MyFitnessPal destroys metabolisms?

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  • Emtabo01
    Emtabo01 Posts: 672
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    I started MFP at 1370 cals, increased after a month or two after reading lots of various forum threads. I feel sorry for people who never find the road map thread and stay at 1200ish cals, I don't see how that's sustainable for life. I also started binge eating since starting MFP, never ever had before in my life. I had to reevaluate my goals and have actually stopped tracking calories on here and have been losing weight better bc I'm not binging anymore.
  • cjsacto
    cjsacto Posts: 1,421 Member
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    Note they recommend setting the goal of losing 1 pound per week. Most of us charge in and choose 2 pounds at first, but if you choose 1 pound the calories are quite a bit higher, and as others have pointed out if you are realistic on your activity level that raises the daily calorie settings more. And, of course, you can manually set them at whatever you want. Unfortunately, I have MFP friends who have set theirs at 1000 but that's not MFP's fault. I'm sure they get the red "you're not eating enough" message.

    I have calculated my TDEE on several sites, and MFP is about 100 calories lower for the "calories burned from normal daily activity." That's not bad.
  • kdeaux1959
    kdeaux1959 Posts: 2,675 Member
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    MFP is a tool. A saw only cuts one's hand off if it is misused. The same with this tool.
  • NRSPAM
    NRSPAM Posts: 961 Member
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    Ive done plenty of research and never used the suggested goals. I just wish they would change whatever formula it is that they use. I'm worried about other users hurting their metabolisms or developing EDs. People seem to think that losing weight is the same thing as success. Often its not. Often its a horrible ratio of muscle loss to fat loss.

    The best way to start a diet is start your calories high and tweak them down 100 every few weeks until you hit a healthy rate of fat loss. You must ignore the first few weeks due to water fluctuations and what not and women need to take into account that menstrual cycles can effect weight a lot.

    MFP needs to fix this. They are misleading people and a lot of people use this software.

    CHANGE THE DAMN FORMULA!


    You seem kinda controlling for something that Is NOT Yours!!! Why are you so concerned about "others"...has anyone asked YOU for help. We are ONLY our "brothers' keeper" to the extent to which anyone will ALLOW! The formula does NOT need to be changed because there is a place for anyone to set up their own. You are controlling and that is a detriment to YOU. CHILL! Anyone eating 1200 calories a day won't die from "starvation" nor turn anorexic (that is a psychological and emotional disease that effects the body, and NOT Vice Versa!!!)

    It really didn't seem controlling to me. We're just trying to be there to help people who are struggling to lose weight. It's ok to do 1,200 calories/day occasionally, but it should not be a daily goal for anyone! What happens is your body starts to realize it's starving, and wants you to make up for it, by overeating, which will sabotage any diet, and is very unhealthy.
  • TheConsciousFoody
    TheConsciousFoody Posts: 607 Member
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    Well livestrong has be at UNDER 1100 calories, which is bonkers. I've been losing with MFP and to me their goals are more realistic. I've talked to my Dr and he said its pretty spot on for me so I'm happy with it. People are able to change theirs so it shouldn't be that big of a deal
  • TheVimFuego
    TheVimFuego Posts: 2,412 Member
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    Anybody else feel like the calorie recommendations are far too low? I think it's a recipe for hunger and disaster.

    I cannot find the Hunger And Disaster recipe in the database.
  • Bumbeen
    Bumbeen Posts: 263 Member
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    I eat 900kcal a day and I have zero hunger. Well except today when I had my cheat meal and I ate over 3000 LOL

    Why are you only eating 900 calories a day?? And then binging. That's not helpful advice...or healthy.

    I wasn't trying to tell anyone to do what I do...... it worked for me last time, I only eat 3000 once a week, which is close to my maintenance calories. I generally lose about .8lbs of weight and maybe .4lbs of fat a day like this.
  • sijomial
    sijomial Posts: 19,811 Member
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    PICNIC - Problem In Chair Not In Computer.

    Choose the recommended 1lb a week loss and the 1200 calories a day issue goes away.
  • sandradev1
    sandradev1 Posts: 786 Member
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    I personally believe that we should not eat below our BMR calorie figure. MFP has a BMR calculator which, if you click on it, already has own personal data in. I wish that MFP would use this as the base line in the calculation when it sets peoples calorie goals and to also give a warning if we eat under this, as it does with the 1200 'magic' number. I also think that the exercise thing about eating back/or not of exercise calories is what trips people up the most.

