Confused....help!

JennKoz529
JennKoz529 Posts: 144 Member
in Health and Weight Loss
So after reading post after post after post I came to the conclusion that I need to change my calorie intake for the day. I was set at 1200 by MFP, but after reading about TDEE I set my limit as 1353. This is my TDEE minus 20%. Does this sound correct to everyone. Will I still continue to loose weight if I make this my calorie goal??? I don't want to go into starvation mode (which I think I already have) because I KNOW this is not the best way to loose weight. Any thoughts would be great.

Just so everyone is aware.........

Height: 5'2
Weight: 141
Goal weight: 130-135 (I'm not setting a number but a range)

Replies

  • 126siany
    126siany Posts: 1,386 Member
    Yes, you should lose weight whenever you eat at a deficit.
  • tenaheff
    tenaheff Posts: 88
    I am no expert, but every diet I have ever gone on has recommended 1200 calories for a person of your size. Will you still lose weight with more calories? It is possible.

    As long as you eat less than you burn you will lose weight. It might just be slower.

    Any loss is better than a gain. So, if 1200 calories is too hard for you to maintain, you would be better off with more just be sure you can stick to the plan
  • jgainey1
    jgainey1 Posts: 19
    What kind of exercise do you do? Also, your age?
  • JennKoz529
    JennKoz529 Posts: 144 Member
    What kind of exercise do you do?

    Well, I was doing general cardio about 3 times a week for about 30 mins. But I admitt I have slacked off quite a bit lately. This is my exercise goal though.
  • jgainey1
    jgainey1 Posts: 19
    Using the scooby website, with your stats, i got:

    Your BMR=1443
    Your tdee=1929 with lightly active
    20% reduction would be 1543

    I would also advise you to read through Helloitsdan's In place of a roadmap thread.

    Good luck!
  • californiagirl2012
    californiagirl2012 Posts: 2,625 Member
    Remember all the calorie tools are just estimates. You have to experiment to find what is right for you. You can always notch up or down by 100 calories to experiment find what is right for you.

    A lot depends on how much you have to lose. If you have a lot of body fat reserves you would be surprised at how little you can eat (unless you have emotional eating issues or disorders). The leaner you get the less your body has to draw from and then you have to taper up your calories. There is no such thing as starvation mode for women over 12% body fat or men over 6% body fat. I am a living breathing example of that. I went from obese to now under 12% BF and I've maintained for one year and built muscle the whole time. You don't BUILD muscle in starvation mode, so I proved everyone wrong. And I learned it all from a coach with multiple PHD’s.

    My story here- - -> http://www.venusindex.com/roberta-saums-venus-index-transformation/

    People mistakenly give this advice of eating up because they thought they lost weight when they ate more, but it was really just normal fluctuations. The bottom line is that if you have extra fat to lose and the TREND is not down on the scale then you need to eat less.

    Your body loses weight in chunks, not linear. I have found that you can do everything right and your weight loss seems to plateau but you are patient and keep exercising and eating at a deficit (however slight) you will lose it, it will suddenly "whoosh". There are so many variables for the scale though: water retention, digestion, allergies, sodium, carbs, water intake, DOMS, inflammation, the list goes on. People mistakenly think they lose weight when they eat more because of these fluctuations.

    This book answers a lot of questions about burning calories, calorie estimations, etc.

    http://products.venusindex.com/product-catalog/books/anything-goes-diet/

    (This is NOT about eating junk food! It's about learning to eat for you own lifestyle, vegan, organic, whatever)
  • JennKoz529
    JennKoz529 Posts: 144 Member
    Using the scooby website, with your stats, i got:

    Your BMR=1443
    Your tdee=1929 with lightly active
    20% reduction would be 1543

    I would also advise you to read through Helloitsdan's In place of a roadmap thread.

    Good luck!

    This seems awfully high though. Will I still loose weight by doing this. I'm skeptical only because it seems like when I've added more calories in the past I've maintained but not lost weight. I have read through Helloitsdan's roadmap thread and ouch! my head hurts! LoL That is the reason I posted this. Thank you so much for your help!!!
  • jgainey1
    jgainey1 Posts: 19
    I know it seems high, lol. I am 4'11", weigh 139 and am 34 years old. I gave dan my stats and he told me to eat 1680 per day, still do my exercise, and since I started doing that...I've lost 1.5 lbs! It is working for me!:drinker:
  • yarwell
    yarwell Posts: 10,477 Member
    start at the 1500 and see what happens, if the loss rate is too low take off 200 calories. All the maths is just predictions, you only find out in practice where you sit on the range.
  • JennKoz529
    JennKoz529 Posts: 144 Member
    @ jgainey. What type of exercise do you do and how often. I'm taking opinions on this too!!

    Ps. Go shorties!!!
  • thomassd1969
    thomassd1969 Posts: 564 Member
    I am 43 yrs old, 5ft 3 and CW is 156. I eat around 1600 calories a day and run 2 miles 3-4 times a week. I lose about 1 lb a week depending on water rention.
  • jgainey1
    jgainey1 Posts: 19
    I do ripped in 30 mon, weds, and friday. Then on tuesdays and thursdays I do my zumba on the wii for about 45 minits. Weekends I rest.
    So only about a total of 3 hours per week.

Categories