I have questions for those who have been successful.

sijomial

M/F? M
Age? 52
Height? 5'9"
Start weight? 192
Goal weight? 175
Time it took? 4 months
Alloted daily calories? 1600x5, 600x2 (5:2 fasting)
Did your alloted calories change with loss? No
Did/do you eat back your burned/worked off calories? Yes - exercised like a maniac and ate them all back. Ended up stronger, lower BF percentage and with much improved fitness.

slporter03

Bump

MrsBrosco

bump

TriedEverything

Bump!

And thank you to the original poster for starting this thread - very interesting!

Celeigh12

Female
Age: 41
Height: 6'0"
Start weight: 338.4
Current weight: 193.2
Goal weight: 1st is 183.8 (normal BMI), then I'll have to figure it out as I go
Time it took: first 44 was from a previous attempt, the rest was since January of 2012
Calories: 1700
Calories change with loss?: I upped them from about 1400 at around 40 pounds lost because I was starving and realized it was dumb for someone my weight and height to eat so little. So much happier now and still losing well
Eat back your burned/worked off calories? No, but I tried it for a while until it stopped working for me

katscoots

Female
38
5'6"
start weight - 167
Goal Weight - 145
About 5 months
Daily calories changed as I lost - started out around 1500+ and went down to 1200 as I got closer to my goal weight - I set my activity level at sedentary.
I ALWAYS ate back my exercise calories - except some days I really was full and could not or just didn't feel the need to eat any more.

Have recently adjusted my goals, as I'm trying to lose a bit more. Just fine tuning.

k7n2w3

M/F? Female
Age? 31
Height? 5 foot even
Start weight? 155.1
Goal weight? 112.0
Time it took? 9 months (1.33 pounds a week on average w/ two vacations i went on maintenance for
Aloted daily calories? 500 calorie deficit... whatever it was... i used a different site so i knew what my maintenance weight was added the exercise calories then subtracted 500 for a pound a week loss.
Did your aloted calories change with loss? OMG yea.. when i started i was allowed almost 2000 to maintain now i'm at 1440 for maintenance. Also you burn less when you are at a lower weight.
Did/do you eat back your burned/worked off calories? ...well tricky question... i kept a 500 calorie deficit, i never looked at that aspect. whatever i needed to maintain + exercise -500 = daily calories. For instance, i was allowed 1800 to maintain, ran 3 miles for 300 calories then i ate 1600 that day. usually was 1500-1600 depending on exercise til i got down.
i've kept it off for about a year and a half. i went from women's size 12/14 to a women's 2 (juniors 3, kids 12/14 lol i'm 5 foot so kids sizes aren't extreme.)
i chose goal weight based on how i felt and also wanted a midpoint in BMI so went from there. It's a lifestyle not a diet. if you include cheat days and think of it as restriction of foods its harder to be successful. if you eat everything in moderation (pizza and takeout galore) but watch calories you can be successful :-) always record, if not then you can't be accountable.

BrittKnee_Rae

M/F- Female
Age- 24
Height- 5'4
Start weight- 250
Goal weight- 150... (Currently 170)
Time it took- So far, a year and a half
Aloted daily calories- Started with 1200, now I eat 1400ish
Did your aloted calories change with loss- Yes
Did/do you eat back your burned/worked off calories- Some but not all

soehlerking

Female
Age: 25
Height: 5'4"
SW: 170lb
CW: 130
Time: 8 months
Calories: Jumped around--started out around 1500 (1/2lb a week), dropped down to 1200, then found IPOARM and climbed up to 1700. Now at 1800 and losing inches, but not pounds.
Did your allotted calories change with loss?
Did/do you eat back your burned/worked off calories? Yes, but it's calculated into my TDEE equation--I just eat 10% under my TDEE.

Timehope

M/F? M
Age? 61
Height? 5'9"
Start weight? 206
Goal weight? 165
Current weight? 175
Time it took? 3 months
Alloted daily calories? 1900 plus exercise calories as needed.
Did your alloted calories change with loss? No -- but should have -- a long 3-month plateau was the result of not changing.
Did/do you eat back your burned/worked off calories? Only to the extent hunger requires.

