Calorie Confusion

Bri_Becq

I am in a weigh loss journey. And I have a few calorie questions. I am looking to lose around 50 lbs and already lost 50. (my MFP says 9 because I lost them before I got on here.

1. How much should my calorie intake be per day?
2. When I exercise, do I eat back all of my calories or just half?
3. Since I want to lose weight, what types of foods should I be eating considering I am doing a lot of cardio?

izzydino

I put my calorie goal at 1.5 lb a week. I eat back all or most of calorie count. Somedays I burn more then I eat so I have a little give on days wherei don't eat well. I try to eat 25/25/50 protein/fat/ carbs.

Honestly,play around and see what works.

staceydleon

confused...do i need to eat only the 1200 i am supposed to or do i need to eat more because of the exercise calories burned? for instance at the end of the day what should my net calories be and should i have calories left after i eat my 1200? confusing i know. lol

palmerig88

For me what has been working:
Let MFP calculate your daily calorie goal, be honest about your activity level (base it more off your job, if you work, not if you play a lot of sports or work out a lot)
If you had a normal level of activity AND worked out don't be afraid to eat back all of your exercise cals.
If you had a bit lazier day AND worked out, feel free to eat back about half of the exercise cals.
If you didn't work out, just eat your goal cals.
Don't try to go way under, just EAT. Don't cheat.
For your diet, track what you feel you are struggling with. For me, I have high cholesterol and high blood pressure. I like to exercise and want to heal my muscles. I want to lose quite a bit of weight. I track cals, carbs, fat, protein, sodium, and cholesterol. I struggle with sodium daily. If my intake is under on the bad stuff like fat, cholesterol, etc. and over on the good stuff like protein then I feel good about my eating for the day.

Bri_Becq

thank you so much! I got it now! I'm adding you btw.