I've noticed women who have high cal diets...how?

Working out tons and eating to match your activity will make your metabolism soar. I found out the hard way

There is also a group here eat more to weight less. I eat about 1700 cals a day and love it!
Have a go at this calculator for your TDEE and BMR. The idea is to eat above your BMR and below your TDEE
http://scoobysworkshop.com/calorie-calculator/

Good luck

It's not just people with a lot to lose.... my BMR is about 1350 and my TDEE is 1800-1900. I'm currently at a weight that's right for me, and 23% body fat which is in the healthy range, and I'm trying to reduce body fat percentage a little and increase lean body mass, so I'm eating 1570 cals on deficit days (for fat loss) and 2150 cals on surplus days (for gaining lean body mass).

It's not only possible to still lose weight while eating a higher number of calories, it's actually healthier and more sustainable, i.e. you're more likely to be able to keep the fat off long term. Most women think that they can only succeed if they cut their calories super low... this is bad advice and frequently results in failure to stick to the diet because of feeling constantly hungry, and suffering side effects from eating too little like lack of energy etc, and it frequently leads to rebound fat gain. Aiming to lose more slowly, yet keep it off FOR LIFE is a far, far better strategy. Aiming to lose fat and improve health and body composition by doing more exercise while eating properly to sustain your body and fuel the exercise you're doing, but still eating a little less than you burn off so you can lose fat slowly and sustainably, leads to a fast metabolism (the kind that you're jealous of right? Well you can have a fast metabolism too, if you do this right)

Look up a thread that has "in place of a road map" in the title - I don't have the link or remember the exact title, but I'm hoping someone has the link and will post it on here, because that gives you detailed instructions for how to calculate your BMR (how many calories you need to sustain your body) and your TDEE (total number of calories you burn each day, i.e. BMR + exercise/activity calories) and you basically eat a number of calories that's higher than your BMR but lower than your TDEE, and you can lose weight fat and sustainably, without feeling like you're torturing yourself, and you're more likely to be able to keep it off in the long term, and keep your metabolism fast and end up with better body composition.

Lifting heavy weights, and eating quality calories.

For me, I still struggle to eat less at times. I'm kind of lazy with tracking extra bites here and there, and my weight loss may be slower than it is for others, but as long as the scale numbers and inches are going down, and I don't feel deprived or like I'm "dieting", I'm cool with it :drinker:

I lose on 2,000. I strength train. That's it really. Decent LBM helps.

Epic!

I always thought that I had to starve myself in order to lose weight. However, after many many years of failed attempts, I thought I'd give the "Eat more to weigh less" method a try. It is surprisingly good. I feel much better because I'm never starving, I have much more energy when I exercise, and I feel like this can finally be a permanent change in my life. My prior diets were severely restrictive, and can never be maintained for more than 8 weeks. Currently, I exercise about 600-800 cals 6 times a week. I eat about 1800. I maintain my daily intake at about 1000-1200 effective cal. It is important to note that the quality of calories matter. Instead of wasting calories on fried food, processed sugary stuff, white bread, spend it on raw almonds, fruits, vegetables, fish, greek yogurt. Not all calories are created equal. Granted, my weight loss is not significant, however I've already lost 5% body fat and counting.

1. They know what their actual TDEE is through experience or prediction formulas.
2. They do some form of regular exercise such as cardio, strength-training, or both which raises TDEE.
3. They understand there is a limit to how much fat mass that can be oxidized in one day thus choose a suitable deficit.
4. They eat the maximum amount of calories for steady fat loss instead of eating the minimum.

Exactly. That's me right there

1. They know what their actual TDEE is through experience or prediction formulas.
2. They do some form of regular exercise such as cardio, strength-training, or both which raises TDEE.
3. They understand there is a limit to how much fat mass that can be oxidized in one day thus choose a suitable deficit.
4. They eat the maximum amount of calories for steady fat loss instead of eating the minimum.

^This.

I learned with the help of the EM2WL group. The IPOARM group also offers advice on the same principles. I can lose fat while eating around 2500 as long as I weight train regularly and do some cardio (mostly just cycling and walking).