Question on my weight loss technique

lonewolf123

Hi I'm a 5 foot 8 male weighting a whooping 230lbs. Obviously something needs to be done and I'm determined to do it. Aim is to reach 150lbs so lose 80 lbs to go back to normal weight.

Can I gather some views on the method that I want to lose weight and see if it works.

I went on a number of sites to calculate my TDEE and the results were slightly different but amounted to about 3300 average and my BMR is 2200 average.

I understand that the TDEE is the amount of calories I need to maintain my weight and in order to lose weight I must eat less than that. I checked about the site and to lose weight, people tend to do 20% off the TDEE which amounts to 2640 calories a day.

Now to be honest, I use to have junk food everyday and my weight just skyrocketed to what it is now. I recently started eating healthily and found out I can feel just as full and satisfied on 1500 calories a day.

Now my question is whether this is safe to maintain and do to lose 80lbs of weight?

Some people might say my calories intake is too low but I really think 2640 calories is too high to be honest and 1500 calories seem plentiful.

Does the whole starvation mode thing exist? Because I have read/heard people saying that eating too little will put weight lose to a halt as the body grabs onto the calories refusing to burn it whilst others I have heard that this is fake and the body continues to burn fat regardless of how much calories you take in but just at a slower rate...thats why you get anorexic people...

I also do exercise 6 times a week consisting of 30 minute runs and some weights.

laserturkey

I'm a middle-aged female, shorter than you, but heading to a similar goal weight. I lose weight (slowly) in the 1500-1600 calorie range. I think 1500 sounds a little low for a man as active as you, but it doesn't strike me as scandalously so. You could do that for a bit, but if you feel like you're hungry all the time, you have plenty of room to raise your limit and still lose weight.

PattyReid92

Hey,
This is a completely un-scientific reply, but it's my experience.
I am pretty much exactly the same position, just 5'6" and started at 240lb, now at 220lb after 8-9weeks.
I've eaten 1500kcal per day, as well as going to the gym around 2-3 times a week, swimming once a week and wheelchair basketball training once a week (pretty much entirely sedentary the rest of the day if I'm not working out).
I'm satisfied on 1500kcal per day as well, and I don't eat back my exercise calories that MFP gives. Seems to be working well for me, would have lost more, but lost track for a while when parties were on.
So for me, 1500kcal has worked well, and I feel I've slimmed down quite a bit more than weight lost (My shirts are starting to be way too baggy). Just keep your protein around 150g per day, to keep muscle repair up, and well, that's what's worked for me. But like I said, this is just experience, not scientific approach.

ironanimal

Forget starvation mode for the minute.

At your weight, you likely have a substantial amount of lean mass beneath the blubber.

Would you prefer to keep it that way, or increase the rate of loss through a weight loss goal that is too aggressive?

JesterMFP

I think it's too low. Now, you can get away with a larger calorie deficit when you have larger fat stores, but you could well run into trouble over time. Larger calorie deficits mean a higher chance that you will be losing too much lean mass as you lose weight. Ideally, you'd want (I presume) to be losing mostly fat. The muscle you have at the moment is burning calories even while it's at rest. The more muscle you lose, the less you'll be burning. Of course, your BMR will go down as you lose weight anyway, but holding onto that muscle will help. It also helps a lot with the shape you end up with when you get to your goal. It's a lot easier to hold onto what you have than to lose all the weight and start building muscle from there.

It's not unusual for people to change their diet completely and suddenly feel "full and satisfied" on a low amount of calories. The thing is though, hunger is really not a good indication of how much food your body needs. It's quite a complicated process and restricting your calories for a long time, especially at a low level, can mess up your hormonal responses. People often find that the less they eat, the less hunger they feel (very common with eating disorders). Often, when people increase their calories, their appetite returns. 1500 calories is not a lot for a 5'8" male, especially with all that exercise you're doing too. You need more energy. You will get some of that energy from fat stores, but only so much. It's also hard to get all the nutrients you need on that many calories. Having cut out junk food and eating "healthily" - hopefully that means you're eating very nutrient-dense foods now, and that will certainly help. Chances are, you're getting better nutrition now than you were before.

Like I said, you can get away with more strict dieting when you are obese. Speaking from my experience, and everything I've learned over the last year or so, if it was me doing it all over again, I would go for a slightly smaller calorie deficit, focus on getting fitter, nourishing my body and fuelling my workouts. Don't be in a rush to lose it all at once. This is going to take time, and it doesn't stop when you reach your goal either. If I had your stats, I would choose to eat at around 2200-2400 a day, for now, and reduce the calorie deficit (ie eat more) as I got closer to a healthy weight.

