Confused! Please help (:

LittleMsEva
LittleMsEva Posts: 76 Member
in Food and Nutrition
So I`m trying to fix my diet (a lot of people have been criticizing my diet) and I`m planning on fixing this. I already received GREAT advice from several lovely people on MFP.

So MFP tells me that i should consume 1,200 calories a day (before we jump into the 1.2k cal debate) I would just like to know how much calories I should consume in a day to create a healthy calorie-deficit, and what do i consume in those x amount of calories? Is that TDEE? Confused!

I am 5`2, and weigh 63 kg (141.5lbs), my goal-weight is 55kg (121 lbs) , and then 50kg (110 lbs) is my Ultimate goal-weight!
I`m trying to achieve 55kg (121 lbs) in approx. 4 months, I think this is fairly reasonable and healthy. Suggestions please :)?

Thankyou xxx`s and oooo`s!

Replies

  • TeaBea
    TeaBea Posts: 14,517 Member
    BMR - basal metabolic rate ..... calories needed if you were in a coma

    http://www.fitnessfrog.com/calculators/bmr-calculator.html

    TDEE - total daily expenditure .... calories you use based on activity level (including) exercise

    http://www.fitnessfrog.com/calculators/tdee-calculator.html

    The lowest number MFP gives anyone is 1200 ..... you plug in "I want to lose XX pounds per week" and MFP does the math. That doesn't mean 1200 is the "healthiest" way to go.

    Healthy weight loss is moderate and helps you preserve lean muscle mass..... the choice is yours ... how fast you want to lose. People who are close to goal & use TDEE method ...will take 10-15% off of TDEE and not worry about "eating back" exercise calories .... because they have already been accounted for.
  • jtangcs
    jtangcs Posts: 37 Member
    I really don't think you should go less than 1200 calories per day. But you can set your MFP calculator to say you want to lose the weight in 4 months and see what it says.

    I'm the same height and sitting at about 120lbs right now. I was higher before, when I first started MFP about a month ago. I find that by eating 1200 calories (and keep in mind, I don't get any exercise in... life is just too crazy right now and I've had a splurge day or two), and with the water I'm drinking and kick starting my metabolism with Greek Yogurt, I've lost about 4lbs.

    If I remember what MFP told me before, I'm supposed to lose about 1lb per week on 1200 calories. If that's the case for you, that's 16 lbs in 4months. So it's not exactly the 20lbs you wanted, but it's pretty darn close. I don't think you should jeopardize your health to hit that 20lb mark.

    Good luck!
  • kathyhull
    kathyhull Posts: 327 Member
    Based on what you've put here, your BMR is somewhere around 1,475 and, depending upon your activity level you need somewhere around 1,800 a day to maintain your current weight (just lightly active). To lose 20 pounds in a month, you'll need to create a calorie deficite of somewhere around 575 per day, a combination of eating fewer calories and burning more. I don't think you need to eat all your exercise calories back so if you ate around 1,100 - 1,200 a day and then did about an hour of walking a day, you should lose what you're looking to lose fairly safely. If you feel weak, eat a little more. Make sure you're drinking your water (I personally have found plain water the best way to go, sweetened drinks seem to make me more hungry) and I also believe you need to get more of your calories from protein and fewer from carbs than this site calls for - I've upped my protein to 70 - 100 grams a day, more on days when I'm feeling a little sluggish. Protein, like egg whites with some chopped up vegies for breakfast really seems to keep me going longer in the morning than cereals or other carbs. And a nice big vegie packed salad with lunch seems to stick with me longer than other things for lunch. You can do it! It's not rocket science - just eat a little less, do a little more and tweak the plan until it works for you!
  • RhineDHP
    RhineDHP Posts: 1,025 Member
    BMR - basal metabolic rate ..... calories needed if you were in a coma

    http://www.fitnessfrog.com/calculators/bmr-calculator.html

    TDEE - total daily expenditure .... calories you use based on activity level (including) exercise

    http://www.fitnessfrog.com/calculators/tdee-calculator.html

    The lowest number MFP gives anyone is 1200 ..... you plug in "I want to lose XX pounds per week" and MFP does the math. That doesn't mean 1200 is the "healthiest" way to go.

    Healthy weight loss is moderate and helps you preserve lean muscle mass..... the choice is yours ... how fast you want to lose. People who are close to goal & use TDEE method ...will take 10-15% off of TDEE and not worry about "eating back" exercise calories .... because they have already been accounted for.

    Thanks for putting it so simply, sometimes I get confused by the massive amounst of information in some threads redarding TDEE and BMR.
  • LittleMsEva
    LittleMsEva Posts: 76 Member
    BMR - basal metabolic rate ..... calories needed if you were in a coma

    http://www.fitnessfrog.com/calculators/bmr-calculator.html

    TDEE - total daily expenditure .... calories you use based on activity level (including) exercise

    http://www.fitnessfrog.com/calculators/tdee-calculator.html

    The lowest number MFP gives anyone is 1200 ..... you plug in "I want to lose XX pounds per week" and MFP does the math. That doesn't mean 1200 is the "healthiest" way to go.


    Healthy weight loss is moderate and helps you preserve lean muscle mass..... the choice is yours ... how fast you want to lose. People who are close to goal & use TDEE method ...will take 10-15% off of TDEE and not worry about "eating back" exercise calories .... because they have already been accounted for.

    Wow! thanks so much!
  • LittleMsEva
    LittleMsEva Posts: 76 Member
    I really don't think you should go less than 1200 calories per day. But you can set your MFP calculator to say you want to lose the weight in 4 months and see what it says.

