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

juliebeannn

so much interesting information. i just up-ed my calorie intake settings to my TDEE - 15% and i'm pretty terrified to eat so many calories. i've CLEARLY been undereating and thus starving my poor body. i don't think i netted even 1000 calories on my workout days. things have got to change. wish me luck. i'm sure i'll be back with lots of questions as i read more.

thanks to everyone on this thread for the wealth of knowledge!!

juliebeannn

I posted this as a separate topic, but it might fit in here! See below.

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I know this gets asked A LOT, but I'm mostly just looking for clarification:

I am 5'4 and 144 lbs. I'd like to be 130 lbs. I work out five days a week, doing classes. Barbell weights, high-impact step aerobics, spin and the odd core class. Wednesdays are often a double header of a 45 min step class and weights. (So probably six GroupEx classes per week.)

After years of not eating enough and being a bit crazypants about food, I've plateaued big time. So, I'm looking to up my calories.

If my TDEE is 2246 and my BMR is 1449, I should be eating around 1700 calories, yes? No? RIght now, I'm eating around 1490, but I've been HORRIBLE with eating back my exercise calories. Sometimes I net, like, 750, which is obvs. not awesome.

Basically: I DON'T KNOW WHAT'S GOING ON, YOU GUYS.

Also: When I change my goals, do I do this manually? (Sorry. There ARE stupid questions, and this is one.) But answer anyway.

you totally took the words right out of my mouth.

you can change your #s under "my home >> goals >> change goals" also make sure to change your carb/protein/fat breakdown to 40/30/30. i'm just starting this tomorrow also!!

GOOD LUCK!

Symonep

I have upped my calories to 2051. Started this on Monday. Have done 2 runs and a circuit today, so far I have lost a lb.

andyp79

I upped mine a few weeks ago but have been rubbish at tracking so I think I upped my calories to 1700, went over that with treats and had to stop exercising due to work commitments all at the same time! Amazingly I haven't really gained - just the same 2lb that I've been losing/ gaining for the last couple of months anyway. I have just read all the way back through this post and I feel completely motivated again I have set my exercise level as sedentary for now and I'll see how I go - I'm not doing any exercise but I think my work would more likely be lightly active. As I haven't gained I'm sticking with it - I was stuck anyway so why not be stuck but eating more!?! Hopefully the scales will start shifting soon.

graelwyn

I am almost 5'10, 125 Ibs, and eat between 1800 and 2800 most days, the latter being when I have done a lot of cycling.
I have not done it via the eat the same everyday method as I don't trust myself to keep doing the same amount of exercise each week right now. I usually get between 60 and 120 minutes of cycling 5 or 6 days a week, sometimes I swap a day out and do a long, brisk walk instead. Also going to start swimming. Other than that, I am pretty sedentary, apart from shopping and doing stuff around my home and my OCD cleaning and tidying up.

I am maintaining and pretty much stay between 123 and 127Ibs.

hazelovesfood

wierd but I dont feel hungry on 1200 per day. I think its all about what your eat, if you eat sugary carbs etc it makes me starving if i eat protein like 200 or 300g of salmon in proper stuffed lol, but i am upping my cals at the mo to see if i lose more.

Kmsnomaha

Bump

HMVOL7409

I'm averaging around 1800 and still losing. I'm upping to 2000 to try and determine my maintence. I'll stay there awhile then up another 150-200 cals for building some more muscle.

FammaMel

Need this thread for reading more into this. I have been plateaued for almost three months. Working out six days a week and I upped my calories from 1200 to 1380 my BMR but nothing is moving on the scale. I have lost some inches but thinking things should be moving more with as hard as I workout. I get scared at the thought of eating more as some days I have hard time eating enough. Such a rat race I'm in. Thank you everyone for posting here. I will keep reading.

Kim55555

Bump

How is everyone going with their new plan?

Kim55555

I've started working out why am I still gaining weight!

You might be interested in reading this

Article taken from:
http://www.columbussports.com/content/writers/dan_falkenberg/ive-started-working-out-why-am-i-still-gaining-weight.shtml


Sorry admins if this is too long but I found the orginal format hard to read.


By Dan Falkenberg
Here’s a question I hear all the time, and to be honest, even though I know why it happens, it can still be disheartening to see your client so disappointed because after a few weeks of working out very hard, he hasn’t lost any weight but has actually gained weight instead! This may have even happened to you and left you standing on the scale with a confused look on your face. I think this is a big contributor to why so many people aren’t successful at weight loss programs. Sure, some are just plain lazy and don’t exercise with enough intensity, but some become so discouraged with the scales that they simply just give up. Whatever you do, don’t give up! Here’s why.

