Can someone pls explain how many calories I MUST consume?

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brokeshopper
brokeshopper Posts: 2
in Health and Weight Loss
I am 29, 5'3" and ~110 lbs. I am petite, but have big stubborn belly fat that I want to shake off. I have also been generally lazy all my life, and finally kicking my butt in gear.

Recently I got a personal trainer (30 min, 3 times a week) and signed up for MFP. My goal is to lose 3-5 pounds of the belly fat, and generally tone up, get healthy and be fit.
My eating habits have also been abysmal - cheeseburgers, french fries, lots of soda and cookies... I want to change all that.


MFP recommends that I keep my calories to 1240 each day (with a weight loss goal of 0.5 lbs per week).

Questions:
1) I'm typically exceeding the goal by ~100 calories. Will this just slow down weight loss or actually make it worse?
2) I'm having a hard time cutting out sugars. Since my goal is more to get fit than lose weight, how critical is this piece? And to be clear, I'm not guzzling candy bars. But a wrap can bring me to my daily max and leave me with no allowance for breakfast and dinner?
3) When I exercise, do I have to eat those calories?
4) I've read a bunch of stuff on this forum about starvation mode. I understand that its not something immediate and not something to worry about unless sustained.... but when all I am trying to lose is stubborn belly fat is it more of a concern?

Thanks in advance!

Replies

  • kjg1965297
    kjg1965297 Posts: 121
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    I struggled with this and here was the answer I got. If you eat all of the calories they have set out for you you will lose .5 per week. If you eat more calories your loss will be less. If you are consistently over add excercise to offset the overage but don't go too far the other way by not eating and leaving a huge deficiet. You body requires energy to lose weight and by staring it you will start to lose more muscle than fat. I have been told by my doctor that eat no less than 80% of your calories avaliable. Everybody will go over a little now and again but try not to make it consistently. You may want to do some strength excercises to target the belly. I am sorry if I am confusing but sometimes i have a hard time getting around. Keep working hard and track everyday.:smile::glasses:
  • IGbnat24
    IGbnat24 Posts: 520 Member
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    If you feel you have a stomach at your height/weight, you are 100% skinny fat. You need to eat and build some muscle. If you continue to cut calories, you'll just be 105 with the same problem. You should be eating at least at maintenance and lifting heavy.
  • Francl27
    Francl27 Posts: 26,371 Member
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    1240 a day is without counting exercise calories. You're supposed to eat more than that. Go to http://scoobysworkshop.com/calorie-calculator/ to get a more reasonable number.
  • QuilterInVA
    QuilterInVA Posts: 672 Member
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    At your current weight, you don't need to lose more. Cut out some carbs to lose the belly and do resistance training 3 times a week. Eat more protein to help build muscle. Losing weight is not going to make your belly flatter. There is no way to predict where the weight loss will come from.

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