Come on, mfp. 1200?
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Just wanted to comment a little on the main subject.
Metabolism can vary dramatically from person to person. It's a good idea to set your own goal based on your actual experience once you have been tracking and dieting awhile. The calculators are just a place to start.
In my own experience, I need about 1500 calories to maintain and to lose my calories need to stay below 1300. That's below what the calculators would suggest but I've done this long enough that I know what works.
OP, just focus on something sustainable while you figure out what goal will work for you.2 -
Just wanted to comment a little on the main subject.
Metabolism can vary dramatically from person to person. It's a good idea to set your own goal based on your actual experience once you have been tracking and dieting awhile. The calculators are just a place to start.
In my own experience, I need about 1500 calories to maintain and to lose my calories need to stay below 1300. That's below what the calculators would suggest but I've done this long enough that I know what works.
OP, just focus on something sustainable while you figure out what goal will work for you.
It can vary dramatically, but one of the veteran posters around here who knows his stuff has posted in several threads like this that studies show that over 90% people only have a variance within a range of +/-300. That's really not too much, honestly.0 -
Hmm... If you mean +/- 300 calories a day that seems like a big variance. For setting a weight loss goal, it would be best to know within ~100 calories what your actual burn rate is.Just wanted to comment a little on the main subject.
Metabolism can vary dramatically from person to person. It's a good idea to set your own goal based on your actual experience once you have been tracking and dieting awhile. The calculators are just a place to start.
In my own experience, I need about 1500 calories to maintain and to lose my calories need to stay below 1300. That's below what the calculators would suggest but I've done this long enough that I know what works.
OP, just focus on something sustainable while you figure out what goal will work for you.
It can vary dramatically, but one of the veteran posters around here who knows his stuff has posted in several threads like this that studies show that over 90% people only have a variance within a range of +/-300. That's really not too much, honestly.
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MFP gave you a calorie deficit BEFORE any exercise was entered into the calculation. So ideally, you eat the number MFP assigned - your 1200 (or whatever) + all your exercise calories & you get the weekly weight loss you signed up for.
HOWEVER: calorie burns, activity level, the food you log, etc. are all estimations.
So it's best to eat a % back. Say 50%. Then gauge that against actual weight loss expectations (for a few weeks). Increase that % if you are losing faster that expected. Decrease if you are losing slower than expected.
But keep in mind, if your goal is 1200 - it's a default minimum. It's not a guarantee of your weekly goal. It's just as low as MFP will go. Perhaps a 1,000 daily calorie deficit is actually less than 1200 calories. MFP bottoms out here to make sure you at least meet nutritional minimums.0 -
WinoGelato wrote: »We have a full lot and I do park in the back. I work 12-16 hour shifts from dark to dark.. and I have a 3 year old so I can't exactly go anywhere after 10pm. My off days are the only days I am able to get anywhere near 10k steps per day and that's because I make myself do at least an hour of cardio or 4 miles a day when I can. On a good day I can do 3 or so hours of cardio at the gym. Work schedule doesn't really allow for that.
In a 12-16 hour shift do you get breaks and a lunch period? I have a desk job and small children, but I get about 12-15K steps/day. I get up in the morning and walk for an hour before work or on days I do weights I try to walk for about 20 minutes before I start my weights. I park in the back of the lot AND walk an entire lap around the building before I go in. I take a 15 minute break in the morning and one in the afternoon and go outside if weather permits and try to walk a lap around our campus (about 1000 steps) and at lunch I can usually squeeze in two laps. When I leave in the evening I walk out the door and walk all the way around before going to my car. I also don't sit down in the evening (other than eating) until the kids are in bed. A lot of times I will even pace while I am reading to them at bedtime. I do the same on weekends, I try not to sit down!
All those little changes mean I have worked my way up to a much higher activity level than normal for my petite frame, so I maintain on 2200 cals/day at 5'2.
4 short bathroom breaks per day. I drive over an hour to and from work. I do not have other breaks at work and it is dark when I leave and dark when I come home. I only sit when I am going to sleep for my 4 hours lol. I don't think I could manage to wake up an hour earlier and get 3 hours of sleep just to walk in the dark with my 3 year old
@LisaKay91 I just wanted to say I am in awe of you
You work long hours, get hardly any sleep plus look after a 3 year old. I don't know how you do it, but i think you're awesome 
I would definitely choose sleep over exercise if i was in your position. 2 -
WinoGelato wrote: »We have a full lot and I do park in the back. I work 12-16 hour shifts from dark to dark.. and I have a 3 year old so I can't exactly go anywhere after 10pm. My off days are the only days I am able to get anywhere near 10k steps per day and that's because I make myself do at least an hour of cardio or 4 miles a day when I can. On a good day I can do 3 or so hours of cardio at the gym. Work schedule doesn't really allow for that.
