Need Advice: Go by Remaining Cals or Goal Cals?

MegFaber

Yesterday:

Goal: 1200
Food: 1,900
Exercise: 730
Net: 1,192
Remaining: 8

I want to lose 2 lbs a week at least. I'm pretty much in good shape other than the belly area.

I like to do a lot of cardio but feel like if I am eating all the calories back it's not going to be beneficial.

Should I just go by my goal calories and consider the calories I burn off limits or am I doing it right and need to be more patient.

I have only lost 2.7 pounds and I'm hoping to drop the weight quicker.

trogalicious

1. stop hoping for faster loss.
2. stop hoping for spot reduction.
3. go back and put in your real information, if you're exercising but put in "sedentary" then you're doing it wrong.
4. eat back at least a portion your exercise calories, otherwise, you're doing it wrong.

the calories you were given are a baseline with a deficit already built in. You look pretty young, so 1200 is gonna be wrong.

in fact, here's a wall of text that will probably get ignored:

Here ya go.

1. don't trust the initial setup that MFP provides. If you put in the wrong/inaccurate information, it'll tell you to eat an amount that may not be applicable.
2. Make sure you eat enough.
3. Figure out what works for you and is sustainable/healthy/long term.
4. avoid fads. don't buy in to any "Hey, try the twinkie and vodka diet"
5. Don't cut out anything now that you don't plan on literally giving up forever.
6. GET A FOOD SCALE. Weigh everything. No, seriously.
7. Get an HRM with a chest strap. You'll at least have a better idea of what you're burning. It'll be more accurate than the generic info in the exercise database.. and even more than the cardio machines.
8. Don't go balls out. You'll burn out. I see 300 lb people show up here, instantly start working out and cutting their intake SEVERELY... trying to cut out all of their carbs at once.. whatever. Take it slow. Figure out how much you need to eat FIRST in order to lose.. then incorporate exercise.
9. Don't cardio yourself to death.
10. Take the information on the forums with a grain of salt. A lot of people that have been here for a while.. and have been successful, may seem jaded. They give out GREAT advice day after day, only to be met with people that refuse to listen.
11. Eat real food. Not diet food. Not "low fat, sugar free, now without X." It's easier to get/find/count.
12. don't set time restrictions.
13. measure yourself weekly. Don't just weigh. Measure and take pictures.
14 BE PATIENT.
15. Avoid forum topics that have "1200" in the title. It's just full of butthurt. Lots of it.
16. This isn't a game, it's about changing your lifestyle. Do that.

pretty much that.

...and don't fall into the "1200 calorie" vertigo of suck because of:

the typical MFP users does this:
1. I wanna lose weight, let's try MFP.
2. OH! Wow, it tells me I can lose 2 lbs a WEEK? AWESOME!
3. I just sit at a desk when I'm not working out, I guess I'm sedentary.
4. MFP tells them 1200 calories, and they don't even eat that.. then they work out on top of it.. creating an even bigger deficit.
5. Lose a lot, fast, brag about 1200 calorie success.
6. Come back in a few months trying to figure out why they're dizzy, tired, not losing weight.
7. Get on the forums, ask why they aren't losing.
8. Get two responses (I eat 1200 and lose) (I eat 2200 and lose)
9. Argument ensues about who is right.

Now. That being said. These threads happen hundreds of times per day. Most times, and I mean really.. seriously.. 95% of the time.. people get the 1200 number because they don't put the right information in when they set up the account. There are a great number of people that are trying to help. I'm one of 'em.

I'm a hardcore advocate of actually finding out what works for the individual.. by means of other calculators, averages, time, practice, and patience.

Blanket prescriptions of 1200 calories "because it worked for me" is more harmful to the generic new user than the "figure out what you need to eat." Unfortunately, one is a LOT easier to type.

Find out what you need: http://scoobysworkshop.com/accurate-calorie-calculator/
Take the tips, links, and info above and make the cart more manageable.

JesterMFP

It's the same thing. Your MFP goal changes when you add in additional exercise. So, you've eaten the right amount. Eating back the calories does not wipe out your calorie deficit because the calorie deficit MFP gives you doesn't take that additional exercise into account. If it did, you'd get a higher goal to start with.

Just be wary wit such large calorie burns that you are measuring them accurately. If in doubt, only eat back, say 2/3.

Having said that: 1200 calories is very low for a lot of people, and with only 30 lbs to lose, 2 lbs a week is too aggressive a goal. That's more appropriate for people who are very obese and have large amounts of fat stored. You'd be better off aiming to lose 1 lb a week max.

