Unrealistic Goal Weights (Long post)

crzyone

I'm glad to hear some of this because the site set my goal calories at 1800. I was hearing a lot of people talking about how their goal was 1200 and I was beginning to think that I was eating too much and should set my calories lower. I don't want to diet though; I want to eat healthier and make this a lifestyle.

espinozAgal

I put all my stats into MFP, and it gave me 1200 a day to lose weight. If that's what it's teaching me...that's what I'm going to do.

Then you have to eat your exercice calories

Sometimes I just can't eat that much. If I do I will feel stuffed and I hate that feeling. FOR EXAMPLE. last night I was 220 under my calories and done eating. not hungry. But I kept reading from people that it's not healthy.. i should eat... and so on. So I had a banana and a few almonds. WASN"T HUNGRY but I ate it. Then I go for my walk. I put typed it in and it gave me another 200 calories. There was no way I was going to eat again. What's a girl to do???

yanicka

I put all my stats into MFP, and it gave me 1200 a day to lose weight. If that's what it's teaching me...that's what I'm going to do.

Then you have to eat your exercice calories

Sometimes I just can't eat that much. If I do I will feel stuffed and I hate that feeling. FOR EXAMPLE. last night I was 220 under my calories and done eating. not hungry. But I kept reading from people that it's not healthy.. i should eat... and so on. So I had a banana and a few almonds. WASN"T HUNGRY but I ate it. Then I go for my walk. I put typed it in and it gave me another 200 calories. There was no way I was going to eat again. What's a girl to do???

Healthy fats like olive oil or coconut oil on your salad a=is a good way to add calories without over eating. (it this a deja vu??)

LorinaLynn

I prefer to listen to my body than an equation any day.

If listening to my body worked, I would never have gained weight in the first place.

Ideally, I will get to where I can listen to my body again, like I did when I was young and could eat whatever I wanted without gaining weight, but until then, I'd rather follow a proven equation to get me the results I want.

patrick323

I prefer to listen to my body than an equation any day.

If listening to my body worked, I would never have gained weight in the first place.

Ideally, I will get to where I can listen to my body again, like I did when I was young and could eat whatever I wanted without gaining weight, but until then, I'd rather follow a proven equation to get me the results I want.

I should have been a little more clear on what i meant. If you're active and working out like 4-6 times a week...when you feel hungry it's your body telling you that you need to eat. Unless you have some sort of brain malfunction that fires some wrong signal telling your brain that your'e hungry. I dont see how a persons body could be telling them "gain weight" unless they are under weight. And if it's a matter of eating unhealthy foods, that's not your body telling you to do that. Yes, sure, to each their own. Just sayin

gardenimp

My BMR is 1749.5/day...So doing the math eating 1200 calories a day puts me at a 549.5 calorie deficit a day. 549.5 X 7 days gives me a weekly deficit of 3846.5. Since one pound equals 3500 calories (give or take) I am set to lose 1 pound a week. Kudos if your BMR is higher but not everyone here is 'just doing 1200" I've done research on alot of other sites and listened to a variety of trainers opinions.

And what matters is results. I'm closing in on 50 pounds right now so this formula is working for me.

callmecorinne

To lose weight you need to create a calorie deficit and for a person like me who is on high dose steroids because of SLE, eating over 1200 calories of the wrong kind of food will make you GAIN weight and eating 1200 will only make you maintain your current weight. I don't know this for a fact, i know this from my own personal experience. When i was at college i was eating about 1500 calories a day and do cardio and strength for 2 hours everyday and I gained 12 pounds. A lot of people have a variety of reasons for having their calorie goal be what it is. I have no problem staying at my 1000 calorie goal because i eat almost all my calories in tons and tons of fruits, veggies and chicken.

yanicka

My BMR is 1749.5/day...So doing the math eating 1200 calories a day puts me at a 549.5 calorie deficit a day. 549.5 X 7 days gives me a weekly deficit of 3846.5. Since one pound equals 3500 calories (give or take) I am set to lose 1 pound a week. Kudos if your BMR is higher but not everyone here is 'just doing 1200" I've done research on alot of other sites and listened to a variety of trainers opinions.

