Short, old(ish), sedentary, 1200kcals and 15-20,000 steps a day
tar2323
Posts: 141 Member
I've lost 65lbs or so now, earlier by restricting calories through guesswork and more recently through using the tools on this site. I've also read a lot of threads here and taken on board some excellent advice.
I'm 55 years old, 5ft 1" tall and sedentary - apart from walking between 15-20,000 steps a day through a mix of treadmill walking and about the house/to the shops type stuff.
I've only been doing this for a week or two now, (the walking) but I'm very much enjoying it and intending to continue. My question is this: Should I eat back any of the calories I'm burning? I don't feel the need, physically, but need to be sure I'm not doing anything foolish by not doing so.
I'm 55 years old, 5ft 1" tall and sedentary - apart from walking between 15-20,000 steps a day through a mix of treadmill walking and about the house/to the shops type stuff.
I've only been doing this for a week or two now, (the walking) but I'm very much enjoying it and intending to continue. My question is this: Should I eat back any of the calories I'm burning? I don't feel the need, physically, but need to be sure I'm not doing anything foolish by not doing so.
3
Replies
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Are you still trying to lose weight? I'm 54 & 5'1" and at 12.5k steps a day my fitbit says I burn about 1900 calories a day (I've been maintaining for a couple of years). So depending on how much you are trying to lose each week, you could eat at least some of them back, I would think. Try eating back about half and see how you do, if you're losing too slowly eat less back, if you're losing too quickly, eat more back.
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You've got to do what works and feels best for you. I try not to eat back the calories and use them for a special occasion like a family function or dinner with friends. I also weigh or measure everything I eat, its really helped me realize just how much I was eating. Change things up and see how you feel and find what works for you. Good luck!
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You're not sedentary with that step count. You could eat some back. If it's consistent you can just adjust yourself to lightly active. Or even active. I get 12k and I'm considered lightly active.7
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I don't have a problem not eating them back - I don't feel the need. I log every mouthful, and am successfully losing weight at a rate I'm happy with. I just need to know if because of the kcals I must be burning through walking whilst sticking to my 1200kcals, if I'm endangering myself in any way.0
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I don't have a problem not eating them back - I don't feel the need. I log every mouthful, and am successfully losing weight at a rate I'm happy with. I just need to know if because of the kcals I must be burning through walking whilst sticking to my 1200kcals, if I'm endangering myself in any way.
How much do you weigh? How fast are you losing?0 -
How much do you weigh? How fast are you losing? [/quote]
I'm 168lbs, losing around 3-6lbs a month.
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double post, sorry
1 -
I don't have a problem not eating them back - I don't feel the need. I log every mouthful, and am successfully losing weight at a rate I'm happy with. I just need to know if because of the kcals I must be burning through walking whilst sticking to my 1200kcals, if I'm endangering myself in any way.
Nope - you are doing great. Just keep doing what you're doing if its working well. At that calorie rate you should be getting plenty of the nutrients you need
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Height? [/quote]
I'm 5ft 1". I've always somehow managed to look smaller than my weight would make it seem though, so I'm currently a UK size 14.
ETA: I'm really rubbish at using the 'quote' feature, haha. I'll get the hang of it.1 -
Solieco1: Nope - you are doing great. Just keep doing what you're doing if its working well. At that calorie rate you should be getting plenty of the nutrients you need
Thanks, this is what I needed to know. If somehow the calories burnt through exercise partly negate the 1200kcals of nutrients obtained through my daily allowance to the point where I'd be lacking.
0 -
You're fine. If ever you are a bit hungry one day, you should feel comfortable eating a bit more.2
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Sorry, this is a resounding disagreement post to the previous MFPers whose consensus seems to be that you're doing fine.
I note that you just started this excess activity so you don't really know yet what the full effects are. 4 weeks is a much better gauge than 2 weeks.
Note that first of all the 15 to 20000 steps a day **if not logged separately as an exercise** puts you ABOVE the VERY ACTIVE category on MFP.
@bbell1985 you have already suffered a degree of adaptation because of under-eating to effect weight loss. Your step count of 12,500 steps a day yielding results for lightly active is NOT indicative of the general population. The general population is probably more represented in this study: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/14715035 which clearly categorises individuals who take >12,500 steps as highly active.
