1600 calorie diet...too many calories?
cbm1951
Posts: 15
I know the more you weigh, the more calories you are allowed to eat...but MFP has set 1600 calories as my daily goal. I haven't ate that many since I started because I feel like I won't be able to loose the weight. I know about the starvation mode your body can go into, but I really think I wouldn't loose at 1600 calories. My starting weight was 320 but after one week it is now 313. I know seven pounds the first week includes water weight coming off too and I don't expect to loose that much next week. Does anybody else think 1600 calories is too many? I have been averaging 1200 calories daily. Any thoughts on this?
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Replies
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if you weigh over 300lbs then ur caloric intake should be atleast 3k calories daily to start... if you start low you will plateau and have no where else to drop calories, you need to slowly drop weight in order to maintain steady weightloss and not destroy ur metabolism.
1600 calories is way too little dont drop them any more. please raise them up if anything.0 -
if you weigh over 300lbs then ur caloric intake should be atleast 3k calories daily to start... if you start low you will plateau and have no where else to drop calories, you need to slowly drop weight in order to maintain steady weightloss and not destroy ur metabolism.
1600 calories is way too little dont drop them any more. please raise them up if anything.
^ what he said!0 -
More would probably be better, but 1600 plus exercise calories is better than 1200, that's for sure.0
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You will absolutely lose on 1600 a day at your current weight. MFP is using equations that will work unless you have a medical problem or some other exceptional factor.
I am in the low 100's and can maintain as long as I'm a little active on 1600. The more you weigh, the more you can eat to lose. Enjoy it!0 -
1200 is very low; even 1600 seems low to me. I just started here a week ago (at 224lbs.), with a recommended 1820 calories a day. And, even going over sometimes, I'm losing already. You need to remember that when you are overweight, it's not all fat. It's also additional muscles, blood vessels and other tissues that are supporting your excess mass. It takes time for your body to reabsorb these tissues, so don't try and rush it too much! I say try to stay close to 1600 calories of quality food; take your time.0
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Oh my goodness, I feel like that is such a low amount for you weighing 300+ pounds! That would be like eating a pea! And peas are gross.
anyway, here is a good site. I've struggled with this for such a long time, but I've finally come to conclusion that you do not need to starve yourself. You need to nourish your body. If you go any lower than your BMR, which is how many calories you burn if you were to be in a coma, you are probably not getting all the nutrients you need!
http://scoobysworkshop.com/calorie-calculator/
This is such a wonderful video--
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eYi9xjIRvbY&list=PL09917F53B3B517FF&feature=g-user-a
It really got me on the right tracks to what I should be eating. Eating such a low calorie deficit will allow you to lose weight, but you are most likely going to lose muscle tone. You don't want that.
I'm not an expert, but that is what I've come up with based on my research.0 -
I think I'd starve on that--I'm quite small too!0
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I cycle my calories. according to this site i am supposed to eat 1500 cals per day. I weigh 308 lbs. some days (like today) i ate 1300 calories cause i wasnt very hungry. tomorrow i could eat 1700.. it goes back and forth.. i only joined this site 3 days ago, but have been eating this way for 14 days... and i have lost almost 9 lbs.. thats 4.5 per week. i only exercise 30 -60 mins per day and that is only walking as im so big atm it's hard to do anything else. i do try to have a weekly average of 1600 per day.. and it has been working. i have read that if your cals are too low, you will lose at first, but then plateau very soon.. body kinda goes into starvation mode.0
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Thanks for all the replies. I forgot to mention that I do try to exercise three times a week at the "Y". I am only able to do the recumbent bike for 30 minutes and I also do strength training...the weight machines...especially the ones for my arms since I have terrible arthritis in my knees. I really depend on my upper body strength to be able to get up and down.
By reading all the posts, what you are saying makes sense to me. I think I will try to eat at least the 1600 calories that MFP has chosen for me. Hopefully I will at least lose 2 pounds a week. I know I want it to come off quickly because I have soooooo much to lose...but I guess I had better learn what the word patience means. LOL!!! I don't want to do this wrong...and I don't want to harm my body by not getting enough nutrients.
Thanks for all the responses. They really did help a lot!!! Wish me luck!!!0 -
I fear you are setting yourself up to fail. You didn't arrive at 320 pounds overnight, why do you feel the need to lose it quickly.Hopefully I will at least lose 2 pounds a week. I know I want it to come off quickly because I have soooooo much to lose...but I guess I had better learn what the word patience means. LOL!!! I don't want to do this wrong...
MFP recommends a controlled weight loss of 1 pound per week. You have set yourself up to lose double that and still feel that the calorie allowance offered by MFP is too high. At your weight I believe 1600 calories is too low. For long term success I strongly urge you to follow MFP recommendations, i.e. 1 pound per week and whatever calorie allowance that results in (probably around 2100).
I would add that I am not a dietician so what do I know, just adding my two-penneth.
