Starving and miserable

2

Replies

  • bmeadows380
    bmeadows380 Posts: 2,981 Member
    freelymama wrote: »
    Ok. So as a compromise ive set it to lose 1.5lbs per week, not very active (for now while in lockdown) and will endeavour to add in some excerisse to "earn" extra calories. Whats the best way to be accurate on this. Step counter? Dont we all burn different amount depending how hard we are working? I dont want to "eat back" excersise calories and end up over eating!

    A step counter or a fitness tracker with heart rate monitor can be useful in judging your activity level. I used a step counter to push myself to get up to at least 5,000 steps a day, then I bought a cheap fitness tracker to help me judge the intensity of my workouts when I started them. But they aren't absolutely necessary, either.

    The general recommendation is to start with counting back half of your exercise calories and adjust as necessary, especially if you are using MFP's values. So say you do a low impact workout video for 30 minutes (I do this at lunchtime currently). Count the MFP entry for low impact aerobics for 15 minutes to get the half calorie count. MFP takes your currently weight log and calculates the calorie burn using that and the minutes you input.

    For some of the entries, you'll need to make a judgement call. for instance: I have a cheap elliptical here that my grandfather had left in one of his rental homes. I know that even using the present workouts on it, its not a very strenuous workout, rarely getting my heart rate above 110. So it would be considered a light effort. But MFP doesn't have an entry for elliptical, light effort so I choose to instead using the walking entry for either 2.0 or 2.5 mph for my sessions. My current walking speed is actually around 3.25 mph, but there isn't an entry for that, so I may count 60-70% of my walks at 3.0 mph instead.

    So start at adding half calories back for exercise, give it a few weeks and adjust as necessary.
  • lgfrie
    lgfrie Posts: 1,449 Member
    edited April 2020
    freelymama wrote: »
    Ok. Im not sure i can really say im lightly actvie then. No in not sat on couch all day but im not run off my feet either. We have a small hpuse its not much effort to go from one end to the other. Im doubg a bit of light hpusework and sitting on the floor or in garden with the kids. Its still sitting. If we wernt in lickdoen yeh id say its hard work with kids in tow going places and school runs but not at the moment.

    I would put it as sedentary. Especially during Quarantine. But it's actually a moot point. I think you've made a wise choice setting your cals to 1500 and that should provide a great baseline for you to move forward. In 2 weeks you'll know whether 1500 is just right, or maybe you need a little more food (likely), or could do with a little less (unlikely). The whole sedentary vs lightly active thing is just to help you get started; it isn't like fitting into category A vs B really matters, other than for MFP to be able to ballpark how many calories you should be eating. 1200 was too low, at 2030 you won't lose any weight, so yeah, around 1500-1650 ish is where you're gonna need to be to drop the pounds at a motivating pace without feeling too deprived and you don't need a label to know that.

    EDIT: I should mention that when I ran your stats through TDEE calculator to get your maintenance calories of 2030, I assumed "Sedentary". For someone sitting in a house during quarantine I can't really see how that wouldn't make sense. But again, the category is kinda irrelevant if you've settled on a caloric level to get started, as you have.
  • Theoldguy1
    Theoldguy1 Posts: 2,496 Member
    edited April 2020
    deannalfisher wrote: »
    lightly active is walking about 4000 steps a day (sedentary is less than 3000) - MFP does NOT include purposeful exercise in your calorie count (so if you do like a workout video - it expects you to eat back at least a portion of those calories)

    The things I'm seeing are calling sedentary less than 5000 steps a day

    Sedentary is less than 5,000 steps per day
    Low active is 5,000 to 7,499 steps per day
    Somewhat active is 7,500 to 9,999 steps per day
    Active is more than 10,000 steps per day
    Highly active is more than 12,500

    https://www.10000steps.org.au/articles/counting-steps/


    Based on currently available evidence, we propose the following preliminary indices be used to classify pedometer-determined physical activity in healthy adults: (i). <5000 steps/day may be used as a 'sedentary lifestyle index'; (ii). 5000-7499 steps/day is typical of daily activity excluding sports/exercise and might be considered 'low active'; (iii). 7500-9999 likely includes some volitional activities (and/or elevated occupational activity demands) and might be considered 'somewhat active'; and (iv). >or=10000 steps/day indicates the point that should be used to classify individuals as 'active'. Individuals who take >12500 steps/day are likely to be classified as 'highly active'.

    ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/14715035
  • Theoldguy1
    Theoldguy1 Posts: 2,496 Member
    amusedmonkey wrote: »
    Theoldguy1 wrote: »
    deannalfisher wrote: »
    lightly active is walking about 4000 steps a day (sedentary is less than 3000) - MFP does NOT include purposeful exercise in your calorie count (so if you do like a workout video - it expects you to eat back at least a portion of those calories)

    The things I'm seeing are calling sedentary less than 5000 steps a day

    Sedentary is less than 5,000 steps per day
    Low active is 5,000 to 7,499 steps per day
    Somewhat active is 7,500 to 9,999 steps per day
    Active is more than 10,000 steps per day
    Highly active is more than 12,500

    https://www.10000steps.org.au/articles/counting-steps/


    Based on currently available evidence, we propose the following preliminary indices be used to classify pedometer-determined physical activity in healthy adults: (i). <5000 steps/day may be used as a 'sedentary lifestyle index'; (ii). 5000-7499 steps/day is typical of daily activity excluding sports/exercise and might be considered 'low active'; (iii). 7500-9999 likely includes some volitional activities (and/or elevated occupational activity demands) and might be considered 'somewhat active'; and (iv). >or=10000 steps/day indicates the point that should be used to classify individuals as 'active'. Individuals who take >12500 steps/day are likely to be classified as 'highly active'.

    ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/14715035

    While this is the general consensus, the way MFP calculates calories is different. It basically compares the calories you get from their equation to the calories received from trackers. It doesn't exactly read the number of steps. It generally counted over sedentary for me at 2500-3500 steps, depending on my speed.

    Figured there may be something in the MFP algorithm. Would have been nice if they set up the formulas so the MFP definition of sedentary matched up with the general consensus.
  • PAV8888
    PAV8888 Posts: 14,254 Member
    edited April 2020
    amusedmonkey wrote: »
    Theoldguy1 wrote: »
    deannalfisher wrote: »
    lightly active is walking about 4000 steps a day (sedentary is less than 3000) - MFP does NOT include purposeful exercise in your calorie count (so if you do like a workout video - it expects you to eat back at least a portion of those calories)

    The things I'm seeing are calling sedentary less than 5000 steps a day

    Sedentary is less than 5,000 steps per day
    Low active is 5,000 to 7,499 steps per day
    Somewhat active is 7,500 to 9,999 steps per day
    Active is more than 10,000 steps per day
    Highly active is more than 12,500

    https://www.10000steps.org.au/articles/counting-steps/


    Based on currently available evidence, we propose the following preliminary indices be used to classify pedometer-determined physical activity in healthy adults: (i). <5000 steps/day may be used as a 'sedentary lifestyle index'; (ii). 5000-7499 steps/day is typical of daily activity excluding sports/exercise and might be considered 'low active'; (iii). 7500-9999 likely includes some volitional activities (and/or elevated occupational activity demands) and might be considered 'somewhat active'; and (iv). >or=10000 steps/day indicates the point that should be used to classify individuals as 'active'. Individuals who take >12500 steps/day are likely to be classified as 'highly active'.

    ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/14715035

    While this is the general consensus, the way MFP calculates calories is different. It basically compares the calories you get from their equation to the calories received from trackers. It doesn't exactly read the number of steps. It generally counted over sedentary for me at 2500-3500 steps, depending on my speed.

    OOPSIES... clicked on save too early... post under construction!

    The things is... all these settings are not mutually exclusive or exhaustive or authoritative... they are approximations and guesses and in some cases were developed for different purposes.

    So the "health" guidelines are trying to develop base level of activities for health.

    On MFP we are using steps as a proxy for general movement (so do you count soft steps? Do you discard the first 5, 8, 10, 12 steps the counter counts? What if the person is moving continuously in a 1x1 area so they never string 12 steps together? What if they're Italian and swing their hands around a lot when they talk?). And that general movement is a proxy for how active one is in terms of determining an activity factor multier.

    You will also note that MFP has one less category of activity than most studies.

    For most people MFP's activity factor multiplier of 1.25 for sedentary corresponds to about 3,500 steps. By 5,000 steps pretty much everyone has moved into lightly active.

    By the time you hit 7,500 steps, AF of 1.4 (lightly active) is pretty much done.... and for sure by the time you hit 10K steps.

    By the time you hit 8K steps AF of 1.6 (active) is a reality for most... for sure at 10K... for most by 12.5K it is done.

    By the time you hit 12.5K many people are into very active (1.8AF). Most for sure at about 13.5K.
    And by the time you hit 16K you move above that.

