higher calorie count?

Figuring your goals & how much you should be eating, and how to manually set them here at MFP: http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/654536-in-place-of-a-road-map-2-0-revised-7-2-12

Awesome evidence of success with eating more: http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/654536-in-place-of-a-road-map-2-0-revised-7-2-12

MFP group Eat More To Weigh Less: http://www.myfitnesspal.com/forums/show/3834-eat-more-to-weigh-less

i have a lot to lose so my calories are higher. i did 1200-1300 calories for a week was hungry a lot and didnt lose anything. i went back up some on calories and am losing again. it all depends on what works for your body

I see people talking about upping your calorie count to loose weight? I know that this is probably true for some, but can someone please clur me in on how this works? and also, how do you know if your are supposed to up your calorie count? how do you know when and if you need to, or when you need to just stay the same? and if you ARE supposed to up your intake, how much do you up it? I just don't understand it.

Some people believe in the starvation mode myth but there is no science to back it up, it is just a myth. Actually it does happen to females at 12% body fat and males under 6% body fat. There is no risk of starvation mode if you are lean. However some people who have a lot of fat reserves on their body still can not sustain a deep calorie defect so they need to up their calories. Other people can handle a deeper calorie deficit.

This article talks about a lot of the myths that are still being taught in the diet and fitness industry --> http://www.leangains.com/2010/10/top-ten-fasting-myths-debunked.html

Too many changes at once can be hard on some people. I've always eaten healthy so it easy for me to simply eat less. Eating at a calorie deficit is hard on people; even a small deficit puts your body in a state of flux with hormones and such. Everyone is different. Some people can handle a deeper calorie deficit than others, this is not right or wrong, it just is. Stress in your life affects your hunger hormones; lack of sleep, fatigue, job stress, family stress, financial stress, etc. Add in emotional eating issues and it gets even more complicated. Most people can only handle so much change/stress at once, they try to do too much and fail. Sometimes it might be a better strategy to eat at maintenance and make some small changes first, it really depends on how much stress you are taking in at the moment.

What you need to eat for a deficit is relative to your RMR. If you are short you really don't have much room for up compared to the 1200. If you are taller you will have a higher RMR and can go up or down and still be in a deficit (way above 1200) so you can lose no matter what. All that matters is a calorie deficit.

To tell everyone eat more is wrong.

To tell everyone to eat less is wrong.

To find the exact amount of calories for you to be in a sustainable calorie deficit is correct. Some people can handle a deeper calorie deficit than others. Some people have emotional eating disorders and it comes into play. Even a small deficit puts your body in a state of flux with hormones and such and everyone is different.

You just need to find the correct calories for YOU to be healthy and sustainable and still lose weight. It might require some experimentation and tremendous patience. You can always notch up and down by 100 until you find what is sustainable and still allows you to lose weight.

If you have emotional eating issues than you are not going to be able to handle such a deep deficit and if you eat to low it will backfire. A better strategy is to eat at a shallower deficit, and sometimes give yourself a break from the deficit and eat at maintenance. This is not going backwards, but eating to low and then binging because you can't sustain it is going backwards.
It's better to stay forwards even if it is slower. The tortoise wins this race in the end.

We are all different. Really it depends on your RMR and many people have a lower RMR than the calculators say. The only way to know for sure is to go to a lab and have it tested.

If you plug in all your info (typically age, gender, height and weight) into one of those calculators what you get is the average metabolic rate of a group of people who share your age, sex, height and weight. What you DON’T get is YOUR EXACT calorie needs.

Your body is the end game, not what the calculator or anyone here tells you. The only way to know for sure is if you test it out. If it works for you great. Time will tell.

What is the exact number of calories for you?

We’ve been trying to figure out an exact NUMBER of calories that everyone should be eating, without recognizing that everyone is slightly different. In truth, the calories aren’t the end game. Your body is. So the EXACT amount of Calories that are right for you is the EXACT amount that will allow you to maintain your ideal bodyweight no matter what some calculator or chart says.

In other words, an online calculator might tell you that you need to eat 2,500 calories
per day to maintain your ideal bodyweight. But the only way to know for sure if this is
the right amount for you is to test it out. If you gain weight or can’t lose weight eating
that much, then you know you need to eat less to lose weight no matter how many
calculators and text books say otherwise.

This doesn’t mean your metabolism is broken, it just means the estimate of your needs
was just a bit off.

-John Barban (The Body Centric Calorie Guide from the Venus Index and Adonis Index Manuals)

The good thing is you don't have to worry about the starvation mode myth if you are fat. Only skinny people have to worry about starvation mode. It does not mean you have the capability to eat at a large calorie deficit if you have emotional eating disorders or other issues going on, but at least you don't have to be afraid of it anymore.

I am short, petite, small; my RMR is low compared to others. With my doctors approval I had to eat less than or right around 1000 calories to lose weight. We are all different. There is no one size fits all. Even people my height and gender are different and some need more calories than I do. My doctor checked my hormone levels throughout my 60 lb weight loss journey (from obese down to 10% body fat) and everything was fine. I got stronger and stronger at the gym, my running and weight lifting strength improved even while eating on a significant calorie deficit. My DXA scan proved I did not lose lean body mass or go into starvation mode.

Also you do not have to eat the same amount of calories every day. You can think of it as a weekly calorie budget. You can eat low some days and high some days. You can be flexible. You can find what is sustainable for you.

The Theory of Fat Availability:
•There is a set amount of fat that can be released from a fat cell.
•The more fat you have, the more fat can be used as a fuel when dieting.
•The less fat you have, the less fat can be used as a fuel when dieting.
•Towards the end of a transformation, when body fat is extremely low you
may not have enough fat to handle a large caloric deficit anymore.

At the extreme low end, when your body fat cannot ‘keep up’ with the energy deficit
you've imposed on your body, the energy MUST come from SOMEWHERE. This is
when you are at risk of losing lean body mass during dieting (commonly referred to
as ‘starvation mode’). This happens at extremely low levels of body fat, under 6% in
men and 12% in women [Friedl K.E. J Appl Phsiol, 1994].

-Brad Pilon and John Barban (from The Reverse Taper Diet in The Adonis Index and Venus Index manuals)

For me it's all about a calorie budget. I had less of a budget available when I was losing weight, more to spend now that I'm maintaining and all the tools I used for weight loss come into play for the rest of my life maintaining.

When you have accumulated excess fat, you have accumulated a debt. It is hard to pay off the debt (you have less calories to spend). If you are sitting next to someone your same gender and height and they are not overweight and you are, they get to eat more than you (have more calories to spend) because they are debt free. You have less calories to spend because you are paying off your debt.

MFP has given me 1770 a day based off my weight, height and activity level. I wasn't exercising but I'm active through out the day with house work, giving rides and running errands. I have 3 kids, 2 are in school and a husband.. all to care for. So I'm on my feet most the day. I was eating around 1200 calories a day even though MFP gave me 1770. I was losing weight pretty steadily but then a week there the scale wasn't budging at all, which was out of nowhere with the progress I've had so far.. I was given the advice to up my calories AND incorporate exercise somewhere in there. I've started doing 20 minute power walks (heart racing, sweating, as fast as my chubby legs can carry me), eating MORE (trying to aim between 1400 and 1600 calories now) and I've lost another 3 pounds as a result. I'm not exactly sure why but I was told "Fuel in, Fuel Out". Our body needs fuel in order to keep burning. If we don't get enough than our metabolism slows. I took the advice and it's worked so far. I wouldn't go OVER your recommended calories if you're reaching them already.. maybe add some more exercise. If you aren't reaching your calories, start reaching them and make sure you're exercising too.