Whatever you chose to do I certainly wish you luck.0 -
I fear you are setting yourself up to fail. You didn't arrive at 320 pounds overnight, why do you feel the need to lose it quickly.Hopefully I will at least lose 2 pounds a week. I know I want it to come off quickly because I have soooooo much to lose...but I guess I had better learn what the word patience means. LOL!!! I don't want to do this wrong...
MFP recommends a controlled weight loss of 1 pound per week. You have set yourself up to lose double that and still feel that the calorie allowance offered by MFP is too high. At your weight I believe 1600 calories is too low. For long term success I strongly urge you to follow MFP recommendations, i.e. 1 pound per week and whatever calorie allowance that results in (probably around 2100).
I would add that I am not a dietician so what do I know, just adding my two-penneth.
Whatever you chose to do I certainly wish you luck.
This is accurate. You did get to weight that much overnight and it is not the right way to try to lose it fast. It is a marathon not a sprint. With the reserves you have right now, it is OK to be a LITTLE more agressive than normal but 1600 is very agressive and I would not go below that. I'd likely go a little higher and slower with the loss. What is the rush?? Do it right not fast.0 -
Maybe I should tell my age too. I am 61 years old and if I try to lose 2 pounds a week, it will take me 1 1/2 years to reach my goal. I know I didn't gain it overnight. I have been overweight all my life and I know I waited too long to start...but at least I have started...again. As well as being overweight all my life, I have also been on many, many diets. I even tried acupuncture once and hypnosis. On one diet I was counting calories and lost 76 pounds...only to gain it back due to a life trauma. I just gave up and am now trying it again. I also have diabetes with complications along with it.
I know I sound like I am trying to give excuses, but I'm not. I am just trying to let everyone know how desperate I am and how very very much I want to reach my goal. I am 5' 9" tall and want to get down to at least 170. That's 143 pounds to lose. I try to set small goals. My first goal is to get below 300. That would be a plus for me!!!
I realize that 1 pound a week is better than gaining...so...whatever I lose will be a plus whether it be one pound or more. I appreciate all the input I received. It really made me think differently.
Thanks again!!!0 -
I weigh 134lbs. 1600 is my maintenance. Really it is more like 1750-1850 once I factor in exercise.
As hard as it can be sometimes, and believe me when I say I need this reminder all the time (body composition goals at the moment), it is best to focus on the journey.
My advice:
Reflect on what you are doing throughout your journey.
Build mini goals and building up habits. It doesn't have to come all at once.
Don't rely on one form of measurement. Use all the tools you can. Examples: body fat calculation, scale, progress pictures (perhaps the most important one), how your clothes feel, how YOU feel, and multiple body measurements).
I know you want to get there overnight, but the key to being happier with this process is to remind yourself where you've been and how much you've accomplished along the way. I know you just started so this part has not yet kicked in. Be proud you have started.
Another thing you always want to keep in mind is that whatever you do, you are working towards not only loss but maintenance of that loss. In order to maintain it, you have to be building lifestyle habits. That's what makes it actually a good thing to lose a bit more at a reasonable pace even if it seems like forever. I promise you, a year goes by like a blur. Relax. Use this time to educate yourself, learn a bit more about yourself and how to have a healthy relationship with food and exercise.0 -
don't go to starvation. the more you starve yourself then you will eat more. try to drink water in between meals. this way you will eat less.0
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I will not weigh in on whether you are eating too many or too few calories, but I just wanted to encourage you to stick with MFP and learn what you can. Whatever amount of calories you decide to eat, try to make them healthy calories with minimal junk food (refined carbs/sugar and fried foods). I used to eat a lot of sweets (which is how I ended up weighing more than I wanted to) and now I eat very few of them. I don't find that I crave them constantly either.
Keep it up at the gym and just do what you can. In addition to the recumbant bike, swimming and/or gentle water aerobics would be a good way to burn calories without stressing your knees. Do they have a pool at your "Y"? You are right that you need to cultivate patience, but just celebrate the little successes that you have along the way.0 -
When i lost my weight (started at 380 pounds) I ate 1800 calories till i got under 200 pounds
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Keep it up at the gym and just do what you can. In addition to the recumbant bike, swimming and/or gentle water aerobics would be a good way to burn calories without stressing your knees. Do they have a pool at your "Y"? You are right that you need to cultivate patience, but just celebrate the little successes that you have along the way.
