HELP! Need to maintain weight but failing!

I'm 19, 5ft 4" and my weight is 8st 3lbs (Still lossing weight) I do swimming training 4 days a week for 1 hour and skate 4/6 hours every 2 days of the week aswell as 1 hour walks everyday. My calorie intake is just around 1200-1400 a day but I'm losing weight. I need to maintain my weight so how much calories must I consume in 1 day. ( I eat a lot of fruit, veggies and meat. I do have takaways twice a month, it's a family thing)

Replies

  • kendalslimmer
    kendalslimmer Posts: 579 Member
    Have you considered wearing something that tracks steps etc? I have a Jawbone UP24 and in addition to logging steps you can log specific exercises - like swimming. (N.B. You can't get it wet!) Then it tells me what all my exercise is worth in calories, which makes it easy to figure out what I should be eating.

    Anyway, 1400 does not sound like enough to me! It sounds as though you're still going to loose weight. Most people need to eat around 2000 a day I think to maintain even without extra exercise (although with your height you may require less) . I could be wrong though, I'm new to calorie counting!
  • twinkle150
    twinkle150 Posts: 133 Member
    1200 is not enough to maintain even if you where sedentary.. Based on your weight and height and assuming moderate to heavy exercise, you would need 2016 to 2284 to maintain.
  • karenj_m
    karenj_m Posts: 215
    Based on this calculator: http://scoobysworkshop.com/calorie-calculator/

    You need about 2300 calories per day to "maintain"....try 2000 first for 1 week or 2 and see if that will hold, if not up by 100 increments for 1 week or 2....and re-evaluate.

    PS: I have your activity at 5-6 hours of strenous exercise on those above specs.
  • Thank you so much guys! I'll try finding something that reads my calories from exercise and start uping my intake to 2000 ! I don't want my body to start eating away at my muscles!
  • itsbasschick
    itsbasschick Posts: 1,584 Member
    i'm your height, and eat 1200 net calories per day to lose weight - on active days, i eat up to 1400 calories and continue to lose.

    2000 sounds like a good amount to start with, as my maintenance would be about 1700 net calories, and i only work out about 5 hours per week.
  • SLLRunner
    SLLRunner Posts: 12,942 Member
    ScampTi wrote: »
    I'm 19, 5ft 4" and my weight is 8st 3lbs (Still lossing weight) I do swimming training 4 days a week for 1 hour and skate 4/6 hours every 2 days of the week aswell as 1 hour walks everyday. My calorie intake is just around 1200-1400 a day but I'm losing weight. I need to maintain my weight so how much calories must I consume in 1 day. ( I eat a lot of fruit, veggies and meat. I do have takaways twice a month, it's a family thing)

    Slowly increase your calories until your weight becomes stable. Remember that weight fluctuates from day to day, so pick a weight range that feels comfortable for you.

    As for how much to eat- 1200 to 1400 is a calorie deficit for most people. Just enter your stats in MFP with the goal to maintain and it will show you your calories. Be sure to eat your exercise calories back too.
  • choligeetu
    choligeetu Posts: 22 Member
    I'm afraid that your intake is insufficient to support the sports, as you described. For me, 5'5, 58 kg, and do exercise for 1 hour everyday (walking or jogging), I basically need 3000+ calories to maintain.