Changing the Calorie Amount

pblevins1

The site seems to automatically tell everyone they need 1200 calories, I would like to start higher to give myself some room to go down. How do I change the calorie amount for my account?

DeliriumCanBeFun

Go to the Goals tab under the My Home tab. From there you can customize things.

coe28

Under your "My Home" tab click on "Goals" and "Change Goals". Calorie amount is one of the items you can change.

skparker2

Go to the "My Home" tab. Then go to "Settings" in white letters. The next page will say, "Account Settings".

Click "Update diet/Fitness profile. Then you can update how many days you plan on working out and for how long each day. Such as if you are "sedentary" or "lightly active", etc.

I just upped my calories today.

Hope that helps! If you have any more questions, you can message and/or add me.

-Sarah

girley01

Yes. 1200 is the default. To change your calorie amount, go to: GOALS > CHANGE GOALS. You can either do guided or custom.

I suggest custom because it can be more accurate but you'll need to know or have a way to calculate all your numbers meaning how much fat, carbs, protein, etc. you need.

You can do guided as well and then adjust it as you get more familiar with your goals and the numbers you should be at.

Here are a few calculators that can help you: http://www.bodybuilding.com/fun/calculators.htm. this one specifically will advise you on the amount of macronutrients you need, http://www.bodybuilding.com/fun/macronutrients_calculator.htm. Of course these numbers will change based on what exercises if any you are doing.

I hope this helps.

chineyLuv

-> Goals
-> Change Goals
-> Custom
And edit the "Net Calories Consumed" to what you want it to be

TeaBea

The site seems to automatically tell everyone they need 1200 calories, I would like to start higher to give myself some room to go down. How do I change the calorie amount for my account?

Lower the number of pounds you want to lose each week. 1200 is popular because many people choose agressive weight loss goals ..... and MFP merely does the math.

3dogsrunning

It doesn't automatically give everyone 1200. Often people are choosing goals that are too high for them and activity levels that are too low.

The vast majority of people aren't sedentary, and MFP skews a little low so most could go at least lightly active.

2lbs a week is for people who have more than 100 lbs to lose. For those with less 1 - 1.5 lbs a week is more appropriate.
For those with less than 20 lbs, .5 lbs a week is likely the better option.

You also need to consider that MFP does not account for exercise during the setup. It expects you to log exercise and eat some of those calories so even at 1200 if you are exercising, you will be eating more.

sijomial

1200 is not the default - it is the minimum the site will give you unless you custom set your goal.

Most people get 1200 calories a day when they ignore the recommendation to aim to lose one pound a week.
For every one pound a week loss your daily calories get cut by 500 until you hit the minimum of 1200.

Good for you in realising that you don't have to starve to lose weight successfully. :flowerforyou:

ffhsanfran

you can set a weightloss per week target in the customized goals. That figures out a calorie target for you.