Figuring out your maintenance calories

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mpat81
mpat81 Posts: 351 Member
in Goal: Maintaining Weight
I've gone from 210 down to within 1 lb of my goal weight of 152 in 8 months. I think I want to adjust my goal to lose maybe 5 more lbs at a slower weight but I'm not sure how I should adjust my calories to an almost maintenance level. If there's anyone out there with tips on how to increase my intake a little without derailing progress I'd love to hear from you!

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  • mpat81
    mpat81 Posts: 351 Member
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    Mfp has been set at 1lb a week with a calorie goal of 1360. I usually wind up between 50 and 100 calories below my goal and have been able to lose more than 1 lb most weeks.
  • arditarose
    arditarose Posts: 15,575 Member
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    vinegar_husbands wrote: »
    mpat81 wrote: »
    Mfp has been set at 1lb a week with a calorie goal of 1360. I usually wind up between 50 and 100 calories below my goal and have been able to lose more than 1 lb most weeks.

    Switch to 0.5lb/week and go from there.

    It's really as simple as that.
  • melonym27
    melonym27 Posts: 3 Member
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    Wow I may have to adjust my goal. But then I would like I'm starving to death.
  • mpat81
    mpat81 Posts: 351 Member
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    melonym27 wrote: »
    Wow I may have to adjust my goal. But then I would like I'm starving to death.

    I somehow manage to eat a pretty good amount of food and stay under budget, add me and take a look at my diary. I'm kinda thinking I might actually have a little trouble increasing my intake at first.
  • arditarose
    arditarose Posts: 15,575 Member
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    melonym27 wrote: »
    Wow I may have to adjust my goal. But then I would like I'm starving to death.

    You shouldn't base your calories off of what other people are eating. We all have different stats, therefore require a different caloric intake.
  • mpat81
    mpat81 Posts: 351 Member
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    [/quote]Switch to 0.5lb/week and go from there.[/quote]

    I will definitely do this. Thank you! I know I'll need to eat a bit more just not sure if I should add in more snacks or increase portions at mealtimes, maybe eat more calorie dense foods. I'd like to still manage my macros well.
  • arditarose
    arditarose Posts: 15,575 Member
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    mpat81 wrote: »
    Switch to 0.5lb/week and go from there.[/quote]

    I will definitely do this. Thank you! I know I'll need to eat a bit more just not sure if I should add in more snacks or increase portions at mealtimes, maybe eat more calorie dense foods. I'd like to still manage my macros well.
    [/quote]

    It's only 250 calories more per day. Add an ounce of meat to your dinner, a little more dessert, extra toppings in your salad. It's really easy.
  • mpat81
    mpat81 Posts: 351 Member
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    arditarose wrote: »
    melonym27 wrote: »
    Wow I may have to adjust my goal. But then I would like I'm starving to death.

    You shouldn't base your calories off of what other people are eating. We all have different stats, therefore require a different caloric intake.

    Good point!
  • mpat81
    mpat81 Posts: 351 Member
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    [quote

    It's only 250 calories more per day. Add an ounce of meat to your dinner, a little more dessert, extra toppings in your salad. It's really easy. [/quote]

    Thanks for the advice! I'm gonna go change my goal now and see what I'd like to have for a snack :)
  • allyphoe
    allyphoe Posts: 618 Member
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    You have about an 800 calorie per day deficit, based on your actual weight loss. Note that the deficit is based on your actual intake, not your goal intake. So maintenance for you is close to 800 + average daily intake, not 800+1360.
  • mpat81
    mpat81 Posts: 351 Member
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    allyphoe wrote: »
    You have about an 800 calorie per day deficit, based on your actual weight loss. Note that the deficit is based on your actual intake, not your goal intake. So maintenance for you is close to 800 + average daily intake, not 800+1360.

    Awesome! Thank you! I am not a star in the math dept and could not seem to come up with the numbers. I think maybe I should change my activity level in the settings too, I am probably more active than I've given myself credit for.
  • segacs
    segacs Posts: 4,599 Member
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    An 800-calorie daily deficit is really aggressive, considering you're down to your last 5 pounds or so. I agree with everyone else; drop that weight loss goal to 0.5lbs/week and make sure your activity setting is as close as possible to accurate, too. If you exercise, eat back some of those exercise calories too. You're aiming for about a 250-calorie deficit at this point.

    Remember that with such a small deficit, the margin for error becomes small, too. Tighten up on the accuracy of your logging and measuring, if you haven't already.
  • Yi5hedr3
    Yi5hedr3 Posts: 2,696 Member
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    vinegar_husbands wrote: »
    mpat81 wrote: »
    Mfp has been set at 1lb a week with a calorie goal of 1360. I usually wind up between 50 and 100 calories below my goal and have been able to lose more than 1 lb most weeks.

    Switch to 0.5lb/week and go from there.

    Best answer!

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