New to Diet, a little advice please...

philbo84
philbo84 Posts: 2
in Health and Weight Loss
Hello all,

I am male, in my late 20's, 5ft 10in and am currently 239lbs, I know this is pretty heavy and most of the weight is around my belly, back and chest area. I am quite broadly built and consider myself quite strong but I am just really fat in those areas!.

My target weight is around 195lbs so I need to loose around 44lbs.

I am trying to stick to 1400 calories per day (from probably around 3000 before!) and have been going for around 3 weeks.

I have quite an active job involving quite a bit of heavy lifting and going up and down stairs all day, I also walk to work which makes up nearly an hour of walking each day. I have also just joined a gym and plan to go around 3 days a week and do a mix of cardio and weights.

Does this all sound sensible as a target, and how long do you think it would take me to get to target?
How would you recommend I structure my gym workouts?

Thanks.

Replies

  • sunsnstatheart
    sunsnstatheart Posts: 2,544 Member
    For comparison, I'm 5'10" and currently weigh about 194, give or take a pound or two of water weight. Your height obviously is a factor in your goal. If you only have 40 pounds to lose though, I'd suggest targeting 1 pound per week. The following link has some very good guidance on setting your calories and macronutrient targets. Good luck!

    http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/819055-setting-your-calorie-and-macro-targets
  • jellybeanmusic
    jellybeanmusic Posts: 161 Member
    1400 a day is way too low for your height/weight, I'm a 5'2 woman with a only stone to lose and I'm on around that.

    Go to google and look up a TDEE calculator and a BMR calculator. You should try to eat somewhere in the middle of those two numbers. They won't be spot on but will give you a guide.

    If you go over your TDEE (how many calories you tend to burn on an average day) then you'll gain. If you go under that, you'll be burning more than you put in and will steadily lose. However, try not to eat less than your BMR as this is the amount your body needs to be healthy and to run basic body functions such as breathing and keeping your heart pumping etc.
  • TavistockToad
    TavistockToad Posts: 35,719 Member
    you can difintely eat more and still lose weight. i am a 5ft5 127lb female and i lose on net 1600 cals.

    if you have too large a deficit your body will burn muscle as well as fat for energy, and then you risk the dreaded 'skinny fat' look....

    a moderate deficit with plenty of protein in your diet and a decent strength training routine is all you need. that and a little patience!!
  • judthepud54
    judthepud54 Posts: 3
    Hi I started at the same weight and get no exercise because I am bedbound myfitnesspal gives me 1550 calls per day and I am losing a steady 2lbs a week. Honestly thought I wouldn't but myfitnesspal obviously knows better so I would try it for a month and see if it works for you. Good luck and don't forget if you don't establish enough your body stores pretty much anything you do eeat as fat!!
  • Deipneus
    Deipneus Posts: 1,854 Member
    Philbo84 wrote:
    I am trying to stick to 1400 calories per day (from probably around 3000 before!) and have been going for around 3 weeks.
    It's probably too little, but more importantly, I think the drop is too steep all at once. If I was starting today, I would benchmark my starting point, in your case 3000 calories, and reduce it in steps. 2500 the first week, 2000 the second week. It need not be very low, just less than you were. If you were eating 3,000 calories a day and reduced to 2,000 calories a day, not counting exercise, you'd still lose (rule of thumb) 1.5 to 2 pounds a week.
  • Megamus55
    Megamus55 Posts: 38
    So without checking, 1400 seems a bit low for a big fairly active guy. what did MFP give you as a target when you filled in your goals and information. It might be right but just off the top of my head it seems a bit low. you should do a bit of reading into Basal metabolic rate (the energy your body needs just to survive when you are inactive) and Total daily energy expenditure (how much energy you spend in a day (basal metabolic rate + energy you spend moving and being active).

    eating too few calories can be just as bad if not worse than too many.....you want this to be something you can live with for the rest of your life.

    excellent that you walk to work! keep that up, being active as much as possible has many health benifits that are far more important than weight loss. Walking to work is a fantastic thing your doing.

