Proper CAL intake...please help!

tarheelchic

I need help, I'm not sure what my correct CAL intake should be. I"m 5'8 and 194lbs, I am currently doing Shaun T's Rockin Body 6days a week plus jogging 2miles after the dvd's. I currently have my cal's set at 1200, and only lost 1lb this week. It's dissapointing when i'm working out so hard. Any feedback would be greatly appreciated.

adam1885282

What does MFP say you should be eating? That is, why are your calories "set at 1200"? MFP uses your BMR and lifestyle selection to calculate a number which gives you the proper deficit to lose the amount of weight you select. Exercise is not included in that number and cardio should be entered seperately. So, why 1200?

mcarter99

I think anything 1200 or above is 'proper'. Weight loss isn't linear. Adding in new exercise will hinder weight gain for a while. The less you eat, the more you move, the more you lose. But it takes time.

princessruns

You are not eating enough calories. Are you logging in your workouts? It should be telling you to eat more! 1200 and you are running 2 miles 6 days a week and doing the dvd? That is a lot of calories you are burning. You need a set amount a day just for your body to live and adding in excercise will require it to need more.

AmyRhubarb

Check out this topic: http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/654536-in-place-of-a-road-map-2-0-revised-7-2-12

Lots of great info there on calculating your numbers & how much you should be eating. You're working out 6 days a week plus running (do you run daily too?) and only eating 1200 - I hope you're eating your exercise calories back! Gotta fuel that machine if you want it to keep running and burning everything efficiently.

tarheelchic

my girlfiend said to stay with 1200, i'm clueless on this and trying to learn ,........ and no help at home so ......... I'll try to redo my cal and see what MFP suggest and stick with that for a lil while, thanks for the advise......

tarheelchic

thanks everyone for all your advise, I will def redo my cal with MFP and see what it says and stick with that. But i'm still going strong with the DVD's and i jog everyday if not every other depends on when "taxi mom" is needed. LOL thanks so so much and look forward to chatting with you guys more!!! :-):bigsmile:

dvisser1

thanks everyone for all your advise, I will def redo my cal with MFP and see what it says and stick with that. But i'm still going strong with the DVD's and i jog everyday if not every other depends on when "taxi mom" is needed. LOL thanks so so much and look forward to chatting with you guys more!!! :-):bigsmile:

You're BMR is about 1640 calories based on the equations estimating it. I ran your numbers (height, weight, age, gender) through both MFP and Fat2Fitradio and got the same. That's where things will start.

If you include your daily exercise into your daily average activity level, do not log your exercise burned calories. If you set your activity level to sedentary or lightly active, log your exercise burned calories. Either way, your exercise will be counted only once each day, but will be accounted for so you are fueling your body properly.

Give the changes a few weeks for your body to adjust before deciding if it's working for you. And before you get concerned that eating more will cause you to start gaining a lot of weight, as a 6'2" - 230 lb man who works out pretty hard 5-6 days a week, I consume 2700-3000 calories on a daily basis and continue to lose weight.

Also, give yourself 1-2 rest days from exercise each week. Proper rest, both resting the muscles and sleep, is necessary for your body.

Any questions about using MFP or anything, message me. Happy to help if I can.

ChcolateLady11

I agree, well said :-)

thanks everyone for all your advise, I will def redo my cal with MFP and see what it says and stick with that. But i'm still going strong with the DVD's and i jog everyday if not every other depends on when "taxi mom" is needed. LOL thanks so so much and look forward to chatting with you guys more!!! :-):bigsmile:

You're BMR is about 1640 calories based on the equations estimating it. I ran your numbers (height, weight, age, gender) through both MFP and Fat2Fitradio and got the same. That's where things will start.

If you include your daily exercise into your daily average activity level, do not log your exercise burned calories. If you set your activity level to sedentary or lightly active, log your exercise burned calories. Either way, your exercise will be counted only once each day, but will be accounted for so you are fueling your body properly.

Give the changes a few weeks for your body to adjust before deciding if it's working for you. And before you get concerned that eating more will cause you to start gaining a lot of weight, as a 6'2" - 230 lb man who works out pretty hard 5-6 days a week, I consume 2700-3000 calories on a daily basis and continue to lose weight.

Also, give yourself 1-2 rest days from exercise each week. Proper rest, both resting the muscles and sleep, is necessary for your body.

Any questions about using MFP or anything, message me. Happy to help if I can.

rebeccahenn

If you are doing that much exercise then you aren't eating enough calories!! do you feel fatigued? Im doing insanity right now and i had to up my calorie intake because of how much I was burning with the exercises. under eating is just as detrimental as over eating so eat until you feel full and make sure its healthy, whole grain, full of fiber, all that stuff! my guess is you will probably end up around 1500 calories a day to feel full. thats just a guess though!

ricardo2navarro

1lb a week is not bad progress. You should keep doing that if its working. If you try to loose too much weight every week your weight can just bounce right back up.

tarheelchic

update: So my cal intake is now set at 1480, and man what a difference. I'm feel so much better just in these past 2 days...... so again I thank you all for all your advise and helping me. Love MFP peps!!!! :flowerforyou: