Need help with diary please.

badgerbadger1

I've been on a 1200 cal/day goal since I started on Dec 17 in an effort to lose weight. The BMR calculator put me at 1347 cals, so today I readjusted my calorie goal to 1400. Apparently this went back and changed my calorie goal all the way back to the beginning, so it looks like I've been undereating significantly the whole time.

Anyway, I need someone to look at my diary, I am trying to lose weight, but also started working out this week. My goal is to maintain or build lean tissue while dropping fat tissue. I've been eating cleaner, exceeding my protein, yada yada. I would like someone to take a look and tell me if I need to customize my macros/micros, calorie goals, food sources to better facilitate this process.

For reference:

5'4"
SW: 163
CW: 154.6 today
GW: 115 (not set in stone)

firesoforion

Well, as far as what you're eating, it looks pretty good to me (not an expert), but I will say that I'm also 5'4", SW 160ish (163, 159 by the time I made my way to this site), CW 156, and GW 110ish, and my maintenance calories (with working out) is about 1000. Even 1200 is too much for me and I'd be gaining on 1400.

countrygirl812

Well, as far as what you're eating, it looks pretty good to me (not an expert), but I will say that I'm also 5'4", SW 160ish (163, 159 by the time I made my way to this site), CW 156, and GW 110ish, and my maintenance calories (with working out) is about 1000. Even 1200 is too much for me and I'd be gaining on 1400.

1,200 is not too much for ANYONE. That is the bare minimum of what you should be consuming.

chevy88grl

Your eating looks pretty good. The one thing I did notice? You have quite a few calories leftover each day. This website works in a way different than others - it wants you to get your daily calories as close to zero as possible. It has already figured in a deficit for you, so you'll want to make sure you're eating enough. While you'll see weight drop off at first, eventually your body will catch up to what is going on and weight loss will slow down or stop. So, make sure you are eating enough. You HAVE to fuel your body in order to lose weight!

A lot will depend on your activity level. Have you checked your TDEE (total daily energy expenditure)? While this is an estimation - like BMR, I do think it is an important thing to know. This will take your BMR and multiply it by your activity level to give you an idea of how many calories your body burns in an average day.

I am 5'4", weigh somewhere between 145-150lbs. My BMR is 1338 and my TDEE is 2449. My deficit should be taken off the 2449 and NOT off the 1338. I can easily maintain my weight consuming 2300-2500 NET calories a day. When I was actively losing weight, I was around 2100-2200 NET calories.

badgerbadger1

Your eating looks pretty good. The one thing I did notice? You have quite a few calories leftover each day. This website works in a way different than others - it wants you to get your daily calories as close to zero as possible. It has already figured in a deficit for you, so you'll want to make sure you're eating enough. While you'll see weight drop off at first, eventually your body will catch up to what is going on and weight loss will slow down or stop. So, make sure you are eating enough. You HAVE to fuel your body in order to lose weight!

A lot will depend on your activity level. Have you checked your TDEE (total daily energy expenditure)? While this is an estimation - like BMR, I do think it is an important thing to know. This will take your BMR and multiply it by your activity level to give you an idea of how many calories your body burns in an average day.

I am 5'4", weigh somewhere between 145-150lbs. My BMR is 1338 and my TDEE is 2449. My deficit should be taken off the 2449 and NOT off the 1338. I can easily maintain my weight consuming 2300-2500 NET calories a day. When I was actively losing weight, I was around 2100-2200 NET calories.

It shows me as significantly under because, as I said in my OP, I just readjusted from 1200 to 1400. Most days I was pretty close to 1200, not trying to starve myself, that would be counterproductive. This was all before I realized 1200 might not be meeting my needs.

I've never heard of TDEE, so I looked it up and the calculator said 1732. What's a good calorie goal then? Thanks!

chevy88grl

Your eating looks pretty good. The one thing I did notice? You have quite a few calories leftover each day. This website works in a way different than others - it wants you to get your daily calories as close to zero as possible. It has already figured in a deficit for you, so you'll want to make sure you're eating enough. While you'll see weight drop off at first, eventually your body will catch up to what is going on and weight loss will slow down or stop. So, make sure you are eating enough. You HAVE to fuel your body in order to lose weight!

A lot will depend on your activity level. Have you checked your TDEE (total daily energy expenditure)? While this is an estimation - like BMR, I do think it is an important thing to know. This will take your BMR and multiply it by your activity level to give you an idea of how many calories your body burns in an average day.

I am 5'4", weigh somewhere between 145-150lbs. My BMR is 1338 and my TDEE is 2449. My deficit should be taken off the 2449 and NOT off the 1338. I can easily maintain my weight consuming 2300-2500 NET calories a day. When I was actively losing weight, I was around 2100-2200 NET calories.

It shows me as significantly under because, as I said in my OP, I just readjusted from 1200 to 1400. Most days I was pretty close to 1200, not trying to starve myself, that would be counterproductive. This was all before I realized 1200 might not be meeting my needs.

I've never heard of TDEE, so I looked it up and the calculator said 1732. What's a good calorie goal then? Thanks!

Instead of trying for a 500 calorie deficit, I would try a 250 calorie deficit for awhile (it will lower your weekly weight loss, but it will give you adequate calories for the day).

So, 1732 is your TDEE? I would deduct 250 calories from that - so, aim for 1482 each day. When you log your food, you'll want to get your calories as close to zero as possible. Like yesterday, I had 15 calories leftover. I consider 100 calories under/over to be a successful day.

trkinsky

Your food diary looks pretty good to me, but I am also new to MFP. I had the opportunity to visit with a nutritionist before I started accurately tracking my calorie load and nutrition. A concern I see is that it looks as if you sometimes are not consuming enough calories, especially if you begin working out more. The key is the deficit between your normal calorie burn and your calculated reduced amount based on your goals.

It takes something like 3200 calories for a pound lost (or gained if going in the other direction) below your "normal" rate of burn not below your basal metabolic rate. If you consume too few calories you run the risk of having your body go into survival mode and it will be counterproductive to your goals. I think that 1200 calories is too low of a target.

I try to consume more protein and cut the fat wherever possible. I try to eat only complex carbs and whole grains. These are also present in your food diary so, go stay on the track you are on. The key is tracking what you do, log in daily, and use the support system present on this site.

Cathleenr

i think your protein is too low, especially if you are starting a strength program. your carbs are pretty high, how has that been working? losing on that ratio? i do better with a lower carb ratio and not those that come from rice or oats.
when you lift, the muscle tissue needs to be able to draw on protein stores...not enough and you won't gain muscle. if you have not lifted weights before, you may experience fat loss and muscle gain for an initial period of time, but generally, you will need to choose your goal: fat loss or muscle mass. one has you in a calorie deficit and doing more cardio and losing weight, some lean tissue in there as well and the other has you doing less cardio and gaining weight, although it will be mostly lean tissue if you lift heavy enough. gaining muscle is a long process, with a cutting diet at the end of your build to lose the fat you will also put on, but it can be an extraordinary transformation.once you are near your goal weight, its a trickier process to keep the muscle and lose the fat, but it can be done if you pay attention to your diet every day and be patient.