Anyone 163 lbs., Eating 1600 Calories & Losing Wt.?

I'm 5'8", 184 lbs, 56 yrs, and eating between 1400 - 1500 per day. I'm losing VERY SLOWLY. the calories I'm eating is with or without exercise each day, so sometimes I'm eating back the calories and days I don't exercise I'm still eating the same amount.

I don't know how to figure TDEE as you all are talking about. So I'd like to get up to date on that.

I also have Hypothyroidism and autoimmune disease. So I take a lot of meds, which is NO help in losing weight!

I am 5'4" and started out at 165 lbs. I did 1240 calories a day because that's what MFP set for me and in the beginning I knew nothing about BMR, TDEE etc. My weight loss stalled at around 135 pounds and so based on what I'd learned by that time, I bumped my calories up to the 1500 neighborhood and started losing again, but slowly. So I decided to shoot for the 1240 on some days, and 1500 on others. It was sort of random which days I did what. It worked for me. But then, I was never rigid with the calorie thing anyways and went over plenty of days.

I'm 44 years old and fairly sedentary. And at 1240 calories per day I ate back any exercise calories to be sure not to ever go under 1200 net calories (on the advice of my doctor).

I am currently on maintenance and my goal is between 1600 and 1700 calories per day. My weight fluctuates of course, but has settled between 120 and 125. Which is great for me because I am small framed.

Agree with the above posts. Too aggressive of a deficit. I posted this to a similar thread a while ago:

Remember TDEE = Total Daily Energy Expenditure.

Set your calorie goal to TDEE. Eat less than that and you will start to lose weight. Do not set your calorie goal to 1600 and try to eat less than that. Generally anything more than 20% for overweight (not obese) is too large of a reduction from your TDEE and more likely than not you will lose lean body mass as it is a very aggressive deficit. There's also a good chance that you will not be able to sustain this in the long term and to be quite honest it is not sensible. I don't know many people (if anyone at the moment) who can sustain a >30% deficit for an extended period. Have a read of:

http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/1017045-a-very-interesting-and-informational-read-on-deficits
http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/819055-setting-your-calorie-and-macro-targets

Remember there are two ways to lose weight: either decrease your caloric intake or increase your daily expenditure:

Eat 2000 calories per day + burn 0 calories from exercise = 2000 total calories
Eat 2500 calories per day + burn 500 calories from exercise = 2000 total calories.

This is a simplified version, but the principle is the same. Follow a structured training program, eat an adequate amount of protein and also eat enough calories that your body needs. I don't know your current stats, but as mentioned going over 20% is not very wise.

Don't increase your calories by a big number (eg 1500 to 1900) as you will likely put on quite a bit of weight, but it will primarily be from water so it's actually fine in the long run. Rather, take a slow approach called reverse dieting. This is a term used, primarily by physique athletes, to refer to a phase after their photoshoot or competition where they use 100ish calorie increments in their weekly calorie goals. It's also very useful for extended period of calorie deficits.

For example, if your goal today is 1600 calories then increase it to 1700 calories for the week
Next week 1800 calories
Keep going until you reach about 1800-1900, whichever is right for you
Assess your progress and if you are happy with 1800-1900 then stick to it. I know it sounds weird, "don't eat less than xzy" but this is just the way our bodies as well as our lifestyles work. The important part is being consistent. This method of reverse dieting will minimise fat gain when increasing your calories.

I'm 41, 176 pounds, 5'5"

Eating 1500-1700 calories a day

No food 3 hours before bedtime.

I get 10,000+ steps in everyday which includes a nightly walk of 2 to 3 miles.

Still trying to find the right amount of calories to get weight to come off at a steady rate.

You likely need more, because you are a man. Men typically have higher muscle mass than women. Muscle is more metabolically active and need more calories to sustain.

If your TDEE-20% is 1807 why eat 1600? The 20% cut is already pretty aggressive for having 40ish pounds to lose.

^This, just eat at TDEE - 20%, anymore than that and you'll be losing more muscle than you want to.

^ what they said.

I have had a very similar results-I am 5'2", I eat between 1500-1800 and have been losing ~6 lbs. per month. I started at 170- now down to 141.

I'm glad to hear that! Well done on your weight loss so far. I'm the same height as you and close to your start weight, and am hoping to eat around 1500-1700 calories too. My TDEE-20% with exercise is around 1700 calories.

Last year I lost 24 lbs in just under 6 months eating 1200 calories and working out 5-6 days a week. Some months I only lost 3 lbs, which is about the same as some people were losing in a week! It was hard going towards the end and I gave up and re-gained all the weight back. I'm hoping I'll eat more and lose weight but I am a little skeptical about eating so much. Will give it a try though and see what happens.

OP, I'd say to try eating that much and see if you lose weight on that. If not, lower it slightly until you begin seeing results. That what I intend to do anyway. Good luck

I have lost weight at 1600 before and I am again now. I'm 5'3", 26 years old,, and I eat between 1600-1700 a day, and don't eat back exercise calories. This is my second time doing this, last year I lost 20 lbs and went from 175 to 155. I was back up 166 this summer after abandoning all my workouts and eating only junk while back at school to finish my college degree, and I'm going for goal this time.

When I ran the numbers a year ago, I came up with almost exactly the same BMR and TDEE as you, but I wasn't losing at TDEE -20% 1800. 1600 (and a little more on days I do hard cardio) seems to be my sweet spot. Lost ~6 lbs in the last month, weighed in at 159 this morning. I'm running and doing Ripped in 30 for exercise.

I eat tons of fruits and veggies, not for "clean eating" or whatever, but because I can be full and not cranky for the same amount of calories. Also drink lots of water! I average 8-10 cups on week days and I feel SO much better on those days! Hope this helps, good luck!!

OP, there isn't going to be a blanket response that's gonna make you happy. It's all individual. It's based on a lot of different things.

a 163lb man that's 33 years old... and 5'8... is gonna be completely different than a 163lb man that's 40 and 6'2... and so on, and so forth.

figure out your own numbers and go from there.

http://scoobysworkshop.com/accurate-calorie-calculator/

in short. the method works. stick with it.

I went to the accurate calorie calculator. That thing is awesome. One problem. On the drop down where you have to select a goal, "maintenance" isn't an option. And none of the options fit me. How do I figure out accurate calories if I'm on maintenance and don't want to lose/gain fat/muscle/weight?

Bump. Thanks for the tips.

Hi my calorie goal is 1370 daily, I earn on an average 500-600 calorie by exercise and daily life activities. I haven't shed a pound. I am 5 3 and have a thyroid problem...my husband has already lost 8 pounds following plan. Any suggestions? I try not to eat all my calories gained by exercise...would love feed back!