this might be a stupid question but...

stephieleee
stephieleee Posts: 113 Member
in Health and Weight Loss
How often should I be adjusting my calorie limit when I'm losing weight to account for the fact that my TDEE will also be decreasing?

Should I just continue with my current calorie limit until I plateau?

Or should I be reviewing it every time I lose 5kg? 10kg?

Any suggestions are much appreciated! Thanks :)

Replies

  • maureenkhilde
    maureenkhilde Posts: 849 Member
    I adjust mine for every 5 pounds I go down. So I think that would be about every 2-3 kg? I think if you do the above that might be too much time in between.
  • earlnabby
    earlnabby Posts: 8,171 Member
    If you do the automatic set-up in MFP it will ask you to recalculate after each 10 lb lost.
  • workinonit1956
    workinonit1956 Posts: 1,043 Member
    I did it every 10 pounds.
  • RealWorldStrengthLLC
    RealWorldStrengthLLC Posts: 552 Member
    I do every five pounds...which reminds me, I need to adjust it right now lol
  • Unknown
    Unknown
    This content has been removed.
  • stephieleee
    stephieleee Posts: 113 Member
    Leannep2201 wrote: »
    I guess it depends on how you want to lose weight.
    I’ve stayed on 1600cal for the last 10 months, and have lost consistently throughout this time. It has slowed down as I’ve lost, but I’ve also got more active, so that has helped balance things out.
    I decided that I’d rather lose weight slower and be happier with my calorie intake because it felt sustainable, than lose weight faster and have to keep adjusting to fewer calories. Have lost nearly 70lb now.

    Yeah that's kind of why I'm asking. I like my calorie goal at the moment. It's comfortable and I don't feel like I'm starving or missing out on anything. I'm currently eating 1600-1700 net, and I feel like eating less will make me want to binge eat. There will definitely be room for me to add some more activity so that should hopefully help! Thanks :)
  • tinkerbellang83
    tinkerbellang83 Posts: 9,129 Member
    stephieleee wrote: »
    Leannep2201 wrote: »
    I guess it depends on how you want to lose weight.
    I’ve stayed on 1600cal for the last 10 months, and have lost consistently throughout this time. It has slowed down as I’ve lost, but I’ve also got more active, so that has helped balance things out.
    I decided that I’d rather lose weight slower and be happier with my calorie intake because it felt sustainable, than lose weight faster and have to keep adjusting to fewer calories. Have lost nearly 70lb now.

    Yeah that's kind of why I'm asking. I like my calorie goal at the moment. It's comfortable and I don't feel like I'm starving or missing out on anything. I'm currently eating 1600-1700 net, and I feel like eating less will make me want to binge eat. There will definitely be room for me to add some more activity so that should hopefully help! Thanks :)

    As you get closer to goal your weight loss needs to slow down so there is nothing inherently wrong with sticking to the same calorie allowance unless you're in a very aggressive deficit, it just means you'll gradually have a smaller deficit than you originally had.

    It is however a good idea to take a diet break now and again not just for your body but also for your mind. https://community.myfitnesspal.com/en/discussion/10604863/of-refeeds-and-diet-breaks#latest
  • stephieleee
    stephieleee Posts: 113 Member
    tinkerbellang83 wrote: »
    stephieleee wrote: »
    Leannep2201 wrote: »
    I guess it depends on how you want to lose weight.
    I’ve stayed on 1600cal for the last 10 months, and have lost consistently throughout this time. It has slowed down as I’ve lost, but I’ve also got more active, so that has helped balance things out.
    I decided that I’d rather lose weight slower and be happier with my calorie intake because it felt sustainable, than lose weight faster and have to keep adjusting to fewer calories. Have lost nearly 70lb now.

    Yeah that's kind of why I'm asking. I like my calorie goal at the moment. It's comfortable and I don't feel like I'm starving or missing out on anything. I'm currently eating 1600-1700 net, and I feel like eating less will make me want to binge eat. There will definitely be room for me to add some more activity so that should hopefully help! Thanks :)

    As you get closer to goal your weight loss needs to slow down so there is nothing inherently wrong with sticking to the same calorie allowance unless you're in a very aggressive deficit, it just means you'll gradually have a smaller deficit than you originally had.