And what matters is results. I'm closing in on 50 pounds right now so this formula is working for me.

Your BMR is you being in a coma. It's the energy it take just to exist. As soon as you get up of bed, you spend more energy. So in fact your deficite is more around 1000 to 1500 calories a day.

TinaDay1114

I also am tired of every one trying for 1200 calories a day. I like "diets" that are easy. I won't stick to it if it's not. Actually I like "diets" that aren't diets. I like "diets" that are eating well, enough, but not too much. This is my normal life. I could easily eat this way forever and probably will.

I've been trying for 1750 net and have lost 8lbs in 3 months, which is great to me.

AMEN, AMEN, A M E N. And for all the good info. on this topic from everyone, THANK YOU. MFP started me out at 1,290/day + exercise calories, and I finally upped it (and my protein %age) with some good advice from more experienced MFPers, and from these kinds of discussions.

I also want to make this my "normal" -- no protein shakes, juice fasts, cleansing whatevers, just NORMAL. I've got 2 kids, a job, a husband -- I need to live in the real world with everyone else, and right now, doing this, I can. Pretty much forever.

I do think it's easy for women to get into this mindset that SKINNY is best. If I'm not 120 lbs. soaking wet, then somehow I'm "fat." I' haven't been 120 lbs. since I went through puberty, and I've always been muscular. Now I just wanna be more fit, more muscular, and healthy. And I wanna look like a woman, not a q-tip. (*sorry, didn't mean that to sound mean*)

I worry about the younger women on MFP who haven't quite learned how skewed this mindset (and the calorie counts) might be and are beating up on themselves all the time about not reaching a size 2 or a size 0.. It's not healthy. And It's easy to slide into some really unhealthy thinking/behavior when you're "starving" your body -- knowingly, or mistakenly.

Personal example? In my mid-20's after a bad breakup, I was eating too little and working out too much. I got too thin for my frame for a few short months. But when I was in that mode, I felt like SUPERWOMAN, had manic energy, thought I was so on top of things and together. As soon as I started getting back to my normal self, and a more normal weight, I crashed and got severely depressed and tired.

It took about 3 months for my body to get back to "normal", to normalize my weight and my psyche. When I looked back on that roller coaster, I realized how quickly your brain chemistry can change by what you're doing to your body. Perceptions are skewed, moods are erratic, any change in your body causes depression and anxiety... That experience made me see how easy it is for people to fall into an eating disorder. Scary.

And that's not to say that everyone eating 1,200 is an eating disorder waiting to happen, but I hate to see girls flogging themselves.

achasnis

Thanks for posting that website! Soooo helpful!

LorinaLynn

I prefer to listen to my body than an equation any day.

If listening to my body worked, I would never have gained weight in the first place.

Ideally, I will get to where I can listen to my body again, like I did when I was young and could eat whatever I wanted without gaining weight, but until then, I'd rather follow a proven equation to get me the results I want.

I should have been a little more clear on what i meant. If you're active and working out like 4-6 times a week...when you feel hungry it's your body telling you that you need to eat. Unless you have some sort of brain malfunction that fires some wrong signal telling your brain that your'e hungry. I dont see how a persons body could be telling them "gain weight" unless they are under weight. And if it's a matter of eating unhealthy foods, that's not your body telling you to do that. Yes, sure, to each their own. Just sayin

I've been both somewhat overweight, and somewhat underweight, as an adult. That's all I'm saying. At both extremes, I "listened" to what my body wanted... I ate when I was hungry. I wasn't dieting or trying to lose weight when I got down to an unhealthy 103 lbs at 26 years old. I wasn't trying to gain weight when I got to 160 lbs at 38.

