MFP...Friend or Foe?

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  • ExplorinLauren
    ExplorinLauren Posts: 991 Member
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    The program is designed for long term weight loss...not a get skinny quick kind of thing. That's why the calories are so generous! Eat yourself skinny and you will have long term success. I have a long way to go but I'm confident this will work :)

    I agree... I believe this is truly working...
    I've looked at it as a real LIFE CHANGE... I don't feel like I'm on a diet AT ALL! ...
    Honestly tho, I'm here to get in the best shape of my life before a tummy tuck in March/ April of next year... I have all the time in world to stick to this.. and I feel hopeful about it :) But at the same time... I don't have time to try this for 6 weeks, wait ...see if it works... try this for another 6 weeks.... yada yada lol
    Hopefully, I'll figure it all out soon... But I feel happy that my diet has changed so drastically over the last few months!! I used to eat out (between breakfast, lunch and dinner, at LEAST 10 times week!!) I feel pretty good about where I'm going now :)
    Thanks for your input :)
  • Louiyen
    Louiyen Posts: 69
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    Watch this on Youtube. Eat, Fast, and Live Longer. It's a documentary that is n hour long separated by 4 videos. Maybe that'll help. This is what I'm currently doing but modified to my style. GL and let me know what you think.

    In addition, I've been doing this for 3 weeks now and see more results than i ever saw.
  • darrcn5
    darrcn5 Posts: 495 Member
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    You have to figure out what works for YOU! For me, it is lower carb eating, a splurge day, and eating around my BMR or very slightly above. I am losing between 1-1.5 pounds a week, so I am happy.
  • ExplorinLauren
    ExplorinLauren Posts: 991 Member
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    Why not just fill out your profile correctly, log everything honestly, follow the MFP numbers, and stop worrying about all that other stuff?

    Seems to work for me :happy:

    lol... I do all of this :)
    My daily allowance tends to fluctuate based on my settings... which I keep going between sedentary, lightly active and active... mostly because I don't know which one to put, so I follow others advice. lol
    I have a fitbit and HRM.... I know I burn between 2600-3100 a day... depending on my activity level... so, on my own figured, if I eat around 1500, I should still have a 1000 cal deficit... and it should work? Right? Who knows. MFP still has me at about 1250 a day... so idk.
  • lehmann75
    lehmann75 Posts: 27
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    Paleo is the new gluten-free, which was the new vegan, which was the new vegetarian and so on and so on. Screw that noise. A healthy diet is not a fad that goes in and out of style.

    1200 calories isn't outdated - it's a baseline. The quality of those calories is what matters. My best advice is to eat the calories MFP tells you to eat, do it with whatever whole, unprocessed foods you like to keep it nutrient rich (fresh produce, lean meats, preservative and you'll probably get pretty close to the recommended breakdown.

    Edited because I should also mention:

    Like I said, 1200 is a baseline, and adding your daily activity will add to your calorie allowance. After my workouts, I usually end up somewhere around 1400-1500.

    Also, I threw the "unprocessed" caveat in there because preserved food tends to be higher in sodium, which promotes water retention. Besides, fresh corn is soooo much tastier than canned or frozen. But I do "cheat" with stuff like instant oatmeal and 100 calorie Oreo cookie snack packs every so often. Sometimes a girl just needs a cookie. Anyway, the point is that I'm not following any crazy trendy diets and sometimes even break my own rules, sticking to the calories and generally not worrying too much about anything beyond that and it's working out just fine.
  • shellygw
    shellygw Posts: 33 Member
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    I'm new to this too and in the past let the frustration of too much information and too much contradiction derail my attempts to lose weight (among other things). I saw this site and felt it was an opportunity to see just what I do. I am focusing on calories right now, taking really good notes about my days--feelings, stress, etc. and monitoring my other nutrition. My ultimate goal is to lose weight but building a healthier diet in the process. For instance, I have low energy level and my diary has shown in the last 10 days I have only hit my iron goals once. Since anemia runs in my family and can affect energy, I am going to try to adjust my diet to include more iron and see what happens. I read all the advice but no longer let myself see it as the end-all be-all to my weight loss plan.
  • josyjozy
    josyjozy Posts: 117 Member
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    Here is what is working for me. Not advice, might just be anecdotal but I have to chip in. I find out what my BMR is when set to sedative life style - and I have a lightly active lifestyle. I try to eat under my sedentary bmr by a few hundred , but I don't sweat if I go over a little. Currently my sedentary BMR is 1,653 calories/day, so I have myself set at 1500. Some days I come in as low as 1300 and some days I'm at 1600, but I shoot for 1500.

    At first the pounds just melted away - now I'm still losing but at a slower rate. I feel better, have a ton more energy and have changed the way I eat. This is something I could maintain for a lifetime. Even though I'd love to have that weight start melting again, it's still coming off and I am not usually hungry. I have lost every week, though sometimes it's not much, it's still lost.
  • splashangel
    splashangel Posts: 494 Member
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    I am not very bright and so I get confused easily which is why I just eat if I feel hungry and workout as much as possible. I try to eat clean per MY DEFINITION. I try to keep my tushy moving. I try to keep my calories near what MFP recommended but don't cry if I go over or under since it usually balances out.

