Need some advice...
BoxerBrawler
Posts: 2,032 Member
Hello everyone, I hope you are all doing well!
I have tweaked and re-tweaked my numbers and sometimes I find a pattern that really works for me but then I plateau. I still don't feel comfortable with the calculated numbers that I am getting from the site. I tend to over estimate my calories and underestimate my calories burned but when it comes to stuff like how many calories I need, TDEE and things like that I am still really confused! I am not sure my macro's are really correct or working for me either. Like I said, sometimes I feel like I've hit the target, other times not.
I feel as if I do the best on a very low carb, moderate fat and higher percentage of protein nutrition plan so I'm not sure I have those macro's set right. Some days I come pretty close and a couple of days over the last week or so I've actually hit my targets but it's just not consistent.
I eat very healthy foods throughout the day, stick to a lot of veggies and protein with limited fruits and limited carbs. Amost all of my foods are whole, organic, fresh, etc. I drink a ton of water and have a fairly high activity level e.g., exercise a couple of hours or so a day. I try to stay away from sugars and do try to allow myself room for a small treat at night. I try to maintain a good deficit each day in an attempt to lose an additional 8 to 10 pounds.
But I feel like I am sort of stuck where I am right now. Weight not going up or down and performance sort of staying where it is.. maybe slightly increased endurance and strength but nothing hugely noticeable.
I took some advice and increased my caloric goal just by 100 calories a day to see if that would make a difference but I haven't been doing that for long so I can't see or report on any results yet.
Many days I find myself over my target calorie range, sometimes by just a few calories other days by more... I know that I am only looking at my set range and not my net number so even if I go over by a couple of hundred I am still not meeting my calorie range for the day. Maybe it's a mental thing but I just can't get myself to set it any higher lol!
Anyway... if someone could take a look at my diary and settings and provide any tips, advice, thoughts, comments, suggestions, anything at all I would truly appreciate the help.
Thanks so much in advance.
I have tweaked and re-tweaked my numbers and sometimes I find a pattern that really works for me but then I plateau. I still don't feel comfortable with the calculated numbers that I am getting from the site. I tend to over estimate my calories and underestimate my calories burned but when it comes to stuff like how many calories I need, TDEE and things like that I am still really confused! I am not sure my macro's are really correct or working for me either. Like I said, sometimes I feel like I've hit the target, other times not.
I feel as if I do the best on a very low carb, moderate fat and higher percentage of protein nutrition plan so I'm not sure I have those macro's set right. Some days I come pretty close and a couple of days over the last week or so I've actually hit my targets but it's just not consistent.
I eat very healthy foods throughout the day, stick to a lot of veggies and protein with limited fruits and limited carbs. Amost all of my foods are whole, organic, fresh, etc. I drink a ton of water and have a fairly high activity level e.g., exercise a couple of hours or so a day. I try to stay away from sugars and do try to allow myself room for a small treat at night. I try to maintain a good deficit each day in an attempt to lose an additional 8 to 10 pounds.
But I feel like I am sort of stuck where I am right now. Weight not going up or down and performance sort of staying where it is.. maybe slightly increased endurance and strength but nothing hugely noticeable.
I took some advice and increased my caloric goal just by 100 calories a day to see if that would make a difference but I haven't been doing that for long so I can't see or report on any results yet.
Many days I find myself over my target calorie range, sometimes by just a few calories other days by more... I know that I am only looking at my set range and not my net number so even if I go over by a couple of hundred I am still not meeting my calorie range for the day. Maybe it's a mental thing but I just can't get myself to set it any higher lol!
Anyway... if someone could take a look at my diary and settings and provide any tips, advice, thoughts, comments, suggestions, anything at all I would truly appreciate the help.
Thanks so much in advance.
