Q about daily calorie limit

TylerNS47
TylerNS47 Posts: 20 Member
in Getting Started
I have a question about the daily calorie limit....will it adjust itself if I am not losing weight?

For example, if I do everything correct, but I misjudge my level of activity. Is it smart enough to say "you haven't been losing your 1 lb per week, but you are excellent at staying below your daily calorie limit, so let's lower your daily limit.”

Replies

  • starryphoenix
    starryphoenix Posts: 381 Member
    I've never heard of or seen it doing that. Usually it adjusts your calories when you are loosing weight. At least that is what it did for me. I got a little more calories as I have progressed. I'm pretty active though.
  • chel325
    chel325 Posts: 199 Member
    No you have to change it manually.
  • malibu927
    malibu927 Posts: 17,562 Member
    No, it doesn't change automatically. Besides, too high of an activity level is just one variable that could decrease weight loss, along with inaccurate logging of food/exercise, water retention, medical issues, and so on.
  • TylerNS47
    TylerNS47 Posts: 20 Member
    Another place I have concerns are estimated calories burned while exercising. The tracker tells me that I am burning 300cal on a light effort stationary bike for 20 minutes. I am morbidly obese so maybe it is accurate, but if it isn't accurate, then this is generating àn error to my daily calorie limit.

    Does the limit factor in my real weight loss results or does it stay true to it's scientifically proven formulas?

    Personally, I'm here for results so results should matter. I hope that it is possible for the daily limit to start theoretical then fine tune based on goals and results. I hope I'm making sense. please correct me if I'm out to lunch.
  • TylerNS47
    TylerNS47 Posts: 20 Member
    Wow. Thanks for all the replies while I was typing my second post.
  • starryphoenix
    starryphoenix Posts: 381 Member

    TylerNS47 wrote: »
    Another place I have concerns are estimated calories burned while exercising. The tracker tells me that I am burning 300cal on a light effort stationary bike for 20 minutes. I am morbidly obese so maybe it is accurate, but if it isn't accurate, then this is generating àn error to my daily calorie limit.

    Does the limit factor in my real weight loss results or does it stay true to it's scientifically proven formulas?

    Personally, I'm here for results so results should matter. I hope that it is possible for the daily limit to start theoretical then fine tune based on goals and results. I hope I'm making sense. please correct me if I'm out to lunch.

    Basically the more you lose the lower the exercise calories are. I don't manually log anymore, but when I did I always took off 50 calories just to be safe.
  • vmekash
    vmekash Posts: 422 Member
    I can tell you that MFP factors in your current weight when giving you calories burned. I know that as I lost weight, I had to work harder (or longer) to burn calories. When you're overweight, it takes much more effort (burns more energy/calories) to do the same activity when you're at your ideal weight.
    BTW, I don't think it is possible for any program to be 100% accurate, but MFP is excellent for weight loss if you simply trust its numbers. Just don't be in a hurry. And deadlines are frustrating. I have a friend who was upset that she only lost a couple of pounds in a week -- thanks to shows like Biggest Loser. Using MFP, I sometimes lost up to three pounds in a week, and sometimes only a pound in a week. MOST of the time, I lost exactly .6 lbs. It all adds up. And slow tends to last longer or even become permanent.

    Hope this helps. Good luck!
  • DanSTL82
    DanSTL82 Posts: 156 Member
    As far as I know, MFP doesn't recalculate anything. It wouldn't be smart for them to program it that way, since most people probably aren't 100% accurate with their logging of food, exercise, and/or weight, so calculations would be based off erroneous data entry. It's much safer to just stick with what the person entered in the first place, and wait for them to re-enter new stats later before giving a new figure.

    Regarding your other question: If you're planing on "eating back" your calories you burned off from exercise, most people only "eat back" 50-75% of them, just in case the machine or app was inaccurate in telling you how much you burned. There's no way for it to be exact without you being hooked up to wires in a lab, so it's better to err on the side of caution and not eat back 100% of the calories you supposedly burned doing a workout.

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