Which calorie goal is right My Daily Plate or MFP?

biggestloser88

Hi guys,

So i'm super new to MFP, I just switched yesterday from My Daily Plate since I need to go back on a diet and my friend highly recommended MFP, but I'm finding that my calorie goals differ quite a bit between the 2. MFP says I should be aiming for 1,250 to lose 2 pounds per week, but MDP says I should be aiming for 1,578. I'm only on my second day, but I am going to bed absolutely STARVING!!! And I thought I had good portion control and chose food wisely, but I'm not sure what to do. I was never hungry on MDP and that calorie goal seems more precise than MFP. How is it that 2 websites doing the same thing can be so different? Which is right?! Can anyone provide me any insight? Thanks!!!

oh i'm 5'6 154lbs and i'd say moderately active.

gupton11

Check out this article for some good solid advice for BMR calculators:

http://johnbarban.com/bmr-calculators-and-the-activity-factor-for-weight-loss/

gupton11

8 to 10 calories per pound of your goal weight should be sufficient estimate for weight loss, if you hit a plateau try eating a little bit more for a couple weeks then cutting back down. When eating restricted calories it's important to add resistance training to maintain lean muscle mass.

Kara78155

Hi there,
I am no expert, but I have always followed the rule of multiplying your body weight x 2 to lose 2 pounds per week. I know there are different body types but this worked well for me after having my first son. Another issue is that I don't believe that following MFP should be miserable, instead it needs to be a lifestyle. And it won't be if you are starving! If I were you, I would customize your goal to about 1500 and then adjust it as you lose weight- If you find that you can survive on 1400 starting off, then so be it. Best of luck!

gupton11

I also follow eat-stop-eat which is 1-2 24 hour water only fast per week. This can help reduce calorie intake over a week, and despite what people say about "starvation mode" you will not loose muscle if don't exceed 24-30hrs and your metabolism will actually speed up during the fast as your body will release HGH.

KerryB1977

Hi there,
I am no expert, but I have always followed the rule of multiplying your body weight x 2 to lose 2 pounds per week. I know there are different body types but this worked well for me after having my first son. Another issue is that I don't believe that following MFP should be miserable, instead it needs to be a lifestyle. And it won't be if you are starving! If I were you, I would customize your goal to about 1500 and then adjust it as you lose weight- If you find that you can survive on 1400 starting off, then so be it. Best of luck




Hi i'm no expert either by along shot but when i figured mine by this rule it equaled to about 596 calories a day. That is unhealthy and dangerous. Everywhere i look the lowest cal count a day to be healthy is 1200. did i figure it wrong? Anyway the advice i have is find what works for you and just stick with it. Best of luck reaching your goals!

Motleybird

At your weight and height, 2 lbs a week is too much. That setting is for people who have a lot to lose, not for people in or near the 'healthy' BMI range. One pound or even half a pound a week would be more like it. So, you're right, you're not getting enough calories.

biggestloser88

Thanks for all the posts guys!

Motleybird, I had no idea that 2lbs a week was too much, that makes complete sense though. I guess I'm just impatient. lol. I guess it differs in every diet no? On other diets, you see and hear about people losing like 5+ pounds a week, but I've heard from many places that it's not healthy to lose over 3lbs a week, so it makes complete sense that that's for people who have more weight to lose. So as per your advice I've switched my goal to 1lb a week and it's gone back up to 1,500, which looks much better. I still can't believe how different every calorie goal caluclator is! Do you know why? Or how they come up with these numbers? I know you need to create a deficit of a certain amount of calories a week (in my case 3,500), but what is the number they create the deficit from? I'm getting different BMR numbers too, most that say my BMR is around 1,500. I have found that calorie counting is by far the best way for me to lose weight AND enjoy doing it but the math involved while you are trying to learn the theory behind it is daunting especially because there so many websites saying different things. Any in particular you follow? Sorry for the bombardment of questions, but from everything I've read online, you seem to know what you are talking about!

KerryB1977, I totally had the same issue with the calculations. Maybe you have to add 1,000 to it? It would be interesting to find out though...

gupton11, I really admire you for being able to fast 1-2 times a week. I can't go 2 hours without eating at least something! lol. And thanks for the advice about increasing calorie intake a bit when you reach a plateau, I will definitely try that in about 10lbs when I know I will!

gambitsgurl

Hi there,
I am no expert, but I have always followed the rule of multiplying your body weight x 2 to lose 2 pounds per week. I know there are different body types but this worked well for me after having my first son. Another issue is that I don't believe that following MFP should be miserable, instead it needs to be a lifestyle. And it won't be if you are starving! If I were you, I would customize your goal to about 1500 and then adjust it as you lose weight- If you find that you can survive on 1400 starting off, then so be it. Best of luck!

wait... so someone who weighs 130 sound only eat 260 calories a day? Am I reading this wrong?

Motleybird

I'm not really an expert, I've just been following MFP, and reading what others have had to say on the forums, and it's been working. I'm also of the opinion that 'slow and steady wins the race.' If a diet is too restrictive, I know I simply won't do it, and I will go right back to my old habits once I'm off of it. This one I've been able to stick to. If you haven't read the stickies at the top yet, please do, they're full of good information.

My measurements are pretty close to yours, so I know where you're coming from. I'm 5'7" and 158lbs currently. The closer you get to your goal, the harder your body tries to hang on to what it has stored away. The safety margin between what you need for normal functioning and what you can pull from your fat storage without damaging healthy tissue, like muscle, gets smaller. Most people agree that losing the weight as muscle is not a good thing. The scale goes down, but that doesn't mean you will look or feel better.

As for how this site gets the BMR numbers, I pulled this from the Tools page:

"Our calculator uses the Mifflin-St. Jeor equations to estimate your BMR which is believed to be more accurate than the more commonly used Harris-Benedict equation. "