I don't think I can do this....

carolinacourtney

So, MFP is telling me that I need to eat just over 2000 calories a day to lose 2lbs a week.... In maintaining a healthy diet, I'm having a hard time actualy consuming THAT MUCH food. The part that's stressing me out is when I exercise. The calculations on the site tell me I'm burning close to 1000 calories for 60 minutes of high impact aerobics.... and then it gives them back to me to eat. That means, if I consume my exercise calories I am supposed to eat 3000 calories a day.... SERIOUSLY???

murphburns

That seems off to me! MFP is telling me i need to consume 1200 a day to lose 2 lbs a week. I know it calculates based on weight and height, but I would say, don't eat if you aren't hungry! As you lose weight, your daily intake of calories will go down. You can do it! Good Luck!

BarbWhite09

Are you sure you entered your stats right!? Pretty sure that's way off.

newarkco05

It sounds like your activity level was set very high- like very active.

hybridscientist

it's definitely worth double checking what you've entered into MFP as your weight, height and activity level. It seems really odd.

maryjay51

if you feel you are eating healthy enough dont be afraid to scale back on the calories.. i dont eat the calories they say to eat because i worked out . i eat six times a day as it is and theres no way i can eat as much as they want me to .today for instance i was hungry and so i added a myoplex lite shake to the menu as a snack that i didnt intend to have so i ate seven times instead of six ..i listen to my body and i feel strongly i have a well balanced diet .. i see my dr regularly and there are no issues as of today anyway lol

rockerbabyy

i think with mfp you arent supposed to include you exercising in your daily activity level - if you do, then you shouldnt log it as exercise because its already being figured into your daily calorie goal. that does seem very high to me - i have my settings at 2lb per week, and lightly active.. i have a lot to lose and my daily goal is 1520 before exercise.

Pandorian

I also have a goal of 2000 calories a day, and it works for me. Exercise calories are indeed added, that's a big reduction over what I was eating that got me to 330lbs int he first place.

1200 for all ladies and 1500 for all men isn't "right" as the way to lose weight, but definitely check over your profile for possible errors, ie selecting very active because of your workouts and then logging workouts you're doubling up on the calorie burn.

klbaierwalter

Mine is the same way. I eat as close to my intake as I can, but if I don't make it, I don't sweat it. I always drink a lot of water, so that tends to backfire against me in terms of my calorie intake.

ALW65

:bigsmile: I would be happy to exchange numbers with you .... or you could just send me any of your extra calories and I'll help you out~

janetteluparia

Also, MFP's calories burned for excercise are always off to me. Check out LIVESTRONG.com or use this formula:

(.074* your age)+(.4472 * Heart Rate)-(.05741*your weight)-20.4022 * (time/4.184) = calories burned

chickybuns

I agree. Double check your activity level, if it's sedentary or lightly actve it should be much lower than 2000. I'm lightly active, weigh 155lbs, set to lose 0.5lb/week and I get 1770.

LabRat529

It's not that hard to get that many calories in, and believe it or not, you can do so in a healthy manner! No twinkies needed (but if you want twinkies, that's fine too). Add almonds, olives, olive oil, avocados, sunflower seeds, raw pumpkin seeds, legumes, and so on to your diet.

And actually, 2000 is very reasonable if you are obese. It's highly likely that your metabolism is burning more than 2000. And yes, if you exercise, you should eat at least some of those calories back.

I'm 5'3. I weigh 191 lbs. I have a bodymedia fit band, that counts calories, and my calorie burn is 2100 give or take on days when I don't exercise.

It really just depends on your stats. Personally, I recommend following MFP's recommendations for at least a couple weeks. If you don't lose, then you can cut your calories down a bit.

I also recommend you "friend" some ladies (and men too) that are eating about 2000 calories a day. Take a look at their diaries. See what they're eating. You can look at mine too- it's open to the public- though I am not a 'clean eater', so I can't vouch for how 'healthy' my choices are. Some days are better than others.

Starla_

the more you weigh the higher your daily calorie intake will be and the more you will burn whilst exercising, both of these will drop as you lose weight. Make sure your stats are all correct, but dont stress too much about not being able to eat that much food, a rule of thumb is to keep above the minimum (1200) and you will be fine. It might be worth looking up what your BMR is too and making sure you eat at least that much.

My husbands daily intake for his slightly active life (work) and 2lbs loss a week is over 2000 per day and as he weighs more, his burn while exercising is also higher than mine would be. Sometmes he can eat it all, sometimes he can't.

PetitePerfection

I don't know what your weight/height is but it seems like it may be a bit off. For me, I only burn 400 cals doing 60 minutes of high impact aerobics:ohwell: then again, it may just be that youre much larger than I am, because the more you weigh the more calories you burn doing everything! Just double check what you entered your activity level as. I set mine for sedentary, as I'm a college student and don't move around much apart from intentional exercise and little breaks between classes and studying.

runnerchick69

I'm with everyone else, that seems really high! I have to run better than 10 miles to burn 1000 calories. I eat about 2000 a day to maintain my weight and exercise at least an hour a day. The only time I eat close to 3000 calories is on days where I am running 15 miles or more but I am also burning nearly half of that.

Nopedotjpeg

2000 calories isn't that high. Maybe post your info or re-check it, but when you have more to lose, you have a higher maintenance calorie goal, which means you have a higher calorie goal when you're on a deficit too.

Pandorian

2000 calories isn't that high. Maybe post your info or re-check it, but when you have more to lose, you have a higher maintenance calorie goal, which means you have a higher calorie goal when you're on a deficit too.

Definitely agree here, my 2000 calories is my daily goal to lose 2lbs per week, or 3000 calories to stay where I'm at if I changed my goal to maintain.

sunkisses

Then don't do it.

AnneElise

If you need more calories try adding protein. It is really good for building muscle if you are exercising that much and most people don't get the protein that they need.

Dave198lbs

Then don't do it.

finally....this

xtinalovexo

3000 cals?! thats like TWO big macs! i think if i ate THAT much food i would throw up! i think you should just ignore that recommendation, it obviously isn't correct!

Nopedotjpeg

I'm with everyone else, that seems really high! I have to run better than 10 miles to burn 1000 calories. I eat about 2000 a day to maintain my weight and exercise at least an hour a day. The only time I eat close to 3000 calories is on days where I am running 15 miles or more but I am also burning nearly half of that.

Do it with a weight vest and then see what you burn. Us people with more weight to lose have a higher caloric goal.

firesoforion

o.O Perhaps there was a mistake, but as a rule I'd say do not eat when you're not hungry. Everyone's body is different so even if that is the recommendation, don't do *more* than you feel like you should be doing.

runnerchick69

Even when I was losing I never ate that much, nor did any recommended calculations go that high and was 100 pounds heavier than I am now

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Do it with a weight vest and then see what you burn. Us people with more weight to lose have a higher caloric goal.
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carolinacourtney

Yes, I know that with my higher weight, that I burn more calories per work out than a skinny girl does... because it takes more "effort" for me to get through it.

All of my information is plugged in correctly so I think I'm going to keep moving forward making healthy meal and snack choices and pushing towards meeting my daily allotted calories. I think as I continue to move forward with my exercise plan I'll continue to burn more and more calories and as my metabolism increases I'll be hungrier more often.

Thanks for your input and your information!!! If you're willing to share your diary to help me out, please send me a friend request!