    Workouts are "what works for you" type of thing. everyone has their methods and will swear by them, no one is right and no one is wrong, it is what you enjoy doing. Personally, I like to be efficient in the gym, make the most of my time there so when I lift weight they are usually compound movenets or targeting large muscle groups for functional strernght. I do not waste my time on bicep curls or tricep extentions because they do not do much for my health. Instead I usually go with 5 key movements (and i mix it up from time to time but this is my go to workout)
    1.squats
    2.cleans
    3. A push (bench or dumbell press)
    4. A pull (any row, i like inverted rows)
    5. a lat pulldown or assisted chin up

    I also mix the weight up with each exercise from day to day to target a different range (low weight - 10-15 reps, medium weight 5-8 reps, and high weight 1-3 reps.

    finally to make the workout really be intense I super set each of these exercises with something active pushups, abs, skipping rope so that your rest periods are active rest periods.

    But like I said everyone is different and you just need to find what works for you. get a bunch of ideas and see what you like to do.
  • dawncolleen0120
    dawncolleen0120 Posts: 29 Member
    Agreed, 1400 calories is too few for your current body size. If you go too low it will hinder your weight loss efforts. And realistically, it will take as long as it takes to lose to your goal weight. Some weeks you could lose a couple lbs. and other weeksnot so much. The trick is to not get frustrated and give up before you get where you want to be.
  • deej81
    deej81 Posts: 1
    I don't normally comment on here but when I read this I decided to so here goes...

    1400 kcals a day isn't enough. You may lose a bit of weight initially but that will soon stop, in addition to this you will start to feel tired and irritable.

    If you are really serious about losing the weight you need to make a long term commitment. First thing is to get accurate measurements for your body, you need to know your BMR and fat percentage then you have two potential approaches:-

    1) Eat as cleanly as you can with a small calorie deficit, avoid alcohol as much as you can and try hit the gym 3 times a week. When there do a small amount of cardio to warm up and have a coach or other professional set you up with a heavy resistance training program. Try to avoid carbs when you haven't exercised (but having an active job still keep eating some) and get plenty of high quality protein.

    2) Still eat cleanly as possible but carry a large deficit. This deficit should be no more that 20 kcals per pound of fat. Then try to do as much aerobic exercise as possible and track it using my fitness pal. By aerobic I mean anything where your heart rate does not exceed 80% of maximum. A long walk is fine. Tools such as a fitbit can help you to track your activity and whilst inaccurate they can prove useful. The more you exercise the more you can eat, the more you exercise the better and the quicker you will see results.

    From what you said in your post I'd go for option 1 but everyone is different.

    Best of luck
  • katie__pillar
    katie__pillar Posts: 55
    It sounds to me like you're not eating enough - I eat 2000 cals a day and am still losing (I'm 5'10 and 152lbs). I'd recommend reading through In Place of a Road Map and working out your numbers, BMR (basal metabolic rate, ie the amount of calories you burn just existing) and TDEE (total daily energy expenditure, ie the number of calories you burn daily, including all your exercise and everything).

    http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/654536-in-place-of-a-road-map-2-0-revised-7-2-12

    It does seem pretty complicated at first look, but it's actually quite easy once you get your head around it. Also try to start up a strength training routine as soon as possible - Stronglifts 5X5 is a good program, and if you have a smartphone there's an app that makes it all really simple.
  • IronSmasher
    IronSmasher Posts: 3,908 Member
    In short, no.



    I'm older, 33.

    Lighter, 228lb.

    Less active, sedentary job.

    But I eat nearly 3000kcal a day and lose 2lb a week.


    Calculate your deficit correctly, or you're just going to end up failing on an unsustainable diet.
  • philbo84
    philbo84 Posts: 2
    Wow, thank you very much for the information everyone.

    I can see that my predictions for daily calories are too low. I shall up it.

    I forgot to add my height above which is 5ft 10in (now added!)

    Having looked at the BMR Calculator my BMR is 2256. Times this by the 1-3 days per week exercise of 1.375 = 3102 calories to maintain my current weight.

