A different way to set up MFP goals - that WORKS!

Tigermad

Well I started this today and I am a little bit scared. Previously I have been mainly sticking to 1200 (what MFP gave me and upped no higher than 1500 rarely if I fancied a treat).

I am now on 1505 cals per day before exercise and fear I will not lose weight on this. I will give it a week or so and see how I get on. I stil have around 47 lbs to lose to reach my first goal of 140lbs (5ft 4" large frame). I want to take it steady and only lose up to 2 lbs per week hoping for my skin not to sag too much. (unlikely since I am nearly 40!).

I will be very happy if I still lose on 1500 cals since I think I will have more energy now when i go to the gym.

nmg8

bumping for later

Alexagetsfit

bump

rosied915

I started this today and am hoping for the best from it. I'm in no hurry to "get anywhere" and REALLY, REALLY, REALLY don't want to do ANYthing to lose the weight that I'm not willing to keep up with forever~ and that's that!!

That being said, I had the BEST tuna sandwich today on REAL bread (high fiber too) with a piece of Alpine Lace Swiss NOT the Laughing Cow spread (not that there's anything wrong with that).

Olivia, would you mind checking my numbers and giving your opinion?

BMR~ 1405
Maint~1760
Current Weight~ 191
Height~ 5 ft
Age 51

Prev. MFP Calorie Goal~ 1200 then 1260
NEW MFP Calorie Goal~ 1450 (using the "Olivia Method")

Exercise Cals~ Hoping to burn at least 300 cals/4 days week.

Thanks for posting this and starting the newest trend here on MFP!! I'm excited to see the results!

eta: Did I mention how much ENERGY I had today from NOT STARVING~ freakin' AMAZING!!

erica714

bump

cluvenit

Bump :-)

olivia3263

My BMR is 1295. Multiply that by 1.3 = 1683.5.
I should eat 1295 and not eat back exercise calories except if I burn more than 295 so that I don't net lower than 1000.

Basically, I should eat 1295 a day. If I exercise, I should not worry about 295 calories of the burn but if I burn more, I eat that surplus back. I would say my average daily calorie burn would be 500 which means that I would eat back 205( 500 exercise burn minus 295 cals I don't need to worry about). Since I work out six days a week, I"ll be eating 1500 those days and 1295 on my rest day.

Right now my MFP calorie goal is as low as it can go....1200 to lose .8 lb a week and I eat back exercise calories. That has me eating anywhere from 1300 to 1800(most days 1730 around) usually. And this is why I"m not losing? I'm doing p90x and insanity. If I didn't eat back all my exercise calories, I would be losing?

Actually, you could eat 1295, burn up to 611 calories from working out, and if you didn't eat them back you would have a 1000 calorie deficit. if you burn anything over 611 you would HAVE to eat them back to make sure you don't have too large of a deficit. If you burn under 611, your deficit decreases (less than 2 pounds a week) but burning your average 500, sticking with 1295 you would still have an 889 deficit. If you were hungry, you could eat more but your deficit would decrease. The only way though for you to reach the maximum 1000 calorie deficit would be to increase your workout to burn at least 611, and not eat the calories back - just stick to the 1295.

olivia3263

I'm very interested in this but super confused. Can someone help me my BMR is 1896 and I weigh 240! Right now MFP says my calorie goal is 1417 .

So I think this works better if you are closer to your goal, but you could certainly give it a shot. You can achieve a 1000 calorie deficit safely without exercise (hence MFP giving you 1417 to lose weight). When you get closer to your goal, like I am - a 1000 calorie deficit puts you in dangerous territory (below 1200 calories, which no woman should ever go below). If I were you, I would stick with 1417 goal, and eat your exercise calories to keep your 1000 calorie deficit. But, I like math so here ya go

Set MFP calorie goal to 2464 (what you could eat to maintain your weight with no exercise).
Aim to eat around 1896. If you work out and burn 432, you will create a 1000 calorie deficit. If you burn more in a single day, eat the surplus back - but again, your body won't freak out if you have a deficit larger than 1000.

I would advise you to stick with the MFP way until you get closer to your goal. Good Luck!!!

olivia3263

I've lost 5 or 6 pounds so far.. total I want to actually lose now is only around 25-30. Depends on how I look after that. Right now, I'm eating 1300 per day. Sometimes I eat back my exercise calories, sometimes just some of them, and sometimes I don't. I work on my feet 5 days a week, usually around 5 hours each. I don't know how much that burns, but I do know my body is definitely used to it. When I go to the gym about 3 days a week, I burn around 250-300 each time. My BMR is 1359 according to MFP and I weigh 145. Care to help? I'd definitely be worried about upping my calorie intake because I don't want to gain weight.

