MFP suggested Calorie goal wrong?

all4yum
all4yum Posts: 43 Member
in Health and Weight Loss
so, I've not been losing weight like I apparently should be eating the calories MFP tells me I should eat. So I tried to discover what my actual maintenance level was over a few weeks...turns out it's 1800 (give or take)...MFP tells me it should be 2390 for my normal daily activity (I weigh 259 pounds), that's a bit of a difference! I'm also breastfeeding, a toddler (but one who thinks he needs to be permanently attached to me all day), so that is at least another 200 calories off. So my maintenance level is 1600??? So in order to lose even 1 pound a week, I'm going to need to drop 500 calories a day? 1300 calories does not sound like a lot of food to me! And right now I can't even exercise (fell down stairs, injured both ankles, also numerous health issues).

When I lost a lot of weight as a teenager and got down to about 110 pounds, I found i could not maintain it, despite exercising for an hour or more every day, and eating 1200 calories. I had to drop down to 1000 or less, which led to an eating disorder. Do some people just have really slow metabolisms or am I just doing something wrong?

Replies

  • StaciMarie1974
    StaciMarie1974 Posts: 4,138 Member
    What are you basing these #s on? Though there could be medical reasons your metabolism is underperforming that is an extremely low maintenance level even if you are extremely inactive. Have you consulted a doctor to check for medical reasons?

    Gotta ask: Do you use a food scale and weigh/measure everything you eat? How long have you been at it?
  • all4yum
    all4yum Posts: 43 Member
    well the 1800 is from eating that much and observing the scales for a few weeks and seeing no change. I had been eating what MFP recommended - 1900 to lose 1 pound a week, based on no exercise and a sedentary lifestyle, and slowly gaining for a couple of months. I am very inactive, although I try to lift light hand weights and such to keep up some muscle, and (when I'm not falling down stairs) I try to walk a few times a week. I've seen the doctor for many tests (other medical problems), and my thyroid seems fine (they checked that repeatedly). But I have autoimmune issues, and I wonder if it could be related to that. Very frustrating though as I really don't want to starve myself. Oh and yes, I've use a food scale for pretty much everything I eat. Although not a digital one, as I broke it ;)
  • kgeyser
    kgeyser Posts: 22,505 Member
    You don't subtract your breastfeeding calories, you add them because your body is burning them to produce milk and you need to eat them back.

    If MFP says maintenance is 2390, then:

    To lose 1 lb per week, your daily calorie goal would be: 1890 (because 2390-500=1890)
    Plus breastfeeding: 2090 (because 1890+200=2090)

    If you ever add in exercise, you would add those calories to your daily goal and eat those calories back.

    So eat 2090 and see how you do. Measure/weigh all your food and log it. Also, since you mentioned numerous health issues, talk to your doctor about how your medical conditions or medication could impact your weight loss.
  • StaciMarie1974
    StaciMarie1974 Posts: 4,138 Member
    If its not digital, are you sure its accurate? How accurate is it? Can you tell 3 ounces clearly from 5? The non-digital scales I think of are like the ones in the produce department. I can't tell accurately on those and it can make a big difference if you think of the all day effects.
  • all4yum
    all4yum Posts: 43 Member
    kgeyser, that is pretty much what I've been doing but I've been gaining not losing and it's by reducing my calories I've discovered that i maintain at 1800, any more than that I simply gain weight. I'm not on any medication right now.

    I've actually just found a TDEE calculator and if I calculate my TDEE using just my weight and height it comes out as 2347 (BMR 1946), if I calculate my body fat from my measurements (57.9%) and then use the Katch-McCardle method of TDEE calculation it comes out as 1726 (BMR 1438) that's a lot different. So, is it because my body fat percentage is so high?

    And no, my scales aren't very accurate, but I measure in grams and it goes up in increments of 25g which isn't too bad as you can easily tell increments of 12.5g. I broke my scales a couple of weeks ago I really need to buy more, but I haven't got round to it. It's on my essential to do list.
  • cmcmommy
    cmcmommy Posts: 197 Member
    I sometimes think I have NO metabolism . LOL
  • StaciMarie1974
    StaciMarie1974 Posts: 4,138 Member
    Increments of 25g is much better than the mental image I had.

    I'd be wary of cutting calories too extreme without medical supervision. If you truly believe 1800 is maintenance then you could try 1300-1500 for a while, increasing activity as you are safely able. Research ways to boost metabolism, though many are perhaps nothing more than old wives tales. And try to get started on strength training religiously. Wall pushups, squats if you can. I like doing bicep curls repetitively while standing up/sitting down. Works arms & thighs at the same time.
  • froeschli
    froeschli Posts: 1,293 Member
    The other day I actually weighed my helping of peanut butter. I always figured if I load up a teaspoon instead of a tablespoon, I ought to approximate what they call a tablespoon on the jar. Uh, not really. My "teaspoon" of peanut butter ended up being 2 tablespoons worth (200 instead of 100 calories) So yeah, unless you don't eat calorie dense foods, a small digital scale that increments in grams would be good to have....
    I don't measure my food usually, but I like to have an idea of what it is worth calorie wise. IMO, numbers are arbitrary, activity levels are too etc, my body knows how much food it needs, now I just have to stop my brain from telling me I want more :tongue:

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