I hope by now that we all know that losing fat takes time and effort. For many, simply hopping onto a treadmill and walking for 20 to 30 minutes isn’t going to cut it; for a very small number of people yes, but for many no. Most of us have to have a very structured and intense program to be successful at dropping the fat.

Here’s the first step to success. Are you ready? Ignore the scale. Here’s the first step to success. Are you ready? Ignore the scale. That’s right. Don’t even step onto a scale for the first month of your exercise program. I know it’ll be hard, but don’t do it. I know some of you are scale addicts; well, consider this Day 1 of your scale detox program. Remember, a successful “weight” loss program is based on the number of lbs. of fat burned off, not the number of overall lbs. burned off. This is why you see programs out there that guarantee 6 lbs. lost in 6 days. You know what they’re guaranteeing? They’re guaranteeing an eventual 6-10, or more, lbs. being put back on.

The “yo-yo” effect, I’m sure a lot of you have heard of it before. The “yo-yo” effect is when your body loses weight, then gains weight, then loses weight, and so on. That’s what these types of guarantees are. Sure, some overly obese individuals can lose more than 2 lbs. of fat in a week, but the majority can’t. Losing 6 lbs. is mostly muscle and water, which is a horrible thing. Muscle is vital to your body, so when it loses it, it wants to get it right back, and a lot of times, it’ll put muscle back on and bring excess fat storage with it. This can leave you having more body fat than when you originally started a “weight” loss program.

Alright, so we’ve established that all weight is not the same. Losing a pound of muscle isn’t good for the body, while losing a pound of fat is (in most cases). Also, hopefully it’s clear why scales aren’t always the best indicator of fat loss. When I evaluate a client’s success, figuring out her body fat percentage is a lot more meaningful to me than seeing the number on the scale. If her body fat stays the same, but she’s smaller on the scale, then that tells me she’s either lost muscle or water. If her body fat is the same, but she’s bigger on the scale, then that tells me that she most likely is retaining water. When both her body fat percentage and weight on the scale drop, then I know that she’s actually losing body fat and achieving success.

For every gram of glycogen stored, approximately 3 grams of water are stored with it. For those of you who can’t seem to shake your scale addiction, here’s why you need to be prepared for what you’ll see at the start of your weight loss program.

Like I said earlier, it can be very discouraging when you step onto the scale and see that you haven’t lost any weight and may have evened gained weight. As long as you don’t give up and are doing the right things with eating right and working out hard enough, your body fat will slowly start to come off. You just need to be patient. Don’t give up.

When you first start an exercise program, your body is basically thrown a curve ball. Your body is used to having to use a certain amount of energy throughout the day, but now that you’re exercising, your body figures out that it needs a greater energy supply. So what happens?

If you remember, your body’s source of energy comes from glucose. Carbohydrates are broken down into glucose, the glucose is used to make energy, and your body performs how it needs to. Well, your body also has a “reserve tank” for excess glucose. Instead of storing all the excess glucose as fat, your body stores some of the excess glucose in an easier form to break down for energy; it’s called glycogen. Glycogen is long chains of glucose molecules that are stored in our muscles and liver.

Working out too intensely can cause muscle tears to become overly inflamed to the point where the mini-tears start to swell with fluid. Your body adapts to how much glycogen it needs to store in order to have enough “energy” on stand-by for when your blood sugar starts to drop because there isn’t enough glucose in the bloodstream from the food you last ate. When we start to exercise, our bodies require more energy and become more efficient at getting that energy, so as a result, our bodies start to store more glycogen. Here’s the kicker. For every gram of glycogen stored, approximately 3 grams of water are stored with it. This means that now your body has a larger amount of water and glycogen stored in the muscles and liver, and as a result, your body weight can go up by a few lbs.

Picture a piece of bread or pasta noodle. What happens when you put them in water? They’re like sponges. They soak up the water and expand. The same can be said with glycogen. Glycogen is a carb, and it sucks up water just like any other carb.

Here’s another culprit. If you go from not working out to working out very hard, your muscles will most likely be sore for the next 2 or 3 days. This is because when you work out, you essentially create mini-tears in your muscles. Working out too intensely can cause these tears to become overly inflamed to the point where the mini-tears start to swell with fluid. This excess fluid in the muscles can cause an initial, excess weight gain. By starting out an exercise program slowly and working your way up, you reduce the likelihood of tearing your muscles too much. To some extent, though, muscle soreness will occur when you first start exercising, but the amount of soreness and inflammation can be controlled by gradually working into a fitness program.

If you continue to stick to your weight loss program and don’t become discouraged by the initial weight gain that may result, you’ll slowly start to see the weight come off for good. Rest assured, even though you may be retaining water during that first month of working out, your body is still burning off fat. After a month’s time, that excess water weight and glycogen will still be there, but your body will have started to burn off enough fat to overcome the water weight gains, and you’ll start to see a difference on the scale.