    I love MFP and would have given up, as usual, a long time ago without this programme and particularly my MFP friends. I think they do a cracking job and absolutely love that its FREE. If they could just use the BMR number and address the exercise issue it would be even more fantastic.
  • beachlover317
    beachlover317 Posts: 2,848 Member
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    I eat 900kcal a day and I have zero hunger. Well except today when I had my cheat meal and I ate over 3000 LOL

    Why are you only eating 900 calories a day?? And then binging. That's not helpful advice...or healthy.

    I wasn't trying to tell anyone to do what I do...... it worked for me last time, I only eat 3000 once a week, which is close to my maintenance calories. I generally lose about .8lbs of weight and maybe .4lbs of fat a day like this.

    To quote you "it worked for me the last time". If you were so successful, you would not be here losing weight again. Rethink your plan to somthing that is more about fueling your body correctly for the long run and not about losing a ratio of un sustainable "fat".
  • pumpkingoblin
    pumpkingoblin Posts: 21
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    MFP suggested 1200 after I said I wanted to lose 1.5lb a week. I decided that maybe 1.5 wasn't realistic or right for me (I love my food! lol) so I adjusted it to 0.5lb a week which is 1500 which is better for ME and my love of food!

    I'm not in a hurry to lose it (Hoping to lose 2lb in the next few months) and if I lose it slowly I'm more likely to keep it off.
    I know that some people have bigger weekly goals but you need to listen to YOUR body and do what is right for YOU :D listen to your body because you're the only one who knows how you feel.

    It's all about being healthy and being happy! :D

    Good luck everyone x x x
  • dhakiyya
    dhakiyya Posts: 481 Member
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    Then adjust them to your liking. Those are just a suggestion. Go to My Home - Goals - Change Goals - Custom. Problem solved. You gotta figure out what the right calories are on your own.

    ^^^^ this.

    One problem is that it asks you to put in how many lbs you want to lose per week, then it gives you a calorie recommendation based on that, so long as it's no lower than 1200 calories. Because it's just a caculator and a computer, it hasn't got the ability to say to someone that how much they're hoping to lose is unrealistic. If someone has only a little weight to lose, then 2lb a week is not realistic. However for someone with a lot to lose, then it's a lot more reasonable.

    The other thing is that the number it gives you is lower than some other calculators because on MFP (if you choose to use the default settings) you are expected to log your exercise and eat back your exercise calories. Other calculators will factor your exercise in already, so will give you a higher number of calories to eat, but you don't log your exercise or eat back exercise calories, unless you have a day where you do much more exercise than usual (which isn't accounted for in your calorie goal).

    There's a thread called "in place of a road map" which tells you how to calculate how many calories you should be eating in order to have slow, steady sustainable weight loss while also feeding your body properly and not feeling deprived so you can stick to it in the long term and maintain your goal weight without difficulty/deprivation.
  • bathsheba_c
    bathsheba_c Posts: 1,873 Member
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    I agree with sandradev about wishing MFP wouldn't let you go below BMR, and about everything else, too. :)

    MFP has taught me to make more educated food choices and to have a better intuitive sense of when I've had enough to eat. Which is ultimately what it should do. The forums are also a wealth of information, even in spite of the silly things people sometimes spout.

    I eat an average of 1700-1800 calories a day on MFP (1460 net) and have gone back down to the clothing size I was when the weight started slowly creeping on. Pretty soon, I expect to be at maintenance. I am also in better physical condition than ever been in my life.
  • bdtyson77302
    bdtyson77302 Posts: 86 Member
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    All I know is that I went from 178lbs to 133lbs and my metabolism is better than ever. If you move more...you eat more.
  • Aljos
    Aljos Posts: 63 Member
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    MFP helped a lot of people and continue to do so. This website is a tool designed to help you, but you must do your own research too. What's the use of bashing it? You should have the common sense of adjusting it to your goals. Learn from people who had been successful and stop whining...Do your homework now and eat your exercise calories!
  • EvgeniZyntx
    EvgeniZyntx Posts: 24,208 Member
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    MFP is a tool to track your food and exercise. It is up to you to educate yourself on what works for you. To learn about your BMR, TDEE, etc. MFP doesn't tell you that you absolutely have to follow a program. Also, MFP gives you your calorie goals and expects you to eat your exercise calories back.

    If you decide to lie about your activity level because you think sedentary will get you there faster - that was your decision.

    If you put a 2lb loss when trying to lose 12.5lbs even though you should be at 0.5lbs loss/week..that's your decision.

    Best advice - educate yourself. There are ton of resources you can search online for free.