SOME people do have an amazing instinct about what to eat. People don't typically join MFP because they have naturally fantastic healthy eating habits.

At this point, I'm counting calories just as much to make sure I eat enough as to make sure I don't eat too much. It's easy for me to forget to eat and skip meals when I'm really active. But my body does not perform at it's best when I do that.

As far as "forcing myself to eat"... yeah, sometimes I feel like I am doing that, because I obviously don't instinctively know what's best for me. I also sometimes "forcing myself" to run five miles when I'd really rather watch tv. And I force myself to floss my teeth and wash behind my ears, too. I don't particularly enjoy either of those activities, either.

My body performs best when I get at least 100g of protein a day. My body doesn't always tell my brain that. My body says, "ICE CREAM!" not "Chicken!"

lbgano

1200 calories was set for me ( and most every woman I know on this site) ... Set for me by the website calculator. At first it was hard to find the right foods to eat to stay within that range but after a while you get good at it and it's not hard... It's like any basic diet plan - stick with the healthy foods (fruits, veggies, lean meats) and take it easy on the sugars and starches - everything in moderation - and in doing so your calorie intake is naturally low.

Yes, this. I don't want to feel hungry so I eat healthier, more filling foods. Having my calories set at 1200 also pushed me to get in at least 40 minutes of cardio a day because this pushes my cals to 1500, which is plenty if I am making healthy choices.

I think that because I am over 40 and fairly sedentary (I'm a student) it works for me. But I could see that someone in her 20's who is active daily would need more.

AlsDonkBoxSquat

I was set for 1200 and I worked out. I would eat back at least half my exercise calories every day and on days that I didn't exercise tried to fall within 50 calories of 1200. the first month was tough for me because my normal portion size was one and a half times what it should have been (6 oz instead of 4 oz), but once I got used to actually consuming healthy portions and really started packing on the veggies those 1200 days didn't bother me at all. I'm now up to 1400 as my base for maintenance. I successfully lost about 30 pounds in 4 months and am down to a 13% body fat with a sustainable lifestyle. this isn't something that I suggest for everyone, everyone is different, but this is what worked for me. Yes I lost about 5 or 6 pounds of lean mass along the way, but now I have a healthy starting point from which I can put some of that back on.

nsblue

Well I intake approx 1200 cal a day and exercise (walk) daily and also do some weights. I am under a doctors care who does bloodwork every 3 months and everything is fantastic. I have come off all blood pressure meds, down drastically with my insulin levels (was on 170u, now on 14u) and feel better than I have in my life. I am NOT hungry and fully satified with what I am eating...and STILL losing weight. I make sure to get at least 60-80 grams of protein in to maintain lean muscle mass.

I will keep to my docs program no matter what...it works for me.

Rompa_87

I was set for 1200 and I worked out. I would eat back at least half my exercise calories every day and on days that I didn't exercise tried to fall within 50 calories of 1200. the first month was tough for me because my normal portion size was one and a half times what it should have been (6 oz instead of 4 oz), but once I got used to actually consuming healthy portions and really started packing on the veggies those 1200 days didn't bother me at all. I'm now up to 1400 as my base for maintenance. I successfully lost about 30 pounds in 4 months and am down to a 13% body fat with a sustainable lifestyle. this isn't something that I suggest for everyone, everyone is different, but this is what worked for me. Yes I lost about 5 or 6 pounds of lean mass along the way, but now I have a healthy starting point from which I can put some of that back on.

Wow...13% bf is considered pretty much on the border of the lowest safe level/dangerous level for females... You should easily have super visible 6 pack muscles by now. Most females have them show around 17% if they have enough lean muscle

Alissa_Sal

That's why I work out (earn more calories) and I eat back all of my exercise calories.

You know what horks me off? MFP doesn't give you calories back for strength training, and I find that the days where I do weights are my hungriest days!

brit49

So right!!!!

