Ladies - how many calories do you eat a day?
moniqueholtman237
Posts: 25 Member
Just wondering how many calories other women eat a day?
My main goal at the moment is to get fitter and stronger and I'm doing this through a programme (Kayla Itsines BBG) and by lifting heavy weights at the gym. I'd never say to to losing a few pounds but this isn't my main goal because I'm a healthy weight. I find that eating 1,400 calories a day makes me lose about 2 pounds a month. (Not sure if this is so low because I don't have much to lose, maybe I'm not eating enough or mainly I suspect because the scale doesn't give an accurate representation of progress).
The last 6 weeks or so I am SO hungry all the time. I workout about 5 times a week so clearly need to up my calories but don't want to end up increasing them so much I end up putting on weight. Any recommendations on what would be a good daily calorie intake for me?
Thank you!
My main goal at the moment is to get fitter and stronger and I'm doing this through a programme (Kayla Itsines BBG) and by lifting heavy weights at the gym. I'd never say to to losing a few pounds but this isn't my main goal because I'm a healthy weight. I find that eating 1,400 calories a day makes me lose about 2 pounds a month. (Not sure if this is so low because I don't have much to lose, maybe I'm not eating enough or mainly I suspect because the scale doesn't give an accurate representation of progress).
The last 6 weeks or so I am SO hungry all the time. I workout about 5 times a week so clearly need to up my calories but don't want to end up increasing them so much I end up putting on weight. Any recommendations on what would be a good daily calorie intake for me?
Thank you!
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Replies
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Are you eating back your exercise calories?1
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If I didn't exercise, my base would be 1400 to lose 1/2lb per week. I try to walk for two hours daily and strength train 3 days/week, eating back half of what MFP says I burned, so in practice, around 1650-1800 calories per day.
I'm 5'3" and 156.4 lbs right now, shooting for 130.9 -
Points of reference, cos comparing what other women eat depends on their age, weight, height, level of activity, goal weight, etc...
I am 43, 5 foot 5, weigh 174 lbs, I am not sat behind a desk at work, so fairly active normally...I have just finished a 3 month bulk...I lift heavy weights three times a week....to lose a pound per week I am eating an average of 2200 cals per day. I am trialling the 1600 cals rest days and 2710 cals training days, but I am still feeling hungry (only cos I am used to eating 3000 cals per day for the last 12 weeks!) I work on TDEE method, not the MFP method, so I do not plug in my exercise anymore. My goal is 140lbs...
If you exercise and use the MFP model, you need to eat back your exercise calories, which are listed after you log it, as the ladies above mentioned.7 -
mortuseon_ wrote: »Are you eating back your exercise calories?
No I don't, I try to keep my calories similar regardless of whether I exercise or not!
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moniqueholtman237 wrote: »Just wondering how many calories other women eat a day?
My main goal at the moment is to get fitter and stronger and I'm doing this through a programme (Kayla Itsines BBG) and by lifting heavy weights at the gym. I'd never say to to losing a few pounds but this isn't my main goal because I'm a healthy weight. I find that eating 1,400 calories a day makes me lose about 2 pounds a month. (Not sure if this is so low because I don't have much to lose, maybe I'm not eating enough or mainly I suspect because the scale doesn't give an accurate representation of progress).
The last 6 weeks or so I am SO hungry all the time. I workout about 5 times a week so clearly need to up my calories but don't want to end up increasing them so much I end up putting on weight. Any recommendations on what would be a good daily calorie intake for me?
Thank you!
I probably should have given my age/height/weight so I'm 34, I'm 5 foot 4 and I weigh 132 pounds (60 kilos)
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i avg 2600 cal a day and maintaining at 155lbs8
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nexangelus wrote: »Points of reference, cos comparing what other women eat depends on their age, weight, height, level of activity, goal weight, etc...
I am 43, 5 foot 5, weigh 174 lbs, I am not sat behind a desk at work, so fairly active normally...I have just finished a 3 month bulk...I lift heavy weights three times a week....to lose a pound per week I am eating an average of 2200 cals per day. I am trialling the 1600 cals rest days and 2710 cals training days, but I am still feeling hungry (only cos I am used to eating 3000 cals per day for the last 12 weeks!) I work on TDEE method, not the MFP method, so I do not plug in my exercise anymore. My goal is 140lbs...