    It is however a good idea to take a diet break now and again not just for your body but also for your mind. https://community.myfitnesspal.com/en/discussion/10604863/of-refeeds-and-diet-breaks#latest

    Thanks for this! I've been wondering about refeeds and what they are, that was going to be my follow up question lol. I shall have a look into this :)
  • cmriverside
    cmriverside Posts: 34,416 Member
    I lost most of my weight at 1600-1700 too. My maintenance turns out to be about 2000, so that was a good place for me to be. I had energy, wasn't starving and when I did some exercise I ate a couple or three hundred more.

    Some people just calculate their maintenance calories at their goal weight and use that...which is a good way as well.
  • Deviette
    Deviette Posts: 978 Member
    Readjust when you stop losing (or massively slow). If you're happy on your current goal, and you're losing weight at a speed you're happy with, then why change?
  • thisPGHlife
    thisPGHlife Posts: 440 Member
    To who ever wooed me, I would love to hear what in my post is too good to be true or is incorrect. I would like to think I'm not giving incorrect information but if that isn't the case, please let me know. I would rather correct my error so op walks away with good information than preserve my ego. Thanks!
  • cmriverside
    cmriverside Posts: 34,416 Member
    skram01 wrote: »
    To who ever wooed me, I would love to hear what in my post is too good to be true or is incorrect. I would like to think I'm not giving incorrect information but if that isn't the case, please let me know. I would rather correct my error so op walks away with good information than preserve my ego. Thanks!

    It wasn't me, but don't take it that way. A lot of newer members still use the Woo as WooHoo. Just ignore it.
  • thisPGHlife
    thisPGHlife Posts: 440 Member
    cmriverside wrote: »
    skram01 wrote: »
    To who ever wooed me, I would love to hear what in my post is too good to be true or is incorrect. I would like to think I'm not giving incorrect information but if that isn't the case, please let me know. I would rather correct my error so op walks away with good information than preserve my ego. Thanks!

    It wasn't me, but don't take it that way. A lot of newer members still use the Woo as WooHoo. Just ignore it.

    I figure that may be the case but I wanted to put it out there just in case someone genuinely thought I was wrong. Thanks though!
  • L1zardQueen
    L1zardQueen Posts: 8,753 Member
    skram01 wrote: »
    To who ever wooed me, I would love to hear what in my post is too good to be true or is incorrect. I would like to think I'm not giving incorrect information but if that isn't the case, please let me know. I would rather correct my error so op walks away with good information than preserve my ego. Thanks!

    I thought it was a thoughtful response. I gave you a hug.
  • jondspen
    jondspen Posts: 253 Member
    When I was 195, I think MFP put calories at around 1850 for a half pound per week loss rate. Now that I'm down to 165 pounds, my daily is 1780...so not even a full 100 calories difference after losing 30 pounds. I would adjust every 10 pounds or so (~5 kilograms).
  • earlnabby
    earlnabby Posts: 8,171 Member
    skram01 wrote: »
    To who ever wooed me, I would love to hear what in my post is too good to be true or is incorrect. I would like to think I'm not giving incorrect information but if that isn't the case, please let me know. I would rather correct my error so op walks away with good information than preserve my ego. Thanks!

    Trust me, if someone felt something in your post was wrong, they would correct you in a response. In my 4+ years on MFP I have collected about 80 "woo"s, only half of them being from someone who disagreed or was woo-ing everyone who disagreed with their side in a debate. I even had a recipe for my chili get 2 woos.
  • stephieleee
    stephieleee Posts: 113 Member
    skram01 wrote: »
    stephieleee wrote: »
    Leannep2201 wrote: »
    I guess it depends on how you want to lose weight.
    I’ve stayed on 1600cal for the last 10 months, and have lost consistently throughout this time. It has slowed down as I’ve lost, but I’ve also got more active, so that has helped balance things out.
    I decided that I’d rather lose weight slower and be happier with my calorie intake because it felt sustainable, than lose weight faster and have to keep adjusting to fewer calories. Have lost nearly 70lb now.