    Sort of a bit hard to define it like this, though, right?
  • stiches987
    stiches987 Posts: 4 Member
    you need to work with a nutritionist. They will guide you. most ins. will pay for this. On my many yo yo dieting over the years. WW was the best.. they started me at l500 cal per day.. then as I lost a certain % of the weight they lowered the calories to l300, then l200 calories. however, I did my own eating program. I found the exact calories I need to eat to maintain the weight I want to be... it came out to l350 a day. i went to my favorite healthy foods so I didn't feel deprived. but always calories, i eat a little under l350 more like l300..room for error, measure all of your food... it does count. use healthy choice or lean cuisine frozen meals ..delish. I did loose aaah l20 lbs... so I get it. and have been maintaining so far for 3 yrs...
  • Theoldguy1
    Theoldguy1 Posts: 2,496 Member
    tinkerbellang83 wrote: »
    stiches987 wrote: »
    you need to work with a nutritionist. They will guide you. most ins. will pay for this. On my many yo yo dieting over the years. WW was the best.. they started me at l500 cal per day.. then as I lost a certain % of the weight they lowered the calories to l300, then l200 calories. however, I did my own eating program. I found the exact calories I need to eat to maintain the weight I want to be... it came out to l350 a day. i went to my favorite healthy foods so I didn't feel deprived. but always calories, i eat a little under l350 more like l300..room for error, measure all of your food... it does count. use healthy choice or lean cuisine frozen meals ..delish. I did loose aaah l20 lbs... so I get it. and have been maintaining so far for 3 yrs...

    Anyone can be a nutritionist, doesn't make them particularly qualified or regulated, unlike a Registered Dietician who must be degree qualified and usually regulated by a professional national medical body.

    Yep might as well talk to oneself in the mirror about nutrition and save the $.

    To be honest, though I believe outside of the US a nutritionist is the equivalent of a Registered Dietitian (i.e., extensive specialized training past a 4 year degree, licenced, etc.).
  • hipari
    hipari Posts: 1,367 Member
    I'm the exact weight you are, 218lbs, although a few inches taller (5'8). From this perspective, I'll share what I have learned and experienced:

    I have MFP set at lightly active, and a target loss of 1lb/0.5kg per week. This gives me a daily calorie goal of 1930 calories. I have found this amount of calories to be sustainable once I get the hang of it (currently back at logging and focusing on sensible eating after a couple of months of burn-out, quarantine and other health issues). If I dip to 1600, I usually end up eating a lot more the next day because I'm starving. My daily calories tend to vary between 1800 and 2200 depending on what I have for lunch etc.

    Is there a reason you are trying to lose weight so fast? You probably didn't gain it that fast, you don't need to lose it that fast unless there's a medical issue diagnosed by your doctor.

    Based on my experience, if you can afford to do so, I'd recommend getting a Fitbit or some other activity tracker that has constant heart rate measuring. I have my Fitbit linked to MFP and it gives me the comparison between my actual daily burn and my actual daily intake. I make sure the difference stays between 400 and 600 on average, and I know I'm good. At least for me the burn number provided by Fitbit is accurate and the math checks out, so I don't have to worry about guesswork regarding calories, I can focus instead on healthier choices regarding nutrition and fitness.
  • hipari
    hipari Posts: 1,367 Member
    Theoldguy1 wrote: »
    tinkerbellang83 wrote: »
    stiches987 wrote: »
    you need to work with a nutritionist. They will guide you. most ins. will pay for this. On my many yo yo dieting over the years. WW was the best.. they started me at l500 cal per day.. then as I lost a certain % of the weight they lowered the calories to l300, then l200 calories. however, I did my own eating program. I found the exact calories I need to eat to maintain the weight I want to be... it came out to l350 a day. i went to my favorite healthy foods so I didn't feel deprived. but always calories, i eat a little under l350 more like l300..room for error, measure all of your food... it does count. use healthy choice or lean cuisine frozen meals ..delish. I did loose aaah l20 lbs... so I get it. and have been maintaining so far for 3 yrs...

    Anyone can be a nutritionist, doesn't make them particularly qualified or regulated, unlike a Registered Dietician who must be degree qualified and usually regulated by a professional national medical body.

    Yep might as well talk to oneself in the mirror about nutrition and save the $.

    To be honest, though I believe outside of the US a nutritionist is the equivalent of a Registered Dietitian (i.e., extensive specialized training past a 4 year degree, licenced, etc.).

    Living in Europe and being a non-native English speaker, I was very confused when I started seeing a professional described as Registered Dietician in the US. The direct translation of their title would be "nutritional therapist", they have a college degree on the subject and are licensed and supervised by health officials just like doctors. I didn't know the correct term in the US was Registered Dietician and not some derivative of the word nutrition, until I mentioned the visits on the forums and got a lot of comments about why I would throw money down the drain by seeing some hack and not a licensed professional.
  • amusedmonkey
    amusedmonkey Posts: 10,330 Member
    edited April 2020
    hipari wrote: »
    Theoldguy1 wrote: »
    tinkerbellang83 wrote: »
    stiches987 wrote: »
    you need to work with a nutritionist. They will guide you. most ins. will pay for this. On my many yo yo dieting over the years. WW was the best.. they started me at l500 cal per day.. then as I lost a certain % of the weight they lowered the calories to l300, then l200 calories. however, I did my own eating program. I found the exact calories I need to eat to maintain the weight I want to be... it came out to l350 a day. i went to my favorite healthy foods so I didn't feel deprived. but always calories, i eat a little under l350 more like l300..room for error, measure all of your food... it does count. use healthy choice or lean cuisine frozen meals ..delish. I did loose aaah l20 lbs... so I get it. and have been maintaining so far for 3 yrs...