If you exercise and use the MFP model, you need to eat back your exercise calories, which are listed after you log it, as the ladies above mentioned.
If you're losing weight eating 2,200 calories a day on exercise days that makes me think I definitely should be increasing my calories. Something I'm more than happy to do :-)
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deannalfisher wrote: »i avg 2600 cal a day and maintaining at 155lbs
Yep, my maintenance cals are aound 2600 at my current weight...
OP what is your goal weight? If you have a little to lose you are losing at the right rate, half pound per week...sounds just right. Although you can probably eat a little more on exercise days than 1400...how active are you normally?0 -
I eat about 2500-3000 (sometimes more or less) and am 5'7.5" 148lb. I lift 5-6 days a week. Not trying to lose or gain weight just be healthy, strong, look and feel good.3
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I maintain on about 1800 calories. Lately I've been eating 1200 a few days of the week, so I can have some super high days. I'm 5'4", 147, lift 5x per week, no cardio and lightly active.
1400 is my sweet spot for weight loss as well. If I log very carefully, I'll lose very slowly but it will come off.2 -
nexangelus wrote: »deannalfisher wrote: »i avg 2600 cal a day and maintaining at 155lbs
Yep, my maintenance cals are aound 2600 at my current weight...
OP what is your goal weight? If you have a little to lose you are losing at the right rate, half pound per week...sounds just right. Although you can probably eat a little more on exercise days than 1400...how active are you normally?
I would like to get down to 9 stone so 126 pounds. I go to the gym at least 5 times a week but on my rest days I don't move a lot because I work from home. On those days I will try to walk into town or something but that's only about a half hour walk!
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I maintain on about 1800 calories. Lately I've been eating 1200 a few days of the week, so I can have some super high days. I'm 5'4", 147, lift 5x per week, no cardio and lightly active.
1400 is my sweet spot for weight loss as well. If I log very carefully, I'll lose very slowly but it will come off.
Sounds just like me. I feel like I have to eat much less than other people to lose even just half a pound a week. Which is what made me wonder if maybe I'm not eating enough so my body stores what I do eat!1 -
1200 plus I eat back exercise calories for elliptical and Body Pump class (whatever MFP database says for calories). I am 5'6, 47 year old female and weigh 142.1 this morning. I will up to 1500 when I get under 140 pounds. I will continue to eat back exercise calories and see what happens. The exercise calories vary from about 300 to 600 depending on the day, so I am eating 1500 to 1800 calories (when I am good about logging).1
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moniqueholtman237 wrote: »mortuseon_ wrote: »Are you eating back your exercise calories?
No I don't, I try to keep my calories similar regardless of whether I exercise or not!
I think that you should set your activity level at whatever you usually do re: your job, walking around etc., then log the exercise. Eat those calories back, up until you are at your correct number of net calories (MFP is set up to do that). To lose, you should be eating x net calories, not x totalcalories. You're probably feeling very hungry because your net intake is much lower than it needs to be!
I hope that makes sense? So if you eat 1400 and burn 300 on the same day, eat that 300 back (a total of 1700) because your net calories are still at 1400 when you do that, and you will absolutely still lose weight. If you didn't eat that 300 back, your net would be at 1100, which is really low!7 -
moniqueholtman237 wrote: »I maintain on about 1800 calories. Lately I've been eating 1200 a few days of the week, so I can have some super high days. I'm 5'4", 147, lift 5x per week, no cardio and lightly active.
1400 is my sweet spot for weight loss as well. If I log very carefully, I'll lose very slowly but it will come off.
Sounds just like me. I feel like I have to eat much less than other people to lose even just half a pound a week. Which is what made me wonder if maybe I'm not eating enough so my body stores what I do eat!
No, bodies don't work that way. If you are eating very little, you will lose weight. Not store fat.
We are at healthy weights. I assume you are relatively lean as well. It is slow going. I sometimes feel sad when I compare myself to other women with similar stats who can eat so much more.
Also, may I ask...you say you have been hungry on workout days as of late. Like for weeks now or a couple days this week? I have felt this way this week too, but I'm close to my period. Just wondering if it could be that.3 -
mortuseon_ wrote: »moniqueholtman237 wrote: »mortuseon_ wrote: »Are you eating back your exercise calories?
