What should my calorie deficit be?

kaitlinmre

I have had my goal set to 2 lbs a week ever since I started MFP, and yet I don't think I've lost more than a lb and a half in one week. My calorie goal is set to 1200, with an 870 deficit. Should I change my goal to 1.5 lbs a week?
I am 5'7 and 138.5 as of this morning.

lraymond558

wow i hate to ask this but what is a deficit?

jacolyncoker123

Well that depends, what is your ultimate goal? If you're trying to lose 10 lbs or less, you should be losing about 1/2 lb a week. More than that and you should try for 1 lb a week.

I'm only saying this because you're already at a healthy weight, and people like you and I can easily go into starvation mode because of this. And trust me starvation mode is a killer to get out of.

clarityvskarma

I'm about the same height and weight - 5'6 and 138 right now - so I'd be interested to see what some people say. For me the deficit has to be greater than most people because I have hypothyroidism, so my metabolism basically doesn't work anymore.

Calorie deficit basically just means burning more calories than you eat. You have to keep in mind that your body burns a pretty high number of calories just keeping you alive.

kaitlinmre

Well that depends, what is your ultimate goal? If you're trying to lose 10 lbs or less, you should be losing about 1/2 lb a week. More than that and you should try for 1 lb a week.

I'm only saying this because you're already at a healthy weight, and people like you and I can easily go into starvation mode because of this. And trust me starvation mode is a killer to get out of.

I'm about 8 lbs away from my goal weight right now.

ladyhawk00

Here are a couple of good threads that can help you determine how to set healthy, realistic goals/deficits. Good luck to you!

http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/61706-guide-to-calorie-deficits

http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/186814-some-mfp-basics

jacolyncoker123

Well that depends, what is your ultimate goal? If you're trying to lose 10 lbs or less, you should be losing about 1/2 lb a week. More than that and you should try for 1 lb a week.

I'm only saying this because you're already at a healthy weight, and people like you and I can easily go into starvation mode because of this. And trust me starvation mode is a killer to get out of.

I'm about 8 lbs away from my goal weight right now.

Then I'd say try for 1/2 lb a week for right now, and see how that goes. You don't want to lose it and then gain it all back because you didn't realize your body was starving, lol.

kaitlinmre

Well that depends, what is your ultimate goal? If you're trying to lose 10 lbs or less, you should be losing about 1/2 lb a week. More than that and you should try for 1 lb a week.

I'm only saying this because you're already at a healthy weight, and people like you and I can easily go into starvation mode because of this. And trust me starvation mode is a killer to get out of.

I'm about 8 lbs away from my goal weight right now.

Then I'd say try for 1/2 lb a week for right now, and see how that goes. You don't want to lose it and then gain it all back because you didn't realize your body was starving, lol.

Sigh, that would mean my weight loss would take FOREVER. I might try 1.5 and then 1 lb a week.

jabarra

I think your in starvation mode. You can't go below 1200 cal. Maybe you should change your goal to 1lb/wk., 2lbs is way too high for you.

Wightvixen

It's discouraging to hear, but when you have so few pounds to lose, and are already at a healthy weight, losing 2lbs a week is rather unrealistic. The body will fight tooth and nail to avoid getting underweight and progress slows considerably as optimum weight is approached. 1lb a week is really the maximum you can expect at this stage without eating so little you risk making yourself ill.

wolfchild59

I was at too high of a deficit for awhile and my weight loss slowed to a near halt. I upped the calories I was eating and reduced my deficit to closer to just 500 cal a day total (that meant eating my exercise calories) and I've started losing again. I'm also within 10 pounds of my goal and it really was the right thing to do, even though it seemed counter-intuitive. I'd rather have only a small amount of weight come off regularly each week then none at all (or see a gain) because I'm eating too little and my body is just holding onto every calorie.