I’m going to go out on a limb here and say that the individuals who are the most successful with permanent weight loss are those who don’t see results in the first month. One thing I’ve noticed about my most successful clients, the majority of them actually gained a pound or two during the first month of exercising. My clients who weren’t very successful were those that maintained the same weight during the first month, the second month, and so on. Why? I’d have to say it’s because my most successful clients were working so intensely that they experienced extra glycogen and water storage. My clients who wouldn’t put in the effort didn’t need extra glycogen stored, so they didn’t see any initial weight gains.

You see, my successful clients saw an extra pound or two on the scale during the first month, but as the program went on, that extra glycogen storage meant their bodies had the extra fuel to stay revved up and burning off excess calories. It also meant that of the food they ate, less was going into fat storage and more was going into “high-octane” glycogen storage. Less fat storage equals faster weight loss.

So here’s my advice. Don’t be scared of delayed results within the first month. Your body is going through an adaptation process, and it requires some time to prepare itself for its new lifestyle. Keep your exercise intensity up, your eating habits right, and you’ll slowly start to see your fat loss results overcome your new glycogen and water storage results. You’ll slowly start to see that success you set out to achieve.

Dan Falkenberg is the cofounder of Your Live Trainers. He can be reached at DanFalkenberg.com.

Join a community of readers who’ve discovered Dan’s enlightening, monthly newsletter packed full of exercise tips, healthy recipes, and exercise video demonstrations to help improve your fitness! To top it off, it’s free, and you can unsubscribe anytime.

I need your help! I'm in the process of publishing my first book, and I want to hear from you. If you were to buy a health and fitness book, what would you want in it? What areas of health and fitness would you want it to talk about? How many pages would you want the book to be? Any feedback you could give in the comments section would be greatly appreciated. Thanks, and have a great day!


http://www.columbussports.com/content/writers/dan_falkenberg/ive-started-working-out-why-am-i-still-gaining-weight.shtml

Sid422

Bump!

HMVOL7409

Bump

How is everyone going with their new plan?

I love it. I'm not hungry; I'm not wanted to binge bc I'm not depriving myself and my workouts are 100% better and I can lift more bc I have the energy and fuel. Wish I figured this out a few months ago.

Stalh

Bump :happy:

Kim55555

That's great! Better late than never hey!

stephaniepullen

Just upped my calories to 2058 a little over a week ago after being STUCK on the scale for two weeks. I don't eat back my exercise calories though (see: http://www.myfitnesspal.com/blog/ShannonMpls/view/tdee-exercise-calories-an-alternate-way-to-customize-mfp-goals-238045 ). Still too early to tell if it's helping the scale, but I FEEL so much better. I have more energy, and don't have that empty-starving-all-the-time feeling in my stomach.

atrjohnson

My Dr gave me a meal plan for PCOS. I am 6"0 and around 278. The meal plan calls for 1976 calories. My coworkers would not believed how many calories I am allowed to consume. They are all near 1500 calories. However, I reminded them that they are 5"4 and I am definitely not. Their builds are also smaller than mine. We have to remember that everybody is different and we have to feed them accordingly. That goodness for this thread.

Whisperinghorse

Bump for later :bigsmile:

soul_sista88

How were you able to lose 112?

amnski

So glad I found this post!! As a former 1200 calories / never eat back my exercise calories kind of gal, I could never understand why I could not achieve the results I desired. After injuries, excessive fatigue, and becoming a complete B$*@H!, I finally made the move to eat more (minimum of 1800 a day), but made it more of HEALTHY natural foods...no soda, fewer processed foods, and way more fruits and vegetables...and found that I not only lost weight, but lost body fat and gained muscle and definition that I could never achieve while I was essentially starving myself. I know now that in order to get the needed nutrients, vitamins, proteins and fat I need, it requires me to EAT. Thank goodness I discovered this now...this former fat girl still loves her food :happy: Don't be scared ladies...food is not our enemy. Diet is 80% of our success...:flowerforyou:

laylamurphy

Bump

Mc_Queen

So glad I found this post!! As a former 1200 calories / never eat back my exercise calories kind of gal, I could never understand why I could not achieve the results I desired. After injuries, excessive fatigue, and becoming a complete B$*@H!, I finally made the move to eat more (minimum of 1800 a day), but made it more of HEALTHY natural foods...no soda, fewer processed foods, and way more fruits and vegetables...and found that I not only lost weight, but lost body fat and gained muscle and definition that I could never achieve while I was essentially starving myself. I know now that in order to get the needed nutrients, vitamins, proteins and fat I need, it requires me to EAT. Thank goodness I discovered this now...this former fat girl still loves her food :happy: Don't be scared ladies...food is not our enemy. Diet is 80% of our success...:flowerforyou:

This is so encouraging. Thank you!

crumbtinies

I joined MFP a little over a week ago. I am 5'3 and was given the standard 1200 calories a day. I was nursing a running injury so did not have any exercise calories to eat back. I lasted a day and a half before I ate an entire box of cookies and realized 1200 calories was not going to work. I found the eat more to weigh less group and immediately upped to 1900-2000 calories a day. My running injury healed really fast, and the scale dropped 5.5 pounds this week (mostly water I'm sure, but still o.O). I usually lift 3days a week and run 5 days a week. My diet (when I don't give in to cravings) is made up of unprocessed whole plant-based foods.

