Weight Loss Plateau - Starting Fitness Pal Today!

BoomerAngel
BoomerAngel Posts: 26
in Introduce Yourself
Hello Everyone - I am in my 50's, and never had a weight problem before my metabolism slowed down (a lot~!) after turning 50 yrs. old. Anyway, my goal is to lose 25-28 pounds. I have lost 12 so far (near halfway point to goal), but have been stuck for the past few weeks. I do hard core exercise 5x a week, and eat a very clean diet. According to my trainer, and to Fitness Pal, I need to limit total calories per day to 1,200 in order to lose 1.5-2 pounds a week in the next 2 months. Until today, my total calories were about 1,500 (need for workout energy). I hope I can do this super low calorie regimen with all the exercise that I do~! Hoping Fitness Pal can help me.

Replies

  • dick01
    dick01 Posts: 18 Member
    good luck I am having difficulty consuming 1200 calories. But my friends in the mfp are insisting that I eat more calories to loose weight . I am trying very hard. I think you will do it since you did loose weight earlier. best of luck
  • dragonflyjen
    dragonflyjen Posts: 64 Member
    MFP will tell you to eat 1200 calories plus your exercise calories and I really recommend this. I plateaued for 6 weeks even though I was exercising hard and eating clean as I wasn't eating enough. By eating more the weight is now shifting again.
  • BoomerAngel
    BoomerAngel Posts: 26
    Thanks so much for the response! My very fear is that going down to 1,200 will cause my body to think it is "starving" and it will undo all my hard work. The last time I reduced my caloric intake, my body went into starvation mode. I feel a lot of pressure to reduce calories, but also know my own body very well. I do not "cheat"....no sweets, no bread, nothing fun at all. Everything I eat is to fuel my body, especially on days like today when I burned 600 calories in 2-hour workout. When I plugged in my goal to FitnessPal, it told me to go with 1,200 calories, but I am being aggressive trying to lose 2 pounds a week now. My body is very happy at about 1,400-1,500 calories per day. Also, I just went with a Gluten-free diet 3 days ago....after realizing that I seem to be Gluten sensitive. I feel great!
  • BoomerAngel
    BoomerAngel Posts: 26
    I hear two different arguments among the "experts".....some say nothing less than 1,400 calories, and others are insisting on no more than 1,200! I exercise really hard 5 days a week.....burn about 500-600 calories each time (in two-hour routines). I cannot imagine having the needed energy on just 1,200 calories!
  • michelleindeed
    michelleindeed Posts: 117 Member
    If you're allotted 1200, and you do 600 calories worth of exercise, you can eat an additional 600 calories.
  • dragonflyjen
    dragonflyjen Posts: 64 Member
    If you have told my fitness pal that you want to lose 2lbs per week and it has given you 1200 calories to eat then this figure is given to use if you are not exercising - your body needs a minimum of 1200 calories for everyday functions even if you're not moving about.

    So if you exercise, your body needs extra fuel - so always enter your exercise onto the site and it will tell you to eat those extra calories too.

    Follow MFP's method, don't be scared to eat, and it will work for you. Good luck!

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