BMR Netting vs. Eating question/ general help plllease

squirrelzzrule22

Hi friends,

Backstory: From my highest weight I have already lost about 15 lbs. Ultimately I would like to lose 25 more. I will re-*kitten* after losing 15 more.

I TOTALLY UNDERSTAND the point about slow losses when you don't have a lot of pounds to lose. But I simply cannot stick to something if I don't see a change. Maybe its shortsighted but I know it about myself- if I don't see those regular decreases I WILL give up or at least falter. Do I need crazy-rapid-take-magic-pills-eat-500cals-a-day-mega-weightloss? No. But do I need to shoot for 1 pound a week? Honestly, yes. Yes I do.

So here is my ultimate question: My BMR is about 1400. I started with the MFP 1200 but found it to be too little for me. So, I changed my goals and now I make sure to EAT between 1400-1700 cals per day. Some days I screw up and eat loads. Some days I run 10 miles and intentionally eat loads. Over the course of a week I average out to something closer to 1600-1700. I feel full on it, I can get decent amounts of protein on it. I feel good on it.*

HOWEVER- I run a fair amount because I like half marathons. Most runs aren't super long- 300-500 cal burn. BUT THIS MEANS I OFTEN NET WELL UNDER BMR FOR THE DAY. SO- while I totally understand why eating super little is not sustainable, is NETTING below BMR so bad? I always hear people say on MFP "NEVER EAT BELOW YOUR BMR" but I'm not sure if they mean "eat" or "net."

My bottom line questions:

1) Is the conventional wisdom where people FLIP OUT at people for "eating under BMR" in regards to what they are CONSUMING or what they are NETTING?
2) Does it really affect weight loss and/or metabolism that much for a 160 lb woman to eat 1500 calories and go for a run that day? It hardly seems like "starving."

I just have NOT been losing weight very much at all and I can't decide if its because of overdoing it once a week by going out for drinks and getting drunkchies (drunk munchies) or if I actually could possibly need to eat more. The weight is coming off sooo slow....Only about .3-.5 per week even though the numbers indicate it should be more like 1.3/ week....I think I've been pretty good but I do skip logging some days because at this point I have a really good idea what's in my usual foods, so may I should step that up.

YIKES way too long an explanation. Anyways, all suggestions welcome, but please maintain a basic level of courtesy! If you peep my diary, what I pre-logged for tomorrow (3/27) is a really representative day (dinner is from a pre-calculated recipe.)


*Really, I feel good on it. So if your response is "well why WOULDN'T you want to eat more and lose slower??" my answer is that just isn't my personal preference. It is not what will make me happy. I'm genuinely happy it worked for you, but its not for me.

squirrelzzrule22

Holy cow I can't believe how long that post came out. Props to anyone who gets through it. And mega thanks.

Jessi_Brooks

Bumping cuz Id like to learn more about eating vs. netting around bmr too.