Point is, I feel amazing. My energy is up, my mood is up, I'm not craving or binging. I did a 14 mile run this morning and felt like I could have gone on forever. I'm not even concerned about the scale anymore, as long as I keep feeling like this.

Femtec74

I've posted a couple times in this topic already and wanted to give a progress update. When I started (about 3 months ago), I was eating about 1400 calories a day, not eating back my exercise calories and feeling really sluggish all the time. Since I've increased my calories to 1800 a day - I started eating my exercise calories and I have a ton more energy. I have only lost about 2 lbs in that 3 months, but I have lost about 2 inches off my hips. I'm not really sure why I'm not seeing the weight loss (I struggle with the scale all the time), but I can see progress in the sizes I'm wearing and I feel so much better. Tomorrow is my one year anniversary on MFP and I was hoping that I could report having lost 50 lbs, but I have only lost 46. I will however report that I have gone from a size 16 to a size 8 (US Sizes) so - TAKE THAT SCALE!

graysmom2005

Looking for any extra insight. I'm starting my 7th week eating 15% of my TDEE. I have a BMF with an average TDEE of a little under 3100. I've been eating around 2500 a day (although this weekend was a disaster). I've gained 8lbs (last I checked) up inches in my hips and waist. I thought this was my final thing to try...and it isn't working either. So low calories I lose and stall. High calories I gain and stall. I look and feel awful. I take a low dose anti-depressant for pain mgt for IC that I have. It's only 50mg though. I have lost on it...but always stalled at the low 150's. I feel like nothing NOTHING is working. I've given it a solid ride. 7 weeks. I'm meeting with a trainer this week to give me my own strength related workouts (to add to the 7 classes I already teach...sigh). And I'll see if that works. I'm just exhausted trying to figure this out and not having any results.

AmbitionStrong

bump^^^^

Kim55555

2500 sounds too high to me. How about trying for somewhere in between low & high calories, find a middle ground. Perhaps 2000 and see how that goes!?

kblue2007

Looking for any extra insight. I'm starting my 7th week eating 15% of my TDEE. I have a BMF with an average TDEE of a little under 3100. I've been eating around 2500 a day (although this weekend was a disaster). I've gained 8lbs (last I checked) up inches in my hips and waist. I thought this was my final thing to try...and it isn't working either. So low calories I lose and stall. High calories I gain and stall. I look and feel awful. I take a low dose anti-depressant for pain mgt for IC that I have. It's only 50mg though. I have lost on it...but always stalled at the low 150's. I feel like nothing NOTHING is working. I've given it a solid ride. 7 weeks. I'm meeting with a trainer this week to give me my own strength related workouts (to add to the 7 classes I already teach...sigh). And I'll see if that works. I'm just exhausted trying to figure this out and not having any results.

Hey! I'm on week9 and up about 6.5-8lbs. I am doing 15% cut too...although I think I might need a full reset at TDEE for a few weeks. I am also discouraged and have comtemplated many times dropping my cals back down BUT I know this is the best thing for my body. I would recommend a reset for you, especially if you have been at low calories for a long time.
I haven't quite got enough nerve to do mine yet. I am just kind of coasting along where I am because it is maintaining the gain I'm just not mentality prepared to jump in this time of year.
Sorry I can't be more help, but just know you are not alone!!
Kate

Whissy

What would anybody recommend for someone with history of ED and the notion of gain sends me into cold aweats?

ladyraven68

I've posted a couple times in this topic already and wanted to give a progress update. When I started (about 3 months ago), I was eating about 1400 calories a day, not eating back my exercise calories and feeling really sluggish all the time. Since I've increased my calories to 1800 a day - I started eating my exercise calories and I have a ton more energy. I have only lost about 2 lbs in that 3 months, but I have lost about 2 inches off my hips. I'm not really sure why I'm not seeing the weight loss (I struggle with the scale all the time), but I can see progress in the sizes I'm wearing and I feel so much better. Tomorrow is my one year anniversary on MFP and I was hoping that I could report having lost 50 lbs, but I have only lost 46. I will however report that I have gone from a size 16 to a size 8 (US Sizes) so - TAKE THAT SCALE!

That is fantastic, well done