    Anyone can be a nutritionist, doesn't make them particularly qualified or regulated, unlike a Registered Dietician who must be degree qualified and usually regulated by a professional national medical body.

    Yep might as well talk to oneself in the mirror about nutrition and save the $.

    To be honest, though I believe outside of the US a nutritionist is the equivalent of a Registered Dietitian (i.e., extensive specialized training past a 4 year degree, licenced, etc.).

    Living in Europe and being a non-native English speaker, I was very confused when I started seeing a professional described as Registered Dietician in the US. The direct translation of their title would be "nutritional therapist", they have a college degree on the subject and are licensed and supervised by health officials just like doctors. I didn't know the correct term in the US was Registered Dietician and not some derivative of the word nutrition, until I mentioned the visits on the forums and got a lot of comments about why I would throw money down the drain by seeing some hack and not a licensed professional.

    Same here. It was a bit of a culture shock. No one is allowed to practice unless they have at least a bachelor's degree on the subject. I still use "nutritionist" and "dietitian" interchangeably when I'm not careful.

    EDIT:
    On the subject. I hope OP keeps us updated. Seeing a new poster willing to do what it takes is refreshing (play the long game and think about sustainability).
  • JK1542020
    JK1542020 Posts: 73 Member
    springlering62 wrote: »
    OP, you can do this, you know. You’re already engaged and responding and clearly digesting what’s been posted, which is more than 85% of OPs do.

    You’re getting some great advice here. The MFP people will bend over backwards to help and answer questions, no matter how dumb you may worry you sound. I have spent countless hours browsing these boards and could not have done it without these peeps.

    I started out at 1470 for several months, floundering around and not knowing what I was doing. After being roundly chewed out by a trainer, confirmed by a follow up visit to my dietician, I bumped it up, then up and then up again.

    It’s not writ in stone. You’ve got to give yourself the grace and the time not to be in a hurry, and to find what works for you.

    Btw, my three sessions with a dietician? Worth. Every. Penny. Go armed with a list of questions- again have no fear how dumb some may be. I am still staggered at how little I knew- and still don’t- about my body. Learning every day.

    Thank you so much for this. Such a lovely comment. You're right I can always play around and change it if its not right. I'll look into that dietician once im allowed out the house again! Thank you x
  • heybales
    heybales Posts: 18,842 Member
    freelymama wrote: »
    hipari wrote: »
    I'm the exact weight you are, 218lbs, although a few inches taller (5'8). From this perspective, I'll share what I have learned and experienced:

    I have MFP set at lightly active, and a target loss of 1lb/0.5kg per week. This gives me a daily calorie goal of 1930 calories. I have found this amount of calories to be sustainable once I get the hang of it (currently back at logging and focusing on sensible eating after a couple of months of burn-out, quarantine and other health issues). If I dip to 1600, I usually end up eating a lot more the next day because I'm starving. My daily calories tend to vary between 1800 and 2200 depending on what I have for lunch etc.

    Is there a reason you are trying to lose weight so fast? You probably didn't gain it that fast, you don't need to lose it that fast unless there's a medical issue diagnosed by your doctor.

    Based on my experience, if you can afford to do so, I'd recommend getting a Fitbit or some other activity tracker that has constant heart rate measuring. I have my Fitbit linked to MFP and it gives me the comparison between my actual daily burn and my actual daily intake. I make sure the difference stays between 400 and 600 on average, and I know I'm good. At least for me the burn number provided by Fitbit is accurate and the math checks out, so I don't have to worry about guesswork regarding calories, I can focus instead on healthier choices regarding nutrition and fitness.

    Thank you this is interesting to read. I wouldn't necessarily say im trying to lose it fast exactly (although obviously an overnight transformation would be nice) but I am 5 years into trying to have a baby and my doctor has given my 9 months to lose the weight before he will give me.any more treatment. Dont worry I've come to the conclusion this isnt going to be happening as if i eat 1000 calories a day in going to binge i guarantee it and i dont want to start over because starying is really hard!

