5ft ladies, what is your calorie number?

dlucio1 · June 2012

1200 calories is way too little for me, I am starving with this amount, but am only 5ft. I feel that I am the only person in the whole world that can't do this. I weigh 167lbs and am suppose to eat this amount to lose weight. I feel like a total failure. Thats why I can't do this counting calories.

MsValerieAnne · June 2012

According to MFP my calorie intake daily should be 1390. I get between 1200-1500 a day (after exercise calories are taken into account).

kcoburn327 · June 2012

I am 5'2 and my goal is 1250. However, depending on how much i exercise means I eat more. Yesterday Ibuned over 600 caloriesd and ate about 1600 calories. Before i started exercising my goal was 1150- 1350.

rejie1 · June 2012

1200 calories is way too little for me, I am starving with this amount, but am only 5ft. I feel that I am the only person in the whole world that can't do this. I weigh 167lbs and am suppose to eat this amount to lose weight. I feel like a total failure. Thats why I can't do this counting calories.

Know the feeling, but after exercising you can do it because it will ask you to make up that amount to stay at 1200. I am 5ft and 1/4 inch ( I make everyone add, lol) My calorie number is 1200. Been doing this since the beginning of may and started at 208 and now am holding at 198. Upped my exercising hopefully that will kick it off also.

megleo818 · June 2012

I'm 5'3" and am supposed to eat 1200. But I have to eat more than that, so I exercise at least 400 calories worth every day to "earn" more food. The combined total of about 1600 has been working for me (and I'm OLD -- almost 49).

WillPowerYes · June 2012

Mine is 1200. I find the best way to keep on top of my calorie count is to LOG LOG LOG everything I eat. It really helps me to be accountable for what I am consuming, and realized "how many calories" vs the "quantity" of food.

Try to find some low calorie snacks that you like, so that when you feel just plain hungry, you have on hand things that will help cut the hunger while not hijacking your calorie count. Some ideas:

Hard boiled egg
Quaker caramel rice cake
Orange
Apple
Low fat cottage cheese
Lettuce (as much as you want!) with spritzer dressing

If you don't learn to count your calories, then how do you plan on getting control over your eating? If not calorie counting, then there are other types of plans that might work, such as pre-packaged food plans (Jenny Craig, Nutrisystem, etc), or alternative ways of measuring your consumption (Weight Watchers, etc).

You CAN succeed if you want to .... now it is just a matter of finding which system works best for you. Good luck.

Ashly744 · June 2012

I'm 5'0, and I was netting around 1200 calories a day, while eating back most of my exercise calories. I've been fighting with the same few lbs, and seem to remain hungry so I'm attempting to up my calories up to 1300-1400.

megleo818 · June 2012

I'm at 1200. I HAVE to exercise at least 400 calories every day and eat them ALL back or it's just not enough eating!

WilliamsPeggy · June 2012

I'm also 5' and my HW was 167. Currently I'm 140. I feel hungry on 1200 also, so I try to do some kind of exercise every day that allows me to eat around 1500. Don't give up! Just move/exercise more so you can eat more. It will work. Please don't give up. Add me if you'd like.

sarah2954 · June 2012

I'm 5'2.5". I get 1300/day. I exercise everyday so that gives me 200-400 more. I'm losing 2.5/week on average.

ddiestler · June 2012

I am 4'11 and MFP set me to 1200 as well. I did NOT eat back any of my exercise calories which in my opinion put me into starvation mode which then resulted in NO weight loss for a long time. I just couldn't wrap my head around to eat more calories when I exercised. For me, It was a big mistake.

I have since found my TDEE and did a 15% cut off of that and I aim to eat 1400 calories a day. On days I have BIG workouts I always net my bmr so I eat more like 1500-1600 calories.

ddiestler · June 2012

bump

RitaB19 · June 2012

Hi,

I was only allotted 1200 cals too, but I started at 110 lb., only trying to lose 5 lb. This seems too low for your current weight. Perhaps 1400 is more realistic. Maybe you can change your weight loss to 1 lb per week and get more cals that way. Plus, if you exercise it says you can eat more!

angiebarker · June 2012

I am about 5'2 give or take a pinch

and i can go anywhere between 1200-1500 and not feel hungry. for me it all depends on if im in a snacking mood or not. I have found that if breakfast has a lot of veggies and protein i wont eat as much crap during the day

lil_pulp · June 2012

I'm 4'11 and MFP put me at 1200. I tried that for a while, but was getting frustrated going over too many days and wanted to quit. Instead, I manually changed my calorie allowance to 1350 and felt much less restricted. (It's likely still fewer than what I was eating before MFP, and mentally I could handle it better.)

Ashly744 · June 2012

I'm 4'11 and MFP put me at 1200. I tried that for a while, but was getting frustrated going over too many days and wanted to quit. Instead, I manually changed my calorie allowance to 1350 and felt much less restricted. (It's likely still fewer than what I was eating before MFP, and mentally I could handle it better.)

Does MFP let you manually change your allowance or do you just ignore MFP when it tells you that you went over 1200? I got the big ole red numbers yesterday because I decided to try eating 1400 instead of 1200.

lil_pulp · June 2012

I'm 4'11 and MFP put me at 1200. I tried that for a while, but was getting frustrated going over too many days and wanted to quit. Instead, I manually changed my calorie allowance to 1350 and felt much less restricted. (It's likely still fewer than what I was eating before MFP, and mentally I could handle it better.)

