Should I consume all calories as suggested by MFP?

BudhiRooh

I've pretty recently started my weight loss journey and I'm having too many difficulties in finding out what is going to work for me. It's been almost a month that I've changed my eating habits, going to gym (3-4 days a week) and still my weight is the same. Just to give you an idea about my workout routine ... I do almost 90 minutes cardio everyday ... 45 mins Treadmill (Incline 3, Avg Speed 4.2 and Distance: 2.70 - 3 miles) and 30 minutes of Elliptical ...

Now, my question is that according to MFP my daily calories should be 2030 but isn't it too much? Yesterday, I ate around the suggested calories and when I weighed myself in the morning I was 4 pounds over what I've been throughout the month. I've been stuck on 239 lbs ... But today my weight was 243.8 lbs ... What's wrong? I guess 2030 calories a day are too much for me? Secondly, please advice what kind of food should I consume during the day? I've PCOS and I'm trying to avoid carbs and fats. Am I going in the right direction? or something needs to be fixed?

CynthiaT60

Lots of people gain before they lose. Give it some time.

cuinboston2014

I feel like MFP gives me an insane amount of calories when I work out. i'm a bigger girl (5'10" and 189 lbs) and I workout usually 6 times a week and pretty intense MOST days. On days of a regular workout they tell me to eat between 2500-3000 calories. On a normal day I don't want to eat this much and would be full if I did. Other days are different.

I just try to eat between 1500-2000 calories depending on my burn. If I do a run more than 10 miles I may eat a full 3000 but other than that I try to stick between those numebrs. Everyone is different though.

thatjosiegirl

If you are new to working out it is normal to gain before you start to lose, I did the same thing. Give it a couple of weeks to a month before you start to worry. I would shoot for 1600 cals per day eaten (not net) plus the exercise and you should start to see some progress.

Kenazwa

You might want to back off on the cardio and add in some resistance training (like lifting weights) instead. It takes muscle to burn fat, so build more.

I find it much easier to range around the same calorie target every day no matter my activity. It's easy to over-estimate calories burned and gain weight because of eating the extra calories you think you burned but didn't.

RGv2

Is the 2000 calories what MFP advises before or after you have logged the exercise.

If it is after, MFP can over estimate caloric burns. I would recommend a starting at eating back 75% of exercise calories and work from there.

Eating over maintenance (if indeed you did) isn't going to make you gain weight in 24hrs. When did you start going to the gym? Some water retention is possible when you start a new workout regimen, or increase the intensity of your current one for muscle repair until the body has adapted.

Edit: I would also be helpful if you would open your diary.

JonfromIndiana

First, take a deep breath. This is a marathon and not a sprint. When I started, I set my profile to sedentary even though I work a physical job. I gave up sugary drinks for water and unsweetened tea. I don't go to the gym, but I wear a fitbit tracker and walk 5 miles a day. You have to find what works for you. Do some research on diet tips as not all carbs and fat are bad for you. Your body needs energy to function on, and over time you will fire up your metabolism and see the pounds melt off. "Good luck "

4daluvof_candice

I've pretty recently started my weight loss journey and I'm having too many difficulties in finding out what is going to work for me. It's been almost a month that I've changed my eating habits, going to gym (3-4 days a week) and still my weight is the same. Just to give you an idea about my workout routine ... I do almost 90 minutes cardio everyday ... 45 mins Treadmill (Incline 3, Avg Speed 4.2 and Distance: 2.70 - 3 miles) and 30 minutes of Elliptical ...

Now, my question is that according to MFP my daily calories should be 2030 but isn't it too much? Yesterday, I ate around the suggested calories and when I weighed myself in the morning I was 4 pounds over what I've been throughout the month. I've been stuck on 239 lbs ... But today my weight was 243.8 lbs ... What's wrong? I guess 2030 calories a day are too much for me? Secondly, please advice what kind of food should I consume during the day? I've PCOS and I'm trying to avoid carbs and fats. Am I going in the right direction? or something needs to be fixed?

all estimates
BMR 1883
Sedentary (little or no exercise, desk job) 2260
Lightly Active (light exercise/sports 1-3 days/wk) 2589
Moderately Active (moderate exercise/sports 3-5 days/wk) 2919
Very Active (hard exercise/sports 6-7 days/wk) 3248
Extremely Active (hard daily exercise/sports & physical job or 2X day training, i.e marathon, contest etc.) 3578

if using TDEE method take 20%(or less) from these numbers. depending oon your daily activity.
I have a desk job so I choose sedentary and any other movement(for a period of time) is exercise to me.

rides4sanity

With your height and the activity you have listed, that calorie count seems reasonable... You have to make sure you are being honest about your intake and portion size as well as the fact that the number of calories burned can be exaggerated a bit.

