confused?

OliveCarsey
OliveCarsey Posts: 78
in Health and Weight Loss
Ok I am just not getting this- I entered everything so it would tell me how many calories and such to eat- it says I need 2120 a day- is that to maintain my current overweightness or is that to lose the 1lbs a week it MFP suggests? If it is to lose weight and I come in way under 2120 am I hurting myself? What about the extra calories it says I can eat since I burned some exercising? Sorry I am very new to all of this and I really want to succeed. Thanks

My page is open for you to look if you would like to, maybe you can see why it is set so high? Thanks

Replies

  • jfan175
    jfan175 Posts: 812 Member
    That seems a bit high, you might want to recheck your entries. Unless you go below 1400 calories or so, you won't be hurting yourself.
  • ixap
    ixap Posts: 675 Member
    go to this page:
    http://www.myfitnesspal.com/account/my_goals

    and it will tell you your "Projected Weight Loss" for the calorie level it gave you.

    And yes it is designed for you to eat the calories that you burned.
  • Robin_Bin
    Robin_Bin Posts: 1,046 Member
    If you selected the 1 lb/week in your goals, it takes that into account.
  • OliveCarsey
    OliveCarsey Posts: 78
    Okay it says 2040 a day with a deficit of 500 for a projected weight loss of 1lb a week. So if I only eat like 1800 cals a day and burn a couple hundred am I screwing up? eating 2040 cals seems to be a lot even though i know I used to eat that with no problem now that i am eating healthy food I fill up a lot faster.
  • ashtonvv
    ashtonvv Posts: 144
    2120 sounds too high, way too high. That is probably your maitenence intake, (the amount you can eat without gaining). Double check your settings, make sure you are set to 1lb a week, if you select anything above that mfp tends to put you on a very low 1200-1300 calorie "diet" and that is just not very realistic.

    It will also depend on your activity level, I set mine to low-moderate activity, so that my deficit would be more realistic.

    I have an open diary, and still a ways to go feel free to add me if you have any questions!
  • ashtonvv
    ashtonvv Posts: 144
    1560-1800 is a good start. It depends on your body really. Try fit-fatradio.com they have calculators on there that will help you out too!
  • OliveCarsey
    OliveCarsey Posts: 78
    2120 sounds too high, way too high. That is probably your maitenence intake, (the amount you can eat without gaining). Double check your settings, make sure you are set to 1lb a week, if you select anything above that mfp tends to put you on a very low 1200-1300 calorie "diet" and that is just not very realistic.

    It will also depend on your activity level, I set mine to low-moderate activity, so that my deficit would be more realistic.

    I have an open diary, and still a ways to go feel free to add me if you have any questions!

    I think my diary is also open, I set it for 1lb a week and for the lowest activity lever there was- I've checked it a few times and the 2040 is right... unless I did something wrong. I'm thinking of trying to keep it right around 1800 or so no matter how much I exercise and burn.
  • ixap
    ixap Posts: 675 Member
    What activity level did you choose?

    go here to check if you're not sure:
    http://www.myfitnesspal.com/account/change_goals_guided

    Sedentary: Spend most of the day sitting (e.g. bank teller, desk job)
    Lightly Active: Spend a good part of the day on your feet (e.g. teacher, salesman)
    Active: Spend a good part of the day doing some physical activity (e.g. waitress, mailman)
    Very Active: Spend most of the day doing heavy physical activity (e.g. bike messenger, carpenter)

    The setting you choose does not include your exercise if you are also logging your exercise sessions.
  • OliveCarsey
    OliveCarsey Posts: 78
    I choose sedentry- for quite a while now I have been doing very little. I have been logging my exercise activities my page is open if you would like to look at it. Maybe I entered something wrong.
  • ixap
    ixap Posts: 675 Member
    Sounds like you entered everything properly then. I see you have 110 lbs you want to lose so it is possible that your resting metabolic rate is in the range of 2000 cal/day. I would say give it a try with your current settings for a few weeks and see what happens. If you lose at the rate you want, great, stick with it; if you lose too slow, adjust down; if you feel weak / hungry all the time, adjust up.

    1800 calories per day should be perfectly safe for you I'd think. Just make sure to eat high quality foods if you can since you are adding new and challenging exercises and eating at a caloric deficit, both of which are taxing on the body. Get your fruits and especially your veggies; looks like already you are doing fantastic with getting in whole grains and high quality protein. Don't be afraid of a little healthy fat in the diet too - nuts, olive oil, avocado - will help your energy levels and feeling satisfied.
  • OliveCarsey
    OliveCarsey Posts: 78
    Thank you. I am going to go get some nuts tonight. I was thinking some almonds but not sure yet. I know the weight isn't going to come off overnight this is a lifelong choice I am making.
  • ashtonvv
    ashtonvv Posts: 144
    I agree with the above, you will notice once you start losing that your intake will get lower. Unless you switch your goal to 50lbs to start, and then 60 for your next section. I found that worked better for me, as I want to lose about 50-60 overall. It looks less intimidating that way too.

    I would highly suggest the fit-fatradio.com, and finding out your BMI, BMR, and TDEE. It is all confusing at first but it will make more sense as you get going.

    I feel like 1800 is a good starting point, but if you feel hungry or weak after you workout don't hesitate to eat. Food is not the enemy, BAD food is!

    Best of luck to you!
  • samhigh
    samhigh Posts: 86 Member
    Calculate your Basal Metabolic Rate. Adjust for activity level.

    BMR might be around 1500, and with the activity multiplier somewhere around 2100.

    This is where personal opinion and experience come in. My multiplied BMR is 2600 or something. I have found this number to be ~ 20% overstated, and more so as you get leaner (metabolism slows).

    Figure out your baseline, and adjust for desired weight loss goal. If your true mult. BMR is 1900, and you shoot for a 300 cal deficit every day, you will lose ~ .65 pounds of mass per week. Most should be fat loss, some could be muscle depending on type of activity.

    If you want faster results, increase the deficit. A pound of stored adipose fat is roughly 3500 calories. If you run a 500 cal deficit a day, that is a pound a week.

    I try to adjust my deficit by activity level on a daily basis. Using MFP and Fitbit, you can track a pretty accurate deficit. If I do a bunch of exercises, I have to eat more to maintain the same deficit. If I am less active, I take the calories down, still attempting to consistently run the same deficit.

    make sure you have a refeed day or ideally a several day break every once in a while.

    If you do this, you will lose weight.
  • michellekicks
    michellekicks Posts: 3,624 Member
    Since you have quite a bit of weight you want to lose, there's nothing wrong with aiming for a 2 lb loss each week. That will bring your goal down another 500 but know that anything in that range is fine... judge it by your hunger levels, your adjustment to eating less and how you feel. If you exercise, you can also choose to eat those calories back... some or all, depending on how you feel and/or your lifestyle. It's a great option when it comes to special events/parties or whatever.
  • fat214
    fat214 Posts: 109
    This is from HelloitsDan~REALLY GOOD :)

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


    AND THERE'S THIS TOO:

    You should check her video out on youtube some good stuff on TDEE ~

    http://www.youtube.com/user/JaymeBales83

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