I seriously don't know how many calories I should be eating

Eleonora91

I've been using MFP for 1,5 years up to now and lost 15 kgs.
Now I'm almost close to mainteinance (I don't dislike my weight that much, even if I'm still plump), so I've settled my weekly goal to 0,5 kgs to lose. To be honest my actual goal is to reach 67 kgs at the 19th of December: 800 grams to lose in almost 2 weeks, just because I've decided I'm having a break from counting calories during Christmas time.

I've been doing this 0,5 kgs loss/week thing for, I guess, less than 1 month. I started it at around 69 kgs, and MFP adviced me to eat 1400+ kcals (I can't exactly remember, might have been 1410-1450).
Now that my weight has dropped from 69 to 67,8 the database lowered my intake to 1390 kcals, which, to be honest, doesn't seem that much to me, but nevermind...

I've tried to change my goals today with the following settings: sedentary, 0 min workouts 0 times a week, 0.5 kgs to lose per week, and it lowered my allowed daily intake to 1250 kcals!
This seems seriously like nothing to me. I've been losing most of my weight by eating 1200 kcals (well actually more, but I was eating back my workout calories), so it seems like a ridicolous amount to me for someone who would be happy to lose, like, 400 grams a week.

I must admit that I don't know if I have been choosing my settings well. I prefer to recognize myself as sedentary because I am a student and since I'm not going to class anymore I actually have days in which I only walk through the apartment to get some food and nothing else.
At the same time, I do workout. I go for a walk 2-3 times a week at least, I use the stepper a few times a week, and I do some strenght exercises almost 6 days a week.
The problem is that MFP asks me to pre-set those workouts and I can't do this because I don't know how often am I going to have a walk and how long am I going to exercise each day. That's why I prefer to put sedentary and 0 workouts.
I'm starting to doubt that this is right because the amount of calories I should be eating then is very low.

I've bothered you enough, now the question is: how much should I be eating to lose 400 gr/week AND/OR what should I put in my settings, based on my actual activity level? Even just an approximate recommended intake would be enough.

(I know I could be using other online calculators but this would make me even more confused.)

Thank you.

arrseegee

Hi. My first bit of advice would be to read this thread, which will help you work out how many calories you should be eating: http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/1080242-a-guide-to-get-you-started-on-your-path-to-sexypants?hl=sexypants. The information that you absolutely need in order to work out how much you should be eating is your TDEE and BMR, and there are links to calculators that you can use. Sorry, I know you said no calculators but if you want to understand this stuff then you need to do it!

Once you have a better understanding of how much you should be eating, what your body actually needs, and what sort of weight loss rate you are looking at then you can go back into your diary and change your settings. If you click on 'manual' update then yes, it is going to take into account your activity level and also your preferred weight loss rate when determining your calories. Custom is better, once you know what you're doing.

If you are happy with slow weight loss then I would recommend you
a) work out what your Total Daily Energy Expenditure (TDEE) is from the link above, and go with a 10-15% calorie reduction. This should be a workable amount and not something like 1200, which many people find difficult
b) choose your activity level as sedentary and then log all exercise on MFP, then eat back about half of your exercise calories
c) keep up the good work!

Eleonora91

Hi. My first bit of advice would be to read this thread, which will help you work out how many calories you should be eating: http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/1080242-a-guide-to-get-you-started-on-your-path-to-sexypants?hl=sexypants. The information that you absolutely need in order to work out how much you should be eating is your TDEE and BMR, and there are links to calculators that you can use. Sorry, I know you said no calculators but if you want to understand this stuff then you need to do it!

Once you have a better understanding of how much you should be eating, what your body actually needs, and what sort of weight loss rate you are looking at then you can go back into your diary and change your settings. If you click on 'manual' update then yes, it is going to take into account your activity level and also your preferred weight loss rate when determining your calories. Custom is better, once you know what you're doing.

If you are happy with slow weight loss then I would recommend you
a) work out what your Total Daily Energy Expenditure (TDEE) is from the link above, and go with a 10-15% calorie reduction. This should be a workable amount and not something like 1200, which many people find difficult
b) choose your activity level as sedentary and then log all exercise on MFP, then eat back about half of your exercise calories
c) keep up the good work!

Okay, the only reason why I didn't want to use more calculators is that they always give different results.

Example: MFP says that I should be burning 1800 kcals a day by just living. (I guess it's my TDEE even thought it's not stated). Another calculator says that my TDEE is 1914 kcals, which is 100 kcals more which is not a small difference to me. And this is always considering myself as sedentary.