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Replies
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I've had a really quick look at your diary. All looks pretty decent. Are you weighing everything (including fruit and veg) or just using the set amounts on here and/or guessing? You seem to be exercising loads which is great. Just make sure you know what your BMR is and don't eat below this (taking into account calories burned during exercise). If you dont know, your BMR is basically the calories your body needs to function, i.e. organ function, etc. You can calculate this using an online calculator - Scooby workshop is a good one.
I would be wary of the calories MFP says you burn - especialy in fitness classes as it wont consider how hard you work and any 'rests'. Give yourself a bit of a buffer when it comes to calories.
Personally, I find the easiest way to know how many calories to eat is to calculate TDEE -20% (this may be different for you depending on your goal) and input this into MFP. I then ONLY log food, NOT exercise as TDEE takes into account activity levels.0 -
you don't weigh your food.
The entries you use are suspicious. For example 2oz of chicken grilled 70 calories??? Assuming it is skinless breast that's about 96 calories..and how do you know it was 2 oz?
I suspect you are eating more than you think so upping the number on the website (if you start weighing your food) wont matter because chances are you are eating about 1400-1600 a day anyway.
And if you are doing as much exercise as reported you should have a goal of more than 1200 anyway...and definately eating over 1k calories a day.0 -
I do try to weigh most of my food but am guilty of just doing a quick input and relying on the set numbers... simply due to lack of time. I think I'm really good about logging most of my foods and pretty good about most of the numbers but yeah, you're right, when it comes to protien, etc. I think my numbers tend to be off here and there. I have been trying to get better about that and yes I feel like I'm getting a few more calories than what I think I am based on my log. Thanks for reinforcing that
As far as my work outs go I never slack! I put forth intense effort 100% of the time.. otherwise, why show up. Also, at boxing I don't have a choice but to put forth extreme effort. My trainor wouldn't allow anything less. However, I do know that at other workouts like cardio/dance unless I really really push myself there is no way I am burning over 300 calories like this program would have you believe. That's why I try to underestimate the calories burned with various activities.
Also, I know that my target calories are too low. I've struggled with that for a while and slowly learning to increase that in order to lose a bit more and be healthier.
Thanks again!0 -
Okay so I did the calculation and here is what I got:
Based on the stats - Female, 45 years old, 5'5", 119 lbs, exercise every day (left it general).
Mifflin indicates that my TDEE is 1943 and my BMR is 1187.
So.... what do I do with this information? I have read somewhere that I just pick a calorie range in between the two? That seems too random. If I minus 20 percent from the TDEE I get 388.6 so does that mean I should be eating 1,554 calories a day?
I am sorry to be so confused about this and don't want to come off as ignorant... I am just having a hard time wrapping my head around the numbers.
Thanks again for taking the time to help!0 -
You need to weigh your food. You're probably eating more than you think.
But really... why do you even want to lose more weight? Do some weight training or something...0 -
Eh... thanks but I don't think so. I am a breakfast person and believe that it's the most important meal of the day. I'm not into skipping meals, I want to nourish my body and give it the fuel it needs to be healthy.0
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Okay so I did the calculation and here is what I got:
Based on the stats - Female, 45 years old, 5'5", 119 lbs, exercise every day (left it general).
Mifflin indicates that my TDEE is 1943 and my BMR is 1187.
So.... what do I do with this information? I have read somewhere that I just pick a calorie range in between the two? That seems too random. If I minus 20 percent from the TDEE I get 388.6 so does that mean I should be eating 1,554 calories a day?
I am sorry to be so confused about this and don't want to come off as ignorant... I am just having a hard time wrapping my head around the numbers.
Thanks again for taking the time to help!
At 5 ft 5 and 119lbs you are at the low end of Healthy weight. Another 8lbs will put you at underweight...
If I were you I would eat TDEE-5% (with about 90g of protien a day) and start some sort of resistence training...weight lifting for example. That way you change the way your body looks without losing too much weight.