In a 12-16 hour shift do you get breaks and a lunch period? I have a desk job and small children, but I get about 12-15K steps/day. I get up in the morning and walk for an hour before work or on days I do weights I try to walk for about 20 minutes before I start my weights. I park in the back of the lot AND walk an entire lap around the building before I go in. I take a 15 minute break in the morning and one in the afternoon and go outside if weather permits and try to walk a lap around our campus (about 1000 steps) and at lunch I can usually squeeze in two laps. When I leave in the evening I walk out the door and walk all the way around before going to my car. I also don't sit down in the evening (other than eating) until the kids are in bed. A lot of times I will even pace while I am reading to them at bedtime. I do the same on weekends, I try not to sit down!
All those little changes mean I have worked my way up to a much higher activity level than normal for my petite frame, so I maintain on 2200 cals/day at 5'2.
4 short bathroom breaks per day. I drive over an hour to and from work. I do not have other breaks at work and it is dark when I leave and dark when I come home. I only sit when I am going to sleep for my 4 hours lol. I don't think I could manage to wake up an hour earlier and get 3 hours of sleep just to walk in the dark with my 3 year old
I once had a long commute wrapped around a long work day. I only lasted two months. It was too stressful and I decided my quality of life was worth more than the job. If I had liked the job more and living space less, I would have moved closer to the job. From then on I only considered for jobs closer to home. My next job was 30 minutes away, then 20, then 15, and now I work from home
I could get paid more if I were willing to commute into Boston or Providence, but the improvement in my quality of life outweighs that. Fortunately, Uncle Sam paid for my college so I have no student loans, and I am debt-free.2 -
I just wanted to say I am in awe of you You work long hours, get hardly any sleep plus look after a 3 year old. I don't know how you do it, but i think you're awesome I would definitely choose sleep over exercise if i was in your position.
You're sweet as sugar! Single mom life is really really really hard but there are no other options. I love sleep... and before I started this journey my little and I would sleep in until noon on my off days LOL. Instead we wake up at 9am and go to the gym for 2 hours.. then go back at 5pm for a class and then we go swimming or play basketball. I am pooped 24/7 lol2 -
I once had a long commute wrapped around a long work day. I only lasted two months. It was too stressful and I decided my quality of life was worth more than the job. If I had liked the job more and living space less, I would have moved closer to the job. From then on I only considered for jobs closer to home. My next job was 30 minutes away, then 20, then 15, and now I work from home
Oh gosh 60 minutes is the LEAST amount of time I have driven to work in the past 5 years lol. Even as a teenager my work was minimum 30-45 minutes away for minimum wage... that bad part of living in the country!!
I could move close to my work buttttt there's a lot of crime, rent is just as high and the safety/schools/etc are bad.0 -
Hmm... If you mean +/- 300 calories a day that seems like a big variance. For setting a weight loss goal, it would be best to know within ~100 calories what your actual burn rate is.Just wanted to comment a little on the main subject.
Metabolism can vary dramatically from person to person. It's a good idea to set your own goal based on your actual experience once you have been tracking and dieting awhile. The calculators are just a place to start.
In my own experience, I need about 1500 calories to maintain and to lose my calories need to stay below 1300. That's below what the calculators would suggest but I've done this long enough that I know what works.
OP, just focus on something sustainable while you figure out what goal will work for you.
It can vary dramatically, but one of the veteran posters around here who knows his stuff has posted in several threads like this that studies show that over 90% people only have a variance within a range of +/-300. That's really not too much, honestly.
not really as that variance is based on people being exceptionally short or tall etc.
You take people of the same age, height, weight and their BMR will most likely be almost the same unless there is a medical condition...so if it does vary it's due to age, height and weight typically not anything magical or special.
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Aww...now I feel like a freak of nature for having a low metabolism relative to other people. I don't think I have a medical condition but my mother seems to have it too so it may be genetic.