Ok, so for you (since you work on your feet) I'll multiply your BMR by 1.5 (not 1.3) to account for the extra calories you burn during your job.

Daily MFP calorie goal: 2,038 - what you could eat to maintain your weight without working out.
Actual calorie goal: 1400 - eat AT LEAST this amount every day, whether you workout our not.
If you burn more than 362 calories when you workout, eat the surplus calories.

Don't be afraid to eat more. Before I found this, I took a 2 week maintenance break and ate at my maintenance calories for 2 weeks. It was amazing how much I ate and didn't gain! It really helps to open your eyes and not freak out if you eat more one day. It also does wonders for the metabolizing hormones in your body. But at the very least, I would definitely eat at least 1400. Give it at least 2 weeks to kick in - I've made that mistake before, trying something out but not giving it the proper time to see if it's working or not. Good luck and let me know if it works out

laurensohn22

Bump for later

olivia3263

I started this today and am hoping for the best from it. I'm in no hurry to "get anywhere" and REALLY, REALLY, REALLY don't want to do ANYthing to lose the weight that I'm not willing to keep up with forever~ and that's that!!

That being said, I had the BEST tuna sandwich today on REAL bread (high fiber too) with a piece of Alpine Lace Swiss NOT the Laughing Cow spread (not that there's anything wrong with that).

Olivia, would you mind checking my numbers and giving your opinion?

BMR~ 1405
Maint~1760
Current Weight~ 191
Height~ 5 ft
Age 51

Prev. MFP Calorie Goal~ 1200 then 1260
NEW MFP Calorie Goal~ 1450 (using the "Olivia Method")

Exercise Cals~ Hoping to burn at least 300 cals/4 days week.

Thanks for posting this and starting the newest trend here on MFP!! I'm excited to see the results!

eta: Did I mention how much ENERGY I had today from NOT STARVING~ freakin' AMAZING!!

Haha, "the Olivia Method" - I think I like the sound of that

Ok, so I think your new MFP calorie goal of 1450 is great, but you want this to be your actual calorie goal. If you want to see what your daily deficit is, put your MFP calorie goal at 1760 (your maintenance before exercise). Try to eat around 1450 each day, regardless of whether you workout or not. If you normally burn 300 calories when you workout, you will create a deficit of 610. If you have this deficit 4 days a week, and the other 3 you have a deficit of 310, you would have an average deficit of 481 - just under a pound a week.

Because you have a little more to lose, you could get away with going slightly under 1400 here or there if you wanted to create a larger deficit - or you could workout more (better option). If you happen to burn more than 690, make sure to eat the surplus calories.

And yes, it's amazing how good you'll feel when you feed your body properly! Before I came to MFP I was on Weight Watchers, and when I came here I quickly realized how little fat I was eating. I started incorporating more healthy fats and I suddenly had this burst of energy that just sort of stayed with me. It's funny how the things we're all afraid of - calories, fat, even sugar - is all good for us and necessary. We just can't have TOO much of these good things Good luck!

chrisdavey

Totally off topic but I hadn't read your screen name & thought you were the guy in the fluro shirt in the pic this whole time Sorry.

olivia3263

Totally off topic but I hadn't read your screen name & thought you were the guy in the fluro shirt in the pic this whole time Sorry.

Haha, that's funny! The pic is from my first half marathon I did in October. It was the only picture that I didn't look weird, or had my eyes looking all funky. They also got some good shots of me eating during the run. Next time I will have to be ready for the cameras

ACEgirl1

Bumping. Thank you, and congrats!

pinkita

Bump for future reference, thanks!

Tigermad

Hello. Would you mind checking my figures.
My bmr is 1504. So if I use the times 1.3 method that gives me a total of 1955.

So I should never eat below 1504 and exercise days, if I burn over 504 cals I should eat the amount over 504 cals back. So I don't have a deficit of over 1000 cals

Is that right?

The 1955 is the 1.3 method but mfp says my maintenance is 1880. Will the difference of 75 cals matter?

Everything is right. I don't think the difference of 75 calories matters too much. You probably have it set to sedentary to get the 1880? I think sedentary is multiplied by 1.2, so if you think you're more sedentary before exercise, then go with 1880. I think 1.3 is actually a little low for my daily activity, but I'll give it another couple weeks to make sure.