And yes, patience is always good. (Fast "weight" loss does not necessarily mean fast "fat" loss. You want to keep it mainly fat that you are losing, and your body can only let go of so much of it at once.)

Mischievous_Rascal

I struggled with this for a long time and kept stalling out over and over. This thread really changed everything for me: http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/974889-in-place-of-a-road-map-short-n-sweet

I'm only about 12 pounds away from my goal, so I do TDEE -10%, I get to eat around 2000 cals a day, and I don't have to worry about tracking exercise calories (which are crazy tricky to get right).

Best of luck!

Edit: The calculator that @trog suggested is the one I use - don't be scared of the number that pops up! As long as you're honest with your activity level, it's the best place to begin. And everything else in that post is right on, too

csheltra26

Listen to Trog - he's lost 153 pounds. I lost over 50 pounds at one point doing exactly what he says not to do - eat 1200-1500 calories a day and burn 600-1000 in exercice and did not eat them back. And then gained all of the weight back. Do it sensibly and it will be easier to maintain.

AmyRhubarb

...and don't fall into the "1200 calorie" vertigo of suck

THIS! :laugh:

And this:

I struggled with this for a long time and kept stalling out over and over. This thread really changed everything for me: http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/974889-in-place-of-a-road-map-short-n-sweet

And this:

Listen to Trog - he's lost 153 pounds.

MegFaber

Ok,

So I appreciate so much all the posts you made on my question. I went with Dan's link and went through your link and came up with some numbers I would like to run by you. I weigh 160, I'm 64 inches, 29 years old, BMI 27.5 when entering my goal weight as 160. I do not have a measuring tape as of writing this message but I have a trainer at the gym and my BF% is 30%.


Harris-Benedict Formula
There are a few different methods to calculating yourbasal metabolic rate (BMR). One of the most popular, developed in the early 1900's is called the Harris-Benedict formula. Based on this formula, your current BMR is 1516 calories.

Katch-McArdle Forumla
The numbers above are fairly accurate, however they don't take into account your lean body mass. A more accurate formula that does take your lean body mass into account is the Katch-McArdle formula. Since many of us have scales that will tell us our current body fat, this formula may yield more accurate results. Based on the information you provided, body fat percentage of 30%, you have a lean body mass of 112 lbs., and your BMR is 1470 calories.

I go for a 30 minute walk every day, but I also work out pretty hard 3-5 times a week at the gym. I guess I would be moderately active and that would give me 2,350-20% (470)= 1,880 for calories a day.

Does this seem correct?

If so I will enter it into MFP.

Once I enter this into MFP, and I actually do the exercise and it pulls over from RunKeeper or I enter it in. Do I eat those calories back to get as close to 0 for the remaining?

trogalicious

Does this seem correct?

If so I will enter it into MFP.

It seems pretty close. Keep in mind, ALL of these calculators are just giving estimates. It's gonna take time as well as some trial and error to dial in the exact numbers. Give that calorie goal 6 weeks. At the end of 6 weeks of accurate logging of food, reassess if you need to.

Once I enter this into MFP, and I actually do the exercise and it pulls over from RunKeeper or I enter it in. Do I eat those calories back to get as close to 0 for the remaining?

Don't put in your exercise calories, keep working out the same amount.. but if you enter your workouts into MFP, set it as 1 calorie burned. Since it gave you 1880 calories per day, try to get as close to that amount as you can.

Fullsterkur_woman

Keep in mind, ALL of these calculators are just giving estimates. It's gonna take time as well as some trial and error to dial in the exact numbers. Give that calorie goal 6 weeks. At the end of 6 weeks of accurate logging of food, reassess if you need to.

This. It's really, really, really true. 6 weeks is exactly how long my body took to catch on to the fact that I was logging consistently and keeping my food intake at a reasonable deficit, instead of trying to constantly undercut what I currently eat by 3-400 calories and then blowing it every few days and eating the legs off the table.

The higher you can keep your calories (and still remain in deficit, of course), the easier it is to sustain long-term. And since this is the way you're going to live your life from now on (right? You're not going to spend all this time and effort losing weight only to go right back to old habits that didn't work for you!), long-term sustainability is paramount.

I've got almost 80 straight days of truly honest food logging and weight data, so I'm starting to get a very accurate picture of what I need to eat to see a certain result. It's a *WONDERFUL* feeling to have that information. I highly recommend investing the effort now at the beginning of your journey. It will pay off in spades later!