Hmm... If you mean +/- 300 calories a day that seems like a big variance. For setting a weight loss goal, it would be best to know within ~100 calories what your actual burn rate is.Just wanted to comment a little on the main subject.
Metabolism can vary dramatically from person to person. It's a good idea to set your own goal based on your actual experience once you have been tracking and dieting awhile. The calculators are just a place to start.
In my own experience, I need about 1500 calories to maintain and to lose my calories need to stay below 1300. That's below what the calculators would suggest but I've done this long enough that I know what works.
OP, just focus on something sustainable while you figure out what goal will work for you.
It can vary dramatically, but one of the veteran posters around here who knows his stuff has posted in several threads like this that studies show that over 90% people only have a variance within a range of +/-300. That's really not too much, honestly.
not really as that variance is based on people being exceptionally short or tall etc.
You take people of the same age, height, weight and their BMR will most likely be almost the same unless there is a medical condition...so if it does vary it's due to age, height and weight typically not anything magical or special.
I'm dreading what it is going to be like after menopause...
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Aww...now I feel like a freak of nature for having a low metabolism relative to other people. I don't think I have a medical condition but my mother seems to have it too so it may be genetic.
Hmm... If you mean +/- 300 calories a day that seems like a big variance. For setting a weight loss goal, it would be best to know within ~100 calories what your actual burn rate is.Just wanted to comment a little on the main subject.
Metabolism can vary dramatically from person to person. It's a good idea to set your own goal based on your actual experience once you have been tracking and dieting awhile. The calculators are just a place to start.
In my own experience, I need about 1500 calories to maintain and to lose my calories need to stay below 1300. That's below what the calculators would suggest but I've done this long enough that I know what works.
OP, just focus on something sustainable while you figure out what goal will work for you.
It can vary dramatically, but one of the veteran posters around here who knows his stuff has posted in several threads like this that studies show that over 90% people only have a variance within a range of +/-300. That's really not too much, honestly.
not really as that variance is based on people being exceptionally short or tall etc.
You take people of the same age, height, weight and their BMR will most likely be almost the same unless there is a medical condition...so if it does vary it's due to age, height and weight typically not anything magical or special.
I'm dreading what it is going to be like after menopause...
Have you had your metabolism tested? Also, do you weigh your food on a food scale?0 -
My TDEE is 1,494. I have an office job and am 5'3" and weigh about 130 (started at 155). So if I want to continue to get to my goal (125) I really have to eat at 1,200. Small but not old, work out 4 times a week. And you can eat and not get hungry on 1200 as well. It is just about making the right choices.0
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No- I just know because I've been tracking my calories so long. It's not really a problem- I've adjusted my intake and have maintained my target weight for almost a year now. It may have something to do with being part native american.
Aww...now I feel like a freak of nature for having a low metabolism relative to other people. I don't think I have a medical condition but my mother seems to have it too so it may be genetic.
Hmm... If you mean +/- 300 calories a day that seems like a big variance. For setting a weight loss goal, it would be best to know within ~100 calories what your actual burn rate is.Just wanted to comment a little on the main subject.
Metabolism can vary dramatically from person to person. It's a good idea to set your own goal based on your actual experience once you have been tracking and dieting awhile. The calculators are just a place to start.
In my own experience, I need about 1500 calories to maintain and to lose my calories need to stay below 1300. That's below what the calculators would suggest but I've done this long enough that I know what works.
OP, just focus on something sustainable while you figure out what goal will work for you.
It can vary dramatically, but one of the veteran posters around here who knows his stuff has posted in several threads like this that studies show that over 90% people only have a variance within a range of +/-300. That's really not too much, honestly.
not really as that variance is based on people being exceptionally short or tall etc.
You take people of the same age, height, weight and their BMR will most likely be almost the same unless there is a medical condition...so if it does vary it's due to age, height and weight typically not anything magical or special.
I'm dreading what it is going to be like after menopause...
Have you had your metabolism tested? Also, do you weigh your food on a food scale?