AKosky585

I have been on this site for going on 2 years now and am only now just starting to lose weight...I aim for 1200 calories a day and am 5'4. I may only NET 1000 when I exercise...but it is working for me. At 1200-1400 I stay the same, at 1500 I fluctuate, and anything above that I begin to gain. I have tested many methods over the past 2 years....testing each one for at least a month, so I know what works for MY body....or what doesn't. I am within 10 pounds of my goal, at which I will slowly start raising my calories to maintain when I get within the 2-5 pound range from goal. Until then, I am going to do what works since it has taken me 2 years to find it!

LorinaLynn

That's why I work out (earn more calories) and I eat back all of my exercise calories.

You know what horks me off? MFP doesn't give you calories back for strength training, and I find that the days where I do weights are my hungriest days!

There's a "Strength training" estimate you can log under cardio. The part where you log your strength training by reps is just to keep track of reps.

From http://www.myfitnesspal.com/faq

Q. Doesn't strength training burn calories? Why don't you show any calories burned for strength training?

A. Estimating the calories burned from strength training is very difficult because it depends on a variety of factors: how much weight you lifted per repetition, how vigorously you performed that exercise, how much rest you took between sets, etc. Because of this, we do not automatically calculate how many calories you burned from strength training exercises.

However, if you'd like, you can add "Strength training" as a cardio exercise to get a rough estimate of how many calories you burned. Please be aware though that this is definitely a rough estimate and can be fairly inaccurate.

cheshirechic

LorinaLynn- I've been scared to increase my intake for that same mind/body disconnect that you mentioned.

This thread was interesting to read and, as a result, I decided that I have to just increase my net. I only have 8 lbs. to lose to be at my GW, and 13 lbs. to lose before I reach my UGW. I think this will work.

Thanks to those who posted their positive results from reducing the deficit!

springtrio

Well, I gave this a shot today (net calories, that is). I must say...I feel more energized and less hungry though. I just wish I didn't feel so guilty about eating those extra ones.

_GlaDOS_

No, it is not setting 1,200 as our BMR, the 1,200 is creating a deficit so we can lose weight!
BMR is what your body will burn if you don't do anything.. so obviously you need to eat less than that to lose weight!
for example my BMR is around 1,700 so eating 1,200 means I have a deficit of 500 a day = 3500 a week = 1lb loss a week

This, I have discovered, is not how BMR works.

For example, my BMR is about 1650. This is the number you should think of that your body needs to "survive". To maintain my current weight, however, I need to eat about 2,100 calories. You should base your deficit on the calories you need to maintain your weight, and eat at LEAST your BMR calories (Your BMR calories should be the lowest deficit you should go basically). I have to gradually work up to this now, since I've been trying to live off of a 1000-1200 calorie deficit. And I didn't lose weight with that deficit. It also probably depends on how much and how hard you exercise. Now, maybe if you're super obese, it would be different. This is how I have come to understand it, anyway...

AlsDonkBoxSquat

I was set for 1200 and I worked out. I would eat back at least half my exercise calories every day and on days that I didn't exercise tried to fall within 50 calories of 1200. the first month was tough for me because my normal portion size was one and a half times what it should have been (6 oz instead of 4 oz), but once I got used to actually consuming healthy portions and really started packing on the veggies those 1200 days didn't bother me at all. I'm now up to 1400 as my base for maintenance. I successfully lost about 30 pounds in 4 months and am down to a 13% body fat with a sustainable lifestyle. this isn't something that I suggest for everyone, everyone is different, but this is what worked for me. Yes I lost about 5 or 6 pounds of lean mass along the way, but now I have a healthy starting point from which I can put some of that back on.