    I'm the same height and sitting at about 120lbs right now. I was higher before, when I first started MFP about a month ago. I find that by eating 1200 calories (and keep in mind, I don't get any exercise in... life is just too crazy right now and I've had a splurge day or two), and with the water I'm drinking and kick starting my metabolism with Greek Yogurt, I've lost about 4lbs.

    If I remember what MFP told me before, I'm supposed to lose about 1lb per week on 1200 calories. If that's the case for you, that's 16 lbs in 4months. So it's not exactly the 20lbs you wanted, but it's pretty darn close. I don't think you should jeopardize your health to hit that 20lb mark.

    Good luck!

    120 at 5`2 :( my Goal weight, so lucky! =) A splurge is okay =) But i havent ever had a splurge, and i`m very strict with my diet, i consume less than 1k, because 1.2 is just so borderline, i hate the MFP calculator =(
  • LittleMsEva
    LittleMsEva Posts: 76 Member
    Based on what you've put here, your BMR is somewhere around 1,475 and, depending upon your activity level you need somewhere around 1,800 a day to maintain your current weight (just lightly active). To lose 20 pounds in a month, you'll need to create a calorie deficite of somewhere around 575 per day, a combination of eating fewer calories and burning more. I don't think you need to eat all your exercise calories back so if you ate around 1,100 - 1,200 a day and then did about an hour of walking a day, you should lose what you're looking to lose fairly safely. If you feel weak, eat a little more. Make sure you're drinking your water (I personally have found plain water the best way to go, sweetened drinks seem to make me more hungry) and I also believe you need to get more of your calories from protein and fewer from carbs than this site calls for - I've upped my protein to 70 - 100 grams a day, more on days when I'm feeling a little sluggish. Protein, like egg whites with some chopped up vegies for breakfast really seems to keep me going longer in the morning than cereals or other carbs. And a nice big vegie packed salad with lunch seems to stick with me longer than other things for lunch. You can do it! It's not rocket science - just eat a little less, do a little more and tweak the plan until it works for you!

    1.8k/ day is far too much, I feel like i gain at 800 cals a day and I cannot bear the thought of eating up to 1.8k, i feel like it will be very counter-productive! I love plain water, I can drink up to 10 glasses a day easily. Thanks so much for the advice, i will defs up my protein!
  • mockchoc
    mockchoc Posts: 6,573 Member
    I'm the same height as you and I'm 55kgs now. I'm older and don't do tons of exercise and could lose on 1650. You don't need to eat little to lose.
  • jtangcs
    jtangcs Posts: 37 Member
    I really don't think you should go less than 1200 calories per day. But you can set your MFP calculator to say you want to lose the weight in 4 months and see what it says.

    I'm the same height and sitting at about 120lbs right now. I was higher before, when I first started MFP about a month ago. I find that by eating 1200 calories (and keep in mind, I don't get any exercise in... life is just too crazy right now and I've had a splurge day or two), and with the water I'm drinking and kick starting my metabolism with Greek Yogurt, I've lost about 4lbs.

    If I remember what MFP told me before, I'm supposed to lose about 1lb per week on 1200 calories. If that's the case for you, that's 16 lbs in 4months. So it's not exactly the 20lbs you wanted, but it's pretty darn close. I don't think you should jeopardize your health to hit that 20lb mark.

    Good luck!

    120 at 5`2 :( my Goal weight, so lucky! =) A splurge is okay =) But i havent ever had a splurge, and i`m very strict with my diet, i consume less than 1k, because 1.2 is just so borderline, i hate the MFP calculator =(

    The thing is, if you consume too little calories, your metabolism will slow down and you actually WON'T lose weight. I've looked at your diary before, and unfortunately, your diet isn't balanced enough, and you're eating too little. When I decided to drop the poundage, I actually went back to eating dairy products and a proper 3 meals in order to get my metabolism going again. Starvation mode won't actually allow you to lose weight. Instead, you'll actually be stuck at the weight you're currently at.
  • flutterbye811
    flutterbye811 Posts: 86 Member
    Based on what you've put here, your BMR is somewhere around 1,475 and, depending upon your activity level you need somewhere around 1,800 a day to maintain your current weight (just lightly active). To lose 20 pounds in a month, you'll need to create a calorie deficite of somewhere around 575 per day, a combination of eating fewer calories and burning more. I don't think you need to eat all your exercise calories back so if you ate around 1,100 - 1,200 a day and then did about an hour of walking a day, you should lose what you're looking to lose fairly safely. If you feel weak, eat a little more. Make sure you're drinking your water (I personally have found plain water the best way to go, sweetened drinks seem to make me more hungry) and I also believe you need to get more of your calories from protein and fewer from carbs than this site calls for - I've upped my protein to 70 - 100 grams a day, more on days when I'm feeling a little sluggish. Protein, like egg whites with some chopped up vegies for breakfast really seems to keep me going longer in the morning than cereals or other carbs. And a nice big vegie packed salad with lunch seems to stick with me longer than other things for lunch. You can do it! It's not rocket science - just eat a little less, do a little more and tweak the plan until it works for you!

    1.8k/ day is far too much, I feel like i gain at 800 cals a day and I cannot bear the thought of eating up to 1.8k, i feel like it will be very counter-productive! I love plain water, I can drink up to 10 glasses a day easily. Thanks so much for the advice, i will defs up my protein!

    I mean this with the most respect I can show on a message board, but.....

    You seem to be asking the same questions everywhere, acknowledge people are giving you good advice, yet you still continue to eat under 1000 calories and are exercising enough to burn a significant amount of calories. Please. STOP asking and START listening. Go to your college health center if you cannot afford a doctor. Recognize that all this talk about "not being able to" can lead to some veryyy harmful things in your very near and longterm future. You are too young to let something like 20 lbs screw with your overall health.

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