As far as weighing food- I did when I started counting calories a couple years ago. Now, I feel I can eyeball things pretty well.0 -
Christopher1912 wrote: »I started using The Biggest Loser cookbook and it had the equation on taking your weight, if between 150 and 300 pounds and multiplying it by 7, that would be your daily caloric intake. Based on your weight the formula would be at 1330 calories a day.....although i took what they recommended for me and took 150 off of it. That being said, I have been losing weight by eating when im hungry, not eating when im not, or if i do something very very small. My weight loss of 22 pounds in 7 weeks isnt very fast, but im hoping that its more of a lifestyle change i can maintain and not just another fad diet. Stick with it
I would be absolutely starving at 1050 calories!! I'm 5'6" 158 lbs and I eat between 1800-2000 depending on the day and I'm losing just fine.
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DeanneScott2 wrote: »My TDEE is 1,494. I have an office job and am 5'3" and weigh about 130 (started at 155). So if I want to continue to get to my goal (125) I really have to eat at 1,200. Small but not old, work out 4 times a week. And you can eat and not get hungry on 1200 as well. It is just about making the right choices.
This makes me go huh? Sister is same height as you and weighs 119...and older than me and her TDEE is almost 2k...office worker, works out 60min 5x a week...and this is per her apple watch....and she eats tonnes of food...just to not lose weight.0 -
Aww...now I feel like a freak of nature for having a low metabolism relative to other people. I don't think I have a medical condition but my mother seems to have it too so it may be genetic.
Hmm... If you mean +/- 300 calories a day that seems like a big variance. For setting a weight loss goal, it would be best to know within ~100 calories what your actual burn rate is.Just wanted to comment a little on the main subject.
Metabolism can vary dramatically from person to person. It's a good idea to set your own goal based on your actual experience once you have been tracking and dieting awhile. The calculators are just a place to start.
In my own experience, I need about 1500 calories to maintain and to lose my calories need to stay below 1300. That's below what the calculators would suggest but I've done this long enough that I know what works.
OP, just focus on something sustainable while you figure out what goal will work for you.
It can vary dramatically, but one of the veteran posters around here who knows his stuff has posted in several threads like this that studies show that over 90% people only have a variance within a range of +/-300. That's really not too much, honestly.
not really as that variance is based on people being exceptionally short or tall etc.
You take people of the same age, height, weight and their BMR will most likely be almost the same unless there is a medical condition...so if it does vary it's due to age, height and weight typically not anything magical or special.
I'm dreading what it is going to be like after menopause...
depending on your height and weight muscle mass etc that all comes into play as well...
saying you have a slow metabolism based on tracking without a food scale really is eh...esp because you are native?
http://ajcn.nutrition.org/content/69/4/747S.full
This study indicates that natives like the rest of us are just eating more and moving less...3 -
DeanneScott2 wrote: »My TDEE is 1,494. I have an office job and am 5'3" and weigh about 130 (started at 155). So if I want to continue to get to my goal (125) I really have to eat at 1,200. Small but not old, work out 4 times a week. And you can eat and not get hungry on 1200 as well. It is just about making the right choices.
I don't know if that TDEE calculation is correct, where did you get it from? I'm 5'2 and 120, and while I'm pretty active, I wasn't always. When I started and wasn't really exercising at all I calculated my TDEE to be around 1800. MFP estimates my sedentary, non exercise maintenance calories to be around 1650.1 -
WinoGelato wrote: »DeanneScott2 wrote: »My TDEE is 1,494. I have an office job and am 5'3" and weigh about 130 (started at 155). So if I want to continue to get to my goal (125) I really have to eat at 1,200. Small but not old, work out 4 times a week. And you can eat and not get hungry on 1200 as well. It is just about making the right choices.
I don't know if that TDEE calculation is correct, where did you get it from? I'm 5'2 and 120, and while I'm pretty active, I wasn't always. When I started and wasn't really exercising at all I calculated my TDEE to be around 1800. MFP estimates my sedentary, non exercise maintenance calories to be around 1650.
^^ I agree, sounds more like your NEAT (i.e your BMR + the energy used from normal daily moving around)? I'm similar height and weight (I'm 47yrs) and my TDEE is between 2100-2400 depending on how active my day is.1 -
As my weight has gone down, MFP has lowered my calorie allowance. Now, with 40lb left to go I'm on 1290. Just seeing that my target is below 1300 has played a game with my mind that resulted in a big "FU MFP" and I stopped weighing and logging for a week or so and made some dubious food choices.
I'm not really sure if any of this is relevant to this thread TBH, but I needed to write it out to acknowledge to both myself and the supportive people here that it happened and I'm aware of it. Next step is to change it ;-)
And now, back to your regular schedule...2
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