MFP recommending 1200 calls

Sedentary would be appropriate for me I think? Pilates 5x a week, and gym 3-4 but this changes when im on nights. I'm a nurse so I'm on my feet most of the day pottering about (and quite often restraining which damn, really makes me sweat!)

Sounds like you should be "lightly active," at least. Sedentary is a desk job where you're sitting and really not moving much all day.

I'd start with at least lightly active. I'm a housewife and I'm lightly active. I'm better you're more active than that.

Sedentary would be appropriate for me I think? Pilates 5x a week, and gym 3-4 but this changes when im on nights. I'm a nurse so I'm on my feet most of the day pottering about (and quite often restraining which damn, really makes me sweat!)

Starting to wonder if troll...or...

Anyways....if you're a nurse and working out regularly, you're not sedentary. You're quite active, actually.

Not trolling, just not that bright with this stuff.

I opted for sedatary because I started last week, and I'm on nights for three weeks now, and I don't really work out at the gym whilst I'm on them, and my activity on night shifts when patients are in bed just involve sitting for ten hours if all stays well.

I was just joking.:flowerforyou:
Well, it should be your activity level on average. It would depend how often you work nights.

Yes, I would change your goals to 0.5-1lb loss a week. And from what I'm reading you are at the very very least -moderately active if not very active. Just a reminder - MFP's TDEE calculations tend to be different from other TDEE sites because they expect you to eat your exercise calories back.

Or, 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
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
http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/865230-resources-and-references

For 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
http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/521480-1000-calories-or-less-a-day
http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/3047-700-calories-a-day-and-not-losing
http://www.fitwatch.com/weight-loss/3-reasons-why-eating-less-than-1000-calories-is-a-waste-of-time-3347.html


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.

And also - make sure you track your measurements. The scale is very unreliable. Measurements are the accurate way to track your progress

I'm actually eating around 1100 to 1250 and I found out that I'm right where I need to be for my height/weight now. It was a very informative read. I had to go through it a couple times to understand. It was from a forum on here with info about TDEE and calorie requirements, reduction, and eating etc. here it is.

http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/804485-in-place-of-a-road-map-2-0-revised-7-2-12?hl=in+place+of+a+road+map&page=20


Add -- I just tried the link, it brings you to the last page, Click on page 1, then click on the link for the beginning of the topic.

good luck with what you figure out for yourself.
:flowerforyou:

There's a fix for this- I did it myself! My personal trainer mentioned 1200 cals may be low, so when I figured out how many I needed (and you can find out by calculating on another website if this one isn't working for you or talking to an expert).

Here's the fix: You can *customize* your goals- calories/day, your percentages of carbs, everything. When you set up your profile, it automatically puts you on "guided" fitness goals instead of "custom" fitness goals. To change it, go to your profile, under My Home, click "Goals" > then "Change Goals" > then "Custom" and you'll be taken to where you can manually enter whatever numbers you like.

I was told by another friend who is a personal trainer that it would be better to aim for 40% carbs, 30% fat and 30% protein. You will naturally have more carbs but following should be protein and then fat, and the rest should be smaller than these.

Hope this helps!

What calorie level are you eating at now? All you really need to do is figure that out and subtract 500 calories from that per day and without doing anything else you'll lose an average of 1 lb. per week! If you have any "junk" in your diet to cut out, that makes it all the easier.

Try the 1 pound per week option which will give you another 500 calories per day or 1700 calories and do that for a couple of months and you will probably find that you lose more than 1 pound per week. Why starve yourself?