Calorie Goals?

christinar2008

Hey, I am a little confused still on what I should set my calorie goals to. I am 5' 5" and weigh 196lbs. Anyone similar to my height/weight with suggestions would be great. It is hard to get in 1200 calories a day. I feel like I am not eating enough because I keep going under the 1200 mark although I am not hungry. Can anyone give me a number to go by where I can take in enough calories and still lose weight. I exercise on the Elliptical 3-4 days a week. You can view my diary to see what I have been eating if necessary.

xXAlana21Xx

eat more nuts, beans, avacodoes.. it will add those extra calories without eating a lot

Newfiedan

When you put in your info that mfp gave you set the goal at 1 lb/week that gives you a 500cal/day deficit right out of the gate without any exercise, being that you have about 30-40 to lose you can go as high as a 1000 cal/day deficit meaning you can go daily and not eat back an additional 500 cals. So if you burned say 1000 cals for the day you have to eat back 500 of them for a 1000 cal deficit, any more than 1000 cals and the body will fight back and slow down your metabolic rate. You can get get away with more from time to time but try not to as its counterproductive. The reason you have not been shedding fat as effectively as you would like is that you are not eating enough. Yes that is right I said not enough, 1200 for you is an absolute minimum without any exercise to shed fat productively. So work with your body and eat right, at first it may take more effort and you may not be hungry but once you start eating more the body will crank up your metabolic rate and start shedding fat again.

BECav0602

Your diary isn't public. Like the previous poster, nuts, whole grains, hard boiled eggs, fruit and peanut butter. Those are all healthy extra calories. I try to eat about 5 or 6 times a day and incorporate those things into my snacks. I too struggle with eating enough since I do kickboxing 5-6 times a week burning an average of 550-600 calories per session. I find all the things I mention help me get to my goal. Hope this helps.

christinar2008

Thanks newfiedan. That makes sense. I want to lose but was worried about eating too much/not eating enough. Your suggestion should put me in the middle so I should be fine.

Thanks to everyone else also. Your tips are greatly appreciated. I am eating a lot of nuts and fruit lately. I normally will eat a pack of Planters Heart Healthy snack packs 250 calories and Del Monte fruit with no sugar added. I am not a junk food eater so I think I can do this and be ok. I was worried about portion sizes. I eat a lot of chicken/pork tenderloin...and steamed veggies and I was doing the serving suggestions and maybe I need to eat more of the veggies. I am sure more veggies will not hurt me at all and will be better for me in the long run.

Newfiedan

yep the cleaner you eat (meaning less processed) the better, I have made vast improvements in my health in 3 months by switching to that methodology.

Melissaol

I also have a hard time eating my exercise calories .. I eat 6 times a day, oatmeal for breakfast, am snack, witch is half apple, hand fill of peanuts, low fat string cheese. . Good luck.

Newfiedan

If you are having trouble eating them then spread it out over the day instead of doing it post workout.