Newbie & question about calories & BMR

wifeNmommyof2boys
wifeNmommyof2boys Posts: 1
in Health and Weight Loss
Hey all! My name is Amanda :) I was wondering how I should set my calories? My BMR says 1680, but I feel that it seems kind of high since I have in the past gone lower. Right now I have my goal at 1400 a day. I don't know if I should go lower (1200) or what. Tips and advice appreciated!! :)

Replies

  • Koldnomore
    Koldnomore Posts: 1,613 Member
    http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/654536-in-place-of-a-road-map-2-0-revised-7-2-12
    Will help with everything you need to know or point you to where to look for more.
  • RikkiDominey
    RikkiDominey Posts: 134 Member
    http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/654536-in-place-of-a-road-map-2-0-revised-7-2-12
    Will help with everything you need to know or point you to where to look for more.

    THIS^^^
  • heybales
    heybales Posts: 18,842 Member
    Hey all! My name is Amanda :) I was wondering how I should set my calories? My BMR says 1680, but I feel that it seems kind of high since I have in the past gone lower. Right now I have my goal at 1400 a day. I don't know if I should go lower (1200) or what. Tips and advice appreciated!! :)

    Did that in the past going lower lead to sustained success?

    Should set your calories to a level that is below the eating level that causes you to maintain weight, by a reasonable amount, to help maintain muscle mass, yet enough you are fueling any workouts you plan on doing, and enough to prevent binges and splurges because you feel very hungry sometimes.

    A sticky in the recommended group for figuring that out.

    http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/717858-spreadsheet-bmr-tdee-and-deficit-calcs-macros-hrm
  • 1sisrat
    1sisrat Posts: 267 Member
    1400 is actually great. It depends how much you want to lose. I've been on the 1200/day and after a while it stopped working. I've been doing a lot of research, because I'm a nerd and miss grad school, and I came to the conclusion that for me 1400 is great. Your BMR is what your body needs to stay alive if you were in a come and the doctors were feeding you to maintain in the hospital (think about it like that). Too low and you will not have the energy to get through the day and feel normal. A small deficit will get the job done, no need to do a HUGE deficit. Remember to fuel your body while you are losing, don't deprive it. Also, depriving it is not sustainable.
  • tarheelgal33
    tarheelgal33 Posts: 4
    I have been doing quite a bit of research and if you plateau do calorie cycling and or carb cycling.
  • WendyTerry420
    WendyTerry420 Posts: 13,274 Member
    Hey all! My name is Amanda :) I was wondering how I should set my calories? My BMR says 1680, but I feel that it seems kind of high since I have in the past gone lower. Right now I have my goal at 1400 a day. I don't know if I should go lower (1200) or what. Tips and advice appreciated!! :)

    It makes no sense to eat less than your BMR. You are taking a chance on malnutrition and/or exhaustion, and it is not sustainable for a lifetime. Read through the "in place of a road map" links and the link that heybales posted. Your body will thank you.
  • kellicci
    kellicci Posts: 409 Member
    I'm always the one to say don't eat below your BMR. I agree with the other poster is just doesn't make sense. However, for a short period of time at the very begining it sometime helps to jumpstart weightloss and motivate peopel who have a sunstantial amount to lose. So if you want to start at 1400 for a month that might be okay. But you probably will stall out and when that happens it's your body saying it wants more fuel so you'll need to up your intake (be aware that BMR lowers with weight so recalculate your BMR before upping calories if you've lost a good amount of weight)

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