No I don't, I try to keep my calories similar regardless of whether I exercise or not!
I think that you should set your activity level at whatever you usually do re: your job, walking around etc., then log the exercise. Eat those calories back, up until you are at your correct number of net calories (MFP is set up to do that). To lose, you should be eating x net calories, not x totalcalories. You're probably feeling very hungry because your net intake is much lower than it needs to be!
I hope that makes sense? So if you eat 1400 and burn 300 on the same day, eat that 300 back (a total of 1700) because your net calories are still at 1400 when you do that, and you will absolutely still lose weight. If you didn't eat that 300 back, your net would be at 1100, which is really low!
Yes that's very helpful thank you! I will start eating back my exercise calories. If it was a week or so I was super hungry I'd put it down to hormones or something but my body obviously needs more calories so eating back what I burnt off seems like a logical place to start!
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moniqueholtman237 wrote: »I maintain on about 1800 calories. Lately I've been eating 1200 a few days of the week, so I can have some super high days. I'm 5'4", 147, lift 5x per week, no cardio and lightly active.
1400 is my sweet spot for weight loss as well. If I log very carefully, I'll lose very slowly but it will come off.
Sounds just like me. I feel like I have to eat much less than other people to lose even just half a pound a week. Which is what made me wonder if maybe I'm not eating enough so my body stores what I do eat!
No, bodies don't work that way. If you are eating very little, you will lose weight. Not store fat.
We are at healthy weights. I assume you are relatively lean as well. It is slow going. I sometimes feel sad when I compare myself to other women with similar stats who can eat so much more.
Also, may I ask...you say you have been hungry on workout days as of late. Like for weeks now or a couple days this week? I have felt this way this week too, but I'm close to my period. Just wondering if it could be that.
Yeah I am pretty lean so I think I'm just at the point where it's those last few stubborn couple of pounds. The hunger has been going on for about 6 weeks now (when I started the Kayla Itsines guide) so I think its the new routine causing the hunger rather than a hormonal thing. I am the same close to my period though, literally just want to eat everything in sight about a week before!0 -
moniqueholtman237 wrote: »I maintain on about 1800 calories. Lately I've been eating 1200 a few days of the week, so I can have some super high days. I'm 5'4", 147, lift 5x per week, no cardio and lightly active.
1400 is my sweet spot for weight loss as well. If I log very carefully, I'll lose very slowly but it will come off.
Sounds just like me. I feel like I have to eat much less than other people to lose even just half a pound a week. Which is what made me wonder if maybe I'm not eating enough so my body stores what I do eat!
This doesn't even make logical sense. How could your body possibly store your food while simultaneously using it to fuel your body?1 -
moniqueholtman237 wrote: »moniqueholtman237 wrote: »I maintain on about 1800 calories. Lately I've been eating 1200 a few days of the week, so I can have some super high days. I'm 5'4", 147, lift 5x per week, no cardio and lightly active.
1400 is my sweet spot for weight loss as well. If I log very carefully, I'll lose very slowly but it will come off.
Sounds just like me. I feel like I have to eat much less than other people to lose even just half a pound a week. Which is what made me wonder if maybe I'm not eating enough so my body stores what I do eat!
No, bodies don't work that way. If you are eating very little, you will lose weight. Not store fat.
We are at healthy weights. I assume you are relatively lean as well. It is slow going. I sometimes feel sad when I compare myself to other women with similar stats who can eat so much more.
Also, may I ask...you say you have been hungry on workout days as of late. Like for weeks now or a couple days this week? I have felt this way this week too, but I'm close to my period. Just wondering if it could be that.
Yeah I am pretty lean so I think I'm just at the point where it's those last few stubborn couple of pounds. The hunger has been going on for about 6 weeks now (when I started the Kayla Itsines guide) so I think its the new routine causing the hunger rather than a hormonal thing. I am the same close to my period though, literally just want to eat everything in sight about a week before!
Yeah, try upping your cals to make up for the calorie burn on workout day. Kayla's program is really cardio. I don't eat back my lifting calories but it is a different kind of workout.1 -
ladyhusker39 wrote: »moniqueholtman237 wrote: »I maintain on about 1800 calories. Lately I've been eating 1200 a few days of the week, so I can have some super high days. I'm 5'4", 147, lift 5x per week, no cardio and lightly active.