Free advice: Cravings for sweets and carbs seems to be a common theme in the MFP dieting universe... a leading cause for
binges after every few days of careful dieting. In my experience, after much research in the literature, cravings means one is eating too many carbs while dieting. You have to get below a certain level -- your own personal level -- of carbs per day, and if you do,
the cravings vanish. It might mean 20 gms per day. Or 50. But if you get it low enough your body will not produce enough insulin to drive your blood sugar too low -- and low blood sugar is the cause of cravings. If you keep carbs low enough you really do not need to count calories much. (But as you lose weight you do have to cut back on portions a bit.)

CJ_Holmes

Bump- this is really helpful! As I play around to figure out the best groove, it's great to learn from others!:drinker:

djames92

M/F? m
Age? 20
Height? 6foot 1
Start weight? 240
Goal weight? 160
Time it took? 6 months ish
Aloted daily calories? idk didnt use this site lol
Did your aloted calories change with loss? idk
Did/do you eat back your burned/worked off calories? no

victoriannsays

Female
22
5'5
Start-137 ish BF% - 25%
Current: 132 BF% - 20%
Five months
1700 cals a day - 20% from TDEE

Began with cardio&circuit training.

Now I lift, do yoga and little cardio.

Lacole216

bump

MamaMaryC

M/F? F
Age? 30
Height? 5'3"
Start weight? 214
Goal weight? 125 (but I made it down to 123)
Time it took? 5 years (on and off)
Aloted daily calories? 1350 calories (I didn't understand net back then.)
Did your aloted calories change with loss? I went back and forth between 1200 to 1350.
Did/do you eat back your burned/worked off calories? Never. (Again, I didn't understand net at the time.)

LuckyLeprechaun

M/F?
Age?
Height?
Start weight?
Goal weight?
Time it took?
Aloted daily calories?
Did your aloted calories change with loss?
Did/do you eat back your burned/worked off calories?

THANKS in advance!

Female.
36
5'9"
237
155
two years
varied throughout,,,,started at 1420, went up to 1600...that's my sweet spot for losing...maintenance is 1800-2000 for me.
yes. The less you weigh, the less it takes to feed you.
yes, I always ate back the calories I burned through exercise.

marycmeadows

M/F? F
Age? 30
Height? 5'6''
Start weight? 303.4
Goal weight? 155-165 *Current weight is 186.6*
Time it took? 2 years as of this month
Aloted daily calories? around 2000 give or take
Did your aloted calories change with loss? yes, it's increased
Did/do you eat back your burned/worked off calories? yes some of them.

LorinaLynn

M/F? Female
Age? 40, 38 when I joined
Height? 5'5
Start weight? 160
Goal weight? 135
Time it took? 6 months, been maintaining* for over a year and a half.
Aloted daily calories? 1350-1600 plus exercise calories
Did your aloted calories change with loss? As I got closer to my goal, I switched from 1 pound a week to a half pound a week, and increased my calories.
Did/do you eat back your burned/worked off calories? Abso-freakin-lutely. That was the missing link for me... why every other attempt at weight loss failed. I previously tried "too hard" and cut calories too much. It wasn't necessary. A small to moderate calorie deficit works best for long term results.


* "Maintaining" doesn't seem like quite the right word. I've been maintaining about the same weight since June of 2011, but I've completely changed my body since then.

SmartAlec03211988

M/F?: M
Age?: 24
Height?: 5'0"
Start weight?: 208
Goal weight?: 130
Time it took?: 11 months
Allotted daily calories?: 1750
Did your allotted calories change with loss?: I ate no less than 1500 calories in weight-loss mode. Maintaining I eat 1750-2300 (depending on exercise).
Did/do you eat back your burned/worked off calories?: Yes.

TheNewDodge

Male
35 Years Old
6'3"
SW: 395
CW: 272
GW: 225
My Daily Calories go down as I lose weight. Currently it sits at 2060.
I've been at it since June, 2011. I've gained a few pounds during the holidays both years.
I eat back most of calories. While I track everything daily, I am only concerned about my total net calories on a weekly basis. If I go over one day, I'll go under another and vice versa.