Women who eat more than 1800 calories a day !!!!

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  • Schnuddelbuddel
    Schnuddelbuddel Posts: 472 Member
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    This is a really interesting thread!!! MFP gave me 1500/day + 500 for exclusively breastfeeding. Checked out BMR calculator and it tells me my BMR is 1557.... timed the value for exercise (I started doing track sessions 2/week, zumba 1/week, pilates 1/week and go for 30-70 min walks almost every day) is coming up to over 2400 for maintenance! So does this mean I could happily eat 1900 and still lose weight?
    (aiming for a bout a lb a week - currently I'm 5'4 at 175lbs and I'm 34 - anyone want to do me the favour to check I calculated things right please?)
  • marchegt
    marchegt Posts: 156 Member
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    I am 5'6 and currently eating about 1400 net... although I honestly struggle to get there because I am trying to watch sugar and carbs and keep those low. However, after reading this thread I think I will try and bump up my net calories to 1500 or 1600 and actually eat that amount.Gotta find some new delicious foods to keep me motivated, I am hating everything I eat right now!

    Thanks for all the inspiration!
  • tabinmaine
    tabinmaine Posts: 965 Member
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    Just thought I could pick your minds... I have been eating around 1400 cal/day during the week (MFP recommends 1240, but that's just too low for me!) but on the weekends... considerably more (2500 cal+ - still hit my macros but am adding in a few *cough* glasses of red wine and baked goodies).. I lift (relatively heavy) 3-4 days per week, and perhaps 1-2 days of cardio (I dislike cardio immensely)... I was doing good with weight loss, down 7 pound in the first 2 months, but now I have hit a plateau ... no weight loss, no inches lost for the last month.

    My goal is not so much to lose weight, but to decrease my body fat - currently at 25%, but would like to have it down to 20% (maybe unrealistic?). My BMR is 1390 and Maintenance is 1980.... I was thinking of increasing my daily calorie consumption (to 1600-1800) but my question is - will my indulgence on the weekends prevent me from loosing fat? Should I try to keep my calories lower during the week to compensate for the weekend "binge"? Or should I just suck it up and be better at turning down red wine? It doesn't help that often the sat/sun are my "rest" days...

    I don't know what to tell you but i am sure some of the ladies on here who have been eating and lifting longer than me can tell you. :)
  • tabinmaine
    tabinmaine Posts: 965 Member
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    This is a really interesting thread!!! MFP gave me 1500/day + 500 for exclusively breastfeeding. Checked out BMR calculator and it tells me my BMR is 1557.... timed the value for exercise (I started doing track sessions 2/week, zumba 1/week, pilates 1/week and go for 30-70 min walks almost every day) is coming up to over 2400 for maintenance! So does this mean I could happily eat 1900 and still lose weight?
    (aiming for a bout a lb a week - currently I'm 5'4 at 175lbs and I'm 34 - anyone want to do me the favour to check I calculated things right please?)

    Probably that or more since you are breastfeeding. What does your calories burned add up to this past week ? add that up and divide it by 7 days, see how much more that puts you up.
  • marchegt
    marchegt Posts: 156 Member
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    If fattofitradio.com says my BMR is 1430 ... ( i think MFP puts it more in the 1300's)... should I be eating roughly 1400? I don't have a lot of weight to lose. I am 5'6, 133 lbs and hoping to get down to 125 (but want to start strength training properly, so might weigh more than that which is ok as long as I look good!)

    OR should I be eating more than 1400? My TDEE is somewhere around 1700 (sedentary) or 1900 if I am moderately active (which I am, but I take exercise into account afterwards and eat these calories back on days that I work out).