    Having now gone back into the MFP and reset the information, it is recommending net calorie intake of 2060 with an activity level of active and losing 2lbs per week.

    Do I need to replace the calories I burn from excercise?

    Once again, thank you for the detailed information, it's all very helpful.
  • bcassill2013
    bcassill2013 Posts: 72 Member
    hmmmmm, my TDEE is 2477, and my BMR is 1942, but my recommended daily allowance as calculated by MFP is only 1460, so, MFP is recommending well below my BMR?? Just sayin...

    I'm new to calorie counting, I've always counted fat grams, as I've discovered, that doesn't work as well :-/
  • IronSmasher
    IronSmasher Posts: 3,908 Member
    Wow, thank you very much for the information everyone.

    I can see that my predictions for daily calories are too low. I shall up it.

    I forgot to add my height above which is 5ft 10in (now added!)

    Having looked at the BMR Calculator my BMR is 2256. Times this by the 1-3 days per week exercise of 1.375 = 3102 calories to maintain my current weight.

    Having now gone back into the MFP and reset the information, it is recommending net calorie intake of 2060 with an activity level of active and losing 2lbs per week.

    Do I need to replace the calories I burn from excercise?

    Once again, thank you for the detailed information, it's all very helpful.

    If you're using MFP as standard, then you don't need to know what a BMR or a TDEE is. You do need to realise that the MFP calculation for Daily Calorie Goal does not include exercise however, and you would need to log your workouts as accurately as possible, then aim for the increased calorie goal.

    2lb per week is a big goal, even though you are a big guy. We only have limited resources for willpower, change, and stress. My advice would be to aim for 1lb per week, but realise that starting out in exercise, PLUS logging all of your food, may be a larger task than you are realise. You can always change the goal at a later date once you're settled in to this new routine.
  • IronSmasher
    IronSmasher Posts: 3,908 Member
    hmmmmm, my TDEE is 2477, and my BMR is 1942, but my recommended daily allowance as calculated by MFP is only 1460, so, MFP is recommending well below my BMR?? Just sayin...

    I'm new to calorie counting, I've always counted fat grams, as I've discovered, that doesn't work as well :-/

    You've set it for a the maximum weight loss goal of 2lb per week. Also realise that MFP expects you to accurately log any exercise or additional activities not covered by your sedentary lifestyle selection. It will then be able to increase your calorie goal according to your logged activities.
  • petersonabt
    petersonabt Posts: 518 Member
    stop calling it a diet....diets don't work.

    it wasn't till i looked at it as a lifestyle change that anything actually changed.

    to me numbers and everything else didn't matter, if i didn't change my mind set.
  • riche87
    riche87 Posts: 7
    the answer is that you are looking for it in the program
    Fat Loss Factor Diet Plan
    The Fat Loss Factor diet is a popular weight loss plan created by Dr. Michael Allen. The program combines nutritional, fitness, and mental tips and techniques to help you lose weight and get fitter.
    Fat Loss Factor is a 12 week program. The plan begins with a two week detox period. According to the program, the two week detox helps to purify your body of toxins and pollutants and makes it easier to lose weight during the rest of the process.
    for more information are in this website
    http://tinyurl.com/ay7vxga
  • jlapey
    jlapey Posts: 1,850 Member
    If you are new, I suggest you skip all nonsense and go to this page (below) and read all the threads marked with a red pin. There is some very useful information here from some of MFP's most knowledgeable members. It is worth your time.

    http://www.myfitnesspal.com/forums/show/10067-eat-train-progress-
  • wahmx3
    wahmx3 Posts: 633 Member
    I have to agree with everyone else.... increase your calorie goal and lower your weight goal to 1 pound a week. You want to lose fat not muscle. I am female, 5'4", weigh 145 and eat around 1500 calories a day.
  • april1445
    april1445 Posts: 334
    I FINALLY decided, after several failed diet attempts, to aim for 1 pound a week (1650 cal for me), and it's so much better. Slow progress is better than no progress, and I figure I'll make goal by July instead of March. Big deal. At least I'm getting there, and I have a life in the meantime. Good luck. (I have 2 small kids too--I get it.)

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