    I've reset it to lightly active for now and ive adjusted calories to 1500 purely because i feel this is fine for me for now. Today i found this much much easier. The thing im still insure about is the whole not active/lightly active thing but ive got a fitbit coming in the post so im.hoping that will give me an idea of my step count and help me figure that out. Im doing these walking exercises videos to try and make up for staying in the house too.

    Reeeeeeally appreciate all the help im feeling positive about it all now :)

    What's nice when you have accounts linked is the above no longer matters about knowing steps and picking the correct activity level - as MFP will be correcting it's daily burn estimate to whatever Fitbit is saying you burned.

    So instead of picking from 4 rough estimates, MFP will be using the total calorie range you happen to burn, 1000's of levels then.
    And your eating goal will be properly increased when you do more, and decreased when you do less, to keep the same deficit no matter how the day is going.
  • JK1542020
    JK1542020 Posts: 73 Member
    heybales wrote: »
    freelymama wrote: »
    hipari wrote: »
    I'm the exact weight you are, 218lbs, although a few inches taller (5'8). From this perspective, I'll share what I have learned and experienced:

    I have MFP set at lightly active, and a target loss of 1lb/0.5kg per week. This gives me a daily calorie goal of 1930 calories. I have found this amount of calories to be sustainable once I get the hang of it (currently back at logging and focusing on sensible eating after a couple of months of burn-out, quarantine and other health issues). If I dip to 1600, I usually end up eating a lot more the next day because I'm starving. My daily calories tend to vary between 1800 and 2200 depending on what I have for lunch etc.

    Is there a reason you are trying to lose weight so fast? You probably didn't gain it that fast, you don't need to lose it that fast unless there's a medical issue diagnosed by your doctor.

    Based on my experience, if you can afford to do so, I'd recommend getting a Fitbit or some other activity tracker that has constant heart rate measuring. I have my Fitbit linked to MFP and it gives me the comparison between my actual daily burn and my actual daily intake. I make sure the difference stays between 400 and 600 on average, and I know I'm good. At least for me the burn number provided by Fitbit is accurate and the math checks out, so I don't have to worry about guesswork regarding calories, I can focus instead on healthier choices regarding nutrition and fitness.

    Thank you this is interesting to read. I wouldn't necessarily say im trying to lose it fast exactly (although obviously an overnight transformation would be nice) but I am 5 years into trying to have a baby and my doctor has given my 9 months to lose the weight before he will give me.any more treatment. Dont worry I've come to the conclusion this isnt going to be happening as if i eat 1000 calories a day in going to binge i guarantee it and i dont want to start over because starying is really hard!

    I've reset it to lightly active for now and ive adjusted calories to 1500 purely because i feel this is fine for me for now. Today i found this much much easier. The thing im still insure about is the whole not active/lightly active thing but ive got a fitbit coming in the post so im.hoping that will give me an idea of my step count and help me figure that out. Im doing these walking exercises videos to try and make up for staying in the house too.

    Reeeeeeally appreciate all the help im feeling positive about it all now :)

    What's nice when you have accounts linked is the above no longer matters about knowing steps and picking the correct activity level - as MFP will be correcting it's daily burn estimate to whatever Fitbit is saying you burned.

    So instead of picking from 4 rough estimates, MFP will be using the total calorie range you happen to burn, 1000's of levels then.
    And your eating goal will be properly increased when you do more, and decreased when you do less, to keep the same deficit no matter how the day is going.

    Oh really i had no idea it did that! Brilliant that will be really motivating i bet. So my calorie range will adjust according to how many steps im doing? Does that make it difficult to plan your calories in advance or does it work of a base range?
  • amusedmonkey
    amusedmonkey Posts: 10,330 Member
    edited May 2020
    freelymama wrote: »
    heybales wrote: »
    freelymama wrote: »
    hipari wrote: »
    I'm the exact weight you are, 218lbs, although a few inches taller (5'8). From this perspective, I'll share what I have learned and experienced:

    I have MFP set at lightly active, and a target loss of 1lb/0.5kg per week. This gives me a daily calorie goal of 1930 calories. I have found this amount of calories to be sustainable once I get the hang of it (currently back at logging and focusing on sensible eating after a couple of months of burn-out, quarantine and other health issues). If I dip to 1600, I usually end up eating a lot more the next day because I'm starving. My daily calories tend to vary between 1800 and 2200 depending on what I have for lunch etc.

    Is there a reason you are trying to lose weight so fast? You probably didn't gain it that fast, you don't need to lose it that fast unless there's a medical issue diagnosed by your doctor.