I just tried the custom update and it actually worked better. I put 0,4 kgs to lose per week and it gave me back 1420 kcals, which is an okay amount to me and seems pretty reasonable.

*edit* The custom option seems actually even more confusing than the manual one. Following the calculus, I would be losing 0,4 kgs per week by eating between 1330 kcals and 1430 kcals. Isn't it a big difference?

Cheeky_and_Geeky

I'd say leave it at 1420 & track your loss for a few weeks. If your happy with the loss, continue, if you'd like to lose more, drop it down to 1370. I suggest moderate cardio 2-3X week www.fitnessblender.com. strength training 2-3X week & flexibility (yoga) once a week. Cardio is important for weight loss & strength training will shape your body. Good luck! You're doing great!

Eleonora91

I'd say leave it at 1420 & track your loss for a few weeks. If your happy with the loss, continue, if you'd like to lose more, drop it down to 1370. I suggest moderate cardio 2-3X week www.fitnessblender.com. strength training 2-3X week & flexibility (yoga) once a week. Cardio is important for weight loss & strength training will shape your body. Good luck! You're doing great!

I've had around 1400 kcals starting from 12th of November if I'm not wrong... and I lost a reasonable amount of weight for that calorie deficit. I went from 69,7 to 67,8 (as December 4th) so yeah I'm happy with the loss. It was just an unfortunate coincidence that I decided to look at my settings and found out I was using lightly active instead than sedentary. That's what dropped my calories to 1250.

I've been doing cardio during all of these 1,5 years to lose weight, since I'm not planning any consistent loss anymore I'm just focusing on strenght training (push ups, sit ups, arm exercises with dumbells, leg raises, squats and so on...) and trying to incorporate any common cardio activity (walking, sometimes for 20 mins a day, sometimes for 1 hour) plus some step. I don't think I'd need more cardio if I'm not planning to lose more weight, do you think I need more?

cwolfman13

when you put in your exercise goals, they are just for you...MFP doesn't adjust your calories per what you say you're going to do for exercise. It's just an internal goal for yourself so put in whatever you want. Your calorie goal with MFP should only be your day to day...for example, I'm "light active"...even though I have a desk job I spend quite a bit of time on my feet as I have a 1 y.o. and 3.5 y.o. and I do most of the cooking, etc around the house. I don't add in exercise to my activity level with MFP...with MFP you only get credit for exercise when you log that activity and are alloted more calories to "eat back"

The reason you see different calorie estimates with different calculators is because you don't understand the method...most calculators are TDEE calculators which include some estimate of your exercise in your activity level...again, with MFP they are accounted for after the fact rather than up front. You also have to compare apples to apples in RE to loss rate goal. People always compare MFP's 1200 calories which is usually 2 Lbs per week or so to TDEE - 20% which is more like 1 Lb per week loss rate.

If you're doing it right, it's all 6 of 1. With MFP my net calorie goal (before exercise) was 1,850. With exercise I grossed roughly 2100 - 2200 per day. I became pretty consistent with my workouts so I switched to the TDEE method and used the scooby calculator. My TDEE is roughly 2700 calories...my 20% cut from that to lose roughly 1 Lb per week was 2,160...pretty much what I was grossing with MFP.

When I wanted to slow down I just increased my calories from there knowing that theoretically if I increased my calories to 2700 I would maintain...if I went from 2160 to 2400 - 2500 I should theoretically lose about 1/2 Lb per week...which was just about right.

What's important is to pick something and stick with it. Make small adjustments here and there as necessary given your real world results. With very little to lose, it's going to go very slow....really, it's far better to focus on body composition rather than actual Lbs/Kgs on the scale where you're at now. I'm actually about 5 Lbs heavier than I was when I hit my goal...and I'm leaner. Who gives a **** about the number on the scale? I'm leaner and have more muscle than I did 7 months ago which is why I'm slightly heavier...awesome...

Eleonora91

ops. double post.

Eleonora91

when you put in your exercise goals, they are just for you...MFP doesn't adjust your calories per what you say you're going to do for exercise. It's just an internal goal for yourself so put in whatever you want. Your calorie goal with MFP should only be your day to day...for example, I'm "light active"...even though I have a desk job I spend quite a bit of time on my feet as I have a 1 y.o. and 3.5 y.o. and I do most of the cooking, etc around the house. I don't add in exercise to my activity level with MFP...with MFP you only get credit for exercise when you log that activity and are alloted more calories to "eat back"

Yeah I know that MFP is generalising when speaking about activity levels. The problem is that, if I set myself as "sedentary", on my rest days I'm kind of allowed to eat nothing. I always like to put myself as sedentary because I know that I'm going to have days in which I won't workout and I won't get out of the house. But, at the same time, I think the terms are definitely too strict for sedentary people on the database.

