How much calories does everyone eat?

babybellyfat

Mfp says 1200 but u find it’s so low
And I’m always hungry. I wonder if I change that will I lose weight? I’m 42
4 feet 8, weight 100.4 what do u all think? How much cal do u eat per day?

BarbaraHelen2013

How many calories other people eat is largely irrelevant. People of different heights, weights, ages, genders, activity levels, medical conditions etc etc will need different amounts of calories.

I imagine you’re posting here because you want to lose some weight? Have you set up MFP to calculate your calorie needs based on a sensible approach? You’re very small already so you’re not going to be able to lose more than half a pound a week, if that! I can’t imagine that you’re looking to lose more than a few vanity pounds at that weight.

Edit to add - just crossed my mind that the 100.4 might be kg, not pounds as I first assumed. You’re going to have to clarify that before any meaningful advice can be given!

brittanystebbins95

Between 1600-1800.
I think I have MFP set up at 1700 right now, but sometimes I'll only be within range of my number depending on how hungry I am.
I'm 5'6" and almost 24, and I have a pretty active job and run at least once or twice a week, and lift weights almost daily.

JennJ323

1200 a day if I'm working on losing
1400-1600 a day if I'm maintaining

I'm 5'2" and 124lb

lalalacroix

I started with 1,300 calories and realized that was way too low for me. I raised it to 1,500 then 1,600 and now lose weight eating 1,700-1,800 calories. I've lost 56 pounds and only have a few to go.

I don't believe in being miserable during weight loss. You could always bump up your calories a bit and then give yourself 4-6 weeks to see if you are still losing at a healthy rate.

MikePTY

What is your goal? MFP gives you 1200 because that is the lowest it will give you, but the truth is with your height, if you are sedentary, 1200 is actually your maintenance calories. Your BMR is 973 calories.

You are right in the middle of a healthy weight range of your height, so you may be better off trying to maintain your weight and re-composition your body rather than lose weight. You do this by doing strength training and you should slowly gain muscle and lose fat. If you exercise, you will get additional calories that you can eat back.

MikePTY

I eat 2250 a day to lose 1 pound, but I am a 5'11, 196 pound 33 year old male who is active. So it is a very different situation.

middlehaitch

Thanks for doing the maths @MikePTY, I was just starting on it.

@babybellyfat. I am taller than you, 5’1, but of a similar weight, 102 (average), with a similar RMR to what Mike estimated for you above, 975, I am old hence a low estimated RMR.

At sedentary/ not very active 1200 would have me maintaining.
If, however, I am lightly active, which I am, I can lose 1-1.5 lbs a month on 1200.

I always used MFP for my cal burn through exercise and found I could eat back all the cals allotted giving me an extra ~200 cal a day.

I’ve been in maintenance a number of years and my TDEE is around 1750 to maintain at 100-105lbs with a minimal 5x60 exercise per week.

If your not exercising I would encourage you to add it in gradually. Both cardio and weights. (Looks like you lift )

If you are generally sedentary, work can do that for a lot of us, I would encourage you to subtly up your NEAT by moving more throughout the day.

Reintroducing inefficiencies in household management that I had spent so many years getting rid of really helped me. No more staging area for things that need to go up and down stairs, they go individually now, etc, etc.

Because you are well within the healthy weight range for your height it is going to be slow.
It is for most folk at your BMI no matter what their height.

0.5 lbs a week is the most you should aim for but it could work out less.

You may want to look at how many cals you weee eating to maintain your weight, and seeing if taking 250 cals off that will give you more than 1200 cals for 0.5lbs a week loss.

Cheers, h.

You may find this useful for increasing your NEAT.
https://community.myfitnesspal.com/en/discussion/10610953/neat-improvement-strategies-to-improve-weight-loss/p1

kshama2001

babybellyfat wrote: »

Mfp says 1200 but u find it’s so low
And I’m always hungry. I wonder if I change that will I lose weight? I’m 42
4 feet 8, weight 100.4 what do u all think? How much cal do u eat per day?

My OH and I used to split pizzas before I realized this was silly - he is a foot taller than me and needs more calories.

Likewise, I am a lot taller than you, and if your weight of 100.4 is pounds, a lot heavier than you, so my calorie allowance is not relevant to you.

quiksylver296

I'm a foot taller than you. My calories are going to be irrelevant.

You will get more calories the more active you are. Try taking a couple of walks per day or doing something that helps bump up your daily calories.

apullum

You're already in an optimal BMI range for your height, assuming we are talking pounds and not kilograms. Given your stats, I am extremely confident that you'd need to eat 1200 calories per day to lose weight if you are sedentary. It's possible that you'd even be maintaining at 1200. And, if you're not maintaining at 1200, then I would expect your weight loss to be extremely slow because you are so small. Your stats just do not support a very large deficit.

In addition, if you lose more weight, the calories you will get in maintenance will also decrease. You need to consider not only how many calories you can eat in weight loss, but also whether you will be able to maintain a lower weight happily. For reference, I am just under 5 feet, maintaining at 110-115 at 1400 not counting exercise. Since you are shorter, older, and lighter than me, your maintenance calorie goal would already be lower than mine, and it will be even lower if you lose more weight.

Having said all that, if you're unhappy with your appearance, I would strongly suggest recomp rather than weight loss.

MoKaaz

As I am 5'4", when I was at 174.5 lbs it gave me 1200 as I wanted to lose faster. I find that if you are picking the right types of food (not a lot of empty calories like ice cream or candy) then you should find yourself feeling fuller and more content. Another way is to eat distinguished meals rather than snacking throughout the day.

corinasue1143

I usually eat way too many. That’s why I’m tracking them now and trying to eat a little less.

LKArgh

babybellyfat wrote: »

Mfp says 1200 but u find it’s so low
And I’m always hungry. I wonder if I change that will I lose weight? I’m 42
4 feet 8, weight 100.4 what do u all think? How much cal do u eat per day?

It depends on height, weight, age and physical activity. If you really need to further lower you weight, given where you start and your age, unless you are physically active, 1200 sounds more like your maintenance that something that will let you lose. I am taller and 40 lbs heavier than you and unless I exercise, I very slowly lose at 1200, my maintenance when not physically active is barely 1400-1500.

babybellyfat

Thank you everyone ❤️

Pipsqueak1965

I'm short too - about 5 foot, and weigh around 105 pounds. My maintenance is somewhere around 16-1700 calories (not eating back any exercise).