Eating 2000 calories and losing weight...rapidly

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jessicaxx_23
jessicaxx_23 Posts: 10 Member
in Health and Weight Loss
Hi everyone! I just joined to ask this question. So I'm 5'9'' 138lbs and trying to get down to 129-132ish and so the weight should be difficult to lose right? Wrong. I don't know why but the lowest I can ever find myself eating is 2000 calories per day and I seem to be losing on this. Last week I was 140 and now it's four days later and I'm 138. I don't think I'm very physically active. I'm a student so I walk around campus all day everyday, and I work at a restaurant so I'm on my feet for a few hours a day, but I haven't had gym time because I've been so busy :( I'm worried it's coming off too fast for the high number of calories I'm eating. I'm also a girl so I thought girls were supposed to eat WAY less than 2000 to lose weight? Any ideas? The calorie calculator on here says to eat 1200 per day but I'm pretty sure I would faint on anything under say 1800. And it says with 1200 I would only lose 7 pounds a month which seems very inaccurate considering I'm losing at the rate of 8-10 pounds a month eating 2000 right now...
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Replies

  • WalkingAlong
    WalkingAlong Posts: 4,926 Member
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    Don't worry. One 2 lb. loss isn't a trend. It might not even be fat loss, just water changes or other.
  • jessicaxx_23
    jessicaxx_23 Posts: 10 Member
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    I should also mention I'm down from 145 and it's only been 2 weeks...
  • I_Will_End_You
    I_Will_End_You Posts: 4,397 Member
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    It's likely that a few lbs of that was water weight, and your loss will slow down. You don't have to exercise to be active, it sounds like you're pretty active just with your job and walking to and from classes.
  • sarahenagy
    sarahenagy Posts: 66 Member
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    Do you know about how many calories a day you were eating before? If 2000 is less then your body is probably reacting to the change. I lost very quickly when I first started, then it tapered and slowed down. MFP is a GREAT tool, but you have to do what works for your body. And that takes some experimentation.
  • TavistockToad
    TavistockToad Posts: 35,719 Member
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    be glad you can still eat so much and lose weight!
  • inktink
    inktink Posts: 135 Member
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    I agree with all of the previous post and would like to add that it sounds like you are pretty active. Walking is a good exercise for anyone, and it sounds like you do a lot of it.

    Also, as another person said, if you were eating well above 2000 calories previously, your body will adapt to the drop in calories.

    Have you used a BMR calculator to find out the average amount of calories your body needs to keep functioning?
  • SingForFun
    SingForFun Posts: 4 Member
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    Everyone is so different. Please don't gauge yourself on what the stats say you SHOULD do or what others are doing. You sound like you are listening to your body with regard to your caloric needs and staying satiated. Please don't ruin your fantastic metabolism by overdieting. You are nice and tall and young, so just go with what you are doing for a while. Walking is certainly exercise, and due to what is going on in our lives, we have different exercise methodologies, so hard core is not for everyone.
  • usmcmp
    usmcmp Posts: 21,220 Member
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    I'm 5'9" as well and my lean mass is 129 pounds. I lose weight eating at 2000 calories. I'm thinking you really don't need to lose weight.
  • LH85DC
    LH85DC Posts: 231 Member
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    be glad you can still eat so much and lose weight!

    This! Just because you're female doesn't mean that you have to eat 1200 to lose weight, you just have to figure out what your body is capable of. I eat 1800-1950 calories a day, am much shorter than you, and am losing between .5 and 1 lb per week. That said, a lot of this could be water weight because you're new to this (people tend to lose quickly in the beginning) and could slow down, but don't lower your goal just because you think you 'should' be eating less. Make the best of those calories!
  • jessicaxx_23
    jessicaxx_23 Posts: 10 Member
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    All BMR calcs say to eat 1459 calories a day...seems rather low. with exercise it's still only 1800 ish.
  • LH85DC
    LH85DC Posts: 231 Member
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    All BMR calcs say to eat 1459 calories a day...seems rather low. with exercise it's still only 1800 ish.

    Don't confuse BMR and TDEE- just because they say that your BMR is 1459 doesn't mean that's what you should eat. If they're estimating that your TDEE is only 1800ish, it may mean that you're underestimating your activity/exercise level since you're losing weight at a higher level.

    Regardless of what the calculators say, I'd stick with what you're doing for now- it's clearly working and there's no point cutting out more calories right now! Make sure that your goal is realistic, and then stick with what you're doing for 4 weeks or so (you may see your losses slow down). You'll have a better idea of how things will work for the longer run once you get past the first two weeks.