Wow...13% bf is considered pretty much on the border of the lowest safe level/dangerous level for females... You should easily have super visible 6 pack muscles by now. Most females have them show around 17% if they have enough lean muscle

I've been working with my pt and I'm still very safe. I had eating disorders as a teen, so this time I wanted to make sure that I was getting to an optimal weight and bf% for me and my body. I think that I've finally settled into maintenance and am excited to see the scale start going up as I put on a little more lean mass. As it stands I probably would have a cut 6 pack right now, but I like wine and ice cream . . . until I get rid of them I'll just have to settle for "you can tell it's there." I need a new picture for my profile. I'm not really worried about my bf%, I have reserves in my donk.

Rompa_87

I was set for 1200 and I worked out. I would eat back at least half my exercise calories every day and on days that I didn't exercise tried to fall within 50 calories of 1200. the first month was tough for me because my normal portion size was one and a half times what it should have been (6 oz instead of 4 oz), but once I got used to actually consuming healthy portions and really started packing on the veggies those 1200 days didn't bother me at all. I'm now up to 1400 as my base for maintenance. I successfully lost about 30 pounds in 4 months and am down to a 13% body fat with a sustainable lifestyle. this isn't something that I suggest for everyone, everyone is different, but this is what worked for me. Yes I lost about 5 or 6 pounds of lean mass along the way, but now I have a healthy starting point from which I can put some of that back on.

Wow...13% bf is considered pretty much on the border of the lowest safe level/dangerous level for females... You should easily have super visible 6 pack muscles by now. Most females have them show around 17% if they have enough lean muscle

I've been working with my pt and I'm still very safe. I had eating disorders as a teen, so this time I wanted to make sure that I was getting to an optimal weight and bf% for me and my body. I think that I've finally settled into maintenance and am excited to see the scale start going up as I put on a little more lean mass. As it stands I probably would have a cut 6 pack right now, but I like wine and ice cream . . . until I get rid of them I'll just have to settle for "you can tell it's there." I need a new picture for my profile. I'm not really worried about my bf%, I have reserves in my donk.

I only express concern because my background is in sport and nutrition Psychology and basically the scientific literature reports that for females somewhere between 10-13% body fat is the essential fat levels for females. Basically when you start going into or below this level it will start affecting your hormonal responses, damage your vital organs etc. So while you are just on the safe side border now make sure you do not lose any more bf

gardenimp

My BMR is 1749.5/day...So doing the math eating 1200 calories a day puts me at a 549.5 calorie deficit a day. 549.5 X 7 days gives me a weekly deficit of 3846.5. Since one pound equals 3500 calories (give or take) I am set to lose 1 pound a week. Kudos if your BMR is higher but not everyone here is 'just doing 1200" I've done research on alot of other sites and listened to a variety of trainers opinions.

And what matters is results. I'm closing in on 50 pounds right now so this formula is working for me.

Your BMR is you being in a coma. It's the energy it take just to exist. As soon as you get up of bed, you spend more energy. So in fact your deficite is more around 1000 to 1500 calories a day.

You are to take you BMR *1.2 for sedentary (sitting all day job), 1.375 for active jobs (on your feet and/or walking) and 1.55 for physically challenging jobs (construction workers). Like I state previously, I have done my homework and it is working for me.

If what you are doing is working for you, then continue. I don't believe people should judge every persons journey with their own indiviual experiences. Everyone is different and each person need to find what works for them.

callmecorinne

I have been on this site for going on 2 years now and am only now just starting to lose weight...I aim for 1200 calories a day and am 5'4. I may only NET 1000 when I exercise...but it is working for me. At 1200-1400 I stay the same, at 1500 I fluctuate, and anything above that I begin to gain. I have tested many methods over the past 2 years....testing each one for at least a month, so I know what works for MY body....or what doesn't. I am within 10 pounds of my goal, at which I will slowly start raising my calories to maintain when I get within the 2-5 pound range from goal. Until then, I am going to do what works since it has taken me 2 years to find it!