MFP tends to estimate calories a bit high, try eating back 75% and see if that causes the scale to budge. Weight does fluctuate, and can vary as much as 5 pounds, your overall trend should be going down not staying the same.

Types of food that encourage weight loss and provide energy are usually on the more natural side. I'm not a clean eater by any means, but my body functions better and is more satisfied when I give it quality fuel. Have some protein with each meal and fill in with fruits and veggies. Carbs aren't the devil, you need them, but they can sneak up on you calorie wise if you don't watch. Especially pasta & bread...

Good luck...

cwolfman13

Your calorie goal on MFP is a deficit from your estimated maintenance calories as per your inputs. Only you know if your inputs were reasonably accurate or not. MFP is simply a calculator that estimates your required caloric intake to lose weight, maintain weight, or gain weight based on statistical averages of individuals with similar stats. It is possible that you are a statistical outlier given your medical condition...therefore, MFP's calorie goals may or may not be appropriate for you. All you can really do is trial and error here.

Just make sure you're being as accurate as possible with your intake and don't overestimate your calorie burn. If you're using the MFP database for your calorie burn, it is likely inflated...often by a LOT. If you are just eyeballing your servings and other ingredients, I can pretty much guarantee that you are underestimating your intake. Studies indicate that eyeballing portions and ingredients for food prep can lead to as much as 30 - 50% estimation error...in other words, people are generally eating far more than they think they are.

People generally fail to understand how much precision is required for calorie counting to work. You should be weighing anything that has weight as an option for serving size and measuring pretty much everything else...you have to do this consistently and log consistently and "closet eating" will absolutely wreck your deficit.

If you're truly doing all of these things 100% and it's still not working you likely need to drop your calories...but personally, I'd talk to a doc and try to get a referral to a dietician at that point. These calculators are just a starting point and most people do have to make some tweaks here and there...but really, they are relatively accurate for the vast majority so if it's not working then something is wrong...and again...I'd start with user error and work from there.

version917

My diet consists of 1500 cals max per day , 65 carb max per meal. This is the same diet I give my patients here at my job. Now I dont intend to reach to those limits, I stay under them. Im losing weight and I could be losing more if I did more exercise than being a desk jockey. lol. My cals (for breakfast, lunch, dinner) are usually are anywhere from 325-475 cals per meal. Not to say I dont each much, I get full from what I make.

For example, Breakfast: 1/2 cup of eggs whites, seasoned with Mrs Dash (no salt in it whatsoever), 1/3 cup diced bell pepper, 1/3 diced tomato, 3 slices of Lean Turkey (diced), 1/3 cup of handmade shredded hash browns (pan fried with cooking spray), and if you want, add some shredded thin cheese. All for 321 calories, it fills you up and still leaves you with calories to spare, but I'm good with just this.

Plan out your meals and keep a goal in mind like what thatjosiegirl said. Dont fluctuate your cals, just have one set goal.

lrmall01

I suggest taking a look at what your weekly average was and then try adjusting from there. It is easy to have 1 day where you go way over and it throws the whole week off.

If your weekly average is indeed at or below your target calories then dry to drop down 200 calories per day and see how that goes for a few weeks. You might be surprised though and find out your weekly total is indeed over your goal.

afat12

Lots of people gain before they lose. Give it some time.

Agreed

LishieFruit89

I skimmed everything.

But you can't avoid carbs AND fats...
Lower carb intake is typically accompanied by higher fat intake to balance out the calories.
Fat isn't bad for you, neither are carbs.
I don't know much about PCOS but I've heard other having to lower carbs to lose weight with PCOS.

SLLRunner

I see from your profile you are 5 ft 11. At that height and 237 pounds, your required calorie intake will be higher than for someone who is a lower weight. As you lose weight, MFP decreases your calorie intake at about every ten pounds because you don't need as many calories to survive.

However, you say you've gained some weight. That is normal when starting a new exercise plan due to water retention, but have you taken a good look at your logging? There is the possibility that you could be eating more than you think you are by underestimating calories in and overestimating calories out. Be careful of the gym machine and MFP calorie burn estimations because they tend to way overestimate. I have a heart rate monitor, which seems to give accurate calorie burns for my cardio.

Be sure you weigh all solid food and measure all liquid food. Log everything you put into your mouth no matter what. What I love about MFP is that it's a great tool to help us stay accountable for what goes into our mouth.

I would suggest you open you diary so people might be able to give you advice on where you might be over/under estimating. Sometimes all it takes is another pair of eyes.

I've also heard that PCOS makes weight loss a bit challenging, but that your PCOS can get better after weight loss. Someone might want to clarify this because I'm not sure how accurate this is.

Most of all, hang in there and see this as a lifestyle change. The glass is half full not half empty.