The reason you see different calorie estimates with different calculators is because you don't understand the method...most calculators are TDEE calculators which include some estimate of your exercise in your activity level...again, with MFP they are accounted for after the fact rather than up front. You also have to compare apples to apples in RE to loss rate goal. People always compare MFP's 1200 calories which is usually 2 Lbs per week or so to TDEE - 20% which is more like 1 Lb per week loss rate.

I think I would actually need to go to a nutritionist to REALLY find out my TDEE and my recommended intake for mainteinance, but I can't afford it just to fill up this curiosity. I thought I could be estimating my calories by myself and I would guess I'd need around 1800-1900 kcals to maintain but this is just what I'm thinking about, knowing my body and everything.

If you're doing it right, it's all 6 of 1. With MFP my net calorie goal (before exercise) was 1,850. With exercise I grossed roughly 2100 - 2200 per day. I became pretty consistent with my workouts so I switched to the TDEE method and used the scooby calculator. My TDEE is roughly 2700 calories...my 20% cut from that to lose roughly 1 Lb per week was 2,160...pretty much what I was grossing with MFP.

When I wanted to slow down I just increased my calories from there knowing that theoretically if I increased my calories to 2700 I would maintain...if I went from 2160 to 2400 - 2500 I should theoretically lose about 1/2 Lb per week...which was just about right.

What's important is to pick something and stick with it. Make small adjustments here and there as necessary given your real world results. With very little to lose, it's going to go very slow....really, it's far better to focus on body composition rather than actual Lbs/Kgs on the scale where you're at now. I'm actually about 5 Lbs heavier than I was when I hit my goal...and I'm leaner. Who gives a **** about the number on the scale? I'm leaner and have more muscle than I did 7 months ago which is why I'm slightly heavier...awesome...

I'm already working on strenght training at the moment, so, yeah, I agree with what you said. But I'm starting slowly because I'm not used to it. I can already see some improvements and at this point my weight is not that much of a problem anymore, it's just that I was confused by the constant changing of the calories. It was making me feel seriously confused about my whole plan.

cmriverside

Just as an aside, I've been using this site for many years and have probably read 50,000 threads. Yeah, not exactly a claim to fame...But...I think the Sedentary setting is too low for anyone who goes to school, has children at home OR has any type of job, no matter how sedentary the job is.

I really am sedentary, no job, no kids, sit most of every day. I use lightly active and usually eat even more than that - and I've been maintaining for six years.

It's an experiment for you to run. Try the 1450 for a while.

Eleonora91

Just as an aside, I've been using this site for many years and have probably read 50,000 threads. Yeah, not exactly a claim to fame...But...I think the Sedentary setting is too low for anyone who goes to school, has children at home OR has any type of job, no matter how sedentary the job is.

I really am sedentary, no job, no kids, sit most of every day. I use lightly active and usually eat even more than that - and I've been maintaining for six years.

It's an experiment for you to run. Try the 1450 for a while.

I think the same. I really DO have days in which I don't even leave the house... but I clean the place, I do the laundry, I study, and I think that having 1200 kcals would be okay if I was a little girl - or if I wanted to lose weight, not almost maintaining.

cmriverside

Just as an aside, I've been using this site for many years and have probably read 50,000 threads. Yeah, not exactly a claim to fame...But...I think the Sedentary setting is too low for anyone who goes to school, has children at home OR has any type of job, no matter how sedentary the job is.

I really am sedentary, no job, no kids, sit most of every day. I use lightly active and usually eat even more than that - and I've been maintaining for six years.

It's an experiment for you to run. Try the 1450 for a while.

I think the same. I really DO have days in which I don't even leave the house... but I clean the place, I do the laundry, I study, and I think that having 1200 kcals would be okay if I was a little girl - or if I wanted to lose weight, not almost maintaining.

If you are at maintenance weight almost anyway, your calorie cut from your maintenance calories should not be more than 200-250 a day, regardless of your lifestyle. If you're going to workout, add a few hundred more on that day.

Eleonora91

If you are at maintenance weight almost anyway, your calorie cut from your maintenance calories should not be more than 200-250 a day, regardless of your lifestyle. If you're going to workout, add a few hundred more on that day.