    Yeah that's kind of why I'm asking. I like my calorie goal at the moment. It's comfortable and I don't feel like I'm starving or missing out on anything. I'm currently eating 1600-1700 net, and I feel like eating less will make me want to binge eat. There will definitely be room for me to add some more activity so that should hopefully help! Thanks :)

    If it's broke, don't fix it. But really, if you're comfortable with the eating within your calorie limit and your losing at a healthy rate (generally the limit is no more than 1% of current body weight), then your doing just right for you. When it does start to take you can either adjust the calories you eat down or increase your exercise, aka increase the calories you burn.

    You'll reach points where you'll want the deficit to decrease regardless because as you get closer to goal, you want to start losing at a slower rate. This not only helps you by keeping within the 1% range, but also helps you about huge calorie jumps when you get to goal. If you have to go from a 750-1000 calorie deficit to eating at maintenance, some people experience anxiety about putting the weight back on. This is worsened by the fact that increasing your calories causes a, usually temporary, jump in the scale. This is usually because of water weight because increased calories generally means increased salt and carbs. If the gap between where you're eating and maintenance is smaller, the jump in the scale is usually smaller. Plus, it's mentally easier to say to yourself, "I get to eat an extra 250 calories!" As opposed to saying, "I need to eat an extra 1000 calories" which, for women, can increase your daily calories by 1/2 to almost doubling.

    With diet breaks, these are a great idea for mental health. You can stop being quite as strict on yourself and allows you to fit in some foods you wouldn't normally eat. Usually people will take a few days to a week of eating at maintenance and normally it's not a free for all but still trying for eating a nutrient dense diet overall while allowing for treats. Great for the week of Thanksgiving if you're in the US! I know there are recommended time frames for when you should take diet breaks (I can't remember off the top of my head) but personally, part of it is being self aware. If you've been in a calorie deficit for 6 months and you've spent the last two weeks feeling pissy about it, maybe it's time to take a week off, breathe a little, and reevaluate your motives to make sure they still hold true and that your going to continue for the right reasons. Heck, I'm even toying with the idea of being in maintenance from Thanksgiving through Christmas so I can practice maintenance during the holidays for the future and to allow myself to enjoy the holidays with the added pressure.

    Sorry this is long!! It seems like you're very self aware about what is working for you and doing it in a healthy manner. Good luck!

    Thanks so much for your reply! No need to be sorry that it's long, it's super informative! Good to know about the jump in scale when heading into maintenance. I'm a while off that yet but I like to be prepared and to know what to expect.

    When you say a healthy rate of weight loss is 1%, is that over a period of a week?

    I've got a week off over Christmas where I'll be with my family so sounds like the perfect time for a diet break to me otherwise I feel like I'll be missing out lol
  • thisPGHlife
    thisPGHlife Posts: 440 Member
    stephieleee wrote: »
    skram01 wrote: »
    stephieleee wrote: »
    Leannep2201 wrote: »
    I guess it depends on how you want to lose weight.
    I’ve stayed on 1600cal for the last 10 months, and have lost consistently throughout this time. It has slowed down as I’ve lost, but I’ve also got more active, so that has helped balance things out.
    I decided that I’d rather lose weight slower and be happier with my calorie intake because it felt sustainable, than lose weight faster and have to keep adjusting to fewer calories. Have lost nearly 70lb now.

    Yeah that's kind of why I'm asking. I like my calorie goal at the moment. It's comfortable and I don't feel like I'm starving or missing out on anything. I'm currently eating 1600-1700 net, and I feel like eating less will make me want to binge eat. There will definitely be room for me to add some more activity so that should hopefully help! Thanks :)

    If it's broke, don't fix it. But really, if you're comfortable with the eating within your calorie limit and your losing at a healthy rate (generally the limit is no more than 1% of current body weight), then your doing just right for you. When it does start to take you can either adjust the calories you eat down or increase your exercise, aka increase the calories you burn.

    You'll reach points where you'll want the deficit to decrease regardless because as you get closer to goal, you want to start losing at a slower rate. This not only helps you by keeping within the 1% range, but also helps you about huge calorie jumps when you get to goal. If you have to go from a 750-1000 calorie deficit to eating at maintenance, some people experience anxiety about putting the weight back on. This is worsened by the fact that increasing your calories causes a, usually temporary, jump in the scale. This is usually because of water weight because increased calories generally means increased salt and carbs. If the gap between where you're eating and maintenance is smaller, the jump in the scale is usually smaller. Plus, it's mentally easier to say to yourself, "I get to eat an extra 250 calories!" As opposed to saying, "I need to eat an extra 1000 calories" which, for women, can increase your daily calories by 1/2 to almost doubling.

