Setting the daily net calories / need advice!

Quieau
Quieau Posts: 428 Member
in Health and Weight Loss
I need to lose 100+ lbs as quickly as can be done SAFELY with calorie restriction and exercise. I am really big on doing this safely and with long term maintenance in mind! I am wondering what is the MINIMUM NET CALORIE intake I should have for myself to make sure I keep my metabolism cranking? I am 5'9" and have a large frame for a woman ... goal weight is 180.

So what do you believe is a good minimum net calorie intake for a 5'9" 180 lb. woman to make sure that metabolism is kept as high as possible?

Also, I am trying to decide whether cutting carb portion from 50% of diet to 30% of diet would do more harm or more good? Any thoughts?

Thank you all! I'm 52 years old and have not attempted this in over 30 yrs, so the science is ALL NEW to me! I'm a "clean eater" in that I don't eat any processed or "fake" foods at all. I have no trouble staying away from soda, alcohol, etc. and I drink average a gallon of water a day. I am going to be using my treadmill mostly at first, exercising at least 20 minutes per day 7 days a week as a minimum, and going up from there.

ALL ADVICE (and new friends) are welcome! THANKS!

Replies

  • itsscottwilder
    itsscottwilder Posts: 317
    Somewhere around 1800 to 2000 calories daily should be a good place to start
  • ladynocturne
    ladynocturne Posts: 865 Member
    According to your Stats, 5'9" 280lbs (guessing from what you said you needed to lose 100lbs to get to 180lbs)

    You maintain your current weight on 2337 calories per day with zero exercise/sedentary.

    To lose 2lbs a week, subtract 1000 calories.

    2337-1000= 1337 NET calories to aim for.

    So if you exercise eat 1337 + whatever you burn. =) hope this helps.

    If you'd like to maintain as much muscle mass as possible, I'd recommend not netting below your current BMR.

    Your estimated BMR is: 1,944 calories/day.

    However this significantly lowers your daily deficit and since you have so much to lose, it's probably okay to net below your BMR for a few months, make sure you reassess your calorie needs every 10lbs or so.
  • smn76237
    smn76237 Posts: 318 Member
    Since you have more than 100lbs to lose, you can safely withstand a larger deficit than if you had less to lose. I wish I had tabbed the links on these message boards, but essentially, the more you have to lose, the bigger your deficit can be without sacrificing lean body mass. I'd say 1400-1600 calories would be a reasonable goal to shoot for for now. You could probably go as low as 1200 as well. The average person doesn't have to worry about "starvation mode"

    More important than anything, buy a food scale and weigh everything. Especially when first starting out, it's easy to underestimate your portion sizes.
  • WxLLe
    WxLLe Posts: 11
    Losing 100 lbs will be a very hard task to do but it CAN be done. There are many weight loss programs out there but when you should check out is called Smack Fat. I personally know a few folks who have done it and have seen results fast. If you're trying to seriously lose 100 pounds and can dedicate yourself to their routine then I'd say check it out. Here's there site http://goo.gl/y4bN55.

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