The scale number may stay but you will find you lose bodyfat % and inches and get a look perhaps that you want over being at a certian weight. This coming from a woman who does lift and loses weight but loses bodyfat and inches as well and is loving the change in my body. The squishy is going, not as soft in my middle, firming up and planning on reaching those visible abs that are so coveted.0 -
Thanks again! You have no idea how much this helps!
Yes, I have been boxing which is really toning/firming up my muscles and I plan to lift more as well. But I love the cardio too so I'll keep a good mix of various activites.
I just did another caluclation and I came up with the following:
(Keep in mind that I know folks recommend I don't lose more weight but just for an example)
At 1,242 calories per day I would achieve 1.1 lb a week (unhealthy I know)
That works out to 267 calories per meal at:
53 Fat calories
133 Protein calories and,
80 Carb calories.
While the above seems harsh I think it makes more sense than my current plan, no?0 -
Okay so I did the calculation and here is what I got:
Based on the stats - Female, 45 years old, 5'5", 119 lbs, exercise every day (left it general).
Mifflin indicates that my TDEE is 1943 and my BMR is 1187.
So.... what do I do with this information? I have read somewhere that I just pick a calorie range in between the two? That seems too random. If I minus 20 percent from the TDEE I get 388.6 so does that mean I should be eating 1,554 calories a day?
I am sorry to be so confused about this and don't want to come off as ignorant... I am just having a hard time wrapping my head around the numbers.
Thanks again for taking the time to help!
At 5 ft 5 and 119lbs you are at the low end of Healthy weight. Another 8lbs will put you at underweight...
If I were you I would eat TDEE-5% (with about 90g of protien a day) and start some sort of resistence training...weight lifting for example. That way you change the way your body looks without losing too much weight.
The scale number may stay but you will find you lose bodyfat % and inches and get a look perhaps that you want over being at a certian weight. This coming from a woman who does lift and loses weight but loses bodyfat and inches as well and is loving the change in my body. The squishy is going, not as soft in my middle, firming up and planning on reaching those visible abs that are so coveted.
Agree with the TDEE -5%. You do not want to lose much more body fat. TDEE -20% is about 1lb loss per week which is too much for you being the height and weight you are. TDEE -5% will take you to around 1845kcal so try and eat around this amount each day and monitor progress after about 4 weeks.
Definitely start incorporating more strength training into your workout - this will help tone your muscles. If you do do this, get out of the habit of weighing yourself because muscle is much denser than fat so while you will be losing body fat, the scales may suggest you're gaining weight, which you may be doing, but it will be muscle gain (good) not fat gain (not so good). Rather than weighing yourself, take your measurements - thighs, glutes, waists, hips, neck, wrists, forearm. This will give a more accurate indication of whether your plan is working. Feel free to add me if you need anymore advice - not for a second though am I claiming to be any sort of expert!0 -
I could be wrong but you state that you do around 900 calories worth of exercise each day - that seems like a waaaay overestimate to me.
That translates to about an hour and a half of moderate intensity jogging each day.. What exactly are you doing for exercise?0 -
Again, thanks but no thanks.
I know how to listen to my body and when I go for my military style calisthenics followed by legit boxing for an hour at 9 AM I need to make sure I have fuel (food a.k.a., breakfast in my body) to endure. I admit that when I do morning cardio I almost always do it in a fasted state but for more intense activities I need the food. I am not overweight... just looking to lose the last few vanity pounds and really tone up. And again, I am a breakfast person... I wake up hungry and eat a healthy breakfast almost every day, and it fills me and satisfies me and gives me tons of energy to get through my busy mornings and into the early afternoon. I go for a light lunch and a heavier early dinner. I think my timings and food choices are spot on for my own personal overall health and wellbeing. I am happy with that and have no desire to change it. I am just looking for advice on my numbers and calorie range at this point.0 -
Hello everyone, I hope you are all doing well!