This is actually a simple and reasonable advice. Thank you!
(Do you recommend me to calculate my maintenance calories with MFP or online calculators or...?)

WalkingAlong

I think I would actually need to go to a nutritionist to REALLY find out my TDEE and my recommended intake for mainteinance,

A nutritionist can't do anything but run your numbers through the same calculators you did.

If you've been logging your intake and weight here for 1.5 years, you have more than enough data to calculate what you really do burn.

cmriverside

If you are at maintenance weight almost anyway, your calorie cut from your maintenance calories should not be more than 200-250 a day, regardless of your lifestyle. If you're going to workout, add a few hundred more on that day.

This is actually a simple and reasonable advice. Thank you!
(Do you recommend me to calculate my maintenance calories with MFP or online calculators or...?)

MFP expects you to add in additional exercise and eat extra calories: 99% of all calculators out there give you a set number and expect you to exercise based on your already entered exercise projection.

Do one or the other, doesn't matter. They should be within 50-90 calories of each other anyway if you have entered similar data. The calculators aren't magic. They all use averages. Just pick one.

What matters is keeping good records so you know what works.

Eleonora91

MFP expects you to add in additional exercise and eat extra calories: 99% of all calculators out there give you a set number and expect you to exercise based on your already entered exercise projection.

Do one or the other, doesn't matter. They should be within 50-90 calories of each other anyway if you have entered similar data. The calculators aren't magic. They all use averages. Just pick one.

What matters is keeping good records so you know what works.

I put "sedentary" in several calculators, I obtained 1710-1910 kcals which is a big difference to me. MFP says 1800 so it's actually in the middle, I would obviously log the exercises at first but I don't plan to exercise forever, so one day I'm not going to log my normal activities...

Eleonora91

I think I would actually need to go to a nutritionist to REALLY find out my TDEE and my recommended intake for mainteinance,

A nutritionist can't do anything but run your numbers through the same calculators you did.

If you've been logging your intake and weight here for 1.5 years, you have more than enough data to calculate what you really do burn.

I've heard they have some other methods to calculate your BMR/TDEE, like the conversion of your inhaled oxygen in exhaled carbon dioxide, but I don't know anything about it, that's why I think I'd need a nutritionist.

Yes I've logged in for 1,5 years but how can this be helpful?

tigerblue

Just as an aside, I've been using this site for many years and have probably read 50,000 threads. Yeah, not exactly a claim to fame...But...I think the Sedentary setting is too low for anyone who goes to school, has children at home OR has any type of job, no matter how sedentary the job is.

I really am sedentary, no job, no kids, sit most of every day. I use lightly active and usually eat even more than that - and I've been maintaining for six years.

It's an experiment for you to run. Try the 1450 for a while.

I think the same. I really DO have days in which I don't even leave the house... but I clean the place, I do the laundry, I study, and I think that having 1200 kcals would be okay if I was a little girl - or if I wanted to lose weight, not almost maintaining.

It depends on your size. I am small and weight about 123 lbs. (size 4 US). I maintain on about 1500-1600 calories a day. (and that includes exercise.) To lose it works best if I set MFP for 1200 and log my exercise and eat about half of the exercise calores. If I do that, I lose about 0.25 lbs a week. VERY slow loss.

There are plenty who will tell you this is too little, but it all depends on your current body weight (and also age and body fat composition). Without seeing your stats, I cant say for sure, but if you are small, be very careful not to eat too much!

cwolfman13

MFP expects you to add in additional exercise and eat extra calories: 99% of all calculators out there give you a set number and expect you to exercise based on your already entered exercise projection.

Do one or the other, doesn't matter. They should be within 50-90 calories of each other anyway if you have entered similar data. The calculators aren't magic. They all use averages. Just pick one.

What matters is keeping good records so you know what works.

I put "sedentary" in several calculators, I obtained 1710-1910 kcals which is a big difference to me. MFP says 1800 so it's actually in the middle, I would obviously log the exercises at first but I don't plan to exercise forever, so one day I'm not going to log my normal activities...

200 calories is not a huge difference...it's about 3 oz or a very small handful of nuts. You're not going to get anything exact and nobody is going to be able to give you a magic number. You have to pick one...adjust as per real world results. It's trial and error, there is no exact figure...this is something you just need to work out through trial and error.

Keep in mind that the average female with little in the way of extra exercise maintains between 1800 - 2000 calories per day...one of the primary reasons packaging stipulates 2000 and 2500 calorie diets...2000 is average for women and 2500 is average for men.

