IIFYM eating.......really???

Can those of you who do this tell me the kind of success you have had following that eating plan. I typed in my info on the TDEE calculator and the # it gave me of calories to eat seems astronomical.
Does it really work for you?

IIFYM is not a specific calorie amount, it is a philosophy about food selection.
http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/817188-iifym

One can apply IIFYM at 1400 calories and at 3500 calories and it is still IIFYM.

Just making mention of this for clarity sake.

It works, but as with any method you need to make sure your total intake is set appropriately.

http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/819055-setting-your-calorie-and-macro-targets

This....... and I am down 312 lbs. so far..... Best of Luck. ....

^ Another for this.

yes. all of the yes.

I don't even track macros...just calories. And I've lost almost 40 lbs. So, yeah, it works.

Anyone will experience weight loss if they are taking in less calories then they burn. IIFYM isn't just about weight loss. Tracking macros, micros and fiber and keeping them within your personal ranges allows for body composition change as well, without worrying whether you are eating "clean" or "dirty" foods. You can bulk, maintain or cut on IIFYM, without the stress of trying to eat 100% "clean". What it isn't however, is just making foods fit your calories. Too many individuals claim IIFYM, but are just focused on caloric intake, and end up eating nothing but "junk" food because it fits their calories, totally missing the macro, micro and fiber goals. This is where IIFYM gets a bad rap at times.

I have three really good friends on here that between them have lost almost 500lbs using IIFYM.



I would say it works..

Results:

I am leaner, much leaner, since balancing my macros with IIFYM. I've lost right around 9 percentage points in body fat. And since I'm not trying to lose, my weight is about the same as when I started eating this way. I use IIFYM in conjunction with a sensible weight training program and some cardio. I did not get anywhere near these results before I balanced my macros for my goals.

Just to add that to all the other beneficial information already in the thread.

Lastly, keep in mind that you're not eating at TDEE, you're supposed to be eating under TDEE. 80% of TDEE is a good starting point for weight loss. (10xBW is a reasonable starting place for weight loss too, as an example).

Keep in mind, these are general estimations and starting points from which you adjust.

While I can see it is surrounded by disclaimers, I don't think 10xBW is at all reasonable if you have little to lose and are fairly active. 10xBW at my pre-pregnancy weight would give me 1250 kcal, which is less than half my actual TDEE! This calculation may work well if you are heavier, but I would be wary of giving it out as blanket advice.

The point of the disclaimers is so that it's not "blanket advice". It is a starting point. Just like other calculations. Some people will need to go higher than 10cal/lb. 10-12 is an often quoted figure and I've seen several cases where people need to go lower than that and I'm sure there's situations where people can go higher than that.

The point I was attempting to get across with the disclaimers, and apparently failed since you labeled it "blanket advice", is that these are all different estimation tools that attempt to provide the general population with a clue as to what their intake needs to be as a starting place.

People unfortunately seem to put too much emphasis on what the calculator says without paying attention to what their results say, and that's where the problem is.

Can those of you who do this tell me the kind of success you have had following that eating plan. I typed in my info on the TDEE calculator and the # it gave me of calories to eat seems astronomical.
Does it really work for you?

IIFYM is not a specific calorie amount, it is a philosophy about food selection.
http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/817188-iifym

One can apply IIFYM at 1400 calories and at 3500 calories and it is still IIFYM.

Just making mention of this for clarity sake.

It works, but as with any method you need to make sure your total intake is set appropriately.

http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/819055-setting-your-calorie-and-macro-targets

This....... and I am down 312 lbs. so far..... Best of Luck. ....

^ Another for this.

yes. all of the yes.

^ Another for this. You've got one of the smartest people on the site, backed up by by people with insane amounts of weight loss in their tickers. Resounding yes.

^^^^ YES

IIFYM - YES

Personally TS, I think you should just go with the 2500 and if it isn't working for you after a week or two, you can adjust it. That's the real value of MFP if you ask me- you can easily track your results against your eating and exercise and adjust as you need to.

I've had to do that for a number of reasons: MFP always thinks I'm going to lose less than I do, so perhaps it's underestimating what I burn during exercise or maybe I'm underestimating my own activity level, who knows? But after even a little while you can use your tracking to find your own levels you need to be at.

What number are you using for strength training?