    Based on my experience, if you can afford to do so, I'd recommend getting a Fitbit or some other activity tracker that has constant heart rate measuring. I have my Fitbit linked to MFP and it gives me the comparison between my actual daily burn and my actual daily intake. I make sure the difference stays between 400 and 600 on average, and I know I'm good. At least for me the burn number provided by Fitbit is accurate and the math checks out, so I don't have to worry about guesswork regarding calories, I can focus instead on healthier choices regarding nutrition and fitness.

    Thank you this is interesting to read. I wouldn't necessarily say im trying to lose it fast exactly (although obviously an overnight transformation would be nice) but I am 5 years into trying to have a baby and my doctor has given my 9 months to lose the weight before he will give me.any more treatment. Dont worry I've come to the conclusion this isnt going to be happening as if i eat 1000 calories a day in going to binge i guarantee it and i dont want to start over because starying is really hard!

    I've reset it to lightly active for now and ive adjusted calories to 1500 purely because i feel this is fine for me for now. Today i found this much much easier. The thing im still insure about is the whole not active/lightly active thing but ive got a fitbit coming in the post so im.hoping that will give me an idea of my step count and help me figure that out. Im doing these walking exercises videos to try and make up for staying in the house too.

    Reeeeeeally appreciate all the help im feeling positive about it all now :)

    What's nice when you have accounts linked is the above no longer matters about knowing steps and picking the correct activity level - as MFP will be correcting it's daily burn estimate to whatever Fitbit is saying you burned.

    So instead of picking from 4 rough estimates, MFP will be using the total calorie range you happen to burn, 1000's of levels then.
    And your eating goal will be properly increased when you do more, and decreased when you do less, to keep the same deficit no matter how the day is going.

    Oh really i had no idea it did that! Brilliant that will be really motivating i bet. So my calorie range will adjust according to how many steps im doing? Does that make it difficult to plan your calories in advance or does it work of a base range?

    I don't know how people plan, but I usually only plan my largest meal (which is lunch) and any higher calorie snacks (we made coconut macaroons yesterday). I look at whatever is left and decide if I need to have a lighter/average/heavier breakfast. Dinner is whatever left - I'm not big on dinner so I don't mind it being any size. This process will be different for everyone, especially that many people have dinner as their largest meal.

    Don't worry, you'll find your own groove and what works for you. It doesn't take long to get a feel for your daily calories. Most people who aren't athletes burn roughly the same number of calories on exercise days unless they're doing something exceptional that week like a long hike or something. You'll see how many calories you usually burn and you'll have an idea of what to eat. If you burn less/more than usual one day, all you have to do is remove food/add a snack/make your last meal bigger or smaller.

    A side note: if you will be using a Fitbit with a heart rate monitor, I have found them to over-estimate my calorie burn by a lot so I had to turn that function off. It's accurate enough for some people to eat 100% back, but not for me. My heart rate increases for all kinds of reasons not all related to effort. It also increases more in the summer or when I slept poorly for the same amount of work. Start by eating back no more than half of these extra calories. You can always adjust the percentage you eat back later if you're losing too fast.

    Edit: an advanced strategy for later with Fitbit. Not necessary and I doubt many do this, but it made things easier for me in the long run. I made myself shorter/older on Fitbit. This reduced the number of calories it sends to myfitnesspal. I kept tweaking these settings until the extra calories were about 90% accurate to my loss. It made things easier because I knew I could eat my entire calorie allowance every day without having to calculate a percentage off.

  • heybales
    heybales Posts: 18,842 Member
    freelymama wrote: »
    heybales wrote: »
    freelymama wrote: »
    hipari wrote: »
    I'm the exact weight you are, 218lbs, although a few inches taller (5'8). From this perspective, I'll share what I have learned and experienced:

    I have MFP set at lightly active, and a target loss of 1lb/0.5kg per week. This gives me a daily calorie goal of 1930 calories. I have found this amount of calories to be sustainable once I get the hang of it (currently back at logging and focusing on sensible eating after a couple of months of burn-out, quarantine and other health issues). If I dip to 1600, I usually end up eating a lot more the next day because I'm starving. My daily calories tend to vary between 1800 and 2200 depending on what I have for lunch etc.

    Is there a reason you are trying to lose weight so fast? You probably didn't gain it that fast, you don't need to lose it that fast unless there's a medical issue diagnosed by your doctor.

    Based on my experience, if you can afford to do so, I'd recommend getting a Fitbit or some other activity tracker that has constant heart rate measuring. I have my Fitbit linked to MFP and it gives me the comparison between my actual daily burn and my actual daily intake. I make sure the difference stays between 400 and 600 on average, and I know I'm good. At least for me the burn number provided by Fitbit is accurate and the math checks out, so I don't have to worry about guesswork regarding calories, I can focus instead on healthier choices regarding nutrition and fitness.

