MFP calorie allowance

mrsw510

Just curious if anyone finds their MFP calorie allowance to be too low. I am allowed 1300/day with an active lifestyle (I work stock at a grocery store, a lot of heavy lifting and walking involved) wanting to lose 2 lbs a week. I tried that plus eating excerise cals and I was still always hungry ( I just don't get the...I'm full on 900 cals a day people). and losing slowly 1 lb per week and several weeks without a loss

I went over to livestrong and plugged in all the same info, weight loss goals, activity level and they gave me a calorie allowance of 1900...that a 600 calorie difference, thats huge.

I'm not sure which is more accurate so I try to hit somewhere inbetween, 1500-1800 cals a day. 1500 on my days of from work or from excerise and 1800 on the rest and it seems to be helping. I havent had a week without a lose in a couple months (knock-on wood) and several weeks I have even lost 3 lbs.

I know thats whats working for me so I am going to stick with it until it isn't working anymore, I was just wondering if anyone else finds that their MFP calorie allowance is way too low?

Stewie316

That's a big difference, I would try putting your numbers into a few other websites to get more of an average.

simona1972

Ive tried different websites - MFP gives me 1700, Jillian Michaels gives me 1200-1400 a day [no eating exercise calories either], a few others gave me ranges from 1800-2400. My BMR varies from site to site too. I stick with 1300-1700 a day.

I was curious to see what Livestrong would give me.....a whopping 2505 calories/day to lose 2lbs per week! That seems really high.

The freedieting site gave me 2640!

blh_1010

I had the same problem. MSN said that I could have 2111 cals/day. This says 1500...I don't know which to go by. I was going by MSN's for about a month, I felt better...now starting (like yesturday) the 1500 cals/ day. I don't even know if that is healthy or not. What do you think?

kdiamond

I would switch it up - don't eat the same # of calories each day...try a calorie zig zag for a couple of weeks.

More info found here - http://www.freedieting.com/tools/calorie_calculator.htm

tw1970

MFP allowed me 1800cal, but I revised mine to 1300, I don't really get hungary because I eat every 2-3 hours. Because I'm diabetic I watch my sugar intake and I just make sure my snacks are portable and under 150cal ea. It seems to be working for me.

TabiHerbalifeCoach

I've only gotten a quote from this one, but I set my own at 1200, I don't have a very active life style- i write reports sitting behind a desk all day- I never understood the full on 900 calorie people until I became one. I still don't get it myself. I don't think I would be full on 900 a day if my lifestyle was more active. I do agree 1300 is not a lot of cals for someone with an active lifestyle plus working out. The way i view these things are they are guidelines, but I know my body best, so if 1300 is to few then add more if 1900 seems like to much then cut back. It seems like you found a good balance for your body I would stick with it!!! Good job!

sweetbn

How close are you to your goals? If you are in the healthy range of weight then you really shouldn't try to lose 2 lbs/week. With a too large a deficit in calories your body will scrounge up all the food it is given and store it instead of you losing weight.

If you DO have a lot of weight to lose, try to incorporate more proteins in your diet to stay in the same calorie range. Will keep you fuller, longer.

mrsw510

How close are you to your goals? If you are in the healthy range of weight then you really shouldn't try to lose 2 lbs/week. With a too large a deficit in calories your body will scrounge up all the food it is given and store it instead of you losing weight.

If you DO have a lot of weight to lose, try to incorporate more proteins in your diet to stay in the same calorie range. Will keep you fuller, longer.

I still have another 50 lbs to lose (already lost 52 lbs).

Life_is_Good

I found this information on www.bmi-calculator.net - alot of info, but it's a great guideline....

Harris Benedict Formula
To determine your total daily calorie needs, multiply your BMR by the appropriate activity factor, as follows:


If you are sedentary (little or no exercise) : Calorie-Calculation = BMR x 1.2
If you are lightly active (light exercise/sports 1-3 days/week) : Calorie-Calculation = BMR x 1.375
If you are moderatetely active (moderate exercise/sports 3-5 days/week) : Calorie-Calculation = BMR x 1.55
If you are very active (hard exercise/sports 6-7 days a week) : Calorie-Calculation = BMR x 1.725
If you are extra active (very hard exercise/sports & physical job or 2x training) : Calorie-Calculation = BMR x 1.9


Calorie Needs to lose weight
There are approximately 3500 calories in a pound of stored body fat. So, if you create a 3500-calorie deficit through diet, exercise or a combination of both, you will lose one pound of body weight. (On average 75% of this is fat, 25% lean tissue) If you create a 7000 calorie deficit you will lose two pounds and so on. The calorie deficit can be achieved either by calorie-restriction alone, or by a combination of fewer calories in (diet) and more calories out (exercise). This combination of diet and exercise is best for lasting weight loss. Indeed, sustained weight loss is difficult or impossible without increased regular exercise.