1400 is my sweet spot for weight loss as well. If I log very carefully, I'll lose very slowly but it will come off.
Sounds just like me. I feel like I have to eat much less than other people to lose even just half a pound a week. Which is what made me wonder if maybe I'm not eating enough so my body stores what I do eat!
This doesn't even make logical sense. How could your body possibly store your food while simultaneously using it to fuel your body?
This is from Chris Kresser, a guy who specialises in nutrition:
While a slight caloric deficit can lead to sustainable weight loss (think 300-500 calories per day), much larger deficits induce changes in your body’s metabolism in order to keep your body in a homeostatic balance. Your body does not like major, drastic changes, and it will make modifications to your thyroid, adrenal, and sex hormones in order to reduce your overall caloric output.
This includes reducing active thyroid hormone, shutting down sex hormone production, and raising stress hormones like cortisol. (1, 2, 3, 4, 5) Chronically elevated cortisol leads to both leptin and insulin resistance, a disastrous hormonal state that can keep body weight high. (6, 7)
These hormonal changes can lead to stalled weight loss and body fat retention, along with many other negative health effects that go beyond weight loss resistance. So if you’ve been eating much less and exercising much more in a futile attempt to lose weight, consider whether this strategy has been working for you.
9 -
moniqueholtman237 wrote: »ladyhusker39 wrote: »moniqueholtman237 wrote: »I maintain on about 1800 calories. Lately I've been eating 1200 a few days of the week, so I can have some super high days. I'm 5'4", 147, lift 5x per week, no cardio and lightly active.
1400 is my sweet spot for weight loss as well. If I log very carefully, I'll lose very slowly but it will come off.
Sounds just like me. I feel like I have to eat much less than other people to lose even just half a pound a week. Which is what made me wonder if maybe I'm not eating enough so my body stores what I do eat!
This doesn't even make logical sense. How could your body possibly store your food while simultaneously using it to fuel your body?
This is from Chris Kresser, a guy who specialises in nutrition:
While a slight caloric deficit can lead to sustainable weight loss (think 300-500 calories per day), much larger deficits induce changes in your body’s metabolism in order to keep your body in a homeostatic balance. Your body does not like major, drastic changes, and it will make modifications to your thyroid, adrenal, and sex hormones in order to reduce your overall caloric output.
This includes reducing active thyroid hormone, shutting down sex hormone production, and raising stress hormones like cortisol. (1, 2, 3, 4, 5) Chronically elevated cortisol leads to both leptin and insulin resistance, a disastrous hormonal state that can keep body weight high. (6, 7)
These hormonal changes can lead to stalled weight loss and body fat retention, along with many other negative health effects that go beyond weight loss resistance. So if you’ve been eating much less and exercising much more in a futile attempt to lose weight, consider whether this strategy has been working for you.
This is different from eating a 200-500 calorie deficit
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moniqueholtman237 wrote: »ladyhusker39 wrote: »moniqueholtman237 wrote: »I maintain on about 1800 calories. Lately I've been eating 1200 a few days of the week, so I can have some super high days. I'm 5'4", 147, lift 5x per week, no cardio and lightly active.
1400 is my sweet spot for weight loss as well. If I log very carefully, I'll lose very slowly but it will come off.
Sounds just like me. I feel like I have to eat much less than other people to lose even just half a pound a week. Which is what made me wonder if maybe I'm not eating enough so my body stores what I do eat!
This doesn't even make logical sense. How could your body possibly store your food while simultaneously using it to fuel your body?
This is from Chris Kresser, a guy who specialises in nutrition:
While a slight caloric deficit can lead to sustainable weight loss (think 300-500 calories per day), much larger deficits induce changes in your body’s metabolism in order to keep your body in a homeostatic balance. Your body does not like major, drastic changes, and it will make modifications to your thyroid, adrenal, and sex hormones in order to reduce your overall caloric output.
