So confused - HELP!

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CarynMacD
CarynMacD Posts: 230
in Food and Nutrition
What story does this tell you?

Stats:

Age: 44
Height: 5.4"
Start Weight 9 Weeks Ago: 163.2 Lbs
Current Weight: 147 Lbs
Total Loss over 9 Weeks: 16.2 Lbs @ Ave of 1.8 Lbs / Week
VERY Sedentary activity level
Goal Weight: 132 Lbs

37f1aff2-d2b5-43c6-9a52-a4cfd8067053_zps45463197.jpg

In week 9, I changed my Macros to 45% Protein, 35% Carbs, 20% Fat.

I am happy to loose 1.5Lbs / Week. I KNOW my net is very low.... but based on the information above, if I increase my net, my weight goes up - probably due to my VERY sedentary life-style. In fact it looks like my net should be around 1100 cals to reach the 1.5 Lbs / week.

There are so many conflicting opinions on MFP, I am totally confused and don't really know what to believe. The only thing I CAN believe are my actual stats over the past 9 weeks.

I don't want to mess up my metabolism. I'm so confused....HELP!

Replies

  • CarynMacD
    CarynMacD Posts: 230
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    According to iifym, including exercise 5 x a week, daily calorie goal is 1525 which is 20% less than tdee.

    So if I set MFP @ 1100 Cals + 400 Exercise = 1500 Cals per day (1100 Net)
  • CarynMacD
    CarynMacD Posts: 230
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    Bump-ity-bump
  • CarynMacD
    CarynMacD Posts: 230
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    Bump - AGAIN
  • TavistockToad
    TavistockToad Posts: 35,719 Member
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    to me it says you can eat more and should still lose weight...

    its fine to average 1.8lb per week when you have plenty of fat to lose, but as you get closer to goal you have less and less to lose, so by eating more and having a smaller deficit you are protecting LBM.
  • CarynMacD
    CarynMacD Posts: 230
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    Thanks so much for the reply. I think since I have changed my macros by cutting carbs and increasing protein, I definately CAN eat more. I'll try the 1100 net for the next week with the new macros and see how I go. If the loss is too great, I will increase to 1200 net.
  • CarynMacD
    CarynMacD Posts: 230
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    Sorry.... just another problem I'm having.

    When I increase my calories, I have a huge battle trying to stay within my Macros.

    I also have to keep a watchful eye on Cholestrol as mine is very high even though I am on statins. Eggs seem to be my enemy.
  • fitness_faeiry
    fitness_faeiry Posts: 354 Member
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    No woman should be eating less than 1500 calories a day. Its not recommended for a long period of time. Have you ever tried Carb Cycling? Its a great way to try and lose body fat without losing muscle mass. You basically cycle your carbs throughout the week, eating at a calorie deficit on the low carb days and then eating slightly more on a High carb day. Its a way of tricking your body into using more fat stores as energy instead of carbs. So your week could go LC, LC, HC, LC, LC, LC HC.
    You only have two high carb days a week (these are days where you should be doing some exercise) :smile:

    Read more here and here:

    http://www.livestrong.com/article/558001-carb-cycling-for-fat-loss/
  • TavistockToad
    TavistockToad Posts: 35,719 Member
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    Sorry.... just another problem I'm having.

    When I increase my calories, I have a huge battle trying to stay within my Macros.

    I also have to keep a watchful eye on Cholestrol as mine is very high even though I am on statins. Eggs seem to be my enemy.

    i find planning my food and pre logging helps me balance my macros better - if you log all your food and are over on carbs for instance you can swap a snack or decrease a portion. if you log at the end of the day its too late.
  • CarynMacD
    CarynMacD Posts: 230
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    No woman should be eating less than 1500 calories a day. Its not recommended for a long period of time. Have you ever tried Carb Cycling? Its a great way to try and lose body fat without losing muscle mass. You basically cycle your carbs throughout the week, eating at a calorie deficit on the low carb days and then eating slightly more on a High carb day. Its a way of tricking your body into using more fat stores as energy instead of carbs. So your week could go LC, LC, HC, LC, LC, LC HC.
    You only have two high carb days a week (these are days where you should be doing some exercise) :smile:

    Read more here and here:

    http://www.livestrong.com/article/558001-carb-cycling-for-fat-loss/

    Interesting indeed. Thanks, I will have a read and digest.
  • CarynMacD
    CarynMacD Posts: 230
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    Yes, I've started doing this.... and it does help.
  • shaw131
    shaw131 Posts: 4 Member
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    Yes, if you read all the information you can find it will become confusing. Your best bet is to remain consistent with exercise and hit your macros on a daily basis as best you can. If you can manage this, while tracking your weight, you will be able to adjust your calorie intake if the weight loss becomes too slow or too fast.

    I would stay away from those online TDEE calculators and derive your calorie intake from your own experience of how your body is reacting to your plan.

    I think the trick is to eat as much as you can while still losing weight. This will help you fuel your workouts while keeping your metabolism in check. If your calorie deficit is too great at the beginning the fat loss will eventually slow and dropping your calories even further will only help you feel terrible.
  • CarynMacD
    CarynMacD Posts: 230
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    Yes, if you read all the information you can find it will become confusing. Your best bet is to remain consistent with exercise and hit your macros on a daily basis as best you can. If you can manage this, while tracking your weight, you will be able to adjust your calorie intake if the weight loss becomes too slow or too fast.

    I would stay away from those online TDEE calculators and derive your calorie intake from your own experience of how your body is reacting to your plan.

    I think the trick is to eat as much as you can while still losing weight. This will help you fuel your workouts while keeping your metabolism in check. If your calorie deficit is too great at the beginning the fat loss will eventually slow and dropping your calories even further will only help you feel terrible.

    Now that makes perfect sense to me. There is a lot of information out there and so many differing opinions, it is hard to find one's "personal groove" at the beginning of the journey. I'm only just starting to figure out how my body is reacting now. I'm going to stick with my plan for the next week, so I can track the changes and will perhaps need to tweak accordingly in the weeks to come.

    Also, as the weight comes off... tweaking has to happen.
  • CarynMacD
    CarynMacD Posts: 230
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    Any other "analysts" out there?

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