    There's some great basic posts on here about understanding TDEE and BMR- check out the "In place of a roadmap" or "A guide to get you started on your path to Sexypants" threads if you want more info.
  • SLLRunner
    SLLRunner Posts: 12,943 Member
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    All BMR calcs say to eat 1459 calories a day...seems rather low. with exercise it's still only 1800 ish.

    Welcome, Jessica.

    Well, you don't want to eat 1459 calories a day because that's what you need to survive if you were comatose or just laying on the sofa all day staring into space. That is the amount NOT to eat below.

    What is your TDEE? Go here to figure it out: http://thefitgirls.com/tdee-calculator.aspx. There are others out there as well.

    Since you walk across campus all day, I put in moderate exercise of 3-5 times a week. Here is what I came up with:

    BMR 1500
    TDEE 2325

    Based on this TDEE, which is the operative number to calculate weight loss, it sounds like you need to eat more than 2,000 in order not to lose weight so fast because you have so little to lose. You would deduct certain percentages from your TDEE based on the amount of weight you want to lose and then that amount of calories is what you'd eat. I believe 10% might be for one pound per week and 5% for .5 pounds per week. I'd suggest the latter since you have so little to lose.

    As for now, it seems to me your quick weight loss is probably water loss and from cutting calories, so it should taper off.

    I also advise not to eat less than 2,000.
  • arrseegee
    arrseegee Posts: 575 Member
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    Are you diabetic?
  • 86myHeadache
    86myHeadache Posts: 44 Member
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    I am so appreciative of this entire thread. I have been concerned about my rapid weight lost the last 5 weeks. I knew I had a lot of factors in my favor for a big month. I am worried about too much muscle lost and my metabolism changing. At my current trend I could hit my V-day goal by New Years. This thread is a reminder I am still in a "honeymoon" period.
  • vikachkas
    vikachkas Posts: 4 Member
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    I see that this post is quite old. But just wanted to add something. I i think at that weight and height you shouldn't be focused on losing weight. Your focus should be building muscle and keeping that metabolism super fast. You don't want to lower your calories because it will slow down your metabolism. If you are losing weight on 2k up the calories and start lifting. Avoid excessive cardio. You don't want to have be metabolically challenged, and eating less will give you just that. I've been there. If will get to the point where you body wont be able to burn actual fat without lowering your calories. I've been there. Im 5'4 and my coach put me on 2200 cals a day to get my metabolism to a heathy point. I barely do cardio.. and lift 6 days a week.
  • Graelwyn75
    Graelwyn75 Posts: 4,404 Member
    edited October 2014
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    vikachkas wrote: »
    I see that this post is quite old. But just wanted to add something. I i think at that weight and height you shouldn't be focused on losing weight. Your focus should be building muscle and keeping that metabolism super fast. You don't want to lower your calories because it will slow down your metabolism. If you are losing weight on 2k up the calories and start lifting. Avoid excessive cardio. You don't want to have be metabolically challenged, and eating less will give you just that. I've been there. If will get to the point where you body wont be able to burn actual fat without lowering your calories. I've been there. Im 5'4 and my coach put me on 2200 cals a day to get my metabolism to a heathy point. I barely do cardio.. and lift 6 days a week.

    It is a very old post and I imagine the original poster has gone, but nevertheless, your advice is certainly useful and something I agree with.

  • ndj1979
    ndj1979 Posts: 29,139 Member
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    what is up with all this zombie threads???? i know halloween is coming up, but come on people!!!!!!!!!!!
  • lemonshredding
    lemonshredding Posts: 71 Member
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    ironanimal wrote: »
    DO NOT LOWER IT

    DO NOT LOWER IT

    Enjoy losing on a higher amount than most. If you eventually reach a plateau, it gives you wiggle room a lot of people don't have.

    Also, 2000 calories a day is pretty average for a woman, so don't worry that it's too much, no matter what all the ****ty media says.

    I'm gradually losing on 2000+ calories. I am also 5'9. Yay for being tall and more foods! I'm very active though, walking daily and crossfit 5-6x a week. That said I usually eat 2200-2300 calories, and would probably lose more quickly if not for all the "guesstimates" and inaccurate logging for foods without published calorie information.

    Enjoy it! Don't create a problem before there is one. You want to lose a small amount of weight, eating enough is the way to do it and it is working! be happy :)

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