AGREED! Everyone's body is different and if you found a method that is working for you. (As it seems to be, phenomenally) Then more power to you!

patrick323

I think, also, that people with more substantial weight to lose CAN afford to have a higher deficit. If a person is looking to drop 10 to 15 pounds; I think that doing it slowly with weight training and replenishing burnt calories (within a minor deficit goal) is likely to work for them. I'd be very happy once I was to the point where I could worry about toning. Right now it's just shredding for me.

Rompa_87

It is very possible for larger people to lose more weight and more quickly than someone who is already lean. There is no doubt about this fact.

However, just putting this out there that any high calorie deficit diet will damage your metabolism regardless of whether you are lean with 10-15lbs to lose or 200+lbs. This is one of the primary reasons why when people finally shed their weight quickly from a crash diet they are likely to gain almost all their weight back once they start eating normally again. Their metabolism slowly needs to repair itself and they have likely lose so much lean muscle mass that it will take a long time to undo the damage.

So the question is this. What is more important to you, losing 50+lbs by beach season so you can look good in you bikini or changing your lifestyle so that you lose weight and continue keeping it off forever? If it is the latter then lose weight slowly. figure out your BMR and eat at that level until you stop losing weight. Cut 100 calories from that and then continue eating at that level until you stop losing weight again and repeat.

Sure you won't be in awesome shape by next beach season and it might take you years to get to your ideal weight. Think about it though, did you gain 100's of lbs in 6 months? Very unlikely. It took years of overeating of not exercising enough and eating too much. Why do you expect it is a better idea to undo that damage in a matter of months? Make small changes over time and live the lifestyle you are aiming for.

sonjalucia

Rompoc...

What about for someone like myself who can only really do abdominal and arm exercises? I am 2 months post meniscus/ACL
/MCL surgery and am not yet cleared to do cardio (need to knee to straighten first)

I am 5'3 and went from 165 the daycbefore surgery to 140 with clean eating only. I'm finding myself stuck now at 140 eating at 1,200 and am looking for smart ways to try upping the cals... Perhaps calorie cycling for 2 weeks.

Your thoughts?

patrick323

It is very possible for larger people to lose more weight and more quickly than someone who is already lean. There is no doubt about this fact.

However, just putting this out there that any high calorie deficit diet will damage your metabolism regardless of whether you are lean with 10-15lbs to lose or 200+lbs. This is one of the primary reasons why when people finally shed their weight quickly from a crash diet they are likely to gain almost all their weight back once they start eating normally again. Their metabolism slowly needs to repair itself and they have likely lose so much lean muscle mass that it will take a long time to undo the damage.

So the question is this. What is more important to you, losing 50+lbs by beach season so you can look good in you bikini or changing your lifestyle so that you lose weight and continue keeping it off forever? If it is the latter then lose weight slowly. figure out your BMR and eat at that level until you stop losing weight. Cut 100 calories from that and then continue eating at that level until you stop losing weight again and repeat.

Sure you won't be in awesome shape by next beach season and it might take you years to get to your ideal weight. Think about it though, did you gain 100's of lbs in 6 months? Very unlikely. It took years of overeating of not exercising enough and eating too much. Why do you expect it is a better idea to undo that damage in a matter of months? Make small changes over time and live the lifestyle you are aiming for.

I did slightly UP my calorie intake after week one (i'm just ending week two) because i was losing as much as 2lb a day some days and I realize that as thrilling as that is, it's probably a little rapid. The weight loss did decrease slightly but still at a substantial rate. I really like this at first for a good motivator.

Do you think that low to moderate resistance workouts - a few times a week (a 'core' workout, swimming, etc) will suffice for lean muscle resistance exercising for a bit until I think I'm ready to switch from 2 to 3 cardio workouts a day to a strength training day which will surely drain me of more energy making these multiple cardio workouts hard to do (this is when I'd eat more I suppose) ??

Also, the way I eat now, is precisely the way i hope to eat from now on and have zero plans or desire to fall back into poor eating habits which were 2 very high cal meals , one late afternoon, one late night).