    If I eat NET 1450 a day I would lose 1/2lb a week, right? Does this sound reasonable? I can't imagine eating 1800 calories a day and not gaining weight, although it seems like those of you who eat that many calories do a lot of weight lifting which will increase metabolism. Maybe once I get into the weight lifting more!
  • kolkol
    kolkol Posts: 300 Member
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    .
  • shalinimunjal
    shalinimunjal Posts: 192 Member
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    Question to those who are eating 1600+ and losing...what are your macros? Where are most of your calories coming from - protein or carb??
  • tabinmaine
    tabinmaine Posts: 965 Member
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    If fattofitradio.com says my BMR is 1430 ... ( i think MFP puts it more in the 1300's)... should I be eating roughly 1400? I don't have a lot of weight to lose. I am 5'6, 133 lbs and hoping to get down to 125 (but want to start strength training properly, so might weigh more than that which is ok as long as I look good!)

    OR should I be eating more than 1400? My TDEE is somewhere around 1700 (sedentary) or 1900 if I am moderately active (which I am, but I take exercise into account afterwards and eat these calories back on days that I work out).

    If I eat NET 1450 a day I would lose 1/2lb a week, right? Does this sound reasonable? I can't imagine eating 1800 calories a day and not gaining weight, although it seems like those of you who eat that many calories do a lot of weight lifting which will increase metabolism. Maybe once I get into the weight lifting more!

    I would eat between 1700-1900 on rest days and then eat that plus your exercise calories on workout days.....
  • tabinmaine
    tabinmaine Posts: 965 Member
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    I think rather then telling everyone what I think they should eat this is how I look at it.

    I calculated how many calories I need to maintain my body at the level of exercise I do, then, I take 500 calories away from that for a lose of 1lb each week ( 7x500=3500 cal=1lb )

    My BMR is 1601 calories

    Using myself for example. I need 2000 calories a day to maintain my current weight doing nothing but sitting at my desk. So on rest days I aim for 1800.

    On workout days I need at least 2500- 2600 calories to maintain my weight. So I am aiming for 1800 plus my exercise calories.

    If I am a little under, oh well, if I am a little over, oh well..... some days I burn 400 calories, somedays I burn 800 calories...

    The whole point is that I am NOT eating 1200 calories, burning 600 and then only eating 300 back so actually consuming 900 calories a day..... that is WAY too low

    The reason I gained weight all of these years was I was consuming 2500-3500 calories a day and doing NOTHING for exercise. With that lifestyle I should have never eaten more than 2000 calories.
  • rmk20togo
    rmk20togo Posts: 353 Member
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    Found this link on another thread. It's very interesting, but gives me a really high TDEE.

    http://www.health-calc.com/diet/energy-expenditure-advanced
  • tabinmaine
    tabinmaine Posts: 965 Member
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    Found this link on another thread. It's very interesting, but gives me a really high TDEE.

    http://www.health-calc.com/diet/energy-expenditure-advanced

    holy crap, it put my TDEE over 4000 a day LOL
  • tabinmaine
    tabinmaine Posts: 965 Member
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    The BMI calculator on that site is neat too, the bodys get larger or smaller as you move the dials
  • KeriA
    KeriA Posts: 3,270 Member
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    I came back and read all the posts plus it has been a few days since I upped my calorie goal. I had really plateaued whatever my goal was set at or whatever my exercise was. Usually do 6 days of between 60-90 minutes of exercise with a mix of weight training and cardio. I do walk run intervals one day a week. I have been here for a year and a half. I have lost 30-35 lbs. I am 58 and 230 lbs seems to be where my body wants to stay at. I recently upped my goal to what Fat2Fit radio recommended 1685 and am letting MFP figure out exercise calories. I used to have to exercise to make my calorie goals now I can make it if I execise or not. I have already lost 2 pounds from my high monthly (230) in these last few days. I am at my most recent low. Already I have noticed that I don't seem to be going up and down so much. I still need to see if I will go below my lowest weight in the last few months and continue but for now I need to stop the insanity of eating below my BMR and doing anything I could to get out of my plateau. Well I can't really go under 1340 calories consistently if I tried. I already feel I have done the right thing for me. I always thought that I wasn't losing with my goal set at 1 pound per week which is what I truly want to do because it was set too high. Now I can not help to wonder if for this whole year and a half that it was set too low. However one thing I am sure of it is now time to try it up higher.