Yes they do have a pool at the "Y".0 -
Yes they do have a pool at the "Y". I tried that, but the chlorine in the water made my legs break out in water blisters. I had to stop because I didn't want my legs to become infected, being a diabetic. I do the recumbent bike for 30 minutes...usually reaching just about 2 1/2 miles in the 30 minutes. I am going to try to increase it to either 45 minutes or try to increase the mileage within the 30 minutes. I feel like the weight machines are toning me up as I try to lose the weight. At least I hope that's what they are doing.0
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Yes you will lose at 1600. And you will lose eating 1600+ exercise calories. It's all up to you but let me put it like this. You can do the low calorie thing but if someone tells you, you can eat more than 1200 calories and still lose weight why wouldn't you want to?0
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I started at 320 as well and my calorie limit is 2100, and that's for a 2 pound a week weight loss. Obviously yours is lower due to other factors (age, height, activity level, etc) but 1600 is not too much. Eat up!0
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MFP set me at 1610. It has been working just fine for slow and steady loss, although I think I will need to lower it a little fairly soon. Its a nice sustainable level...plenty of room for creative meals or dinners out now and then. I would advise you to try the levels MFP set you for a couple of months and see how it goes....you can always adjust later.0
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When I started on MFP in July, the app told me to eat 1480 calories per day and I lost about 2 pounds per week (I'm 10 years younger than you and started out weighing a little less than you). Then I started working with a trainer and he told me I had to increase calories to 2100. This was scary to me....I was afraid I would not lose. But guess what? Eating an average of 2000 calories per day I have continued to do well. I am able to exercise a bit more than you are (45-60 minute workouts recommended by my trainer 3x per week and 40-60 minutes of walking or Zumba 3x per week) but I do not eat my exercise calories. So far so good, it's working and I feel better than I have in a long time. Don't be afraid to give your body what it needs!0
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Oh...and the main reason my trainer gave for upping my calories was to give me "somewhere to go" if I plateau and to be able to lower calories as I lose without ending up starving!0
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Stick with the 1600 and eat healthy foods....it will come off...I was where you are in feb this year...and I'm down 59lbs to date. I started with those same calories and did just fine. You will too! Be sure to count every thing you put in your mouth, it all adds up....you'll be fine! Add me as a friend for support.0
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At 300+ you can sustain a large deficit - you could use 3000 calories a day from 100lb of excess fat stores. So no need to panic about an excess deficit for a good while yet.
People like you are often put on VLCD programs to lose weight - 6 to 8 weeks at a lower calorie intake than would give people on hear heart arrhythmia - so if you're losing and comfortable stick with what you're eating.
While some BMR formulae will suggest heavy people need more calories, that is often because you're off the scale off people used to derive the formula. The ones based on lean mass reflect the reality that 300lb people aren't 300 lb athletes but are very overweight 140lb people. 300 lb and 55% BF gives a BMR of 1700, 300 and 60% gives 1550 (Katch McArdle formula).0 -
if you weigh over 300lbs then ur caloric intake should be atleast 3k calories daily to start... if you start low you will plateau and have no where else to drop calories, you need to slowly drop weight in order to maintain steady weightloss and not destroy ur metabolism.
1600 calories is way too little dont drop them any more. please raise them up if anything.
^ what he said!
Yup.0 -
a) I may want to lose quickerYou can do the low calorie thing but if someone tells you, you can eat more than 1200 calories and still lose weight why wouldn't you want to?
b) they may be talking BS and not be taking account of my circumstances and condition
c) I may not be able to afford or want to eat more food
to name but 3.0 -
Anecdotal evidence suggests this to me.At 300+ you can sustain a large deficit - you could use 3000 calories a day from 100lb of excess fat stores. So no need to panic about an excess deficit for a good while yet.
I've seen plenty of people eat at a much higher than 1000 deficit to start with and been fine.
Me, one of them. As I got nearer my target 10% body fat I joined up here with the intention of not under-eating too much. But with maybe 65lb of fat to lose I was happily losing weight at a higher deficit without problems.
Making sure you get some exercise including resistance work is definitely recommended too - though not sure how it counts just general 'living' as most skinny people would have big trouble wearing a 150lb suit for daily life!
I never plateaued specifically, but I did start to eat more calories and ensured I ate enough protein as I got down.0 -
Why is this a problem? In only six months you will be 52 pounds down! Heavens even 30 pounds will make a difference. Can you imagine how much better you will feel? How much more energy you will have? The good impact it will have on your health, your diabetes, your ability to live well and longer? And you will have learnt how to eat healthily and eat sensible portions without being hungry all the time.Maybe I should tell my age too. I am 61 years old and if I try to lose 2 pounds a week, it will take me 1 1/2 years to reach my goal.
Whereas if you go after the quick fix, eating lower calories than you need to then you will be depriving yourself for those six months and then have a set back and then think I can't do this, it is too hard. In going after the quick fix you might find that will power and motivation don't last the distance as you are giving up so much, and maybe after six months you haven't stuck at it and you haven't lost even 52 pounds.
Have you heard the story about the tortoise and the hare?0 -
I love option c. Presumably you have been able to afford or want to eat more food up until now? You haven't go to the size you have by eating 1600 calories a day, my guess is that you have been eating a lot more than that for a very long time.
a) I may want to lose quickerYou can do the low calorie thing but if someone tells you, you can eat more than 1200 calories and still lose weight why wouldn't you want to?
b) they may be talking BS and not be taking account of my circumstances and condition
c) I may not be able to afford or want to eat more food
to name but 3.0
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