Not loosing, too few calories? too many?

jodie091

Hi all I have been actively using MFP for about a month now (3 weeks?) and I am just loosing a bit gaining a bit about 1 pound up and down. So my question is am I eating too much or not enough?

I am 39 5"4 and currently 87kg (191.8 pound) give or take.

MFP calculated that I should be on 1440 calories
My RMR is apparently 1584, TDEE is 2199 and BMR of 1600 so if I have the theory correct I am on too few calories. I am finding this all a little disheartening as I get on the scales on week and I have lost a pound get back on a week later and I have gained it back again and yo-yo yo-yo.

If you look at my diary you will see some days I over eat some days I don't but it all averages out over the week/month to being around the 1400 range.

Any ideas?

Help Please

jodie091

Bump before it falls off the first page and no one ever sees it again :P

jodie091

Anyone?? I need help with this please

AbsoluteNG

Eat less and change your Carb, Fat, and Protien ratio around until you find something working.

kayduro

Your diary is closed. Try opening it and you. Might get more feedback:)

KellyJannine

I am having this same problem... i'm fluctuating! I am just trying to stay motivated.. hope you find that sweet spot!

FitSuga

Okay, so you are going by 1400 calories before or after excersize. Are you actually netting 1400?

jodie091

Its the before exercise amount calculated by MFP most days I will net out somewhere around that mark too

waveindigo

You really need to open your diary for anyone to be able to help.

Mabuhay1

I joined MFP about 3 weeks ago and I am a bit disheartened also that I am not really losing any weights at all.

I am doing more exercises and adhering to my quota.

I am on 1200 calories per day; the same calories Jenny Craig has allowed me to have.

The thing I can think of is my eating back calories I earned from doing exercises is the culprit.

With Jenny Craig we are allowed unlimited vegetables but no eating back and I did lose 8 kgs in 2 months?

So from now I will stop eating back calories I earn from doing exercises and I am certain I will lose weight just as I did when I was with Jenny Craig except now I am eating foods I like to eat but in small portions.

Crossing my fingers.

Cheers

jodie091

OK its open now - just ignore the days with nothing in them I was on holidays and couldn't record those days.

jodie091

Good luck Mabuhay1 I hope you find what works for you

Mads1997

Most people try to find a calorie limit in between there BMR and TDEE. If you were in a coma your body would need at least your BMR to function. You really shouldn't eat below this.

jodie091

Most people try to find a calorie limit in between there BMR and TDEE. If you were in a coma your body would need at least your BMR to function. You really shouldn't eat below this.

I am thinking along the same lines and find it interesting that MFP calculated my calorie intake to be below my BMR which is excatly my question, so I should be eating more than calculated by MFP?

T34418l3angel

If your bmr and tdee are accurate (which it does sound pretty accurate) I think 1400 is too low, I estimate (without going into calculation) you should be eating around 1800 calories. Also wondering what type of exercise if any are you doing? If your doing allot of weights your muscles could be retaining water (not necessarily a bad thing, it means they are recovering from an awesome work out).

jodie091

No I do mostly cardio so no excess water being retained in the muscles

meshashesha2012

you've only been at it 3 weeks. i'd say give it another 3 weeks before you start freaking out and changing stuff. some people see immediate results on the scale others take a longer amount of time.

i know for me i didnt see any results the first 6 weeks i started. then it was pretty steady for awhile and now i've all but stalled on the weight loss but i'm dropping clothing sizes regularly. so, weight loss isnt always linear

Mads1997

Yep MFP formula is to eat back whatever you burn in exercise so if it calculated you to eat 1400 and you burned 300 in exercise you should be eating 1700 cals. Most other websites will include your activity in the calories they give.

Try fat2fit website or scooby's workshop website to get a better idea of what you should be eating.

http://www.fat2fitradio.com/tools/bmr/
http://scoobysworkshop.com/calorie-calculator/

californiagirl2012

Hi all I have been actively using MFP for about a month now (3 weeks?) and I am just loosing a bit gaining a bit about 1 pound up and down. So my question is am I eating too much or not enough?

I am 39 5"4 and currently 87kg (191.8 pound) give or take.

MFP calculated that I should be on 1440 calories
My RMR is apparently 1584, TDEE is 2199 and BMR of 1600 so if I have the theory correct I am on too few calories. I am finding this all a little disheartening as I get on the scales on week and I have lost a pound get back on a week later and I have gained it back again and yo-yo yo-yo.

If you look at my diary you will see some days I over eat some days I don't but it all averages out over the week/month to being around the 1400 range.

Any ideas?

Help Please

The online tools are just estimates. You simply need to experiment with calories either slightly up or slightly down until you find the exact sustainable healthy calorie deficit for you. You also need to give it time. It is a slow process. Make an adjustment, wait, make an adjustment, wait.

To say eat more is wrong,

To say eat less is wrong.

To say find the exact calorie deficit that is appropriate for you is the only answer. Some people can handle a deeper calorie deficit than others. Some people have emotional eating disorders and it comes into play. Even a small deficit puts your body in a state of flux with hormones and such and everyone is different.