This includes reducing active thyroid hormone, shutting down sex hormone production, and raising stress hormones like cortisol. (1, 2, 3, 4, 5) Chronically elevated cortisol leads to both leptin and insulin resistance, a disastrous hormonal state that can keep body weight high. (6, 7)
These hormonal changes can lead to stalled weight loss and body fat retention, along with many other negative health effects that go beyond weight loss resistance. So if you’ve been eating much less and exercising much more in a futile attempt to lose weight, consider whether this strategy has been working for you.
It also says absolutely NOTHING about storing what you eat.5 -
Between 1400-1500. I try not to eat back all of my work out calories. 5'6 and 279.1
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moniqueholtman237 wrote: »ladyhusker39 wrote: »moniqueholtman237 wrote: »I maintain on about 1800 calories. Lately I've been eating 1200 a few days of the week, so I can have some super high days. I'm 5'4", 147, lift 5x per week, no cardio and lightly active.
1400 is my sweet spot for weight loss as well. If I log very carefully, I'll lose very slowly but it will come off.
Sounds just like me. I feel like I have to eat much less than other people to lose even just half a pound a week. Which is what made me wonder if maybe I'm not eating enough so my body stores what I do eat!
This doesn't even make logical sense. How could your body possibly store your food while simultaneously using it to fuel your body?
This is from Chris Kresser, a guy who specialises in nutrition:
While a slight caloric deficit can lead to sustainable weight loss (think 300-500 calories per day), much larger deficits induce changes in your body’s metabolism in order to keep your body in a homeostatic balance. Your body does not like major, drastic changes, and it will make modifications to your thyroid, adrenal, and sex hormones in order to reduce your overall caloric output.
This includes reducing active thyroid hormone, shutting down sex hormone production, and raising stress hormones like cortisol. (1, 2, 3, 4, 5) Chronically elevated cortisol leads to both leptin and insulin resistance, a disastrous hormonal state that can keep body weight high. (6, 7)
These hormonal changes can lead to stalled weight loss and body fat retention, along with many other negative health effects that go beyond weight loss resistance. So if you’ve been eating much less and exercising much more in a futile attempt to lose weight, consider whether this strategy has been working for you.
It also says absolutely NOTHING about storing what you eat.
No it does not. I recommend doing some more research about this topic. You can learn a lot right here on the MFP boards to start.
Edited to add: Focus your learning on the actual science which you can find many references to here in the forums as an easy place to start. Don't rely on a guy who "specializes in nutrition" or anyone who claims to be an expert. Look to the actual science behind what people are saying. And that includes anyone on here who makes claims. Ask them to back it up with proof.2 -
I am 5.4 and 54kg (120 pound) I weight train 4 times a week and cardio on 3 days. I average 2050 cals a day and maintain on this2
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I'm 5'4" and 154 lbs right now - still losing a couple of pounds a month at 1560 calories. I do 45 - 50 min of cardio 5x/week and eat a couple of hundred of my exercise calories back fairly regularly. I'm 51 and in perimenopause and still managing to lose.1
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I'm 5'8 and just under 180lbs. I aim for 2040 to lose 1lb a week, that's based on what I maintain on roughly with exercise already factored in (lifting 4-5 times a week) It's normal for weight loss to slow down as you get closer to your goal but 2lbs a month is still a good healthy amount.
If you want to start upping your calories but don't want to gain weight then I'd suggest gradually increasing them over time. Based on your weight loss you could probably go up around 200/250 a day to start, try that out for a few weeks and adjust as necessary. Also, if you haven't factored your exercise into your daily activity level already, then you should be eating back exercise calories as the deficit is already created without any exercise, just as the activity level you set MFP up with, and eating too little consistently over time can have a detrimental effect on weight loss.1 -
I"m 5'6 @ 155lbs and I eat 1850-2K to lose 1lb/week. I'm pretty active1
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I'm 5'6-3/4" just found out last week that I shrunk! Almost an inch! Not happy. Lol. Currently 169.5 pounds, started at 254.6
I eat around 1350-1400, except for Sunday I have a high calorie day. I workout 4-6 days a week, usually 45 min lifting heavy, 45 min cardio. I'm losing an average of 1.25 pounds a week since November 20 right now1 -
OP you're losing 0.5 a week so you can up your calories to 1650 right away if you want to maintain.
I'm 5ft 2 and maintain 125lbs eating 1950-2000 calories. I work out 5 days a week x 30-40mins.1
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