HELP!!! please :-)

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leahslooloo
leahslooloo Posts: 57
in Health and Weight Loss
Hi I'm new to the forum aswell as being new to the whole dieting process. Now my aim is to slim down and tone up. I dnt want to be skinny slim so to speak i want to show some slight muscle definition not huge just nice and toned iykwim lol. Anyway i cant get my head around how many calories i should be eating and how much excercise to do lol :-/ can someone explain the basics I'm currently on around 1400 calories a day which on most days I'm finding easy to stick to my work out i was doing was burning around 400-600 calories. In the first week i lost a shed load of weight now ive kind of hit a stalemate only been on with it a few weeks.
Someone help me sort out a plan lol
Thank you

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  • leahslooloo
    leahslooloo Posts: 57
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    Well just did my BMR and it says 1600 seems pretty high does that mean i need to eat minimum 1600 calories a day or am i still goin to get as effective weight loss on a 1400 calorie diet
    Grrrr so confused
  • jdad1
    jdad1 Posts: 1,899 Member
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    The answer to your questions can be complicated and in most cases very hard to wrap your head around.

    Since you are just starting out i am going to give you the best advice in the most simple form. Here you go........

    If a person does not eat enough then the body will store fat as it's main source of reserve energy and weight lose would be greatly muscle loss. Eating at a modest calorie deficiet and working out tells the body two things.
    1. Your body will get plenty of energy from food so it does not need to hold on to fat.
    2. your body needs muscle to maintain the lifting, so it will keep it.

    The human body is exactly what it has to be for each and every one of us. Teach it to be what you want it to be.

    Do what you know you need to do, no excuses. Go and work out even without a perfect plan, just go and then keep on going. You will learn as you go.
  • jdad1
    jdad1 Posts: 1,899 Member
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    I have not done your calculations but if your BMR is 1600 it means you should net that much daily.
  • leahslooloo
    leahslooloo Posts: 57
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    So am i right in thinking that net is for example i either eat 1600 calories and rest all day or eat 2000 calories then have to burn of 400 calories to net 1600? Seen as I'm wanting to tone up it would seem to make more sense to me to eat the extra and work out because if i just sit about all day then I'm not going to achieve the muscle definition am i :-/
    Also does addition housework chasing my 3 children around allday count as part o whats burnt in my 1600 calories iykwim or are the additional hope that makes sense lol
  • jdad1
    jdad1 Posts: 1,899 Member
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    Yes you are correct. The only real thing i want to make sure and bring up is to leave a little wiggle room. You could overestimate calorie consumed or calorie burned. So be careful for that. I always say set your daily goal slightly less then where you really want it just to be sure you are actually being correct. Please note that BMR is a base caloric number. You should actually be eating closer to your TDEE. Most would suggest TDEE- 20% or 30%.

    Regular daily everyday type activities are not exercise. They may burn calories but so does lifting up your arm. Your regular daily activity should already be factored into your TDEE. General rule is simple.......be active in any way you can.

    If you choose to go the TDEE-30% then you do not have to worry about eating back exercise calories. (unless you are running marathons or some other extreme calorie burn)
  • onwarddownward
    onwarddownward Posts: 1,683 Member
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    I think that whatever you do, give it longer than a couple of weeks.

    Determine specifically what your goals are. Mine goals were not a certain number of pounds, but what I chose to change in my life (No sweet drinks, no fast food, add exercise). Then strive to stay steady at that forever, if not longer.

    Seriously, your goals will change along the road, but your mindset needs to be:

    FOR THE REST OF MY LIFE

    not, "until the scale stops going downward".

    Good luck to you!
  • XFitWhitman
    XFitWhitman Posts: 1
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    Too few calories makes your body "efficient" in it's use of energy. This is a defense mechanism built into our physiology designed to help us survive when food is scarce. You will often hear this called as "starvation" mode. You will want to play around with the total calories you are taking in, if the calculation suggests you net at 1600 you may in fact be higher and lower than that, also your net will change as you lose weight and gain muscle. Try adjusting your caloric intake by 100 calories (up or down) for a week and note the changes in weight and energy as a result. Other thing to consider is to make every calorie count, just because you have surplus calories doesn't mean you have room for "junk" foods, keep it healthy and keep it lean to maximize your results.
  • leahslooloo
    leahslooloo Posts: 57
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    What is TDEE ?
    Thanks
  • jdad1
    jdad1 Posts: 1,899 Member
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    Total daily energy expenditures.

    BMR is your base caloric intake at rest. (Like in a coma caloric needs)
    TDEE is your daily caloric burn for basic activity levels. (Walking, sitting, moving and your genereal workout plan) This number changes every day in reality but a good baseline is calculated when you use a TDEE calculator.

    Here is a simple one for both BMR and TDEE

    http://thefitgirls.com/tdee-calculator.aspx

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