And, even if you think it won't apply to you, I wouldn't discount the potential psychological effects of over-restricting. You might feel at the moment that 1500 seem "plentiful", but it probably won't always feel like that. Right now you're just starting out, probably feeling very motivated, it sounds like you've made big changes to your diet already. The truth is, motivation will come and go, and there may be times when you want to go back to your old ways. I would strongly advise making it as easy on yourself as you can from the beginning. Allow a little flexibility, allow yourself the foods you enjoy (I'm not saying you have to eat fast food). Avoid making such radical changes that a few weeks or months down the line you're going to burn out and want to fall off the proverbial wagon.

This might be worth reading (as well as the rest of the site), to help you decide:
http://www.bodyrecomposition.com/fat-loss/setting-the-deficit-small-moderate-or-large.html

Good luck with whatever you decide.

lonewolf123

Forget starvation mode for the minute.

At your weight, you likely have a substantial amount of lean mass beneath the blubber.

Would you prefer to keep it that way, or increase the rate of loss through a weight loss goal that is too aggressive?

Sorry for sounding like a idiot but can you expand on what you mean? I don't really understand...are you saying that 1500 calories is too low for me and I should be taking in 2600 or so calories a day as suggested by the TDEE?

Snow3y

You're eating too little and you'll stall eventually. Eat more.

Rapid weight loss isn't the way though, in any case.

TranceSensation

Hey,
This is a completely un-scientific reply, but it's my experience.
I am pretty much exactly the same position, just 5'6" and started at 240lb, now at 220lb after 8-9weeks.
I've eaten 1500kcal per day, as well as going to the gym around 2-3 times a week, swimming once a week and wheelchair basketball training once a week (pretty much entirely sedentary the rest of the day if I'm not working out).
I'm satisfied on 1500kcal per day as well, and I don't eat back my exercise calories that MFP gives. Seems to be working well for me, would have lost more, but lost track for a while when parties were on.
So for me, 1500kcal has worked well, and I feel I've slimmed down quite a bit more than weight lost (My shirts are starting to be way too baggy). Just keep your protein around 150g per day, to keep muscle repair up, and well, that's what's worked for me. But like I said, this is just experience, not scientific approach.

I would like to ask you, Did MFP calculate the 150g protein for you? cause for me its only 60 per day and I exercise 5 times a week ,, shall I stick with MFP calculation ? btw my daily plan is 1500 Cal

Ainar

For a newbie like you who is quite a bit overweight I think you should not count calories at all for first few months. You can lose at least 20 to 25 pounds with simply healthy eating. Just ate healthy and stay away from too much fat and sugars and all that kind of stuff, and exercise. You will lose your first 20 pounds easy with this, no calories counting necessary, just ate healthy and as less junk as possible and work out. Of course don't starve yourself, ate so you would be satisfied and have energy, but healthy stuff

After a while when your weight loss starts to slow down you can start to count calories...

Yes, "starvation mode" it is true. But at same time it is also very exaggerated. You need to be in very big calorie deficit for quite a long while for that to have any big effect on your metabolism. But saying that you will stop losing weight completely is bs when you are in starvation mode, you will still lose weight if you are in calorie deficit even if you have "damaged" your metabolism quite good, a certain amount of energy expenditure is necessary to move a certain amount of mass, etc... you just can't brake lows of physics.

10 - 20% of your TDEE is all you need really. More would help to lose weight faster but prolly would also, if for long time them, would make your hormone levels get down, leave you with less energy to work out, even walk, sex drive goes on vacation... etc. Tried it, and I'm only 22 like wtf, better stick to 10 - 20%. ^^

But like I said, for not don't worry much about cals just ate healthy and work out. ^^

sexymuffintop

Is your goal weight really realistic? I weight 152 and I'm a 5ft 4 female just for reference. It depends what look you are going for though I suppose.

ironanimal

Forget starvation mode for the minute.

At your weight, you likely have a substantial amount of lean mass beneath the blubber.

Would you prefer to keep it that way, or increase the rate of loss through a weight loss goal that is too aggressive?

Sorry for sounding like a idiot but can you expand on what you mean? I don't really understand...are you saying that 1500 calories is too low for me and I should be taking in 2600 or so calories a day as suggested by the TDEE?

Your body can only metabolise so much fat per day for energy; any deficit past that comes from fat-free mass; bones, muscle etc.