    With diet breaks, these are a great idea for mental health. You can stop being quite as strict on yourself and allows you to fit in some foods you wouldn't normally eat. Usually people will take a few days to a week of eating at maintenance and normally it's not a free for all but still trying for eating a nutrient dense diet overall while allowing for treats. Great for the week of Thanksgiving if you're in the US! I know there are recommended time frames for when you should take diet breaks (I can't remember off the top of my head) but personally, part of it is being self aware. If you've been in a calorie deficit for 6 months and you've spent the last two weeks feeling pissy about it, maybe it's time to take a week off, breathe a little, and reevaluate your motives to make sure they still hold true and that your going to continue for the right reasons. Heck, I'm even toying with the idea of being in maintenance from Thanksgiving through Christmas so I can practice maintenance during the holidays for the future and to allow myself to enjoy the holidays with the added pressure.

    Sorry this is long!! It seems like you're very self aware about what is working for you and doing it in a healthy manner. Good luck!

    Thanks so much for your reply! No need to be sorry that it's long, it's super informative! Good to know about the jump in scale when heading into maintenance. I'm a while off that yet but I like to be prepared and to know what to expect.

    When you say a healthy rate of weight loss is 1%, is that over a period of a week?

    I've got a week off over Christmas where I'll be with my family so sounds like the perfect time for a diet break to me otherwise I feel like I'll be missing out lol

    With the jump in scale, you notice it whenever it whenever you increase your calories. Sometimes the jump is bigger than other times. The week with family is a great time to do it! You can enjoy being with family and while you'll still want to avoid everything in sight, you can relax about food. Even then you will notice a jump though. If you feel like that might end up stressing you out, take a break from the scale as well. Give yourself a few days after getting back to not with yourself. Or weigh yourself so that you can start practicing not feeling the awful feelings. It's really easy to see the jump and think that you'll never be able to eat normally again. It takes a little practice to sit with those emotions and not let them done in and become a self fulfilling prophecy.

    As with most things with weight loss, you want to look at 4-6 week cons. For women who haven't hit menopause it can be helpful to err on the 6 week side to make sure there is a full cycle because hormones. That goes for the 1% as well. I have had it happen A LOT where I'll stall for a few weeks or show a very minimal loss (.2) for a few weeks with some bouncing back and forth on the scale and then have a woosh where I'll drop 4-5 pounds. I know some people who are closer to maintenance that only see a drop once a month (it's at the expected rate but it's like the fat waits to all come off at once). And having a week or two that's on the high side, especially at the beginning or if you've changed anything like starting a new workout program, is ok. You just don't want to be losing too fast over a long period of time.
  • AnnPT77
    AnnPT77 Posts: 34,204 Member
    skram01 wrote: »
    stephieleee wrote: »
    skram01 wrote: »
    stephieleee wrote: »
    Leannep2201 wrote: »
    I guess it depends on how you want to lose weight.
    I’ve stayed on 1600cal for the last 10 months, and have lost consistently throughout this time. It has slowed down as I’ve lost, but I’ve also got more active, so that has helped balance things out.
    I decided that I’d rather lose weight slower and be happier with my calorie intake because it felt sustainable, than lose weight faster and have to keep adjusting to fewer calories. Have lost nearly 70lb now.

    Yeah that's kind of why I'm asking. I like my calorie goal at the moment. It's comfortable and I don't feel like I'm starving or missing out on anything. I'm currently eating 1600-1700 net, and I feel like eating less will make me want to binge eat. There will definitely be room for me to add some more activity so that should hopefully help! Thanks :)

    If it's broke, don't fix it. But really, if you're comfortable with the eating within your calorie limit and your losing at a healthy rate (generally the limit is no more than 1% of current body weight), then your doing just right for you. When it does start to take you can either adjust the calories you eat down or increase your exercise, aka increase the calories you burn.

