1500 Calories + 10,000 Steps a day.

Taleciab94

Hello I am a 27 yr old female 185lbs and 5'5" will I lose weight eating 1500 calories and walking 10,000 steps a day? Just checking to see if anyone has had success doing this.

Lietchi

Is there a particular reason you don't want to use MFP's calorie goal? 10000 steps a day would probably be active in the activity level setting and then you just have to choose a weight loss rate (max. 1.5lbs per week would be my suggestion, at least at the beginning, and then slowing down as you lose weight).

I'd say it doesn't sound like a bad number, certainly to start with. Results will vary for each individual (some people have slower/faster metabolisms than average) so I would suggest trying it for at least one menstrual cycle/month, preferably two. Based on your results you can adapt if necessary: eat more if you're losing too fast (max 1.5lbs per week on average), eat less if you're not losing weight.

You should know that by eating a fixed amount (1500) your weight loss will slow as you lose weight (a smaller body burns less calories).

Also relevant: if you're doing exercise on top of those 10000 steps (or those 10000 steps include exercise like aerobics or running) you'll need to take that into account and eat a bit more, since you don't want to undereat (health risks).

Xellercin

Try it for six weeks consistently, log your weight every day, and then see what result it produces and if it's something you can sustainably do long term.

Only time can really tell you if an approach will work for you.

I know that when I was your weight, I slowly but steadily lost weight eating more than 1500 calories per day. But my loss was very slow, which I was happy with, because what I was doing was sustainable.

These days I weigh less and am less active due to injury, so I typically have to eat less than 1500 calories in order to lose. I know this from logging and seeing the results, and then modifying accordingly.

When it comes to managing your weight, it's not a rush, it's a long term process, so long term behaviours and data are really the key to long term success.

nanastaci2020

Yes. I say this based on the math. At 5'5" 185 pounds, active at 10k steps per day, you would be in a calorie deficit. I would estimate based on BMR of 1575 and that level of movement that your total daily energy expenditure would be 2200-2500 so a deficit to lose roughly 1.5-2 pounds per week on average, over time.

But the better question: is 10k steps daily on 1500 calories sustainable for you? Can you do that level of activity without soon getting tired of it and stopping it altogether? Can you feel satisfied, energetic and satiated on 1500 calories per day? If so - great. If not, remember this is a long term project. So if being a little less active and/or eating a little more per day allows you long term success, even if weight loss is a little slower, then that is a win.

nanastaci2020

Ps-I went from 180ish to 130ish in 9.5 months in 2014, eating 1400-1600 daily and getting about 10k steps daily at age 39. I am 5'5".

dragon_girl26

Yes, you would lose weight, assuming 1500 would be your gross intake. I am also 5'5", and when I was 185 lbs I lost weight eating more than that. My average steps are/were around 15K.

SallyKaPow

I'm slightly taller than you at 5'8, but I'm also eating around 1500kcals a day and walking/running 10,000 steps a day and I'm losing weight at a rate of about 1lb a week. I wish I could make it happen faster, but I can't realistically drop my calorie intake without falling off the wagon.

drmwc

I did this for about two months. The weight came off very quickly indeed. It was a bit miserable, but effective. (I am a 5 foot 9 male who started at 185 pounds and reached 140 pounds). I think I actually averaged around 15,000 steps rather than 10,000.

AnnPT77

Just to round out the range of options: At 5'5", and my starting weight of 183 pounds, starting age of 59, I would've lost around 2 pounds a week at 1500 calories. I didn't get 10k steps, but did exercise. (Now 125ish pounds, age 65, I'd still lose maybe 0.5-0.75lb/week, eating 1500 *plus* all exercise calories.)

Everyone's different, but most people are close to average. Start with an estimate from a so-called calculator, like MFP. They spit out the average numbers.

Use the estimate the way the tool intends. In MFP's case, that means getting a base calorie estimate for non-exercise activity level (job, chores, etc.) and a particular target loss rate, then logging exercise calories separately and eating those, too.

Test drive that approach for 4-6 weeks (whole menstrual cycle if female & premenopausal), then adjust if necessary based on actual loss rate.

You don't learn much from others' loss-rate experience, except how average *they* are.

You care about how average *you* are.

Run the experiment, then you'll know.

westrich20940

So....your TDEE is probably ~2100 cals/day. You could eat that much (keep your activity level the same ... I used 'lightly active' with 10k steps per day) and maintain your current weight.

So...yeah, you're theoretically in a ~600 calorie deficit.

However, that puts you basically at your BMR...so I don't expect that this level of calorie deficit will be maintainable for you over time - and I expect you'll start to feel miserable at some point.

So, if I were you, I'd make that calorie deficit smaller --- and shoot to eat more like ~1700/1800 calories per day. You may lose some weight fast with what you are currently doing but it's no the way forward.

Walkywalkerson

Taleciab94 wrote: »

Hello I am a 27 yr old female 185lbs and 5'5" will I lose weight eating 1500 calories and walking 10,000 steps a day? Just checking to see if anyone has had success doing this.

I'm 5ft 7 and currently 184lbs ( I am 20yrs oder than you though 😵 ) I clock in around
10 - 15000 steps a day and eat around 1800 calories a day - that's with playing around with calories - keeping them lowish midweek so I can have days off at weekends.
When I'm consistent I lose around 1 / 1.5 lbs per week.