    If you want, check out this link by MFPer Heliotsdan - It'll give you a detailed walkthrough (with pictures even) on finding your TDEE and calculating what you should be eating.
    http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/654536-in-place-of-a-road-map-2-0-revised-7-2-12

    Or for a different version to figure out your TDEE, as well as some great advice...check out:
    http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/833500-what-do-i-do-common-sense-cliff-notes

    Check this out for some tips too...
    http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/844040-raspberry-ketones-for-the-rest-of-us


    Also, if you are worried about the calorie intake, I also suggest you read this thread that has numerous people who met their goals and are maintaining. Some for years and they also provide their calorie intake and how often they work out.
    http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/816542-let-s-hear-it-for-maintainenance


    For more information about fitness and nutrition, I highly suggest checking out and joining this group: (Read all the stickies. It's great information to know.)
    http://www.myfitnesspal.com/groups/home/10118-eat-train-progress


    For info about your macros (proteins/fats/carbs) - check out this link. It will give you the formula to figure out your #s and also how to custom change them in MFP:
    http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/819055-setting-your-calorie-and-macro-targets


    For those eating below their BMR (which I think 1200 is below your BMR to be honest), not going to preach at you, but here's something you might want to look at:
    http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/81391-starvation-mode-myths-and-science
    http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/859495-if-only-i-had-known?page=1#posts-12919931


    Yes, this is can all be overwhelming and complicated , but you are more than welcome to ask questions on the post.
    One of the things that I have found that has been one of the best methods for me to get fit is to understand fitness. To understand where all these figures, etc come from.

    The good thing is once you get the hang of it - it is something you'll be aware of constantly and you'll get a better understanding about your eating habits.

    So I HIGHLY suggest making the effort to take every chance to educate yourself. Even if you don't end up going with any of these methods, calculations, etc - at least you understand what they are, where others are coming from, and maybe they will still be able to help you figure out what is best for you.

    This. Some of those links are my standard response to "how does this work??" posts.

    I would also suggest that you stick to one calorie setting here (a reasonable estimated TDEE form these threads), log everything and eat back your exercise for at least three weeks and see how much you are losing or gaining and recalc if the loss corresponds to a realistic process - AND THEN adjust your calories:

    For each pound lost in a week: xx lbs x 3500/7 days + current TDEE = actual TDEE (more or less) -> then take off 200-300 per day for each half pound of planned loss.

    Those estimates NEED to be adjusted to each of us. As I have gone on in my weight loss and body recomp. I have varied my settings from 1600 to 1750 to 2000 (excluding exercise, add another about 500-600 per day) for loss.
  • myofibril
    myofibril Posts: 4,500 Member
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    The best way to start a diet is start your calories high and tweak them down 100 every few weeks until you hit a healthy rate of fat loss. You must ignore the first few weeks due to water fluctuations and what not and women need to take into account that menstrual cycles can effect weight a lot.

    I agree with this completely.

    I also agree that MFP calculations tend to be on the low side but not dramatically so. It's a tool which people often abuse either due to ignorance or old fashioned "I know my body better". I can't see how they can change that.
  • WBB55
    WBB55 Posts: 4,131 Member
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    I wasn't trying to tell anyone to do what I do...... it worked for me last time, I only eat 3000 once a week, which is close to my maintenance calories. I generally lose about .8lbs of weight and maybe .4lbs of fat a day like this.

    I PERSONALLY would not recommend people choose to lose 5.6 lbs per week, every week. Which apparantly includes 2.8 lbs of muscle.
  • BerryH
    BerryH Posts: 4,698 Member
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    I've used pretty much every formula out there and MFP calories are very similar to most well-regarded weight loss, TDEE, BMR, what have you calculator out there, so long as, and this is important, you remember that most other calculations include formal exercise in your activity level, and MFP does not.

    So eat your exercise calories, or at least a good proportion of them to allow for a margin of error as even the best calculation or HRM reading is an estimate.

    If you'd rather do it the more common way, use a TDEE calculator and subtract 500 calories for a 1lb a week loss and use that as a custom MFP goal.

    But personally, I'd rather only eat extra when I've actually done the exercise, rather than base it on what I plan to do on an average week, so MFP holds the advantage in that respect, in my opinion. It's also very simple, and certainly worked for lots of the site's Success Stories. :flowerforyou:
  • Bumbeen
    Bumbeen Posts: 263 Member
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    I wasn't trying to tell anyone to do what I do...... it worked for me last time, I only eat 3000 once a week, which is close to my maintenance calories. I generally lose about .8lbs of weight and maybe .4lbs of fat a day like this.

    I PERSONALLY would not recommend people choose to lose 5.6 lbs per week, every week. Which apparantly includes 2.8 lbs of muscle.

    Well I think it's mostly water cause this morning I'm 6lbs heavier from eating all the carbs

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