    Thank you this is interesting to read. I wouldn't necessarily say im trying to lose it fast exactly (although obviously an overnight transformation would be nice) but I am 5 years into trying to have a baby and my doctor has given my 9 months to lose the weight before he will give me.any more treatment. Dont worry I've come to the conclusion this isnt going to be happening as if i eat 1000 calories a day in going to binge i guarantee it and i dont want to start over because starying is really hard!

    I've reset it to lightly active for now and ive adjusted calories to 1500 purely because i feel this is fine for me for now. Today i found this much much easier. The thing im still insure about is the whole not active/lightly active thing but ive got a fitbit coming in the post so im.hoping that will give me an idea of my step count and help me figure that out. Im doing these walking exercises videos to try and make up for staying in the house too.

    Reeeeeeally appreciate all the help im feeling positive about it all now :)

    What's nice when you have accounts linked is the above no longer matters about knowing steps and picking the correct activity level - as MFP will be correcting it's daily burn estimate to whatever Fitbit is saying you burned.

    So instead of picking from 4 rough estimates, MFP will be using the total calorie range you happen to burn, 1000's of levels then.
    And your eating goal will be properly increased when you do more, and decreased when you do less, to keep the same deficit no matter how the day is going.

    Oh really i had no idea it did that! Brilliant that will be really motivating i bet. So my calorie range will adjust according to how many steps im doing? Does that make it difficult to plan your calories in advance or does it work of a base range?

    It's actually according to distance those steps take you.

    Do 5000 steps shuffling around Costco, compared to 5000 purposely walking a workout - your distance will be very different as will daily activity calorie burn.
    So just because you'll see steps as an easy to read figure (like glasses of water, just a number), it's the distance and calories that actually causes the adjustment. So don't worry when your adjustment isn't the same when steps are about the same.
  • hipari
    hipari Posts: 1,367 Member
    freelymama wrote: »
    heybales wrote: »
    freelymama wrote: »
    hipari wrote: »
    I'm the exact weight you are, 218lbs, although a few inches taller (5'8). From this perspective, I'll share what I have learned and experienced:

    I have MFP set at lightly active, and a target loss of 1lb/0.5kg per week. This gives me a daily calorie goal of 1930 calories. I have found this amount of calories to be sustainable once I get the hang of it (currently back at logging and focusing on sensible eating after a couple of months of burn-out, quarantine and other health issues). If I dip to 1600, I usually end up eating a lot more the next day because I'm starving. My daily calories tend to vary between 1800 and 2200 depending on what I have for lunch etc.

    Is there a reason you are trying to lose weight so fast? You probably didn't gain it that fast, you don't need to lose it that fast unless there's a medical issue diagnosed by your doctor.

    Based on my experience, if you can afford to do so, I'd recommend getting a Fitbit or some other activity tracker that has constant heart rate measuring. I have my Fitbit linked to MFP and it gives me the comparison between my actual daily burn and my actual daily intake. I make sure the difference stays between 400 and 600 on average, and I know I'm good. At least for me the burn number provided by Fitbit is accurate and the math checks out, so I don't have to worry about guesswork regarding calories, I can focus instead on healthier choices regarding nutrition and fitness.

    Thank you this is interesting to read. I wouldn't necessarily say im trying to lose it fast exactly (although obviously an overnight transformation would be nice) but I am 5 years into trying to have a baby and my doctor has given my 9 months to lose the weight before he will give me.any more treatment. Dont worry I've come to the conclusion this isnt going to be happening as if i eat 1000 calories a day in going to binge i guarantee it and i dont want to start over because starying is really hard!

    I've reset it to lightly active for now and ive adjusted calories to 1500 purely because i feel this is fine for me for now. Today i found this much much easier. The thing im still insure about is the whole not active/lightly active thing but ive got a fitbit coming in the post so im.hoping that will give me an idea of my step count and help me figure that out. Im doing these walking exercises videos to try and make up for staying in the house too.

    Reeeeeeally appreciate all the help im feeling positive about it all now :)

    What's nice when you have accounts linked is the above no longer matters about knowing steps and picking the correct activity level - as MFP will be correcting it's daily burn estimate to whatever Fitbit is saying you burned.

    So instead of picking from 4 rough estimates, MFP will be using the total calorie range you happen to burn, 1000's of levels then.
    And your eating goal will be properly increased when you do more, and decreased when you do less, to keep the same deficit no matter how the day is going.

    Oh really i had no idea it did that! Brilliant that will be really motivating i bet. So my calorie range will adjust according to how many steps im doing? Does that make it difficult to plan your calories in advance or does it work of a base range?

    You will learn pretty soon what your burn will be approximately.

