To eat, or not to eat??

MizRik

So per all the calculators I have tried, and based off a sedentary lifestyle, as that's what I have most days because of graduate school, my recommended calorie intake for 1-2 lb weight loss a week is 1200 calories/day. I think that is way low. Considering getting a body bug for better monitoring? Anyone have experience with those? Like them? Hate them? I am at work today and have my heart rate monitor on. Since 6 am I have burned 721 calories. It's not even noon! Really thinking a 1200 calorie goal is way to low. Thoughts?

TinaCleg_cancel

I think some people would tell you to eat 1/2 your excercise calories back so maybe shoot for 1500 ? I know that when I was burning that amount of calories and eating right at 1200 calories a day I did not lose anything. I don't have a body bugg but am interested in knowing what you find out from others

glassyo

You can't trust a hrm to do the work of a bodybugg (or even a fitbit). It's only really reliable when exercising and getting your heart rate up.

I have all three actually. Lots of people have success with the bodybugg (or whatever version of it you're looking at). In my opinion it overestimated my calories burned during exercise when I first got it but then I was told to work the website with logging and it more or less "learned" me.

Now the numbers are more in tune with my fitbit and since I'm sedentary and lazy when I'm not walking for exercise, my fitbit has been really accurate and I've lost more weight paying attention to the fitbit than I did with what mfp gave me.

DeniseB0711

Here's my testimony to the 1200 calorie rule.

I was on p90X and quit because I was hungry and miserably weak. This was my excuse attempt after attempt. In february I consulted with a personal trainer who told me to eat 1200 calories every day and only work out for 30 minutes day only getting my heart rate up to my fat burning zone. That's barely an aerobic work out level for me..you should still be able to carry on a coversation.
He told me if I wanted to workout harder (burn calories) then I'd better be willing to eat a heck of a lot more. Nearly 600 calories a day more.
I took his advice on eating low, and working out low...and it worked. I felt lazy though and could feel myself getting "Soft." But I did lose 5lbs in no time.

Most recently I started P90X again, and I eat back ALL OF MY CALORIES. The guide that comes with P90X recommends I eat 1800 calories a day. I get close most days...but only on days that require cardio exercise...the strength training workouts do not burn as many calories.
Guess what...i ahve lost 4lbs in a 10 day period (water weight maybe....maybe not)

Denise

yarwell

If MFP is saying 1200 for 1 lb/week then it thinks you'll burn about 1700 a day routinely, without accounting for exercise.

If you do a few hundred of exercise you log them and eat a few hundred more, or part thereof.

You could set 0.5 or 0.25 lbs/week to get a higher starting calorie goal without exercise.

rml_16

So per all the calculators I have tried, and based off a sedentary lifestyle, as that's what I have most days because of graduate school, my recommended calorie intake for 1-2 lb weight loss a week is 1200 calories/day. I think that is way low. Considering getting a body bug for better monitoring? Anyone have experience with those? Like them? Hate them? I am at work today and have my heart rate monitor on. Since 6 am I have burned 721 calories. It's not even noon! Really thinking a 1200 calorie goal is way to low. Thoughts?

A heart rate monitor will not give you an accurate burn when not exercising.

I've heard good things about the Body Bugg, but you can always play around with your calories until you find what works for you. If you can eat more and lose at a good rate, go for it!

taso42

Your intuition is correct. 1200 is very likely a few hundred cals too low. The problem lies with the "sedentary" calculation. I think it's far too conservative. For example, technically, I should have chosen sedentary, but I need it set to "Active" to make the numbers work out.

erickirb

So per all the calculators I have tried, and based off a sedentary lifestyle, as that's what I have most days because of graduate school, my recommended calorie intake for 1-2 lb weight loss a week is 1200 calories/day. I think that is way low. Considering getting a body bug for better monitoring? Anyone have experience with those? Like them? Hate them? I am at work today and have my heart rate monitor on. Since 6 am I have burned 721 calories. It's not even noon! Really thinking a 1200 calorie goal is way to low. Thoughts?

your goals on MFP would be to eat 1200, plus eat back anything you burn from exercise. so if you usually burn 400 cals/day you should be eating a minimum of 1600 (1200+400).

With the amount you are looking at losing your goal should not be to lose more than 1 lb/week, and for the last 10-15 change your goal to 0.5/week.

corrinnebrown

I use to always eat back my exercise calories. Then I started Body Revolution and have been following that diet. You eat between 1100-1200 every day. Regardless of how much you have burned. I have lost 12 pounds in almost 4 weeks, thats more than I lost before when I would eat the execise calories back. I think it really depends on your body.

glassyo

I use to always eat back my exercise calories. Then I started Body Revolution and have been following that diet. You eat between 1100-1200 every day. Regardless of how much you have burned. I have lost 12 pounds in almost 4 weeks, thats more than I lost before when I would eat the execise calories back. I think it really depends on your body.

More isn't always better. Unless you're 300 lbs, that sounds incredibly unhealthy considering what you're probably netting when you exercise.

taso42

I use to always eat back my exercise calories. Then I started Body Revolution and have been following that diet. You eat between 1100-1200 every day. Regardless of how much you have burned. I have lost 12 pounds in almost 4 weeks, thats more than I lost before when I would eat the execise calories back. I think it really depends on your body.

Yikes! You lost 12 lbs of what?? Jillian Michaels actually prescribes 1200 calories while doing an exercise program? That's nuts. I thought she was a fitness professional or something like that.

erickirb

I use to always eat back my exercise calories. Then I started Body Revolution and have been following that diet. You eat between 1100-1200 every day. Regardless of how much you have burned. I have lost 12 pounds in almost 4 weeks, thats more than I lost before when I would eat the execise calories back. I think it really depends on your body.

Wow that is unhealthy, I'm sure a large % of your loss has been lean muscle as that would not be enough cals to sustain what you have, unless you didn't exercise at all.