If you want to lose fat, a useful guideline for lowering your calorie intake is to reduce your calories by at least 500, but not more than 1000 below your maintenance level. For people with only a small amount of weight to lose, 1000 calories will be too much of a deficit. As a guide to minimum calorie intake, the American College of Sports Medicine (ACSM) recommends that calorie levels never drop below 1200 calories per day for women or 1800 calories per day for men. Even these calorie levels are quite low.

An alternative way of calculating a safe minimum calorie-intake level is by reference to your body weight or current body weight. Reducing calories by 15-20% below your daily calorie maintenance needs is a useful start. You may increase this depending on your weight loss goals.

questionablemethods

I also think MFP is pretty low. When I first joined and it suggested 1200 (+exercise cals) for me to lose 1 lb/week I basically said "Oh HELL no!" and I looked around at some different sites to try to figure out a happy medium. I am one of those people who is just always hungry and I knew that I would get really "hangry" (hungry-angry) on 1200/day. I basically try to average 1400/day, sometimes eating the exercise cals, sometimes not, sometimes eating some, sometimes going quite a bit over.... I mix it up. :laugh:

ErinSarah12

I've found that too. Some sites say I should be eating 2000 to lose a pound a week, and this one says 1300! I also have a friend who went to see a nutritionist who has her eating 3000 calories a day (!) and she's losing weight. For myself, I find 1300 a little low most days, but I don't worry TOO much about hitting it exactly as long as I am around 1600 (plus exercise calories if I work out). I focus more on eating food that is good for me, and having no sugar.

questionablemethods

Another source of confusion is that sometimes "lifestyle" seems to take in exercise cals and sometimes it doesn't. So, for example, if you see a dietician and tell him/her that you are exercising for 45 mins/day, he/she will give you a calorie goal that already takes that into account (as will some other tracking sites out there), whereas MFP does not take those into account.

Basically, no formula out there is going to be perfect for everyone. A lot can depend upon how much muscle you have and also your idea of "lightly active" (or whatever) might be different than someone else's assessment of "lightly active". It takes some experimentation to get things right. I try to stay away from really calorie-dense foods, but if I am still hungry at the end of the day, I go over a bit and try not to stress about it too much. If I'm not hungry, I might not eat all of my allowance. It isn't an exact science with the tools that we have available.

sweetbn

I still have another 50 lbs to lose (already lost 52 lbs).

Congrats on 50!!

I think 1300 is very low especially with an active lifestyle. MFP is saying to maintain you'd need about 2300 calories a day which sounds about accurate, and I think since you have lost a great deal of weight al ready,

What really is important is what works for you... try adding another 100 calories a day and see if you are "fuller" for a week - if not, add another 100. If your body is very hungry, like I said, it can inhibit your weight loss for sure. I know you said you eat your exercise cals but make sure that you always do!

stormieweather

Keep in mind that the MFP allowance has a deficit built in for weight loss. Depending on the goals you entered, MFP deducts 250, 500, or 1000 calories from your maintenance calories in order for you to lose the weight and meet your goals. This is why you should eat your exercise calories, so you keep that deficit exact (not increase it to unhealthy levels).

Many sites will give you your calories burned based on activity level and THEN, you have to go out and work off enough to lose the weight. The bottom line will work out the same.

Ie:

MFP - 2000 maintenance - 500 deficit = 1500 calorie (-500 calories exercises + 500 exercise calories eaten still = 1500 calories)
Other site - 2000 maintenance - 500 workout = 1500 calories

turboandrea

I weigh 198 pounds at 5'9 1/2." MFP allotted me 1200 calories a day in order to lose 2 pounds a week.

My day consists of eight hours at a desk being about as sedentary as a slug. I try to work out almost every day and have needed to since joining MFP. I go over 1200 calories every day by about 100-300. When I get home, I work out and I try to eat my remaining calories. However, if I'm not that hungry after I work out, I'm not going to gorge myself at 9 p.m. just to meet the number. I go to bed around 9:30/10:00 p.m.

We'll see if these numbers work for me. I tried doing the 1700 calories a day with exercise but have only been gaining weight or maintaining. I really think my sedentary desk job affects my body in tremendous ways and 1200 may be the answer. I've been on this plan for four days now and have not felt lightheaded, hungry (other than when it's time for meals) - just right. The only thing I need to do now is make sure sodium stays under.

Everyone is different, bottom line.

ridelikeagirl616

fitness and calorie counting definitely need to go hand and hand to lose weight and be healthy but the daily calorie allowance isn't as simple as that too... still need to make sure there is a good balance of protein, healthy fats and complex carbs... your body will respond very differently to a "processed foods" 1400 cal/day than a "clean foods" 1400 cal/day...

good luck and HAVE FUN :flowerforyou:
Kate