Thinking of upping calories scared of gaining

Aequitas503
Aequitas503 Posts: 62
in Health and Weight Loss
Hi,

I've been eating at/around 1200 calories for about 6 months or so now. I do eat some of my exercise calories back, but not all. I have my goal set to lose 1 pound per week.

I go to the gym 5 times a week (sometimes 6) for 45 mins to 1 hour doing a mixture of cardio and weight training. I have a very sedentary desk job.

My starting weight was 71kg, currently hovering around 65-66kg (it went up this week, not sure why), occasionally dipping below 65kg but keep fluctuating back up to 65kg-65.5kg. Been around this weight for the past month.

I've seen lots of posts on here about upping calories to overcome a plateau and continue losing but I'm terrified that if I up them at all, I'll immediately gain weight.

According to MFP, my TDEE is 1720 calories. Should I up my calories a little to 1300 or so?

Reassurance that I'm not going to ruin my loss so far if I up my calories would be appreciated :) And/or tips on overcoming plateaus etc

Thanks :)

Replies

  • kge0891
    kge0891 Posts: 276 Member
    I plateaued at 1200 for 3 weeks, then I increased my calories to 1320 (1 lb per week loss) and I'm back to losing weight (between 1-2 lbs a week). I think I'm doing better with more calories! Also, making sure I get my 8 cups of water a day really helps shed water weight!
  • Aequitas503
    Aequitas503 Posts: 62
    Thanks for your reply :)

    Did you have an initial fluctuation upwards on the scale after you upped your calories?
  • MissBernie73
    MissBernie73 Posts: 115 Member
    Hello, i'm not sure how tall you are but we have a similar weight loss goal. I have upped my calories to 1600, i exercise 5 times a week on average but will not be eating back my calories unless my net calories fall below my BMR. I am 5'2. You are welcome to look at my diary.
  • acm130
    acm130 Posts: 100 Member
    If you eat your TDEE you won't gain weight, obviously every metabolism is different so TDEE estimates are just that and you may need to tweak up or down by 200 kcal. But even if your TDEE estimate is LOW by 200 kcal it would take like 4 months before you'd see a 1 lb weight gain. If you're at a plateau try eating at maintainence for a week or so then cut by 10-15%. If you're afraid of gaining weight by increasing your kcal to maintainence.... Well what are you planning on eating once you hit your goal??? Fat2Fit advocates eating as if you're already at your lower weight (i.e. if your goal weight is 120 lbs you eat like that 120 lb person) I'm a big believer in slow, steady weight loss. You will feel so much better and be able to sustain your results if you take some stress of your body. Check out Fat2Fit or Scooby Workshop or Eat More to Weigh Less. Keep up the good work and best of luck to you!
  • elyelyse
    elyelyse Posts: 1,454 Member
    i did 1200 net for quite a while, and was losing pretty quickly. I didn't plateau, but I knew it was healthier to eat more so i brought it up to 1400-1600 average. I personally did not experience a gain, but i did experience a slower loss for a couple of weeks. Had a weight in today, 5.5 pounds in 3 weeks... that works for me!
  • kge0891
    kge0891 Posts: 276 Member
    Thanks for your reply :)

    Did you have an initial fluctuation upwards on the scale after you upped your calories?

    I don't weigh myself daily so I'm not sure, but after 1 week of eating around/ a little under 1320, I lost 1.5 pounds.
  • suzely0530
    suzely0530 Posts: 150 Member
    I too was at 1200 for about a month, but increased my calories to 1400 a little over a week ago. I too was scared about gaining weight, but so far, I feel so much better and I have even lost weight more quickly since increasing. My BMR is 1375, so I finally realized I was starving myself and wouldn't be able to reach my goals if I stayed at that intake (I'm 5'7", 131lbs, 40 yo). My diary is open so please feel free to take a peek. You can always try it for a month and see how you feel. Good luck :)
    '
  • Aequitas503
    Aequitas503 Posts: 62
    Hi all,

    Thanks for your replies :) I'm 162cm which is around 5'3.

    I think I might up to 1300 and see how I go, I just need to make myself not to get discouraged if there's an initial fluctuation up on the scale!

    According to MFP, my BMR is 1,377 calories per day
  • kkmalay
    kkmalay Posts: 88 Member
    great post, am in a very similar boat, stuck at 71-72kg, will try upping cals a bit and see what happens, good luck with your loss, great loss so far

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