Just play with it and be consistent in estimating your intake and logging and make adjustments as necessary. At this point it's going to be a slow process...you don't have much to lose so you don't have the fat stores to go fast...

cwolfman13

I think I would actually need to go to a nutritionist to REALLY find out my TDEE and my recommended intake for mainteinance,

A nutritionist can't do anything but run your numbers through the same calculators you did.

If you've been logging your intake and weight here for 1.5 years, you have more than enough data to calculate what you really do burn.

I've heard they have some other methods to calculate your BMR/TDEE, like the conversion of your inhaled oxygen in exhaled carbon dioxide, but I don't know anything about it, that's why I think I'd need a nutritionist.

Yes I've logged in for 1,5 years but how can this be helpful?

If you've logged for 1.5 years then you have a lot of data in RE to how many calories you were eating and what your loss rate was. for example, 1000 calorie deficit from maintenance would equate to roughly 2 Lbs per week on average (not linear)...500 calories deficit for 1 Lb per week, etc. So if you were losing 1 Lb per week or so then just tag on 250 calories and that would theoretically give you a nice slow cut of about 1/2 Lb per week.

Learn to use the data you've collected all this time...

Eleonora91

It depends on your size. I am small and weight about 123 lbs. (size 4 US). I maintain on about 1500-1600 calories a day. (and that includes exercise.) To lose it works best if I set MFP for 1200 and log my exercise and eat about half of the exercise calores. If I do that, I lose about 0.25 lbs a week. VERY slow loss.

There are plenty who will tell you this is too little, but it all depends on your current body weight (and also age and body fat composition). Without seeing your stats, I cant say for sure, but if you are small, be very careful not to eat too much!

I put my weight in the first post, I think I forgot my height - I'm 67 kgs for 165 cms at the moment and even though I'm not thin I feel okay now so I don't feel like losing more weight. So yeah I wouldn't say I'm small, I'm not tall but I still carry some weight with me that requires energy. I used to eat 1200 when I needed to lose more weight and it worked for me, even if not all the time.

Eleonora91

200 calories is not a huge difference...it's about 3 oz or a very small handful of nuts. You're not going to get anything exact and nobody is going to be able to give you a magic number. You have to pick one...adjust as per real world results. It's trial and error, there is no exact figure...this is something you just need to work out through trial and error.

Keep in mind that the average female with little in the way of extra exercise maintains between 1800 - 2000 calories per day...one of the primary reasons packaging stipulates 2000 and 2500 calorie diets...2000 is average for women and 2500 is average for men.

Just play with it and be consistent in estimating your intake and logging and make adjustments as necessary. At this point it's going to be a slow process...you don't have much to lose so you don't have the fat stores to go fast...

To me it looks like a big difference... because I've had 1200 kcals when I was losing weight and I know how different it can be from 1400-1500 kcals that I'm having now. When I was having 1200 I could eat almost nothing, now I can have some more calories during the main meals and more snacks. I think I'd need more than 1700 kcals if I wasn't dieting, but apparently I am not allowed to eat more if I don't want to gain... which also explains why I gained in first place.

If you've logged for 1.5 years then you have a lot of data in RE to how many calories you were eating and what your loss rate was. for example, 1000 calorie deficit from maintenance would equate to roughly 2 Lbs per week on average (not linear)...500 calories deficit for 1 Lb per week, etc. So if you were losing 1 Lb per week or so then just tag on 250 calories and that would theoretically give you a nice slow cut of about 1/2 Lb per week.

Learn to use the data you've collected all this time...

The problem is that I haven't understood much about how my body works throughout this time. I've lost weight by eating 1200 kcals, but I've also had periods in which I didn't lose weight. I haven't seen a significant difference in weightloss by exercising, I just know that having the minimum amount of food recommended worked. But, at the same time, I know that I can gain at least 1 kg or more by eating whatever I want for 1 month... so I can't mantain on how much I'd like to eat.

WalkingAlong

I think I would actually need to go to a nutritionist to REALLY find out my TDEE and my recommended intake for mainteinance,

A nutritionist can't do anything but run your numbers through the same calculators you did.

If you've been logging your intake and weight here for 1.5 years, you have more than enough data to calculate what you really do burn.

I've heard they have some other methods to calculate your BMR/TDEE, like the conversion of your inhaled oxygen in exhaled carbon dioxide, but I don't know anything about it, that's why I think I'd need a nutritionist.