    You'll reach points where you'll want the deficit to decrease regardless because as you get closer to goal, you want to start losing at a slower rate. This not only helps you by keeping within the 1% range, but also helps you about huge calorie jumps when you get to goal. If you have to go from a 750-1000 calorie deficit to eating at maintenance, some people experience anxiety about putting the weight back on. This is worsened by the fact that increasing your calories causes a, usually temporary, jump in the scale. This is usually because of water weight because increased calories generally means increased salt and carbs. If the gap between where you're eating and maintenance is smaller, the jump in the scale is usually smaller. Plus, it's mentally easier to say to yourself, "I get to eat an extra 250 calories!" As opposed to saying, "I need to eat an extra 1000 calories" which, for women, can increase your daily calories by 1/2 to almost doubling.

    With diet breaks, these are a great idea for mental health. You can stop being quite as strict on yourself and allows you to fit in some foods you wouldn't normally eat. Usually people will take a few days to a week of eating at maintenance and normally it's not a free for all but still trying for eating a nutrient dense diet overall while allowing for treats. Great for the week of Thanksgiving if you're in the US! I know there are recommended time frames for when you should take diet breaks (I can't remember off the top of my head) but personally, part of it is being self aware. If you've been in a calorie deficit for 6 months and you've spent the last two weeks feeling pissy about it, maybe it's time to take a week off, breathe a little, and reevaluate your motives to make sure they still hold true and that your going to continue for the right reasons. Heck, I'm even toying with the idea of being in maintenance from Thanksgiving through Christmas so I can practice maintenance during the holidays for the future and to allow myself to enjoy the holidays with the added pressure.

    Sorry this is long!! It seems like you're very self aware about what is working for you and doing it in a healthy manner. Good luck!

    Thanks so much for your reply! No need to be sorry that it's long, it's super informative! Good to know about the jump in scale when heading into maintenance. I'm a while off that yet but I like to be prepared and to know what to expect.

    When you say a healthy rate of weight loss is 1%, is that over a period of a week?

    I've got a week off over Christmas where I'll be with my family so sounds like the perfect time for a diet break to me otherwise I feel like I'll be missing out lol

    With the jump in scale, you notice it whenever it whenever you increase your calories. Sometimes the jump is bigger than other times. The week with family is a great time to do it! You can enjoy being with family and while you'll still want to avoid everything in sight, you can relax about food. Even then you will notice a jump though. If you feel like that might end up stressing you out, take a break from the scale as well. Give yourself a few days after getting back to not with yourself. Or weigh yourself so that you can start practicing not feeling the awful feelings. It's really easy to see the jump and think that you'll never be able to eat normally again. It takes a little practice to sit with those emotions and not let them done in and become a self fulfilling prophecy.

    As with most things with weight loss, you want to look at 4-6 week cons. For women who haven't hit menopause it can be helpful to err on the 6 week side to make sure there is a full cycle because hormones. That goes for the 1% as well. I have had it happen A LOT where I'll stall for a few weeks or show a very minimal loss (.2) for a few weeks with some bouncing back and forth on the scale and then have a woosh where I'll drop 4-5 pounds. I know some people who are closer to maintenance that only see a drop once a month (it's at the expected rate but it's like the fat waits to all come off at once). And having a week or two that's on the high side, especially at the beginning or if you've changed anything like starting a new workout program, is ok. You just don't want to be losing too fast over a long period of time.

    For clarity: I think she means losing at most about 1% of current body weight per week on average, with that average calculated over 4-6 weeks (a full menstrual cycle plus a little for premenopausal women). If new to weight loss, it's often a good idea to ignore the first week or two when calculating averages, as the scale fluctuations can be extreme/atypical/misleading from an initial drop of water weight and average digestive system contents.
  • bigbandjohn
    bigbandjohn Posts: 769 Member
    edited November 2018
    I recently re-adjusted after losing over 40 lbs with the app. However, to be fair I did spend 3 months competing and dropped a lot lower than my actual goal. May not have been the wisest thing, but when I started I was at 1970, and now I'm at 1670. Wierdly, I was messing with the app and after losing a few pounds it would have shaved 10 calories off of my goal if I recalculated.

    I would say do what works for you. If you are losing consistently, don't worry about change. If not, then perhaps you should consider a change. Not saying do/don't. Just consider/don't consider.

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