Am I Eating the Right Amount of Calories?

nfull2

I started using MFP in the beginning of January and I weighed 176 pounds, now at the beginning of June I have lost about 30 pounds and now weigh around 147. While I have been very successful so far I am worried that I haven't been losing weight the right way. I began by eating between 1200 and 1300 calories and then once I reached around 155 pounds I increased my calories to 1300. However, throughout my weightloss journey, I have not been eating exercise calories back. I know this is unhealthy because I would have gone under 1200 net calories some days, but I felt okay doing it because I have an active social life (which includes going out to dinner and drinking) on the weekends so I know I may go over my calorie goal on those days. I figured that if I was lower during the week and then went over on the weekends everything would balance out! Today, when reading the forums I saw a thread about how unsafe it was to be eating 1200-1300 calories and how not eating your exercise calories back can hurt you in the long run, so I decided that I should try to up my calories to 1400. I have always been reluctant to eat my exercise calories back because I did not want to over estimate how much I burned. However, I am worried that if I keep going like this I will lose muscle mass. Also, I want to be able to keep this weight off long term, so I am worried that when I move to maintenance I will gain weight back since my body is used to such a large deficit.

I am a 22 year old female who is 5'3. As I said earlier I am around 147 and I would like to get down to 125-130. As of today my goal is 1400 calories a day and I am just wondering if this is a good goal for me. My diary is open if that will help! Thank you for your help!

DancingMoosie

I know that for me personally, also 5'3", I have to eat more than 1300 calories. I felt fine at the beginning, I'm assuming because we had more fat to burn, but had to bump up the calories after losing about 20lbs. It seems that once we burn a lot of that excess fat that we had on our bodies, we have to rely on our food more. Eating enough protein will help you not lose as much muscle, as you continue to lose weight, but strength training will also help a lot. What kinds of exercise are you doing?

nfull2

Thank you for your reply!

I do a variety of exercises. I do Zumba 2-3 times a week and I do body pump 1-2 times a week. Depending on my schedule I also go to some of the other fitness classes my gym offers. The days I don't go to a class at my gym I walk on a treadmill at an incline of 10-15 degrees and at a speed of 4-4.2 mph. I have also gotten into running. I usually try to do 2-3 runs per week; I usually run before the classes at my gym that focus more on strength training instead of cardio (like body pump). I run 2-3 miles at a speed of 6-6.5 miles per hour (I can run 2.5 miles in under 25 minutes).

I try to work out 6 days a week, but I go by how my body feels, if I am tired from work out my workout the previous day I will skip a day of walking on the treadmill to let my body rest.

DancingMoosie

I would definitely try to add in more strength training and then you can back off on some of the cardio. You could probably also increase your calories to 1600 or so (possibly even higher like 1800-2000). It is also ok to eat back your exercise calories. Put in your age and weight on the machine. You can use mfp calculations, as well, just make sure you keep your weight updated. Many people think the calories are over-estimated, but I found they worked fine for me, and I lost most of my weight using whatever calculation mfp or the machines gave me. I find that Yoga, Pilates, or stretching helps a lot on those days that I feel run down, stiff, or sore, but don't want to take a full rest day. Walking is also a good way to work out that lactic acid. You don't have to go full-force every day:)

nfull2

Thank you for your advice! I really appreciate it!

terbusha

I agree that you probably should be eating more than 1300 cal/day. As you get more fit and lean, you need to rely more on food for energy, as your reserves are getting reduced. I also agree that doing more strength training is beneficial. It helps to protect your muscle mass, which will keep you metabolism up. For setting calorie goals, I'm very practical. I go by performance and progress. What I do and what I recommend to people is to eat at a calorie level that allows you to drop 1-2 lbs/week. This assumes an average calorie burn from you getting in all of your workouts. This will be different for everyone, so you'll have to do some trial and error to figure it out. I'd start ~1600 cal/day. Hit this goal, along with your macros and getting in your workouts, for a week. If you lose 1-2 lbs, you're good to go. If you lose too much, increase your intake and repeat. If you don't lose enough, reduce your intake a bit and repeat. After a few weeks, you'll figure out what works for you in your situation.

Allan