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 if 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; water retention, digestion, hormones, allergies, sodium, carbs, water intake, DOMS, inflammation, the list goes on. People mistakenly think they lose or gain weight when they eat more or less because of these fluctuations.

Losing weight requires tremendous patience. You will not lose it when you want it or where you want it. The body does its thing. Some apparent plateaus can last a month or so. You cannot make it happen faster. You must focus on two things; calories and exercise. Nothing else matters. Scales and metrics don't matter. The day in and day out grind of exercise and calories are all that matters. It is not very exciting until things fall into place. You get your victories and you ride one victory to the next.

The scale is a trend tool. The scale is good but put it away and only check once a week and only use it as a trend tool. It will fluctuate, it does not matter. Take front side and back progress pictures at least once a month. You will see differences that the metrics won't tell you and it's that little bit of NSV that will keep you going until the next victory.

What is the exact number of calories for you?

We’ve been trying to figure out an exact NUMBER of calories that everyone should be eating, without recognizing that everyone is slightly different. In truth, the calories aren’t the end game. Your body is. So the EXACT amount of Calories that are right for you is the EXACT amount that will allow you to maintain your ideal bodyweight no matter what some calculator or chart says.

In other words, an online calculator might tell you that you need to eat 2,500 calories
per day to maintain your ideal bodyweight. But the only way to know for sure if this is
the right amount for you is to test it out. If you gain weight or can’t lose weight eating
that much, then you know you need to eat less to lose weight no matter how many
calculators and text books say otherwise.

This doesn’t mean your metabolism is broken, it just means the estimate of your needs
was just a bit off.

-John Barban (The Body Centric Calorie Guide from the Venus Index and Adonis Index Manuals)

tryclyn

Hi all I have been actively using MFP for about a month now (3 weeks?) and I am just loosing a bit gaining a bit about 1 pound up and down. So my question is am I eating too much or not enough?

I am 39 5"4 and currently 87kg (191.8 pound) give or take.

MFP calculated that I should be on 1440 calories
My RMR is apparently 1584, TDEE is 2199 and BMR of 1600 so if I have the theory correct I am on too few calories. I am finding this all a little disheartening as I get on the scales on week and I have lost a pound get back on a week later and I have gained it back again and yo-yo yo-yo.

If you look at my diary you will see some days I over eat some days I don't but it all averages out over the week/month to being around the 1400 range.

Any ideas?

Help Please

BMR is your minimum for the day -don't eat below.
TDEE is what you need to live your life and exercise -eat to maintain.
So try TDEE - 20% .

Customize your MFP goals using the TDEE - 20% and don't eat exercise calories as they should be accounted for in TDEE.
Give it at least a month because your weight will fluctuate as your body gets used to being fed.

For more info
http://www.myfitnesspal.com/groups/home/3817-eat-more-to-weigh-less

http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/717565-in-place-of-a-road-map

Mabuhay1

Good luck Mabuhay1 I hope you find what works for you

Thanks. I need it.

And thanks for asking the question. It is very informative for "L'" platers like me reading forums like these.

Cheers

lynz4589

I was on 1300 cals for the last 6 months Id say. Originally when I joined (nearly 18 months ago I think!) MFP had me at 1200, I tried it for a while but it was too low. I upped it to 1300 cals and started losing again but I never eat back exercise cals. I recently increased to 1700 cals (my bmr) Id say I made this change 2 weeks ago and already seen major improvements. Last week (my first weigh in since upping cals) I lost around 4lbs and in the last 4 days I lost a further 0.8lbs. I do still net below my bmr with exercise but Im happy with the level Im at because I also have thyroid problems so simply cant eat too much anyway. Long story short, from someone who has recently upped calories its definitely worked for me, more energy, better sized meals, and bigger drops on the scale! At least try it for 4 weeks and if theres no change switch it up until you find what works for you!

jodie091

I was on 1300 cals for the last 6 months Id say. Originally when I joined (nearly 18 months ago I think!) MFP had me at 1200, I tried it for a while but it was too low. I upped it to 1300 cals and started losing again but I never eat back exercise cals. I recently increased to 1700 cals (my bmr) Id say I made this change 2 weeks ago and already seen major improvements. Last week (my first weigh in since upping cals) I lost around 4lbs and in the last 4 days I lost a further 0.8lbs. I do still net below my bmr with exercise but Im happy with the level Im at because I also have thyroid problems so simply cant eat too much anyway. Long story short, from someone who has recently upped calories its definitely worked for me, more energy, better sized meals, and bigger drops on the scale! At least try it for 4 weeks and if theres no change switch it up until you find what works for you!

Thanks Lynz4589 I have upped my calories to TDEE -20% giving me 1700 a day I figure as long as I am below that somewhere and feeling good then it is all good. Hopefully it will kick start some weight loss for me and then I can reassess, as you say.

Thanks for the feedback everyone it is most appreciated