Calories Confusion

nunat919

I have been told over and over again that I am consuming too little around (1400-1500/day). I generally try to keep it within that range and focus mainly on the average weekly rather than daily. I exercise 5 times a week and try to eat back about 50 % of my workout calories. Since I input active on my calories calculator. My goal is to lose about 1.5 lbs a week. I guess my question is what method has worked for everyone. Any tips and tricks? Thanks

strawberrytoast

The only thing that really worked for me was running a lot and not eating a lot, i dont recommend this. I now just eat my calories, try and swop unhealthy for healthy choices and exercise a lot!

Dlacenere

I try to stay above my BMR and have my calories set to 20% below my TDEE and I follow that instead of the net as much as possible, although I know I have some wiggle room on high calorie burn days. I also have my macronutrients custom set at 40% protein, 40% carbs and 20% fat.

vhines5

Personally, I have seen that I do well when I have protein for breakfast, salad w/ protein at lunch, morn/afternoon snacks and normal dinner.

I try to float around the recommended calorie goal (sometimes I'm a little over, sometimes I'm a little under). I log my exercise calories on the low side and may or may not eat some back. I'm set to lose 1.5 lbs/wk but in reality it's more like .5 lbs/wk.

My biggest problems?
1. Wasn't enjoying the gym. (just changed gyms to one that offers classes)
2. I get tired of salads, even thought I feel better when I eat them. I sub HC and LC frozen meals and can tell the difference on the scale.
3. Alcohol. If I drink 2-3 beers in a week or 1-2 glasses of wine, there is no drop in the scale. I don't drink every week, but I have noticed that alcohol is not my friend.

Good Luck to you!

firstsip

My endo has always consistently said that carbs are more important than calories to weight loss with thyroid issues. Obviously this doesn't mean go eat 3000 calories, but it highlights that a lower calorie plan (like 1200) is not as necessary. He always says limited to under 180g of carbs is optimum for thyroid metabolism when it's impaired (or, for me, you don't have one!).

yeshualovesme

I've heard that about low carbs - better for thyroid peeps.

firstsip

Personally, I have seen that I do well when I have protein for breakfast, salad w/ protein at lunch, morn/afternoon snacks and normal dinner.

I try to float around the recommended calorie goal (sometimes I'm a little over, sometimes I'm a little under). I log my exercise calories on the low side and may or may not eat some back. I'm set to lose 1.5 lbs/wk but in reality it's more like .5 lbs/wk.

My biggest problems?
1. Wasn't enjoying the gym. (just changed gyms to one that offers classes)
2. I get tired of salads, even thought I feel better when I eat them. I sub HC and LC frozen meals and can tell the difference on the scale.
3. Alcohol. If I drink 2-3 beers in a week or 1-2 glasses of wine, there is no drop in the scale. I don't drink every week, but I have noticed that alcohol is not my friend.

Good Luck to you!

Both issues you said that "aren't friends" are water-retention related. Alcohol is dehydrating, so your body will retain more water; similarly, HC and LC frozen meals are almost insane with sodium, so your body will retain more water. If you tried upping potassium/drinking more water, you wouldn't see the "gains" after ingesting those things (gains which are, I guarantee, not actual fat).

fiberartist219

I don't think folks with thyroid issues really get to choose how many pounds per week we lose. Feel free to correct me if I'm wrong here. I lose what my body wants to lose, when it wants to lose it. I could workout and eat right for months and lose nothing, or even gain, and then there are other times where it feels like I'm barely trying and a few pounds fall off out of nowhere.

I agree to a certain extent that low carb might be helpful, however, I don't think that all carbs are equal. I try to get a lot of fiber in my diet (because things don't work right unless I do) and that's hard to do without whole grains. I do try to limit the amount of refined grains I take in (like pasta, fried potatoes, etc.). Without the skin or shell of the grain/veggie, it does seem to affect my metabolism for a few hours after I eat it. I am not good at describing what happens, but I notice that I do feel better in general when I eat more meat, veggies, and fiber as opposed to foods that are more processed.

And to be honest... I probably can't answer your initial question about calories, because I stopped counting almost a year ago.

strawberrytoast

I also think the doctors think we are lying about the amount of calories/exercise we eat and do (as do a lot of people without thyroid issues). Its not an excuse for being fat/overweight but eating the recommended amount and exercising loads does not always equal weight loss. I think all of my work colleagues think i go home and cakes all day

sometimes_blondie

I also think the doctors think we are lying about the amount of calories/exercise we eat and do (as do a lot of people without thyroid issues). Its not an excuse for being fat/overweight but eating the recommended amount and exercising loads does not always equal weight loss. I think all of my work colleagues think i go home and cakes all day

Lol, after a REALLY long time of counting my calories, cutting sugar and bad carbs, exercising like an athlete, I was still gaining weight! I even went against everything, and cut my calories down to 800. Still gained. That's when I decided to get my thyroid checked. Before my results came in, the deitician sat down with my and gave me an outline for a 1600 calorie diet! I thought she was nuts! I'm not eating anywhere near that, I'm around 1200, more when I exercise hard. I can tell it will still be a slow process,

firstsip

I also think the doctors think we are lying about the amount of calories/exercise we eat and do (as do a lot of people without thyroid issues). Its not an excuse for being fat/overweight but eating the recommended amount and exercising loads does not always equal weight loss. I think all of my work colleagues think i go home and cakes all day

Lol, after a REALLY long time of counting my calories, cutting sugar and bad carbs, exercising like an athlete, I was still gaining weight! I even went against everything, and cut my calories down to 800. Still gained. That's when I decided to get my thyroid checked. Before my results came in, the deitician sat down with my and gave me an outline for a 1600 calorie diet! I thought she was nuts! I'm not eating anywhere near that, I'm around 1200, more when I exercise hard. I can tell it will still be a slow process,

Er, so you're going against a doctor who's specifically telling you to eat above 1200? Why do you think weight loss was harder? People with thyroid issues get even SLOWER weight loss at super low calorie, because big deficits reduce metabolism function over a period of time.

If you have an impaired metabolism, what do you think's going to happen then? :P

nunat919

Thank you everyone for answering. I have been so frustrated but I shouldn't feel too bad because I am still making progress. Slow, but progress , nonetheless. I range from 150-200 carb most days. Most are from fruits. I guess it's better than picking up a cake for my "dessert".