Walking question

apena_06
apena_06 Posts: 50
in Fitness and Exercise
If walking a mile a day is the only exercise I can get right now should I decrease my calorie intake? MFP has me at 1,200 cals a day in order to lose 2lbs a week. I hope to lose a total of 20lbs by mid-August if possible. Thanks for the help :wink:

Replies

  • tony1307
    tony1307 Posts: 127 Member
    Don't go below 1200.
    The caloric deficit MFP gives you does not take into account the exercise, when you log the exercise MFP will give you more CAL's to offset those that you burned. Be sure to not go under 1200 though
  • apena_06
    apena_06 Posts: 50
    So far I haven't gone below 1200 and I usually eat back whatever I burn off. If I didn't I'd probably feel starved lol Is 1200 maybe too low or just right?
  • Pebble321
    Pebble321 Posts: 6,423 Member
    Nope, MFP calculates your calories without including exercise.
    So, you should be eating your 1200 plus whatever you burn walking.

    1200 is a very low calorie diet for many people - it depends on your current size and how much you have to lose, but it you find you are hungry eating only 1200 cals a day, you may need to go back and recalculate your goals choosing a smaller weight loss goal (ie lose 1 or 1/2 pound per week, not 2).
    In my opinion, it is better to lose weight a bit more slowly, but to be able to stick to it, not to restrict cals so much that you get hungry and cranky and give up.
  • Irvika
    Irvika Posts: 11
    Walking 1 or 2 miles was the only exercise I was getting at some point. In those days I kept my calorie intake between 1100 and 1200 but didn't add the exercise in the exercise rubric. My daily calorie expenditure is usually 1700 if I don't walk and 1900 if I walk that is like 1 to 1.5 at the end of the week!
  • apena_06
    apena_06 Posts: 50
    Nope, MFP calculates your calories without including exercise.
    So, you should be eating your 1200 plus whatever you burn walking.

    1200 is a very low calorie diet for many people - it depends on your current size and how much you have to lose, but it you find you are hungry eating only 1200 cals a day, you may need to go back and recalculate your goals choosing a smaller weight loss goal (ie lose 1 or 1/2 pound per week, not 2).
    In my opinion, it is better to lose weight a bit more slowly, but to be able to stick to it, not to restrict cals so much that you get hungry and cranky and give up.

    Well I'm 5'4"ish and I currently weigh 150....my goal is to be at 130 by mid August. I checked out the calorie deficit on MFP to lost 1lb a week and it only went up to 1,240 cals so I'm not entirely sure how accurate this is. I don't feel hungry on the 1,200 cals a day so if this isnt too low then I guess I'll just keep at it. I agree that losing it slowly is the best bet b/c that way it actually stays off!
  • bassman92
    bassman92 Posts: 273 Member
    I've seen a house fly and a baseball bat but I aint never seen a question walk....sorry sense of humor is on sick tonight.

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