Does MFP let you manually change your allowance or do you just ignore MFP when it tells you that you went over 1200? I got the big ole red numbers yesterday because I decided to try eating 1400 instead of 1200.

You can change it. I think it's under the "goals" tab. I'm sure someone else knows exactly how, but it would take me a few minutes, and you can play around with it as well as (or better than!) I can.

Ashly744 · June 2012

I'm 4'11 and MFP put me at 1200. I tried that for a while, but was getting frustrated going over too many days and wanted to quit. Instead, I manually changed my calorie allowance to 1350 and felt much less restricted. (It's likely still fewer than what I was eating before MFP, and mentally I could handle it better.)

Does MFP let you manually change your allowance or do you just ignore MFP when it tells you that you went over 1200? I got the big ole red numbers yesterday because I decided to try eating 1400 instead of 1200.

You can change it. I think it's under the "goals" tab. I'm sure someone else knows exactly how, but it would take me a few minutes, and you can play around with it as well as (or better than!) I can.

I found it! Yeeaahh. Lol

ladyraven68 · June 2012

I'm 4ft 11 and 165 lbs - it gave me 1200 too. This was too low for me, and made me ill.

Helloitsdan ran my numbers for me, and I manually changed my goal to 1600.

That was 24lbs ago so I need to change them again now.

I'd go here - http://www.fat2fitradio.com/tools/bmr/

put your current weight as your goal weight, so you get your current estiamted TDEE, and then cut 20%.

caraiselite · June 2012

i am 5 feet tall. i am very sedentary.
800-1400. i don't count cals though. just carbs.

ELBeliles · June 2012

I am 5'3" and MFP allotted me 1200 calories a day when I was trying to lose 2lbs/week for my wedding. I almost broke trying to keep up with the exercise I needed to make sure I didn't go over that. I had to exercise intensely every day or just not eat much. It was really hard for me to stick to and the pressure was unbearable. But now that that's over with, the 1390 I'm allowed seems like a good number. I exercise six days a week and it's working for me. Depends on what exercises you're doing and what times during the day you're eating.

clover5 · June 2012

My allowance is currently at 1120. With this amount of calories I have a daily deficet of 500 and my projected weight loss is 1 lb per week.

BUT... That's not enough food to fill me up. I exercise a lot. Burn a lot of calories - 300 to 500 nearly every day. Even on a rest day, I do something - house cleaning or ??? Because I need the food. I EAT ALL THE CALORIES BACK, and often go over by 50 to 100.

Some days, I am just really hungry, even though I over my allowance. I eat anyway, but my rule is I must eat nutritious food - No junk.

SpydrMnky27 · June 2012

I am 5'2" and my calorie intake is all over the place but it averages out to about 1400 a day at the end of the week.

VisBella · June 2012

I am 5ft 2in, and my history is painfully close to yours. I read your profile. I can't lose weigh on a "regular" diet, or without being horrendously hungry 90% of the time. I am Insulin Resistant, and for people like me, the only way to control our weight is to control our carbohydrates. My family has a history of diabetes (grandmother, father, brother, and even one of my daughters). A Low Carb diet can allow you to burn fat without the feeling of constant hunger. I lost 85 lbs through cardio exercise, strength training, and most importantly, following Atkins. AND I kept 75 of those pounds off for over eight years. Regrettably, I stopped following my low carb lifestyle, and my exercise routine, and the natural result was a gain of about 25lbs over the winter. Now, I’m back on Low Carb and reestablishing my exercise routine, so happily I’m losing weight again.

Do you have a family history of diabetes? Are you hungry again shortly after you’ve eaten? It could be that you also suffer from Insulin Resistance. Unfortunately, Low Carb has gotten a bad rap in much of the media, and even MFP is centered on the calories IN vs. calories OUT mentality. I would encourage you to check out low carb diets for yourself. There is a lot of great information on the web, but one of the best places to start is http://www.atkins.com/Home.aspx. Contrary to popular belief, low carb is an extremely healthy lifestyle; Dr. Atkins was a cardiologist before he became famous as a fat loss expert. Make your own decision based on your own research. For many of us, low carb has been the ONLY way we can lose weight (fat). If you have more questions, just let me know.:happy:

shaynak112 · June 2012

1200 as well. I'm 5' and weigh about the same as you. I find it very easy to eat under my calorie goal/limit in a day. I find it difficult to even eat 1,000 calories a day sometimes.

sillygoose03 · June 2012

I'm 5'6" and MFP gave me 1,570 calories because my goal is to lose 2lbs a week (I have 100+ to lose), I set my exercise to two days a week for 30 minutes and I have an office job so I spend most of the work day sitting at my computer.

If you feel like you're starving, you perhaps need more filling foods like fruits and veggies...or drink a big glass of cold water.

katkins3 · June 2012

I'm 5'2" and my calorie goal has been 1200 since Memorial Day last year. Yes, over a year at 1200 and I eat back my exercise calories, and I've lost 65 pounds. (I'm 62 years old.) I expect to be on 1200, plus exercise calories, for the foreseeable future. This is just "my way of life" now.

JanSmelly · June 2012

I am 5ft, 103 and I eat 1610 and then add in exercise. It usually is around 1900 calories. Today I will eat around 2300.

Anyaaaa11 · June 2012

I'm 5'2 work out 5x a week and throw in some strength training 3x a week. I recently just lowered my net to 1450. Was netting 1550 and lost 10lbs on that. Can't imagine eating anything less. I have a massive appetite!