Yes I've logged in for 1,5 years but how can this be helpful?

A VO2 max estimate is just another estimator.

Take your average daily intake for a period where you know you logged well and daily. If MFP doesn't give you that, add up all the days total calories and divide by the number of days. Say it's 1500. How much weight did you lose over that period? Say it's 10 weeks and you lost 10 lbs. That means you had roughly a total deficit of 10X3500= 35,000 calories, or 3500 per week or 500 per day. If you ate on average 1500/day and your losses were like someone who had a deficit of 500 per day, you're burning around 2000 per day. That's your TDEE estimate.

Eleonora91

A VO2 max estimate is just another estimator.

Take your average daily intake for a period where you know you logged well and daily. If MFP doesn't give you that, add up all the days total calories and divide by the number of days. Say it's 1500. How much weight did you lose over that period? Say it's 10 weeks and you lost 10 lbs. That means you had roughly a total deficit of 10X3500= 35,000 calories, or 3500 per week or 500 per day. If you ate on average 1500/day and your losses were like someone who had a deficit of 500 per day, you're burning around 2000 per day. That's your TDEE estimate.

Ok, so, I counted my net calories since Nov 13th to Dec 4th, 3 weeks, 1.9 kgs lost.

1302 net calories a day has led me to almost 2 kgs lost in 3 weeks. That's 0.6-0.7 kgs lost per week.
How can I know my deficit at this point?

cmriverside

A VO2 max estimate is just another estimator.

Take your average daily intake for a period where you know you logged well and daily. If MFP doesn't give you that, add up all the days total calories and divide by the number of days. Say it's 1500. How much weight did you lose over that period? Say it's 10 weeks and you lost 10 lbs. That means you had roughly a total deficit of 10X3500= 35,000 calories, or 3500 per week or 500 per day. If you ate on average 1500/day and your losses were like someone who had a deficit of 500 per day, you're burning around 2000 per day. That's your TDEE estimate.

Ok, so, I counted my net calories since Nov 13th to Dec 4th, 3 weeks, 1.9 kgs lost.

1302 net calories a day has led me to almost 2 kgs lost in 3 weeks. That's 0.6-0.7 kgs lost per week.
How can I know my deficit at this point?

So that's a little over a pound per week.

So you could eat a little more than 500 cals a day more than 1302 - so NET 1800ish to maintain. If you do raise your calories to 1800, that would be maintenance.

You still have to log, you can't "eat whatever you want." . . go to NET 1500 or 1600 for now - like you said the calculators want you at 1450 to still lose slowly. If you gain a pound (.5kg) don't panic. Stay with it for a month - and LOG accurately.

.

Eleonora91

So that's a little over a pound per week.

So you could eat a little more than 500 cals a day more than 1302 - so NET 1800ish to maintain. If you do raise your calories to 1800, that would be maintenance.

You still have to log, you can't "eat whatever you want." . . go to NET 1500 or 1600 for now - like you said the calculators want you at 1450 to still lose slowly. If you gain a pound (.5kg) don't panic. Stay with it for a month - and LOG accurately.

.

I'm okay logging in for now, but I was expecting to be eating 1800-1900 kcals to mantain, and on a long term I don't think I'm going to track my food and my exercises. When I learn how much I should eat and how much I should keep active, I'll be just trying to do the same without tracking it. I'll still weigh myself and see what happens, I'm just kind of surprised that I have to eat around 1800 kcals for the rest of my life if I don't want to gain.

cmriverside

So that's a little over a pound per week.

So you could eat a little more than 500 cals a day more than 1302 - so NET 1800ish to maintain. If you do raise your calories to 1800, that would be maintenance.

You still have to log, you can't "eat whatever you want." . . go to NET 1500 or 1600 for now - like you said the calculators want you at 1450 to still lose slowly. If you gain a pound (.5kg) don't panic. Stay with it for a month - and LOG accurately.

.

I'm okay logging in for now, but I was expecting to be eating 1800-1900 kcals to mantain, and on a long term I don't think I'm going to track my food and my exercises. When I learn how much I should eat and how much I should keep active, I'll be just trying to do the same without tracking it. I'll still weigh myself and see what happens, I'm just kind of surprised that I have to eat around 1800 kcals for the rest of my life if I don't want to gain.

You don't know that to be true. We are in trial-phase right now. The more active you are, the more you can eat, too.

Eleonora91

You're right, it's not that easy. I'll try being on 1500 for now and 1800-1900 when mantaining, and we'll see.

Thanks everyone for your help!