Whether @tar2323 is seeing or not seeing results commensurate with being highly active and under-eating for that activity level could depend on many issues including her logging and intensity of the steps.
While a 3-6lb loss per month is not extreme and does not exceed the 1% mark many consider safe, it does potentially exceed the 0.07% of bodyweight lost per week which I personally consider to be even more safe in terms of lean mass preservation.
As an overweight individual (bottom of obese by WHO standards but at an age group where this is considered more overweight than obese) @tar2323 (http://www.smartbmicalculator.com/result.html?unit=1&hf=5&hi=1&wl=168&us=1&ua=55&gl=) would benefit from a deficit of up to 20% of her Total Daily Energy Expenditure.
A quick look through scooby and using more correct activity classifications for someone walking 15-20K steps a day yields a weight loss of 0.7 to 0.9lbs a week while eating 1800 Cal a day.
If you want to eat the least amount of food possible from now on and successfully reduce your food bill, by all means eat the least your can, exercise the most you can and lose weight as fast as you can. 1200 targets are great for that.
If you want to arrive at your target weight eating the most amount of food possible, something which I personally imagine will make maintaining your target weight a bit easier, then you win by meeting your goals while eating the most you can.
1800Cal a day correctly logged and assuming no health issues that change your predicted Calories In Calories Out equation (CICO), should have you losing weight at a more than adequate clip given the activity you stated.
Use a trending weight application or web site (libra android, happy scale iphone, trendweight.com, weightgrapher.com) to track changes to your long term weight level as opposed to daily water weight fluctuations.
Best of luck.
scooby: http://scoobysworkshop.com/accurate-calorie-calculator/
Activity levels differ from site to site.
MFP activity levels are
sedentary 1.25x
lightly active 1.4x
active 1.6x
very active 1.8x
Mifflin StJeor BMR
8 -
Solieco1: Nope - you are doing great. Just keep doing what you're doing if its working well. At that calorie rate you should be getting plenty of the nutrients you need
Thanks, this is what I needed to know. If somehow the calories burnt through exercise partly negate the 1200kcals of nutrients obtained through my daily allowance to the point where I'd be lacking.
Yes they do. Not in the sense of not taking in enough nutrients but in the sense of generating too large of a caloric deficit. An extreme caloric deficit prompts the loss of excess lean mass and also promotes quicker adaptation to the process of weight loss. it also denies you the opportunity of being able to do anything when weight loss eventually and inevitably slows**. if you start at the minimum you can safely eat... where do you go next?
**for most people. Yes, there are some exceptions around where weight loss continued linearly all the way through.5 -
@PAV8888 Thank you very much for the info above, this is what I needed to know. I'm going to re-read what you've written tomorrow and look through the info on your links (it's late here now) to fully grasp what you're saying. I also understand the point in your second post - if effectively undereating now, where do I go as the rate of loss slows. Thanks again.2
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Sorry, this is a resounding disagreement post to the previous MFPers whose consensus seems to be that you're doing fine.
I note that you just started this excess activity so you don't really know yet what the full effects are. 4 weeks is a much better gauge than 2 weeks.
Note that first of all the 15 to 20000 steps a day **if not logged separately as an exercise** puts you ABOVE the VERY ACTIVE category on MFP.
@bbell1985 you have already suffered a degree of adaptation because of under-eating to effect weight loss. Your step count of 12,500 steps a day yielding results for lightly active is NOT indicative of the general population. The general population is probably more represented in this study: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/14715035 which clearly categorises individuals who take >12,500 steps as highly active.
Whether @tar2323 is seeing or not seeing results commensurate with being highly active and under-eating for that activity level could depend on many issues including her logging and intensity of the steps.
While a 3-6lb loss per month is not extreme and does not exceed the 1% mark many consider safe, it does potentially exceed the 0.07% of bodyweight lost per week which I personally consider to be even more safe in terms of lean mass preservation.
As an overweight individual (bottom of obese by WHO standards but at an age group where this is considered more overweight than obese) @tar2323 (http://www.smartbmicalculator.com/result.html?unit=1&hf=5&hi=1&wl=168&us=1&ua=55&gl=) would benefit from a deficit of up to 20% of her Total Daily Energy Expenditure.
