Eat More to Weigh Less..?

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rose_mortem
rose_mortem Posts: 147 Member
in Food and Nutrition
I've never really looked at this idea before, but now I'm interested in trying something different. I lost 17 pounds last year by eating 1200 calories a day, and I NEVER exercised. So now that I've restarted my weight loss journey, I've tried the same thing. It's been a roller coaster of a restart, due to holiday, vacation, etc. I've gained and lost the same 10 pounds during my 3 month vacation, and I haven't quite settled into a 1200 a day routine.

Right now I'm netting around 950 cals. Don't kill me, I know it looks low. (5'0" and sedentary. I believe 1200 is just an arbitrary number -- but I DO try to eat that much anyway) I honestly haven't been hungry, and some days I'm almost forcing myself to get there. I'm looking at Eat More to Weigh Less, because I feel like changing something might help. Any opinions?

Replies

  • rose_mortem
    rose_mortem Posts: 147 Member
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    nobody..?
  • rose_mortem
    rose_mortem Posts: 147 Member
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    I've decided to change from 1200 to 1250 cals... I wish I could get somebody's opinion on EM2WL...
  • AmyRhubarb
    AmyRhubarb Posts: 6,890 Member
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    Huge debate going on about this in another topic right now. Do a quick search or just browse similar topics - there's tons of info and opinions out there. :bigsmile:

    Personally, I am set at 1800 calories a day, I'm 5'8", 44 years old, and 137lbs. Eating more works for me. I started at 1200, lost some weight and stalled, and was hungry! Bumped up to 1400 (just blindly chose the number), lost some more, then stuck again. Finally found this topic: http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/654536-in-place-of-a-road-map-2-0-revised-7-2-12

    Found my BMR and my TDEE and I eat in between those numbers, always making sure to net at or above my BMR. I'm not hungry, I have plenty of energy for my workouts (DVDs, weights, running & walking), I am enjoying a great variety of foods I love, AND I'm losing the fat.

    Check out the topic I linked, you'll find great info there. And if you're really interested in upping your calories, you'll need to be brave and up them more than just 50, which likely won't make a bit of difference. :smile:
  • rose_mortem
    rose_mortem Posts: 147 Member
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    LOL I just wanted somebody to actually read it :laugh:

    It says I should eat between 1400 and 1700. That's scary. I guess I'll try it for awhile and hope for the best. Thanks :)
  • babyblake11
    babyblake11 Posts: 1,107 Member
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    Yes, eat around 1400cal i would say, exercise (eat those back, or at least half) and eat wholesome healthy food. No yucky diet food or junk!
  • manderson27
    manderson27 Posts: 3,510 Member
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    I started at 1200 but was too hungry so I upped it to 1400 and was still losing. I then started lifting heavy and upped it again to 1600 was still losing, hit a plateau recently so dropped back down to 1400 and now I cylce it between 1400 and 1600 seems to be working for me. Losing around a pound a week.

    It is a question of playing around with it until you find what works for you.
  • morkiemama
    morkiemama Posts: 894 Member
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    Huge debate going on about this in another topic right now. Do a quick search or just browse similar topics - there's tons of info and opinions out there. :bigsmile:

    Personally, I am set at 1800 calories a day, I'm 5'8", 44 years old, and 137lbs. Eating more works for me. I started at 1200, lost some weight and stalled, and was hungry! Bumped up to 1400 (just blindly chose the number), lost some more, then stuck again. Finally found this topic: http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/654536-in-place-of-a-road-map-2-0-revised-7-2-12

    Found my BMR and my TDEE and I eat in between those numbers, always making sure to net at or above my BMR. I'm not hungry, I have plenty of energy for my workouts (DVDs, weights, running & walking), I am enjoying a great variety of foods I love, AND I'm losing the fat.

    Check out the topic I linked, you'll find great info there. And if you're really interested in upping your calories, you'll need to be brave and up them more than just 50, which likely won't make a bit of difference. :smile:

    EM2WL advocates finding your BMR and TDEE and eating between them as well. I don't know why everyone gets their undies in a knot about it. It is a very common method.
  • Nerdy_Rose
    Nerdy_Rose Posts: 1,277 Member
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    A better way to phrase "eat more to weight less" is "It's not necessary or advisable to starve yourself to lose weight."
  • rose_mortem
    rose_mortem Posts: 147 Member
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    I see other people losing weight while eating a ton,, I'm just afraid to gain a bunch of weight. I'm one to gain quickly and lose SOOOOO slowly. I'm concerned that 1000 isn't enough, but it's hard to eat much more, because my food is soooo filling I'm never hungry.

    I'm currently 18 days binge free. I struggle with midnight munchies. When I can't sleep, I usually eat... and eat and eat and eat. It's not hunger, it's just boredom.

    I've changed my goal to 1400 and I'm 110% nervous. I think I'll try it for a month. Thanks for the input :smile:
  • neverstray
    neverstray Posts: 3,845 Member
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    I see other people losing weight while eating a ton,, I'm just afraid to gain a bunch of weight. I'm one to gain quickly and lose SOOOOO slowly. I'm concerned that 1000 isn't enough, but it's hard to eat much more, because my food is soooo filling I'm never hungry.

    I'm currently 18 days binge free. I struggle with midnight munchies. When I can't sleep, I usually eat... and eat and eat and eat. It's not hunger, it's just boredom.

    I've changed my goal to 1400 and I'm 110% nervous. I think I'll try it for a month. Thanks for the input :smile:

    Most people eat like absolute crap. So, if you eat clean, wholesome food, you can probably eat 1800 a day. But, if you eat packaged and fast food, then stick with 1200 or 600 or whatever.
  • Nerdy_Rose
    Nerdy_Rose Posts: 1,277 Member
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    I see other people losing weight while eating a ton,, I'm just afraid to gain a bunch of weight. I'm one to gain quickly and lose SOOOOO slowly. I'm concerned that 1000 isn't enough, but it's hard to eat much more, because my food is soooo filling I'm never hungry.

    I'm currently 18 days binge free. I struggle with midnight munchies. When I can't sleep, I usually eat... and eat and eat and eat. It's not hunger, it's just boredom.

    I've changed my goal to 1400 and I'm 110% nervous. I think I'll try it for a month. Thanks for the input :smile:

    When I first started increasing my calories I was terrified of gaining weight as well, so I did it very slowly. 1200 to 1330 to 1460 to 1500 to 1600 over a period of about 6 months; my weight maintained, and when I hit 1600, I lost 2-3 more pounds.
  • SairahRose
    SairahRose Posts: 412 Member
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    That's a big topic in itself, but really - it's about eating at the level that works for you :P
    I know people who eat 1200 and don't eat back exercise cals, I know people who eat around 2500+ and eat every calorie back from the workouts. Both lose and keep it off because that's what works.

    I'm eating about 1500, and don't eat back the cals unless I'm hungry, so I'm netting about 900. I am trying to see if upping the cals works for me, but if it doesn't, I go back to the level I started at and work from there.
    Wishing you luck hon x
  • dlashawn5
    dlashawn5 Posts: 28 Member
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    I'm so lost! Can someone please dumb this down so I can understand?

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