New Here! Advice Please!

hannahbaker411

Hi everyone I am new to the MyFitnessPal community and I am just looking for some tips and suggestions.

1) The calculated calorie count that MyFitnessPal provides, is it the amount I can have a day?? For example when I inputed my information I put Sedentary, that I hope to workout 3 times a week for at least 30-45 mins and I hope to lose 1 pound a week. It calculated my calorie count to 1310.

2) I am 165 pounds and hope to be 130. Any advice on how to reach this goal I have tried so many diets in the past and honestly nothing is working. I recently found out that my body produces high amounts of estrogen and therefore I seen a doctor about it and she gave me natural supplements to balance it out (hoping that my body won't store a lot of fat). Another thing is my body is an Endomorph, I just feel like I have to tailor an exercise and diet plan around it...any thought please?Or any way to direct me to the right sources.

3) Any workout plan suggestions as well??? (I have a-lot of fat in my arms, mid section and thighs). I also workout at home because I have basic level weights and a treadmill (cannot afford a gym right now). Also should I take any supplements or anything to help?????

4) I am really committed to this goal but another problem I have is I LOVE sugar and sweets and I have tried to cut out completely but its so hard and I can't seem to stick to it. Any thoughts?

5) Lastly, I recently found out that I am allergic to gluten (After seeing a million doctors!), and I have noticed that a lot of replacements such as gluten free bread are higher in calories than regular whole wheat or white bread. Any thoughts on how to lose weight while being gluten-free?


Thank you so much and sorry for the overwhelming post!

janejellyroll

1. Your calorie goal is what MFP estimates you need in order to meet the weight goal you entered. Additionally, you will log your workouts and get additional calories back to eat. So if your goal is 1,310 and you exercise and burn 100 calories, your new goal will be 1,410.

2. Consistently being in a calorie deficit will result in weight loss. You don't need to tailor your diet or exercise to your "endomorph" status, as that isn't a real thing. It's just a category that a guy made up. Some people do feel like they fit into the categories, but it's no different than an astrological sign or something like that.

3. A treadmill and basic weights are a good set-up to start with. It's unlikely you will need supplements.

4. If cutting sugar and sweets out completely doesn't work, have you tried having some each day within your calorie goals? This works for many of us. When I know I can have more tomorrow, it's much easier for me to stick to my planned portion size.

5. You don't have to eat specific gluten-free foods (unless you want to). You can just eat the wide variety of foods that are naturally gluten-free. If you do want some bread, just plan a portion size that fits into your calorie goals.

steveko89

1) 1 lb/week is a good place to start with the amount you have to lose. The calorie target is generated from your starting height/weight, the selection in that loss rate drop down, and the activity level drop down. The fact that you input your plan to workout 3x/week has no bearing on that initial calculation. Intentional exercise should be logged separately and you'll get credit for those calorie estimations in the form of additional calories added to that day. The database uses generic estimates so they may not prove to be an accurate representation of your activity depending on size, intensity of activity, fitness level, etc. It's common for users to start with only eating 1/2 of their exercise calories and adjusting up or down based on how they feel and what they're results are telling them after a few weeks.

2) Losing fat comes down to a consistent calorie deficit; how you get there is up to you. Exercise in whatever way you enjoy or requisite to your goals (practice a skill, get faster, stronger, more flexible, etc.). Despite the existence of somatypes in the form of different body types, they have no bearing on weight loss, fitness, etc. https://muscleevo.net/body-type/

3) See above regarding exercise. In addition, the best workout plan is one you like and follow consistently. There are plenty of options for home workouts with limited equipment or body weight movements. Youtube can be a great resource for yoga and calisthenics videos. Supplements can be helpful if you have identified a shortcoming in your diet or a deficiency. Otherwise, most is marketing fluff. There are no short cuts or magic pills. Personally, I do you a pre-workout with creatine for early morning weightlifting, take a multi-vitamin, and vitamin D in the winter. Regarding fat in certain areas of the body; unfortunately, spot reduction of fat through exercise is not possible. Genetics dictate where one loses fat. Strengthening and growing muscles in certain areas may improve aesthetics to a point, but being in a caloric deficit is the path to losing fat.

4) Personally, I have had plenty of success losing and maintaining through moderation and not having any "off-limits" foods. When I first started using the platform I learned a lot about where my pitfalls were by just eating normally and logging to see where I stood. Easy swaps and reductions stuck out like sore thumbs and made it easy to come to small yet sustainable solutions (spicy mustard vs. mayo, a little less creamer in my coffee, 2 oreos instead of 5) which made things really manageable. Instead of making big sweeping changes I'd encourage looking for small improvements you can make and accumulate improvement over time. I think this approach had a lot do with cultivating permanent food habits.

5) I don't have any direct experience with this but being gluten-free doesn't change the calorie balance physics, it's just something you'll have to manage. So long as you achieve a calorie deficit you should be able to lose weight just fine.

Bonus advice:
- Get a food scale and weigh portions. In my experience, nothing comes close to being as accurate
- Log everything, make it habitual. Weekends, birthdays, holidays, parties, that donut in the breakroom, midnight snacks, even if you know you're way over for a given day log it. This isn't for guilt or punishment, it's educational. From a data collection perspective you have to have to whole picture about where the calories are coming from. There was a six month span where I spun my wheels at the same weight. When I dug into my data, I saw I logged really really well Monday through lunch on Friday; after that it was spotty at best. Logging exhaustively fixed that immediately.
- Similarly, when you do have a day that's over your intended calories don't dwell on it or beat yourself up, just move on and treat the next day like business-as-usual.
- Don't let perfection be the enemy of good. Too many users try to hold themselves to very restrictive diets in terms of quantity and food selection, which fosters the likelihood for cravings and compensatory binges. Every day isn't going to look perfect but coming in under maintenance levels consistently is going to eventually get you where you want to go.