I'm lost. How many calories should I eat?

diwijo13

I started my weight loss journey 3 1/2 weeks ago. According to MFP, I should be eating 1600 calories a day. That's with a weight loss goal of 1.5 lbs per week, which includes exercising a minimum of 4 times a week for at least 30 minutes. However, according to fat2fit radio I should be eating 2112 calories. My starting weight was 233 (with 95% of that being stomach fat). I am now 225. My short term goal is to lose 30 lbs and my long term goal is to be around 170. I am a 37 year old female, height 5'7", and my activity level is lightly active. On fat2fit radio my BMR is 1775 calories. My question is how many calories should I actually eat? I don't want to stop losing weight because I'm not getting enough calories, but I don't want to overdo it either. How will I know when I should increase my calories? I am new to all of this and reading all of the past responses just raises more questions. Please help!

3dogsrunning

MFP does not include your anticipated exercise. It expects you to log it and eat those calories back. You will likely find that it will come close to the number you to from Fat2fit. Or you can manually change your goals and enter in the number from Fat2fit and aim for that everyday.

rhogr000

I started my weight loss journey 3 1/2 weeks ago. According to MFP, I should be eating 1600 calories a day. That's with a weight loss goal of 1.5 lbs per week, which includes exercising a minimum of 4 times a week for at least 30 minutes. However, according to fat2fit radio I should be eating 2112 calories. My starting weight was 233 (with 95% of that being stomach fat). I am now 225. My short term goal is to lose 30 lbs and my long term goal is to be around 170. I am a 37 year old female, height 5'7", and my activity level is lightly active. On fat2fit radio my BMR is 1775 calories. My question is how many calories should I actually eat? I don't want to stop losing weight because I'm not getting enough calories, but I don't want to overdo it either. How will I know when I should increase my calories? I am new to all of this and reading all of the past responses just raises more questions. Please help!

There is a good thread on another board here that lays it all out for beginners, I'll try to find it and link to it.

But, basically, don't obsess over calorie counting. Also, I'm pretty convinced that the whole "I don't want to stop losing weight because I'm not eating enough calories" (commonly known as "starvation mode") is a myth. I typically eat 80-100% of my daily calorie allowance (I eat more when I exercise more), but I don't obsess over it.

It's very easy to drive yourself insane and get into obsessive behavior when you try to micromanage your diet. A good rule of thumb is to not eat less than 1,200 calories a day...1,600/day seems about average. When you eat a lot of fibrous and nutritionally dense foods you'll be surprised how satiated you feel throughout the day.

Also, it's important to allow yourself the occasional treat, otherwise you'll end up binging.

3dogsrunning

I started my weight loss journey 3 1/2 weeks ago. According to MFP, I should be eating 1600 calories a day. That's with a weight loss goal of 1.5 lbs per week, which includes exercising a minimum of 4 times a week for at least 30 minutes. However, according to fat2fit radio I should be eating 2112 calories. My starting weight was 233 (with 95% of that being stomach fat). I am now 225. My short term goal is to lose 30 lbs and my long term goal is to be around 170. I am a 37 year old female, height 5'7", and my activity level is lightly active. On fat2fit radio my BMR is 1775 calories. My question is how many calories should I actually eat? I don't want to stop losing weight because I'm not getting enough calories, but I don't want to overdo it either. How will I know when I should increase my calories? I am new to all of this and reading all of the past responses just raises more questions. Please help!

There is a good thread on another board here that lays it all out for beginners, I'll try to find it and link to it.

But, basically, don't obsess over calorie counting. Also, I'm pretty convinced that the whole "I don't want to stop losing weight because I'm not eating enough calories" (commonly known as "starvation mode") is a myth. I typically eat 80-100% of my daily calorie allowance (I eat more when I exercise more), but I don't obsess over it.

It's very easy to drive yourself insane and get into obsessive behavior when you try to micromanage your diet. A good rule of thumb is to not eat less than 1,200 calories a day...1,600/day seems about average. When you eat a lot of fibrous and nutritionally dense foods you'll be surprised how satiated you feel throughout the day.

Also, it's important to allow yourself the occasional treat, otherwise you'll end up binging.

Are you referring to this topic?
http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/975025-in-place-of-a-road-map-short-n-sweet

Whether or not starvation mode exists (hotly debated), eating too few calories does have a negative affect on the body, weight loss and can make it difficult to maintain both weight loss and keep the weight off.

rhogr000

That's not the exact thread, but that looks pretty informative as well.

I fully agree that consuming too few calories is detrimental to health. For starers, if you eat too few calories you won't have any energy to do anything. 1,200 is a number that I have commonly seen cited as a "red line" (i.e. don't go below it); still, that doesn't mean that someone should eat exactly 1,200 cal/day...that's probably too few for the majority of people.

I'm personally allotted ~1,900 cal/day but sometimes I don't eat all of it. I usually eat at least 1,700-1,800/day though. And sometimes I'll have a treat and end up going a little bit over the 1,900.

flyzip

Try changing your weight loss goal to 1.0 pound per week. That may be around 1800

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just guessing. However, since you have only been using MFP for 3.5 weeks I would suggest you stick with the 1600 daily for at least two months and see what results.

Then evaluate how you feel and check the other calculators again. Do not forget to check neck, waist and hips at least every other week. There is no set "magic number" for everyone. We are all very different in how we utilize what we consume.

Remember, you did not gain it all in 3 1/2 weeks after all. Good luck, and be persistent.

nxd10

MFP does not include your anticipated exercise. It expects you to log it and eat those calories back. You will likely find that it will come close to the number you to from Fat2fit. Or you can manually change your goals and enter in the number from Fat2fit and aim for that everyday.

Yes.

twinketta

You can use a calculator which will take into account your exercise
http://scoobysworkshop.com/calorie-calculator/

then you will not have to add your exercise calories into MFP you can just use this site as a tool to log your diary?