I'm 5 weeks in & not sure if I'm calculating right

LoriW50
LoriW50 Posts: 8
in Introduce Yourself
Hi everyone! I'm 5 weeks into this and have lost 11 lbs. I changed my profile from losing 1 pound a week to 2 pounds two weeks in cuz I'm anxious to lose the weight. I'm doing okay but not sure if I should stay at 1200 calories. I have days,usually on the weekends, when I go over 1200 cuz of food, wine and beer. I'm walking 3 times a week for cardio and then go to a gym to workout on weights and a rowing machine 3 times a week. I am having a hard time keeping within my protein range. Does anyone have any advice for me? I could use some support. Thanks! :smile:

Replies

  • FirefitMike
    FirefitMike Posts: 85 Member
    You're probably best to stay at 1 lb per week because it is more realistic.

    As for going over on your calories for a special occasion, plan on eating less the day before and after.
  • jaxxie
    jaxxie Posts: 576 Member
    If you are excercising, it seems to me that 1200 is awfully low. Check out fitnessfrog.com to properly calculate your BMR (Basal Metabolic Rate) and you TDEE (Total Daily Energy Expenditure)....you should subtract 15-20% from your TDEE to lose 1-2 lbs/week. It has calculators that do it all for you.

    I hope this helps, good luck!
  • sugboog29
    sugboog29 Posts: 630 Member
    I lowered my calories to 1200 to lose 1.5-2 pounds a week...did that for about 3 weeks...last week I raised them back up. My body was telling me no and I listened! So now I am back on track (wasn't losing during those 3 weeks) and am starting to lose again. Listen to your body and do accourdingly!
  • GuybrushThreepw00d
    GuybrushThreepw00d Posts: 784 Member
    I am having a hard time keeping within my protein range.

    Can you elaborate? What's your protein goal set at? Did you set it, or did you stick with the mfp suggested value?
  • sammniamii
    sammniamii Posts: 669 Member
    I also suggest shifting it back down to 1 pound a week. If you loose more, great. Pushing yourself too hard could have issues in the long run.

    As to the 1200, I go with jaxxie's idea - go see if your TDEE level supports that level. I went to the TDEE - 20% and even on slow weeks with min exercise I loose, if I get to the gym like I plan, I loose more. My cals are at 1900. I've lost 65 pounds since 4/18/12.

    As to weekends - plan ahead, if you know you are gonna drink, go light on breakfast & lunch to plan, or hit the gym for some time before hand.
  • DanerTee
    DanerTee Posts: 263 Member
    I think 1200 calories every day is a little low. You may even discover that you stop losing weight if you go that low. Everyone is different of course but I personally have found that I do best at 1500 ish calories. Any lower is also very difficult to maintain. Just my 2 cents!
  • LoriW50
    LoriW50 Posts: 8
    According to MFP's daily goals, I should be eating 45 gms of protein a day. It adds on a bit more on the days I exercise but not much. I find it hard to not go over their goals.
  • GuybrushThreepw00d
    GuybrushThreepw00d Posts: 784 Member
    I'll let you do your own research around this, but my advice to you would be the same that I've been given;
    In order to minimise the loss of muscle mass and to maximise the loss of fat you should be looking to eat 1g of protein for each lb of LBM. For me, that meant going up to 150g/day from 50g/day.
    There's lots about this on the boards, but also a lot of reading on the web, here's one to get you started;
    http://www.bodyrecomposition.com/fat-loss/protein-intake-while-dieting-qa.html

    The problem that I have is that aiming for a 2lb/week loss will ultimately mean a higher loss of LBM as you lose mass, my ratio on the last check was 1:5. Ideally it should be a little higher, so I've tweaked my goals to give me a little more calories a day.
  • LoriW50
    LoriW50 Posts: 8
    If you are excercising, it seems to me that 1200 is awfully low. Check out fitnessfrog.com to properly calculate your BMR (Basal Metabolic Rate) and you TDEE (Total Daily Energy Expenditure)....you should subtract 15-20% from your TDEE to lose 1-2 lbs/week. It has calculators that do it all for you.

    I hope this helps, good luck!

    Thanks for the website, it's awesome and has helped me alot!
  • LoriW50
    LoriW50 Posts: 8

    There's lots about this on the boards, but also a lot of reading on the web, here's one to get you started;
    http://www.bodyrecomposition.com/fat-loss/protein-intake-while-dieting-qa.html

    Thanks for the website, everthing is helping me so far

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