How many calories should I eat?

literallyhavenoidea

Im a 20 year old woman, 236 lbs, and a student so I don't spend much of the day on my feet. But, I exercise pretty vigorously for 80-100 minutes everyday burning about 600-800 calories (according to the internet). Whenever I try to put in my activity level I'm not sure what to put so I can't tell if its very accurate. My goal is to loose about 2 lbs a week, or more if its healthy. I've been eating around 1200-1400 a day which seems low to me, so I wanted to see what you guys think! Thanks in advance!

malibu927

Activity level on MFP doesn't include exercise. Set it to sedentary, 2 pounds a week (1.5 may be better if you don't find 1200-1400 sustainable) and eat that amount plus 50% of your exercise calories. Log everything as accurately as possible and monitor your loss over the next 4-6 weeks before you adjust anything.

fiona4879

I agree completely with Malibu927. I’ve done exactly that and it works a treat.

Zedeff

It is very unlikely that you are burning 800 calories in your exercise session

pmm3437

malibu927 wrote: »

Activity level on MFP doesn't include exercise. Set it to sedentary, 2 pounds a week (1.5 may be better if you don't find 1200-1400 sustainable) and eat that amount plus 50% of your exercise calories. Log everything as accurately as possible and monitor your loss over the next 4-6 weeks before you adjust anything.

This is good advice, and should work well for most ppl.

I, personally, set MFP calorie and macro goals based on maintenance @ my target weight ( based on TDEE and ideal weight range calcs ). This approach allows you to lose more weight when you have more to lose, and naturally lowers your weekly loss as you get closer to goal/ideal, which some consider healthier ( due to narrowing of deficit ).

callsitlikeiseeit

Zedeff wrote: »

It is very unlikely that you are burning 800 calories in your exercise session

its quite possible at her weight and the length of time shes working out, especially if its vigorously and shes short.

i wouldnt eat it all back, surely, but i do think its possible.

xxzenabxx

Zedeff wrote: »

It is very unlikely that you are burning 800 calories in your exercise session

Erm, she's 236 lbs so it's VERY possible that she's burning that much and her sessions are long. OP doesn't listen to this person and keep going! Although you might want to start with a higher calorie intake so you have room to lower calories when your weight drops

nurees

Just had this talk with my doctor today. He has me at 1600 calories a day with working up to 4 days of cardio for 45 min each day. Three meals. At least one snack. He said the 1200 to 1300 was way too low for my stats which are close to you.