5ft 2 - How much are you eating?

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  • AllonsYtotheTardis
    AllonsYtotheTardis Posts: 16,947 Member
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    I'm 5'2", 41 years old, and I average 1600 cal per day. (I'm set at 1300 plus exercise calories). Still losing at an average of 1 lb per week, and loving it! :drinker:
  • boxem180
    boxem180 Posts: 63 Member
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    I'm 5'2", 32 yo, and I eat between 1600-1750 calories a day depending on the workout. I workout 7 days a week - 3 strength session, 3-4 cardio/yoga (all averaging about 75-90 minutes). On those big days, I'm eating at 1750 and on the just cardio/yoga, I'm at 1600. I was eating at 1200-1400 for a couple months and lost a bit of weight but then stalled for about 6 weeks with no weight loss before I upped my intake and I've lost 3 pounds in the last couple weeks.
  • millibelle
    millibelle Posts: 7 Member
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    Okay, so it sounds like I am eating way to little! My net averages about 900-1000 and I am not hungry or grumpy, etc. I rarely eat more than 1200 and never eat my calories back. I lost 7 pounds the first two weeks and now I'm at a plateau for 3 weeks. You REALLY think if I eat more I will start losing weight again?
  • neandermagnon
    neandermagnon Posts: 7,436 Member
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    5'1" and eating 1850 calories a day for a slow cut, i.e. losing fat slowly

    I'm already in the healthy range for body fat % (around 22) just trying to get it a little lower in between trying to gain lean mass, and all the while trying to increase how much I can squat, deadlift and bench.
  • xiamjackie
    xiamjackie Posts: 611 Member
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    5'2 113-115lbs 33yo. Lift heavy 3 days/run 3 days a week. I eat by my TDEE, don't track what I burn and eat 2000-2200 cals a day. I also allow myself a day each week where I eat almost 2500 cals usually on leg day and I've been maintaining since June. 1200 worked for me for like a month and I was miserable. Never recommend it to someone's who active. Just bc your short or petite doesn't mean you have to starve.


    Love this. Just because we are small doesn't mean we need to eat 1200 calories.

    Currently I'm eating 1650 but over the next week or two I will up it to 1800. If you use "In place of roadmap" like someone on here already suggested, you don't have to worry about eating back exercise calories, it already figures it out for you what you could eat daily based on your weekly exercise goals.
  • AndreaL0918
    AndreaL0918 Posts: 47 Member
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    Bump
  • hookilau
    hookilau Posts: 3,134 Member
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    I'm 5'2", age 42, and currently 162. Up until about a month ago, I lost steadily at 1550 cals/day and eating my exercise calories back. I have been heavy lifting since Sept. I upped my calories about a month ago and weight loss stalled a bit (up and down)...so jury is still out. I love to eat and feel like I'm hungry a lot. But with my age, my TDEE is like 1800, so I'm not sure if "eating more to weight less" is feasible for me. I sure was hoping it would!

    I'm curious how many short folks age 40+ are eating 1600+ cals and losing. I exercise 3-4 days/week.

    44 here :drinker: I lift 3x a week, heavy for me, 5, and 8 reps per set. No purposeful cardio and I'm netting btw 14 or 1500. So far, I'm losing. I have a fitbit zip & aim to burn 1800 cal per day because on a sedentary day, not really trying to do anything, I've only burned 13 or 1400. 5', sw: 160, cw: 154, gw: 120

    I need to be reminded to keep moving :laugh: I'm a lazy slug. Being able to have my activity level measure up to my caloric intake so that I can keep within a safe deficit for weight loss seems to be working for me. I'm trying not to lose muslce and aiming for 20ish % BF. Right now, I'm at 35.6% according to my scale.

    An arbitrary # maybe, but all I need to be is in the ball park, I'm not training for competition, soooo...yea...works for me :drinker:
  • jsiricos
    jsiricos Posts: 338 Member
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    Some days I barely make 1000, let alone 1200,

    And before I see that again, eating is NOT what got me here, eating too little, and the wrong choices is what got me here.

    I am 5'2, 55 years young, sometimes I eat back my calories, sometimes I dont, but at the end of the week, I have usually dropped 2 pounds.

    It works for me :)
  • scubasara1
    scubasara1 Posts: 3 Member
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    I have never heard about eating back calories.
    I'm 5"3. At my heaviest I was 235 and in 2 years I've struggled with keeping off the 60lbs I've lost thus far. I kinda yo-yo between 165 and 180. This is not my goal, but I feel as if I'm stuck. I started out eating only 1200 calories a day and would exercise at least 3x a week, not eating back anything because I'd never heard of it.

