Eating more calories

MandyCMN

I don’t have a lot to lose and I’m quite active. Setting my activity level on mfp and to lose at .5lbs a week gives me 1600 calories. I was thinking of trying 1700 calories, has anyone else lost eating slightly higher? I wouldn’t be eating exercise calories on top of this as I prefer a set amount.

Lietchi

If you prefer a set amount of calories, I would suggest trying one or several TDEE calculators and seeing what they think your maintenance is. And then subtracting 250 calories from that if you want to lose 0.5 lbs per week.

It's hard for us to say if 1700 calories is right for you, since we don't know precisely how active you are (exercise and non exercise activity) or what your personal stats are.

lgfrie

Sure, in theory if eating 1600 would get you 0.5 lbs lost per week, then eating 1700 would get you 0.4 pounds. If you're happy with the 0.4 pounds, then 1700 is fine.

Actually, losing weight a little slower and getting some more food is, in my experience, a much better way to do it. The only downside is that it requires a little more patience since the weight loss will be slower. EVERYTHING else is pure upside: more food, easier to comply with, less hunger, less chance of going off the rails on a binge, less need for off meals or off days, easier to get all the right nutrients.

I started at 1600 calories (male) - it was over the 1500 "minimum" but tbh I was pretty hungry a lot of the time. I bumped it up a few times over the past year and now it's at 1850, which I find very comfortable and doable. Again, minor downside is, weight loss is definitely slower at 1850 than 1600, but everything else is upside - I can coast month after month after month on this plan, rarely feel any need for off-meals, generally stay on plan 24x7, pretty satisfied with the food I get to eat, etc.

Bottom line, erring on the side of eating more food rather than less is smart dieting.

Strudders67

What @igfrie says is correct - but then I read that you don't plan to eat your exercise calories, in which case you'd be creating a bigger deficit. Without knowing how much exercise you do, how frequently or to what intensity or duration, it's impossible to say whether 1700 would be OK.

So I agree with @Lietchi. Use a TDEE calculation and deduct a deficit from the overall figure.