do is restore your metabolism, so that you can lose weight in the future. I know that can be scary, but right now you've been spinning your wheels, going noplace. This is a long road but it will get you where you're going in the long run!

cls67

Thank you for the words of encouragement. I figured I might as well try it. I have been doing it the other way for a very long time and not seeing any results so whats a few weeks of trying something different. Looking forward to the journey :-)

skinny4me2be

I'm four weeks into this and by no means any expert, but it is scary. I upped my calories from 1800 to 2150 and now just recently upped again to 2250, the weight is starting to come off...seeing differences in my skin and all. Still in the testing out stages, but I feel good!!

bonniejo

skinny4me2be wrote: »

I'm four weeks into this and by no means any expert, but it is scary. I upped my calories from 1800 to 2150 and now just recently upped again to 2250, the weight is starting to come off...seeing differences in my skin and all. Still in the testing out stages, but I feel good!!

Wow, you're actually losing weight! That's so cool What's your estimated TDEE?

skinny4me2be

@Bonniejo-I am losing (for now anyhow)!! Shockingly...its a small amount. I've lost 2.5 lbs in almost 5 weeks...about .5 pound per week. I took the recommendations from a very knowledgeable person on this site!! Its going super slow but at least its moving in the right direction. I can no longer lose 5lbs per week like I did in my 20's! Trusting this process is the biggest mental game for me, as I'm a daily weigher ...its tough, but also rewarding! I know I shouldn't be on the scale every day but its habit (since I was 14!).

I got my fitbit charge HR about a month ago and my estimated TDEE from that is 2730--so I should be eating closer to 2300. Struggling with trusting my fitbit and eating that much more. I will probably up a bit more here soon. Good Luck to you and your journey!

CarrieBeard

cls67 - I am in the same boat... and still concerned about taking the plunge... I work sooo hard to keep from gaining any more weight. My Dr's say the extra pounds MUST come off.. my blood pressure and blood sugar are going up as the pounds do! But... honestly the "eat less, move more" isn't working...I've been at 1200 or less calories for a loooong time with very little loss and lots of disappointments.

retirehappy

skinny4me2be wrote: »

I'm four weeks into this and by no means any expert, but it is scary. I upped my calories from 1800 to 2150 and now just recently upped again to 2250, the weight is starting to come off...seeing differences in my skin and all. Still in the testing out stages, but I feel good!!

IN for the awesomeness. This is so encouraging.

skinny4me2be

@CLS67 & CarrieBeard: I'm at weight watcher flunky (7 times) based on the eat less move more motto. I found out by weight watchers I was eating very little calories for what I needed, and when I hit a plateau and wasn't losing they couldn't help me figure out my activity as that's not what they are trained in.

When I first started this I did gain a bit of weight at first, but from I've been told its my body adjusting (water weight/glycogen stores) to keep calm and let my body figure itself out. I was told to stick to it for 4 weeks and then re-evaluate. If you aren't losing at 1200 calories what else do you have to lose by giving this a shot?

Just keep in mind when you do the scooby calculator to figure out your intake--the activity is your work outs PLUS what you do throughout the day (vacuum, dishes, dog for a walk, run kids to activities, laundry, work, etc.).

As stated before I'm no expert on this forum, just someone who is in the testing stages myself and trying it out thanks to some really great people providing me the encouragement. Friend me if you want for support!

cls67

It seems we all have experienced something similar for sure. Listening to a few sites saying to eat 12 - 1300, doing WW and same idea, they couldn't tell me why I wasn't losing when I was doing what I was supposed to.

Since none of that worked, and so many people on here seem to be having success. I figure whats a few weeks of trying something different.

I usually don't post alot and tend to keep to myself but I am really looking forward to the support of this group. Everyone seems to have your best interest at heart.

Im sure I am going to have questions along the way - heck, I already do! like should I really be upping my calorie consumption to ~2300 instead of the 1800? I just decided to go from 1200 to 1800 this week just based on what a friend was doing. I hadn't done any calculations.

cls67

bonniejo wrote: »

I have a diary that I've been keeping of my journey a few posts down if you want to look. What's important to keep in mind is that you will not lose weight by eating more. What you will do is restore your metabolism, so that you can lose weight in the future. I know that can be scary, but right now you've been spinning your wheels, going noplace. This is a long road but it will get you where you're going in the long run!

Bonniejo I have been reading about your journey. Thanks for sharing :-)

heybales

You'll need to give it more than a few weeks.

Your BMR literally changes through the month, so at least 4 weeks to even notice a change in diet.

And this direction trying to get a healthy body back willing to work with you - may take longer.

But consider the people that have plateaued for 6-12 months with no success changing things always down at the extreme diet side of the range.

Why waste that much time just having an unhealthy body and attitude about food and stressed - spend some of it getting right again with those things, then lose it.
In the end, you'll usually be ahead anyway.
And if not at goal weight, months in to maintenance you will be, compared to easily gaining it back or fighting hard to keep it off.

If on WW for a long time and eating down at 1200 for awhile - suggest you increase 100 daily for a week at a time.
Because if no weight change eating a literal 1200 gross calories - that is your suppressed TDEE right now.
Eating 1800 is therefore eating 600 in surplus, and if body doesn't speed up fast - that's 1 lb fat gain per week.
That doesn't help things.