    I don't exercise as much as I used to (maybe once a week now) and eating about 1200 calories and seeing no results. Is it my metabolism? Did I throw it off? Is eating back my calories really going to make a difference?
  • hookilau
    hookilau Posts: 3,134 Member
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    Okay, so it sounds like I am eating way to little! My net averages about 900-1000 and I am not hungry or grumpy, etc. I rarely eat more than 1200 and never eat my calories back. I lost 7 pounds the first two weeks and now I'm at a plateau for 3 weeks. You REALLY think if I eat more I will start losing weight again?

    I do :flowerforyou: When I first started MFP, I did the 1200 cal total intake diet that MFP put me on. In 10 days, I lost 4#'s. I got to studying the threads here about eating more & increased to net 1200. I gained back the 4#'s I took off and then stayed there for a few weeks.

    I then did the calculations, got a fitbit & upped my caloric intake to 1400ish net. It wasn't until I upped my calories did I start dropping again.

    If you work out your BMR and TDEE, then take a modest deduction from your TDEE of less 20%, you should lose just fine. The general consensus for weight loss is to not net below your BMR and not above your TDEE.

    Good for you if 1200 is working for you now, but eventually it will stop working & you end up with more questions than answers.
    Do the math, work smarter, not harder.
  • millibelle
    millibelle Posts: 7 Member
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    I just read the "road map" post and did all the calculators on this site that he recommended: http://www.fat2fitradio.com/tools/bmr/ It says to eat 1400 a day, so I think I'll try it!
  • rfsatar
    rfsatar Posts: 599 Member
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    I'd love to hear from some fellow shorties about how much you are eating kCal wise? Do you eat back exercise kCal? Do you use TDEE? I've been following 1200 plan not eating back exercise kCal but burning around 1400 a week and the weight loss is not great, just wondering what people have found works for them?

    Shorty signing in! 5'2", currently 150.5 lbs (gawd so CLOSE to dipping below 150lbs) which is 10st 10.5lbs in old money, and 68.2 of your new fangled metric kgs!

    I half use the roadmap... I worked out my TDEE (using Scooby's Workshop) and I set my MFP calorie goal to my BMR (1298) from there and my activity level to lightly active. I did try it out at moderately active 'cos I was doing some form of workout 5 days a week, but I found I was just maintaining, so dropped it to Lightly Active, and started dropping half-pounds a bit more steadily.

    I eat back my calories - sometimes to a TDEE cut of between 10-15% and sometimes above - normally on my gym days when I am burning off a load more than my activity suggests.
    I pretty much still eat what I want, but I try and do some portion control, and I simply changed the order in which I ate things - protein in the morning, soup at lunchtime, balanced meal in the evenings.
    I also have some healthier snacks around now ...

    Inches and Body Fat% have come down and for the first time while garroting myself with the resistance tubes today, I saw... A WAIST! And it was MINE!

    Hope that helps!
  • hookilau
    hookilau Posts: 3,134 Member
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    I just read the "road map" post and did all the calculators on this site that he recommended: http://www.fat2fitradio.com/tools/bmr/ It says to eat 1400 a day, so I think I'll try it!

    You're on your way chicky :flowerforyou:
  • MrsSWW
    MrsSWW Posts: 1,590 Member
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    Do the math, work smarter, not harder.
    7 words that say it all!
  • mnqi
    mnqi Posts: 36
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    Thanks for the post, I learned a lot. I am 5'4" 40yr F @ 215lbs ...I just started and put that my net cals should be 1200. I don't exercise yet, I have very little muscle....pretty much jelly. I will exercise but just starting out. In your opinion should I up my cals and if so to what? I figured, it is good to shock your body and then add some back in. I am a slow loser and hold most of my weight in the middle.
  • Jenner9169
    Jenner9169 Posts: 57 Member
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    WOW! Thank you all for the replies, it really helps knowing what other people do and how they're getting on. This has been really informative, it seems like a lot of people maintain sustainable weight loss with much higher kCal than I would have thought! Really thank you guys a lot this has really helped :) Great to know there are so many successful pint size people out there!
  • aprilcarlson
    aprilcarlson Posts: 34
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    bump
  • MelissaM528
    MelissaM528 Posts: 31 Member
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    I'm 5'4 and eat just over 1600 a day. If I exercise I eat about 1/2 of my calories back. If you exercise you should definitely eat some of your calories back, especially if you're only eating 1200 calories a day. Your body needs fuel.
  • kristinL16
    kristinL16 Posts: 401 Member
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    I will be 38 next month. When I started MFP I was about 5 months post partum after having my 4th child. I had my calorie goal set at 1700. I lost about 20 lbs then stopped logging last summer and fall. I maintained during that time. Started back up again in January and was not losing at 1700. Dropped to 1500 and then 1400. Still not losing. I am still breastfeeding but my child is 19 months old and so I am not producing as much milk (or burning as many calories from BF). I finally started losing again a few weeks ago after starting the 5:2 diet. On fasting days I ate about 600 calories and kept my calories on "feast" days at 1400.

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