I think something is slightly wrong here. I have my calories set for 1880 but I only eat 1500. So I have a 380 deficit. If I workout and burn 800 calories my deficit is now 1180. So I would need to eat 180 back so I don't go below 1000 deficit. So that means I can burn 620 calories before I need to eat any back, is that right? But then I would only be netting 880 cals.

foster59803

Bump to read later

olivia3263

Hello. Would you mind checking my figures.
My bmr is 1504. So if I use the times 1.3 method that gives me a total of 1955.

So I should never eat below 1504 and exercise days, if I burn over 504 cals I should eat the amount over 504 cals back. So I don't have a deficit of over 1000 cals

Is that right?

The 1955 is the 1.3 method but mfp says my maintenance is 1880. Will the difference of 75 cals matter?

Everything is right. I don't think the difference of 75 calories matters too much. You probably have it set to sedentary to get the 1880? I think sedentary is multiplied by 1.2, so if you think you're more sedentary before exercise, then go with 1880. I think 1.3 is actually a little low for my daily activity, but I'll give it another couple weeks to make sure.

I think something is slightly wrong here. I have my calories set for 1880 but I only eat 1500. So I have a 380 deficit. If I workout and burn 800 calories my deficit is now 1180. So I would need to eat 180 back so I don't go below 1000 deficit. So that means I can burn 620 calories before I need to eat any back, is that right? But then I would only be netting 880 cals.

You have it exactly right. I, too, was concerned with netting below 1200, but when I asked my nutritionist about this, she said it's ok as long as I'm eating at least my BMR - it's about getting your body enough energy to function. She told me to save the 1000 calorie deficits for my big workout days. You might find, if you have less to lose, that too many days at a 1000 calorie deficit will leave you feeling weaker. She told me to gauge how I feel - if I need more, have a small snack with a combination of carbs and protein and see if that makes me feel better. She said NOT to deny myself if I'm hungry. Remember, 1000 calorie deficit is the maximum - there's nothing wrong with a 500 calorie deficit, or something in between, or even 250. Play around with it. My BMR is 1500, but my calorie limit is 1580 (weight x 10) - this is what she suggested for me and I find it more manageable. Like today, I burned 700 in exercise, ate 1680, have a 990 deficit, and it shows I'm netting 980. I've met all my nutrient goals (mainly making sure to get enough protein - I got 110 grams today), and I feel very satisfied. I've been eating this way for over a week and I'm doing well with my workouts (enough energy). When I first started I was confused and was eating under my BMR to create the 1000 calorie deficit and I really felt it in my energy and during my workouts. This feels much better. I guess just experiment and see what works for you - I think you're close. If your body feels good, go with it. If you feel you need more, add 100 -200 calories and see if that helps.

futiledevices

I've lost 5 or 6 pounds so far.. total I want to actually lose now is only around 25-30. Depends on how I look after that. Right now, I'm eating 1300 per day. Sometimes I eat back my exercise calories, sometimes just some of them, and sometimes I don't. I work on my feet 5 days a week, usually around 5 hours each. I don't know how much that burns, but I do know my body is definitely used to it. When I go to the gym about 3 days a week, I burn around 250-300 each time. My BMR is 1359 according to MFP and I weigh 145. Care to help? I'd definitely be worried about upping my calorie intake because I don't want to gain weight.

Ok, so for you (since you work on your feet) I'll multiply your BMR by 1.5 (not 1.3) to account for the extra calories you burn during your job.

Daily MFP calorie goal: 2,038 - what you could eat to maintain your weight without working out.
Actual calorie goal: 1400 - eat AT LEAST this amount every day, whether you workout our not.
If you burn more than 362 calories when you workout, eat the surplus calories.

Don't be afraid to eat more. Before I found this, I took a 2 week maintenance break and ate at my maintenance calories for 2 weeks. It was amazing how much I ate and didn't gain! It really helps to open your eyes and not freak out if you eat more one day. It also does wonders for the metabolizing hormones in your body. But at the very least, I would definitely eat at least 1400. Give it at least 2 weeks to kick in - I've made that mistake before, trying something out but not giving it the proper time to see if it's working or not. Good luck and let me know if it works out

Great, thanks! Not too bad.. only 100 more than I'm eating now, so I don't see it causing a gain.

LavenderLace741

bump