    I personally prefer checking my deficit in Fitbit app, because it shows total amount of calories burned vs total amount eaten instead of how much of my ”allowance” is left like MFP does. I attached a couple of pics to show what kind of views Fitbit has for burn vs intake - I still haven’t found out what the limits for over, under and in the zone colors are in the bar chart, but they give a rough idea.

    9l9oyvnsy9m4.jpeg
    0lbk8bx078ia.jpeg
  • PAV8888
    PAV8888 Posts: 14,254 Member
    edited May 2020
    @amusedmonkey I don't doubt that it works for you (and you also keep track with your spreadsheets) but mathematically eating a percentage of the difference between Fitbit and MFP makes no sense. The percentage correction should be on tdee (the totality of cal) in order to actually be proportional. Half the difference will produce a variable eat back percentage as your tdee changes with respect to the fixed tdee value provided by MFP.

    In any case, changing stride length directly would have the largest effect on calories. Changing age affects BMR and heart rate. Height affects bmr and stride length.

    If I recall correctly Fitbit considers +/- 50 Cal to be on target (green)

    In any case, this is definitely majoring in the minors at this time and in reference to the OP.

    Just... try to log accurately. get most of your days in the ball park whether under or over. Don't stop logging because you're off track. Don't try to correct or over correct; just get back with the normal program with your next eating decision opportunity. Use your log to review what you're eating and evaluate if it was worth it to you (satiety, nutrition, satisfaction) and use your winners to displace losers!

    and.... Check your weight trend after 4-6 weeks that include a complete cycle by comparing your results across the same points in consecutive hormonal cycles (to reduce the influence of hormonal water retention). Compare your actual and expected results based on your logged calories in and out.

    And adjust.
  • amusedmonkey
    amusedmonkey Posts: 10,330 Member
    PAV8888 wrote: »
    @amusedmonkey I don't doubt that it works for you (and you also keep track with your spreadsheets) but mathematically eating a percentage of the difference between Fitbit and MFP makes no sense. The percentage correction should be on tdee (the totality of cal) in order to actually be proportional. Half the difference will produce a variable eat back percentage as your tdee changes with respect to the fixed tdee value provided by MFP.

    When you edit Fitbit settings you're editing TDEE. That's my go to method. Eating a 50% of Fitbit calories is usually suggested as a starting point because you need to start somewhere. It's not meant to be an accurate estimate. Many people can continue to use the percentage method even after they dial in their numbers based on their data because they more or less have a certain consistent exercise routine and their TDEE is within a narrow range. Close enough is close enough if you're don't enjoy spreadsheets like me. Does it really make all that much of a difference if you lose 1 lb, 0.9 lb, or 1.1 lb?
  • quietriver
    quietriver Posts: 38 Member
    edited May 2020
    Most doctors aren't that well versed in nutrition, you need to talk to a dietician sat!

    Bmr is body metabic rate, the amount of calories needed per day just to keep your body alive:

    Here's a calculator:

    https://www.calculator.net/bmr-calculator.html?ctype=standard&cage=25&csex=f&cheightfeet=5&cheightinch=4&cpound=218&cheightmeter=180&ckg=60&cmop=0&coutunit=c&cformula=m&cfatpct=20&x=61&y=23

    I put in your info assuming you're a woman due to the avatir you're using, so your bmr is:

    BMR = 1,719 Calories/day

    If you exercise you need 2k calories and higher!

    Suggestion: Fire your doctor and "ask" (demand) for a new one.

    What ever happened to "do no harm?"

    You go ahead and eat, please eat something! Anyone can become malnurshed at any weight.

    I suggest starting at 2500 calories for the first month then talking off 100 calories every month (or week) and seeing how you feel. Being too houngry for too long can cause the brain to take over and force a binge. Not to mention causing negativity towards food and self. :(

    Please go have a nice big steak/tofu block with lots of veggies and like maybe a pint of halo top! Feel better. *hugs*
  • quietriver
    quietriver Posts: 38 Member
    psychod787 wrote: »
    well.... uh hum.... Most M.D.'s know dick about nutrition and weight loss. They only care about results and most don't care about long term results. When I was in the E.R. dealing with starvation issues, one told me he hands out 12-1600 calorie diets like they are candy. Yes, you are tired! That is the bodies way of saving energy when in a low calorie availability state. People spontaneously move less. NEAT levels dropping are well documented in weight loss studies. My suggestion is to find a WOE and calorie amount that you can maintain in the long run. Let your lifestyle decide your weight. Use the calorie suggestion from MFP, weigh and measure your food if you go that route, and find foods AKA a WOE that fills you up and keeps you satiated. I like the idea of "ideal" weight. It might not be our goal, we might not be as lean as we like, but its a place you are healthier, feel good, and can sustain. Cheers!

    *Hugs this person* ❤

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