    I haven't weighed myself in 1.5 months but my pants are feeling loose. I am happy
    [/quot
    Your profile pic always caught my attention but nice to see the real you!

    OP, There is a lot of info out there. Study and weed through it. I know how you feel.
  • imchicbad
    imchicbad Posts: 1,650 Member
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    Look, I had the same fears, but if you listen and pay attention to what people are saying, especially the ones who are having results in a realistic life changing manner not a fad diet way, you would learn some things, HOWEVER, what works for one does not work for all, BUT if a majority rules, I am willing to try it. I was doing 1200 calories too, then I read about the TEDEE and did the calculations and eneded up with the 1500 calorie number. I was afraid and gave my self a week or two, and I noticed my hair stopped falling out (at 1200 my hair was all over the house), I felt less stressed about food choices, and had alot more energy, and I didnt gain any weight, and if i eat under 1500 I dont feel so bad. believe me sometimes i eat so much stuff that im not hungry after 1350. So i noticed with my new found freedom I also worked out one more day and didnt concentrate so much on the numbers on the scale. I didnt lose weight for 3 weeks, but my clothes fell off, and I had to buy clothes in just 1 month because the inches melted off. And thats what worked for me. oh and by the way, I have a free day once a week (every saturday) i dont count calories at all, but i dont way over do it, and i dont gain. Thats all I know. You will figure it out, dont worry:bigsmile:
  • clobercow
    clobercow Posts: 337 Member
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    I was once in a position that was similar to OP. I was getting confused by all of the conflicting advice so. So I said **** the advice and decided to educate myself on how the body works and how food changes it.

    Now I KNOW what I need to do rather than someone else telling me. It turns out, most of the advice I was given was wrong or *kitten*-backwards. I don't think it was purposeful, and the advice had good intentions.

    Most people have the best intentions when giving advice, however good they are, intentions can lead to a bad experience when the advice given is bad.

    Educating yourself is the the best advice I can give.
  • ExplorinLauren
    ExplorinLauren Posts: 991 Member
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    Watch this on Youtube. Eat, Fast, and Live Longer. It's a documentary that is n hour long separated by 4 videos. Maybe that'll help. This is what I'm currently doing but modified to my style. GL and let me know what you think.

    In addition, I've been doing this for 3 weeks now and see more results than i ever saw.

    Will watch .. thx :) Idk how I feel about fasting??... but I will watch... thanks :)
  • tosmoothash
    tosmoothash Posts: 187 Member
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    People, myself included, love to give advice! We can all go into paralysis for all of the advice floating around. I'd say (see, I told you I love to give advice! LOL) that if something has been working for you, you have energy, feel good then keep doing it! Not everything works for everyone. I think people get a bit cocky or over confident at times when they've been intensely successful at something or had an aha moment then they want to "share" that with the world. Usually it is a good thing, but other times can drive people BATTY!

    Good luck!

    ^^^^^^ THIS!!! I can definitely agree!!! You have to do what works for you or what has been working for you.
  • Val_NC
    Val_NC Posts: 5 Member
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    My doctor, who is at least 15-20 yrs younger than me, has placed me on a 1200 cal/day regimine, along with no less than 40 mins of consistent cardio 5-6 days/wk. I use MFP to keep up with my intake, but do not consume the calories I burn. I began following her advice on May 1 & am losing an average of 1.8 lbs/wk. Now, after 14 weeks I've dropped 26lbs, over 16 inches, & 3 pants sizes. Where some members posting in this forum feel that the 1200 cal/day is "very 80's", it's working for me. If I ate the 1500 that is recommended on this site just from entering my basic info, I would have gained the 26lbs instead of losing it. This program isn't for everyone, & there are no generic programs out there, so find what works for you, & modify it to fit your needs.
  • KeriW626
    KeriW626 Posts: 430
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    I understand your confusion. After my 1st week on MFP. normal eatting, inputting everything. He told me I need to eat at least 1200 calories, but because I am not active no more than 1400 calories. (my report showed I had 3 days under 500, and two under 700, nothing over 1000.

    I am learning to eat clean and healthy. I get recipes from here to help with that. The bottom line on free advice, is take what you need/ agree with and ignore the rest. Goo luck. :flowerforyou:
  • dansls1
    dansls1 Posts: 309 Member
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    It's pretty simple to figure out your calorie needs. You've logged for a while right? So take the calories for the last 30 days and add them up. Then multiply the pounds you have lost in that same 30 days by 3500. Add the 2 numbers together and divide by 30. This is YOUR maintenance calorie level for your body right now. Now, figure out how much you want to lose per week (2 pounds or less). 1 pound a week is a 500 calorie per day deficit. Simple easy math and no confusion.
  • KeriW626
    KeriW626 Posts: 430
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    I am looking at this as a life time change. I have issues. MFP allows me to keep track of my calories. Doing this I am eatting more than I did, and making better choices of what I eat. I read someone mention their hair falling out. Mine never fell out, but I never shined either. It is now so my increase in food is a good thing.

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