A quick look through scooby and using more correct activity classifications for someone walking 15-20K steps a day yields a weight loss of 0.7 to 0.9lbs a week while eating 1800 Cal a day.
If you want to eat the least amount of food possible from now on and successfully reduce your food bill, by all means eat the least your can, exercise the most you can and lose weight as fast as you can. 1200 targets are great for that.
If you want to arrive at your target weight eating the most amount of food possible, something which I personally imagine will make maintaining your target weight a bit easier, then you win by meeting your goals while eating the most you can.
1800Cal a day correctly logged and assuming no health issues that change your predicted Calories In Calories Out equation (CICO), should have you losing weight at a more than adequate clip given the activity you stated.
Use a trending weight application or web site (libra android, happy scale iphone, trendweight.com, weightgrapher.com) to track changes to your long term weight level as opposed to daily water weight fluctuations.
Best of luck.
scooby: http://scoobysworkshop.com/accurate-calorie-calculator/
Activity levels differ from site to site.
MFP activity levels are
sedentary 1.25x
lightly active 1.4x
active 1.6x
very active 1.8x
Mifflin StJeor BMR
Excuse you. I don't undereat. My maintenance is 1800 calories. Possibly 1900.0 -
It might be better to eat back your calories from deliberate exercise - i.e. walking on the TM, but not the other steps that are just part of living your life.
FWIW - I'm 60, 5'6", 125 lbs. and basically sedentary except for deliberate exercise. I eat back all my exercise calories. (I run and walk.) When I was trying to lose weight I had a 1200 calorie level, plus exercise calories, and I lost about a pound a week, and now have a 1500-1600 calorie maintenance goal.1 -
Sorry, this is a resounding disagreement post to the previous MFPers whose consensus seems to be that you're doing fine.
I note that you just started this excess activity so you don't really know yet what the full effects are. 4 weeks is a much better gauge than 2 weeks.
Note that first of all the 15 to 20000 steps a day **if not logged separately as an exercise** puts you ABOVE the VERY ACTIVE category on MFP.
@bbell1985 you have already suffered a degree of adaptation because of under-eating to effect weight loss. Your step count of 12,500 steps a day yielding results for lightly active is NOT indicative of the general population. The general population is probably more represented in this study: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/14715035 which clearly categorises individuals who take >12,500 steps as highly active.
Whether @tar2323 is seeing or not seeing results commensurate with being highly active and under-eating for that activity level could depend on many issues including her logging and intensity of the steps.
While a 3-6lb loss per month is not extreme and does not exceed the 1% mark many consider safe, it does potentially exceed the 0.07% of bodyweight lost per week which I personally consider to be even more safe in terms of lean mass preservation.
As an overweight individual (bottom of obese by WHO standards but at an age group where this is considered more overweight than obese) @tar2323 (http://www.smartbmicalculator.com/result.html?unit=1&hf=5&hi=1&wl=168&us=1&ua=55&gl=) would benefit from a deficit of up to 20% of her Total Daily Energy Expenditure.
A quick look through scooby and using more correct activity classifications for someone walking 15-20K steps a day yields a weight loss of 0.7 to 0.9lbs a week while eating 1800 Cal a day.
If you want to eat the least amount of food possible from now on and successfully reduce your food bill, by all means eat the least your can, exercise the most you can and lose weight as fast as you can. 1200 targets are great for that.
If you want to arrive at your target weight eating the most amount of food possible, something which I personally imagine will make maintaining your target weight a bit easier, then you win by meeting your goals while eating the most you can.
1800Cal a day correctly logged and assuming no health issues that change your predicted Calories In Calories Out equation (CICO), should have you losing weight at a more than adequate clip given the activity you stated.
Use a trending weight application or web site (libra android, happy scale iphone, trendweight.com, weightgrapher.com) to track changes to your long term weight level as opposed to daily water weight fluctuations.
Best of luck.
scooby: http://scoobysworkshop.com/accurate-calorie-calculator/
Activity levels differ from site to site.
MFP activity levels are
sedentary 1.25x
lightly active 1.4x
active 1.6x
very active 1.8x
Mifflin StJeor BMR
I'd agree with this, you are highly active now by MFP standards. Your 3-6lbs per month doesn't include a full month at this activity which would be the minimum to really see where you're at. At 55 your primary concern throughout weight loss should be muscle preservation and without strength training your risks of losing an appreciable amount of muscle are increased. Add in that you're netting quite significantly below 1200 calories you are exacerbating this issue greatly.
So, eat at least some, 50-75% of your exercise and reassess in 6-8 weeks. You might feel fine now but that's not going to last.10 -
VintageFeline wrote: »Sorry, this is a resounding disagreement post to the previous MFPers whose consensus seems to be that you're doing fine.
I note that you just started this excess activity so you don't really know yet what the full effects are. 4 weeks is a much better gauge than 2 weeks.
Note that first of all the 15 to 20000 steps a day **if not logged separately as an exercise** puts you ABOVE the VERY ACTIVE category on MFP.
@bbell1985 you have already suffered a degree of adaptation because of under-eating to effect weight loss. Your step count of 12,500 steps a day yielding results for lightly active is NOT indicative of the general population. The general population is probably more represented in this study: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/14715035 which clearly categorises individuals who take >12,500 steps as highly active.
Whether @tar2323 is seeing or not seeing results commensurate with being highly active and under-eating for that activity level could depend on many issues including her logging and intensity of the steps.
While a 3-6lb loss per month is not extreme and does not exceed the 1% mark many consider safe, it does potentially exceed the 0.07% of bodyweight lost per week which I personally consider to be even more safe in terms of lean mass preservation.
As an overweight individual (bottom of obese by WHO standards but at an age group where this is considered more overweight than obese) @tar2323 (http://www.smartbmicalculator.com/result.html?unit=1&hf=5&hi=1&wl=168&us=1&ua=55&gl=) would benefit from a deficit of up to 20% of her Total Daily Energy Expenditure.
A quick look through scooby and using more correct activity classifications for someone walking 15-20K steps a day yields a weight loss of 0.7 to 0.9lbs a week while eating 1800 Cal a day.
If you want to eat the least amount of food possible from now on and successfully reduce your food bill, by all means eat the least your can, exercise the most you can and lose weight as fast as you can. 1200 targets are great for that.
If you want to arrive at your target weight eating the most amount of food possible, something which I personally imagine will make maintaining your target weight a bit easier, then you win by meeting your goals while eating the most you can.
1800Cal a day correctly logged and assuming no health issues that change your predicted Calories In Calories Out equation (CICO), should have you losing weight at a more than adequate clip given the activity you stated.
Use a trending weight application or web site (libra android, happy scale iphone, trendweight.com, weightgrapher.com) to track changes to your long term weight level as opposed to daily water weight fluctuations.
Best of luck.
scooby: http://scoobysworkshop.com/accurate-calorie-calculator/
Activity levels differ from site to site.
MFP activity levels are
sedentary 1.25x
lightly active 1.4x
active 1.6x
very active 1.8x
Mifflin StJeor BMR
I'd agree with this, you are highly active now by MFP standards. Your 3-6lbs per month doesn't include a full month at this activity which would be the minimum to really see where you're at. At 55 your primary concern throughout weight loss should be muscle preservation and without strength training your risks of losing an appreciable amount of muscle are increased. Add in that you're netting quite significantly below 1200 calories you are exacerbating this issue greatly.
So, eat at least some, 50-75% of your exercise and reassess in 6-8 weeks. You might feel fine now but that's not going to last.
Agree with all this and the quoted post above. I'm also petite, 5'2, about 10 years younger, and my steps are a bit less than yours, averaging 15K steps/day. I'm currently in maintenance at 120 lbs. My TDEE according to my FitBit and actual results is 2200. If I were eating 1200 that would be quite a deficit, and I think it likely is for you as well.
I agree that if you plan to keep this activity up you need to change your activity level from sedentary to lightly active or better yet, active. That will give you higher baseline cals and then you won't be aiming for the minimum 1200 cals.
