Just trust the science?

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wozkaa
wozkaa Posts: 224 Member
in Health and Weight Loss
Hi there

I am not new to weight loss,but new to counting calories - and have only recently learned about calculating BMR & TDEE ...

I have previously lost approx 60lb on Weight Watchers over a period of 2 years or so - i wasn't all that strict, but was taking my time and trying to learn to live a healthy lifestyle. I achieved a healthy balance, gave WW the flick and was jogging every 2nd day ..
Anyway life threw me a curve ball, then two more. The point is, that I now have weight to lose again, and referring to my old WW material my WW points allowance has me eating about 300-350 cal a day less than MFP allocates.

I am having a hard time letting go of the 'points' thing which helped me to succeed. I am trying to use the points more as a guide, and trust the calculated amount MFP has allocated.

If I am accurately weighing, measuring and tracking my intake, can I just rely on the MFP calories? It seems like a leap of faith I am unwilling to make just yet!

Thanks for any input, especially if you have used ww before and get what I mean.

Replies

  • SuperCrsa
    SuperCrsa Posts: 790 Member
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    Hellloooo :)
    I was also on Weight Watchers before joining on here, I just eventually gave up on WW cause this site was so much more helpful and easier to use (and free too!!)

    WW points were also a lot lower for me than what MFP was telling me to eat, so dont stress about that. I think that is how they get away with the 0 point veggie allowance.

    Keep on logging and tracking your food, remember to weigh the food to get the most accurate results. LOG EVERYTHING that you put in your mouth.

    You will be there in no time :) Heres a great article for you to have a look at if you haven't yet.
    http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/1080242-a-guide-to-get-you-started-on-your-path-to-sexypants?hl=guide+sexypants

    Good luck, keep it up :smile:
  • p4ulmiller
    p4ulmiller Posts: 588 Member
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    I am having a hard time letting go of the 'points' thing which helped me to succeed. I am trying to use the points more as a guide, and trust the calculated amount MFP has allocated.

    If I am accurately weighing, measuring and tracking my intake, can I just rely on the MFP calories? It seems like a leap of faith I am unwilling to make just yet!

    Thanks for any input, especially if you have used ww before and get what I mean.

    All WW does is give you a convenient way of measuring calories. That's it. Nothing else.

    Your body consumes energy provided to it through calories, and not WW points.

    When all is said and done, count calories in and record calories out. When one is less than the other, you'll lose weight. Simples.

    (Well done on the loss so far, by the way).
  • clarebear230786
    clarebear230786 Posts: 30 Member
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    I was worried about just trusting the science, just done my first week doing TDEE - 20% and I have lost 1.2 lbs so I am happy that my cals were worked out correctly. I am feeling very excited now about the next few months :)
  • venerabledom
    venerabledom Posts: 2 Member
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    I was going to say the same thing - WW is just a simplified cal calculator. MFP is much better IMHO and gets to the heart of the matter - count the calories in v's calories out and you'll lose weight.
  • wozkaa
    wozkaa Posts: 224 Member
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    My thanks to those who have replied. :-)

    I get that it's just a simplified method of counting calories - but I was wondering more about the fact that once I use up all my points, I still have daily calories left over.

    I think SuperCrsa may have hit the nail on the head about the 'free' veggies making up the difference. Additionally, I do understand that some foods are more points heavy depending on their content to try and encourage better choices and balanced meals.

    I am going to try to track and eat all of my daily calories, but might leave about 100cal as leeway because frankly i do forget to log that I eat half a piece of fruit now and then because I have 2 toddlers at home and have a memory like a sieve!

    Cheers.

    Oh and thanks for the encouragement. I reset and started logging again on 1 January after seeing Xmas pictures....*shudder* :-)
  • rockmama72
    rockmama72 Posts: 815 Member
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    Yep, you can. I've lost weight on WW several times... First time after my son was born 16 years ago and the fiber thing became big. It works! But also the calorie trimming works like on MFP. In fact, I like it better. I'm all about the support and fellowship I get...on WW online, there was a gang of nasties that ruined it for me. Mindfulness about your eating is the key!
  • oiseau17
    oiseau17 Posts: 142 Member
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    Remember with WW you also have those 49 "anytime" points which may account for some of the discrepancy as well. When I switched from WW to my MFP I logged both cals and points for two weeks while I tested the waters. After that I walked away from WW and have been very successful here!
  • wozkaa
    wozkaa Posts: 224 Member
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    It's good to hear this from other previous WW users. I was only online, but didn't use the community all that much - I lurked and read a lot, but this forum seems to offer more?
    Remember with WW you also have those 49 "anytime" points which may account for some of the discrepancy as well. When I switched from WW to my MFP I logged both cals and points for two weeks while I tested the waters. After that I walked away from WW and have been very successful here!

    YES! Thank you, I forgot alllll about the spare points! The final puzzle piece has fallen into place now. :-D I am running the WW side-by-side script in my browser while I am getting used to this, and likely will dump the idea once I get a handle on things.

    Thank you so very much for your help!

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