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Calories count

eliao6743
eliao6743 Posts: 1 Member
in Health and Weight Loss
How could I know my exact calorie count

Replies

  • sollyn23l2
    sollyn23l2 Posts: 1,875 Member
    You can't. You can only estimate it. You can use a calculator to *estimate* how many calories you need, and then you can weigh/measure your food to *estimate* how many calories you are eating. Both are VERY rough estimates, and really, the only way to know if you're eating the appropriate amount is by tracking your weight and seeing what it does over time.

    Note: I will not be looking at anything I post, so responses will go unseen and unresponded to.
  • tomcustombuilder
    tomcustombuilder Posts: 2,322 Member
    sollyn23l2 wrote: »
    You can't. You can only estimate it. You can use a calculator to *estimate* how many calories you need, and then you can weigh/measure your food to *estimate* how many calories you are eating. Both are VERY rough estimates, and really, the only way to know if you're eating the appropriate amount is by tracking your weight and seeing what it does over time.

    Note: I will not be looking at anything I post, so responses will go unseen and unresponded to.
    this

  • penguinmama87
    penguinmama87 Posts: 1,155 Member
    sollyn23l2 wrote: »
    You can't. You can only estimate it. You can use a calculator to *estimate* how many calories you need, and then you can weigh/measure your food to *estimate* how many calories you are eating. Both are VERY rough estimates, and really, the only way to know if you're eating the appropriate amount is by tracking your weight and seeing what it does over time.

    Note: I will not be looking at anything I post, so responses will go unseen and unresponded to.

    Yes. You can get close enough to get reliable results (i.e. workable estimates) but no, you can't know exactly. But for weight management, a workable estimate is good enough.

    Tracking over time will let you know if you're being precise enough. I've gotten pretty good at it. Does everybody have to do it to that level of detail? Nah, but I like data and it's fun to see my predictions be pretty accurate. I don't know it to the calorie, but I know it well enough.
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  • mtaratoot
    mtaratoot Posts: 14,576 Member
    eliao6743 wrote: »
    How could I know my exact calorie count

    Are you asking how to set your calorie GOAL or how to account for the calories you EAT on any given day?

    For the first, use the MFP Guided Setup to get a starting point. This calorie goal will not include calories burned from intentional exercise, so log your exercise to get your daily goal to adjust. Alternately, you could use a Total Daily Energy Expenditure (TDEE) estimator like Sailrabbit to get a fixed number that won't change depending on daily exercise.

    The next step is the second question about what you eat. Use the diary here on MFP and track everything you eat and drink. Be honest. Be consistent. Be complete. Also be careful that you choose appropriate entries from the database; some are wildly off from the truth. Once you find good entries, they will stay in your "Recent Foods" list and be easier to find going forward.

    Step three is where the rubber hits the road: Monitor your weight for several weeks and see if it is doing what you would expect based on your calorie budget and how far over or under it you are. If the results aren't what you would have expected, then change the goal.

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