I also agree you need to monitor results for another month or more and then adjust from there, you should be aiming to lose only 1 lb/week until you have about 20 lbs to lose and then change goal to 0.5 lb/week.3 -
WinoGelato wrote: »VintageFeline wrote: »Sorry, this is a resounding disagreement post to the previous MFPers whose consensus seems to be that you're doing fine.
I note that you just started this excess activity so you don't really know yet what the full effects are. 4 weeks is a much better gauge than 2 weeks.
Note that first of all the 15 to 20000 steps a day **if not logged separately as an exercise** puts you ABOVE the VERY ACTIVE category on MFP.
@bbell1985 you have already suffered a degree of adaptation because of under-eating to effect weight loss. Your step count of 12,500 steps a day yielding results for lightly active is NOT indicative of the general population. The general population is probably more represented in this study: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/14715035 which clearly categorises individuals who take >12,500 steps as highly active.
Whether @tar2323 is seeing or not seeing results commensurate with being highly active and under-eating for that activity level could depend on many issues including her logging and intensity of the steps.
While a 3-6lb loss per month is not extreme and does not exceed the 1% mark many consider safe, it does potentially exceed the 0.07% of bodyweight lost per week which I personally consider to be even more safe in terms of lean mass preservation.
As an overweight individual (bottom of obese by WHO standards but at an age group where this is considered more overweight than obese) @tar2323 (http://www.smartbmicalculator.com/result.html?unit=1&hf=5&hi=1&wl=168&us=1&ua=55&gl=) would benefit from a deficit of up to 20% of her Total Daily Energy Expenditure.
A quick look through scooby and using more correct activity classifications for someone walking 15-20K steps a day yields a weight loss of 0.7 to 0.9lbs a week while eating 1800 Cal a day.
If you want to eat the least amount of food possible from now on and successfully reduce your food bill, by all means eat the least your can, exercise the most you can and lose weight as fast as you can. 1200 targets are great for that.
If you want to arrive at your target weight eating the most amount of food possible, something which I personally imagine will make maintaining your target weight a bit easier, then you win by meeting your goals while eating the most you can.
1800Cal a day correctly logged and assuming no health issues that change your predicted Calories In Calories Out equation (CICO), should have you losing weight at a more than adequate clip given the activity you stated.
Use a trending weight application or web site (libra android, happy scale iphone, trendweight.com, weightgrapher.com) to track changes to your long term weight level as opposed to daily water weight fluctuations.
Best of luck.
scooby: http://scoobysworkshop.com/accurate-calorie-calculator/
Activity levels differ from site to site.
MFP activity levels are
sedentary 1.25x
lightly active 1.4x
active 1.6x
very active 1.8x
Mifflin StJeor BMR
I'd agree with this, you are highly active now by MFP standards. Your 3-6lbs per month doesn't include a full month at this activity which would be the minimum to really see where you're at. At 55 your primary concern throughout weight loss should be muscle preservation and without strength training your risks of losing an appreciable amount of muscle are increased. Add in that you're netting quite significantly below 1200 calories you are exacerbating this issue greatly.
So, eat at least some, 50-75% of your exercise and reassess in 6-8 weeks. You might feel fine now but that's not going to last.
Agree with all this and the quoted post above. I'm also petite, 5'2, about 10 years younger, and my steps are a bit less than yours, averaging 15K steps/day. I'm currently in maintenance at 120 lbs. My TDEE according to my FitBit and actual results is 2200. If I were eating 1200 that would be quite a deficit, and I think it likely is for you as well.
I agree that if you plan to keep this activity up you need to change your activity level from sedentary to lightly active or better yet, active. That will give you higher baseline cals and then you won't be aiming for the minimum 1200 cals.
I also agree you need to monitor results for another month or more and then adjust from there, you should be aiming to lose only 1 lb/week until you have about 20 lbs to lose and then change goal to 0.5 lb/week.
Adding in my agreement. And for reference, I'm 54, 5'1" 115 pounds and get 22K or so steps a day. Granted, a lot of my steps are at a brisk pace, but my TDEE is around 2,000.
I tried eating at a rate that had me losing somewhat aggressively and could not keep up my activity level. The same will happen to you, OP.
Eat back some of your exercise calories.5
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