TDEE - 20% is an attempt to avoid getting to that point, whilst scaling with how much you have to lose.

I personally would say start off with the TDEE - 20% and go from there. If you find after a month or so you're not really seeing any loss, knock another 100 cals off a day.

PattyReid92

Hey,
This is a completely un-scientific reply, but it's my experience.
I am pretty much exactly the same position, just 5'6" and started at 240lb, now at 220lb after 8-9weeks.
I've eaten 1500kcal per day, as well as going to the gym around 2-3 times a week, swimming once a week and wheelchair basketball training once a week (pretty much entirely sedentary the rest of the day if I'm not working out).
I'm satisfied on 1500kcal per day as well, and I don't eat back my exercise calories that MFP gives. Seems to be working well for me, would have lost more, but lost track for a while when parties were on.
So for me, 1500kcal has worked well, and I feel I've slimmed down quite a bit more than weight lost (My shirts are starting to be way too baggy). Just keep your protein around 150g per day, to keep muscle repair up, and well, that's what's worked for me. But like I said, this is just experience, not scientific approach.

I would like to ask you, Did MFP calculate the 150g protein for you? cause for me its only 60 per day and I exercise 5 times a week ,, shall I stick with MFP calculation ? btw my daily plan is 1500 Cal

Don't have the links on me at the moment, however many sources I"ve found have recommended around 1g of protein for each pound of bodyweight (if you are losing weight, make it per lb of your goal weight, not your current weight). This is for a high-activity level, such as regular high-weight lifting, or long endurance runs. I probably do not NEED this much protein, however protein keeps you full FAR longer than carbohydrates or fat, as well as having a higher thermic effect, which means it takes the body more energy to process it, giving a larger metabolism boost (although this in reality, is not a significant difference).

achonator

My advice is to cut on as much calories as possible so that you can lower them when you hit a plateu and you won't feel deprived or hungry at a later stage of your diet.Besides that lowering them to 1500 that fast may result in quite abit of muscle and strenght loss.I've done that and believe me you will feel pretty foolish later on and will ask yourself "why the **** did I do it?" Just do it slowly.You have quite abit of bodyfat so you will have pretty rapid weightloss at the beginning and whet it stalls just lower the calories about a 100-200 a week again.

lonewolf123

Thanks guys for all this help!

I will raise my calories intake to 2200 calories and work from there slowly to prevent as much muscle loss as possible as I heard that muscle is amazing in burning fat.

I also have a friend who is similarly overweight to me and he understands the whole muscle loss scenario from the lack of calories. He said that when people are quite a bit overweight like me, the muscle loss rule doesn't really apply as you got so much fat, the body will use that up first instead of muscle. So for really fat people, a VLCD is actually really good if you can hack the tough times according to the nutrition expert he went to see.

Its only when you go closer to you optimum weight with a lot less body fat that muscle loss start occurring when you don't consume enough calories. E.g. when your only 10-20lbs away from normal weight.

Is this true because this is the approach he is adopting right now and he said he will move back onto the conventional method of losing weight when he only has 10-20lbs to go.

Is there any cons to the method he is adopting? I have heard a major con is that as soon as the VLCD ends and you adopt back to the normal healthy lifestyle the weight piles back on, is this true?

Francl27

Do you exercise at all? If not honestly I'd just go with whatever MFP tells you with the 'lose 1lb a week' setting. If you do, I'd add 200-300 calories.

ironanimal

Thanks guys for all this help!

I will raise my calories intake to 2200 calories and work from there slowly to prevent as much muscle loss as possible as I heard that muscle is amazing in burning fat.

I also have a friend who is similarly overweight to me and he understands the whole muscle loss scenario from the lack of calories. He said that when people are quite a bit overweight like me, the muscle loss rule doesn't really apply as you got so much fat, the body will use that up first instead of muscle. So for really fat people, a VLCD is actually really good if you can hack the tough times according to the nutrition expert he went to see.

Its only when you go closer to you optimum weight with a lot less body fat that muscle loss start occurring when you don't consume enough calories. E.g. when your only 10-20lbs away from normal weight.

Is this true because this is the approach he is adopting right now and he said he will move back onto the conventional method of losing weight when he only has 10-20lbs to go.

Is there any cons to the method he is adopting? I have heard a major con is that as soon as the VLCD ends and you adopt back to the normal healthy lifestyle the weight piles back on, is this true?

It doesn't matter how fat you are - your metabolism can only metabolise fat so quickly. Anything beyond it's capability will come from other tissues.