Please help..overwhelmed

Jack_NYC

ElizabethOakes2 wrote: »

I found once I started logging, it was a lot easier for me to see where my wasted calories were coming from and cut them out. Did I really need a half a cup of peanut butter in my oatmeal, etc. I treated it almost like a video game (still do, actually). What happens to my numbers if eat a an apple for an afternoon snack instead of a cookie? What happens if I eat half a cup of rice and an extra serving of salmon for dinner?

You can do this!

I'm new so I don't have expertise yet, but have found logging to be a huge help. I realize now that the problem was not what kind of foods I was eating--healthy foods, no junk--but I was waaayyy overdoing the portion sizes.

Anyway welcome to MFP. It's a great tool and a very supportive community.

not2late

Don't overthink it. If you have entered your details into MFP and it gives you a number to aim for a day, just aim for that number. If you are 100 cals over or under a day it's no big deal. You don't need to weigh yourself everyday either. Just budget your eating to the MFP set target and you will lose weight.

sndrd49

amusedmonkey wrote: »

cbeck01 wrote: »

vivmom2014 wrote: »

cbeck01 wrote: »

You will lose weight without having to count calories. I have a calorie "goal" that shows up in MFP because of my goal weight, but I just don't pay attention to it.

This isn't good advice. Weight loss happens for one reason and one reason only: a calorie deficit.

While going super low carb may click with some people, it is not necessary for weight loss.

And your body doesn't need to "detox" from carbs.

Wow. Well glad to know that my success and the success of SO many people I know is so anecdotal for you. You keep on believing that and I will keep on keeping on. I only know that I average around 1600-1800 calories per day and have lost 42 pounds since July by following this "bad" advice. MFP tells me my calories should be at 1200 so obviously a "calorie deficit" isn't what is helping. A little research on a ketogenic diet will show you that it is used by doctors to control epilepsy and is being used to help with early onset Alzheimer's. It isn't some "fad" that just popped up.

Understand that you are not being attacked. Your diet is not being attacked. You have done so well on it, so obviously it's really working for you and that's a good thing. You have done well for yourself and worked hard to achieve your goals, so congratulations. 1600-1800 is still a calorie deficit. The 1200 MFP gives you is based on the goal you chose, so if you pick a less aggressive goal you would get a higher calorie allowance, plus additional calories for exercise.

What is being said that although this is a valid option that works beautifully for some people, it's not necessary for weight loss. For a beginner, the idea of giving up a wide array of foods may feel overwhelming, and the idea of being able to eat whatever you want as long as you successfully manage your calories could be liberating. When I first tried a ketogenic diet I did horribly on it. I felt deprived and miserable. Had I not turned to calorie counting I'm not sure where I would be today.

If later down the line, after gaining some confidence in her ability to stick to a diet, she decides to experiment with other dieting approaches and fine-tune her weight loss strategies, why not?

Well said. It seems like "Ketos" do get attacked a lot around here so I understand her defensiveness. I didn't read your post as an attack in any way though. Keto works for a lot of people, it wasn't good for me. We are individuals and we each have to find our own way. It makes me happy when we can share info, especially with newcomers, without the arguments and the "my way is the only way". There are a lot of ways to get there but calorie deficit is the basic premise.

OhMsDiva

amusedmonkey wrote: »

If I were you I would keep it simple. No hard rules. Just eat reasonable portions for a few days while logging as accurately as you can. Make sure you aren't too hungry or feeling like you are restricting too much. See what your calories end up at and judge your comfort level. It's not set in stone. Just pick a number based on your experience during these days and it will be a good comfortable number for you to follow as long as it's higher than 1200 and lower than 1800 or 1900.

My personal sweet spot is around 1450-1600, a level where I can comfortably eat but still lose weight. Keep in mind, the higher the calories the lower the loss, but it's your comfort level that matters. Even if you end up only losing 0.5 a pound a week you would still be at a much better place than attempting something too low and stressful with quicker loss then quit prematurely out of frustration and deprivation.

Great advice. I never thought of that. I am doing something similar to see what amount of food I can eat to lose the weight I want to lose without starving myself. That is a great way of putting it like you did.

kimny72

whitty34 wrote: »

hey everyone first of all thank you for taking a look at my post. I am wanting to make a lifestyle change to lose some much-needed weight however I am feeling so overwhelmed I can't comprehend on where to get started. I currently weigh 205 and my goal is to drop to at least 150. My fitness pal says I should eat 1200 cal a day but someone mentioned to me that maybe I should be eating 1900 c per day. I'm nervous I'll make a mistake. Is there anyone that would be willing to take me under their wing for the first week or so while I get started?

Thank you

Whitney

Hi Whitney!

• Start with your goal as 1 lb per week. This will make for an easier transition.
• Remember that MFP expects you to log your exercise and eat back the calories! I would suggest eating back half of them, as MFP can overestimate them.
• You don't have to eat anything specific, or avoid eating anything specific. That is all personal preference, which you will learn as you go. Lots of people are going to tell you what the magic diet is to lose weight, but there really is no "one right way" to eat. The people in this forum are proof of that!
• Start out just eating what you normally would and logging it for a few days. This will help you see where all your calories are going, and where you can tweak to get the most bang for your buck.
• This is not a race, and not a pass/fail test. If you eat more than you should have one day - no big deal - it happens to everyone. Just do better tomorrow.
• If you don't have one, get a food scale, and use it as often as possible. It's especially important in the beginning when your idea of a serving might not be accurate.

Good luck :drinker:

JayDam1

Springfield1970 wrote: »

To aim for a weight loss of 5lbs a week one would need a 17500 calorie deficit! Seeing as most people eat about 2000 a day you can see this wouldn't be a great idea. That's a 7 day fast with 3500 calories of exercise. About 7 hours of running.

I think you meant that people should aim for a 1-2lb loss a week, and if they are quite overweight they will see a water, food in system and glycogen weight drop which will taper off after a week or two

That's quite a different thing.

@Springfield1970 - That's why I say weight loss, not fat loss. The average heavy person can initially see 5 lbs a week of weight loss for the first several weeks. 1-3 lbs of that is fat loss each week.

RoxieDawn

I just jumped back on, and I ran OP's stats. 28 years old female, 5'5" at 205.

BMR = 1801 (approx.), TDEE = 2162 (this is for sedentary/desk job), To Loose 4.2 pounds a month the calories came to 1621 calories a day.. which is a deficit of 25%, at 20% the calories are 1729.

OP can you elaborate by your last post to me regarding the struggling to eat the 1200 calories due to metabolic issues?

MFP may have given you 1200 to loose 2 pounds a week. So this would be inline with your goal.

However you do not have to loose it too aggressively if you do not want to, and if you are struggling with metabolic issues, then this may warrant a check up at the doctors office... Maybe a thyroid, insulin resistant, etc..or something else may be going on.

Walking, getting a bit more active, somehow will help rev up your metabolism and also learning to eat the caloric needs you need everyday to meet your daily nutrition, Metabolic syndrome or issues in general are things that must be addressed by a physician and looked for an underlying cause.

One more question, how do you know you are not meeting the 1200 calories per day? Have you been calculating caloric intake using an other method?

Can you come back and give some back story on this so I can further look at it..