    I don't feel so worried about my logging. I think I am more accurate than I was before. If you were in a plateau the suggestion is always are you logging your food and exercise accurately enough. You felt somehow like it was your fault. I thought with a higher calorie goal I would have to be even better but somehow I feel freer. There is just less feeling of restriction.
  • gemiwing
    gemiwing Posts: 1,525 Member
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    I don't feel so worried about my logging. I think I am more accurate than I was before. If you were in a plateau the suggestion is always are you logging your food and exercise accurately enough. You felt somehow like it was your fault. I thought with a higher calorie goal I would have to be even better but somehow I feel freer. There is just less feeling of restriction.

    Welcome to Food Liberation :)

    I hope this breaks your plateau and you really start to see results again that you can feel good about.
  • b1791
    b1791 Posts: 40 Member
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    Welcome to Food Liberation :)

    I hope this breaks your plateau and you really start to see results again that you can feel good about.

    I love that!
  • WeCallThemDayWalkers
    WeCallThemDayWalkers Posts: 259 Member
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    I've shed over 130 pounds and decreased my body fat from 56% to 23%

    I eat an average of 2000-ish calories/day now - usually more.

    Then:
    37600_139117492784657_100000592214278_278412_3914396_n.jpg?t=1313509239

    Now:
    106_0702.jpg
    017-6.jpg?t=1330218788
    **Please ignore the ugly tummy skin (side effect of shedding massive amounts of weight after being obese for years after having a 9 pound child at the ripe old age of 18)

    Well, you're freakin gorgeous too, so that certainly helps! Love the red!
  • CoryIda
    CoryIda Posts: 7,887 Member
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    I've shed over 130 pounds and decreased my body fat from 56% to 23%

    I eat an average of 2000-ish calories/day now - usually more.

    Then:
    37600_139117492784657_100000592214278_278412_3914396_n.jpg?t=1313509239

    Now:
    106_0702.jpg
    017-6.jpg?t=1330218788
    **Please ignore the ugly tummy skin (side effect of shedding massive amounts of weight after being obese for years after having a 9 pound child at the ripe old age of 18)

    Well, you're freakin gorgeous too, so that certainly helps! Love the red!
    You officially just made my day. Would it be creepy if I virtually hugged you over the internet? I'm still new to the whole not being considered ugly thing, so THANK YOU!
  • tabinmaine
    tabinmaine Posts: 965 Member
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    You so deserve the compliments, you look incredible !!

    Did you always eat 2000 calories or did you start out really low ?
  • CoryIda
    CoryIda Posts: 7,887 Member
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    You so deserve the compliments, you look incredible !!

    Did you always eat 2000 calories or did you start out really low ?
    I think at my lowest I was probably around 1500-ish.
  • funkycamper
    funkycamper Posts: 998 Member
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    When I started here, I was one of the dunderheads that thought lower calorie was better. Didn't even always hit my 1200 net and never ate back exercise calories. I've wised up. Started eating exercise calories, then raised my net to just above my BMR and still eating exercise calories. Still losing so it's all good. And have more energy and can work out more intense.

    Planning on upping calories again in another month. Really want to find the sweet spot where I can eat max calories and still lose 2-3#/month.

    But I'm also a slow learner. Just yesterday, I accidentally had a really low calorie day due to late exercise, a big burn, and just not being all that hungry when I got home. I did not plan well and eat more calories earlier in the day. Since I tend to zig-zag my calories a bit through the week so I can have splurges on the weekends or other social outings, I wasn't too worried about being quite low. Figured I'd make it up later. Well, today my energy level was nothing. Felt like jello all day. While I still believe in the zig-zag concept, I need to work harder on not letting a low day be as low as it was yesterday. The way I felt all day today just sucked.

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