wanting to lose 2lbs a week....

MrsMarvelous

ok So Im wanting to lose the 2lbs a week... is anyone out there acheiveing this goal?
I started(usuing this site, but have been going to the YMCA for 2 yrs) Feb 7th... and have lost 4lbs to date 3-7 which is great... you can look at my food diary and make suggestions... and as far as my cardio.. this is my calories burned this week... 5330 / 2390 so do i need to burn 7000 cal a week to loose 2lbs a week?? im still a little new to this site and trying to eat the right amount of calories and maybe eat the earned calories too.. I would really like to lose 10lbs a month.. to me that sounds like a lot but i have about 77lbs to lose and i was hopeing by the end of August I would be down to 150lbs.... so any thoughts and help would be great! :flowerforyou:

ivykivy

Did you set your account up for two pounds a week. We are similar in weight but I am short. I avg about 1400-1600 weekly with one hour moderate exercise daily and can lose 2lbs per week

mromnek

You need to have 7000 calorie deficit per week to lose 2 lbs per week (on average). This will be through a combination of what you eat and what you burn.

Your daily deficit is already calculated into the number of calories you should eat (unless you set that manually), according to the weight loss goal you have entered.

MrsMarvelous

well if 7000 calories is what i need then ill need to step up the cardio and add 3 more dayz of Zumba and maybe that will get me to 2lbs a week...
ivy .. yes i set my account up for the 2lbs a week / im fairly active i do an hour of cardio on monday followed by strength training, 1 hr Zumba on Tues, Wed strength trainging, Thurs is 2 hrs cardio Zumba and turbo kick then, friday strength training

mromnek... so do i just eat my regular calories and not eat what i have earned?

ivykivy

If you set your activity level to moderate/highly active then you don't need to eat them ( or just a few). However if you set it to sedentary you will need to eat your exercise calories. You will have to play with the numbers.

nickkehagias

I've found that, personally at least, it's more effective to set your activity level to the lowest setting, and then manually put in your exercise calories. It not only makes you personally accountable for your exercise, it just generally helps me not overeat.

cmriverside

I think an award is in order. . . . . as soon as we figure this one out. . . . . good question, great answers, good luck. If you ask 20 people on this site this question, you 'll get 10 answers. (flip a coin) Good luck to you.:flowerforyou:

DrBorkBork

I'm 212, eat 1300-1400 cals a day plus exercise cals (usually around 1600 total, whatever keeps me above 1200 net cals). I go to gym MWF & Sat, burn 500 cals between C25K on TM & bike or elliptical (depends on how my legs feel after run), and I'm losing 3 lbs a week. On my "off" days from running, I do a light workout with my wii. You should be working hard to lose weight, but not killing yourself.

RacheBell

I set my account up for no exercise, because I never know when I'll be able to do it, or for how long, and I don't like feeling disappointed when I can't put down what I said. And I WAS averaging 2 pounds lost a week. I've hit a plateau though, that's why I've started working out more lately. And if I eat my exercise calories, I eat vegetables or fruit or nuts. Nothing too heavy.

mromnek

well if 7000 calories is what i need then ill need to step up the cardio and add 3 more dayz of Zumba and maybe that will get me to 2lbs a week...
ivy .. yes i set my account up for the 2lbs a week / im fairly active i do an hour of cardio on monday followed by strength training, 1 hr Zumba on Tues, Wed strength trainging, Thurs is 2 hrs cardio Zumba and turbo kick then, friday strength training

mromnek... so do i just eat my regular calories and not eat what i have earned?

I am not a nutritionist or fitness trainer, nor have I ever played one on TV. :laugh: However, I am an analytical person and pretty anal at that too, so I tend to read, read, and read. The question you asked is one of the most hotly contested questions you can ask on this site as well as many others (and from what I understand debated among the 'experts'). To eat or not to eat, that is the question. :huh:

IMO the key is to keep your calorie intake no less than 80-90% of your BMR (found under the Tools tab: it is basically the number of calories you would burn if you were in a coma). That being said, the way MFP works is like this... It calculates your BMR, then asks for your activity level. The BMR is multiplied by the activity level multiplier to arrive at your TDEE (total daily energy expenditure), or the calculated number of calories you burn in a given day. :huh: (confused yet?)

Now, if you want to lose weight, the idea is simple... burn more calories than you eat (or maintain a calorie deficit). Since it takes 3500 calories to burn 1 lb of fat, it works out to 500 calories per day deficit to burn 1 lb of fat in a week. Nice round numbers.

So... MFP asks you how many pounds per week you want to lose, multiplies that number times 500, and subtracts the result from your TDEE. In other words, if I tell MFP that I am a couch potato, and I want to lose 1 lb per week. And I eat the precisely the number of calories that MFP says (with exact attention paid to the recommended daily allowances and eat strictly by the food pyramid), I should lose 1 lb in a week.

Here is where the debate comes in... exercise is not calculated into the equation (which is why MFP says you earned x number of calories due to exercise). There is a condition known as "starvation" that has effects which are matter of debate. The amount of time it takes to reach starvation is a matter of debate. IMO the longer you stay considerably under your BMR, the higher your risk for going into starvation. IMO its effects begin within a few days and really effects your weight loss after a week or two. IMO, its effects include a lowering of your metabolic rate. IMO, in some cases (such as a too aggressive weight loss goal) it is possible to diet too hard, and actually completely stall your weight loss or gain weight for a super low caloric intake.:sad:

On the one hand, some people believe that if you don't eat your exercise calories you will go into starvation mode. On the other hand, some people think that if you eat your exercise calories, your exercise has been "wasted" from a calorie deficit standpoint. IMO there is validity to both arguments, but it is completely dependent upon the person. For instance, a person who is 400 lbs can go much longer before the negative effects of starvation mode sets in. On the other hand, a person with low body fat can't affort to miss any calories (take Michael Phelps and his gargantuan training diet). IMO even if you eat the exercise calories, you are still maintaining a calorie deficit AND you are reaping the many benefits of exercise (cardiovascular development, increase in metabolic rate following exercise, increased endorphin levels, etc...).

As I said, my opinion is to know where your BMR is, and make sure you generally stay no lower than 80-90% of your BMR. So, you may very well have to eat your exercise calories. It really depends on you, what your numbers are, and more importantly, how your body responds to your eating/exercise habits. Even if you are not losing weight fast, you are losing weight. Remember, this is not a get thin quick scheme, and it is not a race... the tortoise ALWAYS wins. I know I didn't balloon to my weight overnight.

MrsMarvelous

thanks mromnek for that information!! it was helpful