Using nothing or MFP's pitiful number (which is applicable to old ladies with pink dumbbells) is a major source of exercise cal burn underestimation.

bump for the info!

Can those of you who do this tell me the kind of success you have had following that eating plan. I typed in my info on the TDEE calculator and the # it gave me of calories to eat seems astronomical.
Does it really work for you?

ETA: I'm eating between 2000-2300 per day now, but trying to stay closer to 2000. And for exercise, I mostly focus on weight training, with very little deliberate cardio.

Yes it works! Moderation is the only thing that will *EVER* work for me, and watching my nutrient intake just makes sense anyway. (See my ticker below.)

okay just to clarify I read the whole IIFYM page and the theory etc. I read all the FAQ I get it. I understand the idea. But if they are correct then the number of calories I should be hitting is like 2500. I am a mom of 4 so I am busy and on my feet most of the day. I don't do much exercising other then walking 3 miles a day at a brisk pace. So doesn't that TDEE seem really really high?

2500 is extremely high for a female your age. what did you put for your exercise level? You can always cut back on exercise so you are able to consume less calories.

I disagree! I'm the same age as the OP, and she is doing more cardio than I, and until the last couple of months, my true TDEE was over 2500. The last few months, after losing a bunch of weight, my true TDEE seems to have slipped down to closer to 2400. That is NOT "extremely high."

One more thing....FWIW, it's better to *begin* at the HIGH estimate of caloric intake rather than drop to the smallest end. If you start with the lowest number of calories, you will be unable to cut once you plateau. Also, for the record, the Katch-McArdle equation is not good for obese people who are untrained and just beginning a fitness journey. For me personally, I found all the equations to be on the low side, once I logged for several weeks and was able to calculate my true TDEE.


I highly recommend Sarauk2sf's thread on setting calorie and macro goals:

http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/819055-setting-your-calorie-and-macro-targets


(And chiming in with other posters, any threads by Sidesteel are gonna have good, solid, scientifically-based info!)

Personally TS, I think you should just go with the 2500 and if it isn't working for you after a week or two, you can adjust it. That's the real value of MFP if you ask me- you can easily track your results against your eating and exercise and adjust as you need to.

I've had to do that for a number of reasons: MFP always thinks I'm going to lose less than I do, so perhaps it's underestimating what I burn during exercise or maybe I'm underestimating my own activity level, who knows? But after even a little while you can use your tracking to find your own levels you need to be at.

IIFYM is great because it demystifies the whole "eating healthier" thing and lets you get going right away when you're feeling motivated instead of making you spend hours on the internet researching until you lose your motivation. You can always tweak later on. It looks like you've already had some success using MFP, so I say just keep it up and tweak as you need to based on results! Good luck!

When starting out, I would personally give it more than a week or two. If you're introducing a large calorie increase to your body on a consistent basis...say going from something like 1500 to 2500 calories daily (this is just a guess since I don't know what your current goals are set for)....then your body is going to retain more water weight and you'll see more fluctuations than you may be used to. You need to give it at least a month or two before making any adjustments, and make any adjustments slowly...a few hundred calories at a time, then give it a few weeks before any more changes. Yes, there is a very good possibility the scale may go up, but you need to realize this will happen and accept it and TRUST that it will go down...if you log food and exercise correctly and you follow your plan.

IIFYM, just like anything else is more about your long term lifestyle. Do you want to eat like this forever, do you want to see lasting results eating foods you enjoy, do you want a body that is the image of what you want...or do you want to see the number on some scale to go down to some "perfect magic point where all happiness and dreams come from"? The scale is going to be good for long term trending, you can't always trust it as a source for your success. Mirrors, pictures, clothes, measurements, how you feel...all of these are more accurate indicators than the scale.

i personally stay away from IIFYM...that's just me

i personally stay away from IIFYM...that's just me

how so?

God yes it works. Been doing it for years. My tdee is 2700 but given that i play full court basketball nearly everyday for 1-2 hours i moved it up to 35-4000 calories.
But without it, I took 2700, did a 40/40/20 split and fat melted off.. about 6lbs a week, no basketball though just incline treadmill at 2.5mph 20 mins twice daily.

I currently eat chicken and broccoli every day so that in the weekend i can eat like a chinese stowaway at an eating competition.