I have tweaked and re-tweaked my numbers and sometimes I find a pattern that really works for me but then I plateau. I still don't feel comfortable with the calculated numbers that I am getting from the site. I tend to over estimate my calories and underestimate my calories burned but when it comes to stuff like how many calories I need, TDEE and things like that I am still really confused! I am not sure my macro's are really correct or working for me either. Like I said, sometimes I feel like I've hit the target, other times not.
I feel as if I do the best on a very low carb, moderate fat and higher percentage of protein nutrition plan so I'm not sure I have those macro's set right. Some days I come pretty close and a couple of days over the last week or so I've actually hit my targets but it's just not consistent.
I eat very healthy foods throughout the day, stick to a lot of veggies and protein with limited fruits and limited carbs. Amost all of my foods are whole, organic, fresh, etc. I drink a ton of water and have a fairly high activity level e.g., exercise a couple of hours or so a day. I try to stay away from sugars and do try to allow myself room for a small treat at night. I try to maintain a good deficit each day in an attempt to lose an additional 8 to 10 pounds.
But I feel like I am sort of stuck where I am right now. Weight not going up or down and performance sort of staying where it is.. maybe slightly increased endurance and strength but nothing hugely noticeable.
I took some advice and increased my caloric goal just by 100 calories a day to see if that would make a difference but I haven't been doing that for long so I can't see or report on any results yet.
Many days I find myself over my target calorie range, sometimes by just a few calories other days by more... I know that I am only looking at my set range and not my net number so even if I go over by a couple of hundred I am still not meeting my calorie range for the day. Maybe it's a mental thing but I just can't get myself to set it any higher lol!
Anyway... if someone could take a look at my diary and settings and provide any tips, advice, thoughts, comments, suggestions, anything at all I would truly appreciate the help.
Thanks so much in advance.
Try skipping breakfast. Nothing wrong with starting the day off on an empty stomach. I do it all the time. As I type this it is almost 7am.
My stomach is sending my brain signals that it is empty, but I don't care. Might drink a glass of water after this.
The trick is to get used to an empty stomach. it takes a week or so to feel somewhat comfortable. After three weeks it becomes routine and you don't give eating when you wake up a second thought.
Then the rest is easy. Food doesn't dominate my life. I will eat something at noon, but I don't know what it will be. If I get involved in a project, I might even skip lunch.
My big meal is a late afternoon dinner. Again, not sure what I will eat. Several options. I might just go to Chipotles.
Try it.
Skipping meals and feeling hungry...not sound advice.0 -
I could be wrong but you state that you do around 900 calories worth of exercise each day - that seems like a waaaay overestimate to me.
That translates to about an hour and a half of moderate intensity jogging each day.. What exactly are you doing for exercise?
No... haha, that's totally wrong. I was playing with the numbers and input it incorrectly. It's more like 90 minutes a day give or take, sometimes more sometimes less I will fix that shortly... sorry! 0 -
Again, thanks but no thanks.
I know how to listen to my body and when I go for my military style calisthenics followed by legit boxing for an hour at 9 AM I need to make sure I have fuel (food a.k.a., breakfast in my body) to endure. I admit that when I do morning cardio I almost always do it in a fasted state but for more intense activities I need the food. I am not overweight... just looking to lose the last few vanity pounds and really tone up. And again, I am a breakfast person... I wake up hungry and eat a healthy breakfast almost every day, and it fills me and satisfies me and gives me tons of energy to get through my busy mornings and into the early afternoon. I go for a light lunch and a heavier early dinner. I think my timings and food choices are spot on for my own personal overall health and wellbeing. I am happy with that and have no desire to change it. I am just looking for advice on my numbers and calorie range at this point.
^This - anyone who 1) tells you to skip meals, and, 2) tells you when you should and shouldn't eat is clearly a douche IMO. But everyone is different! :ohwell:0 -
Good for you! I would not skip meals, especially breakfast. That will probably only hurt your progress.0
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I agree to no skipping meals. Especially breakfast. All physicians state how important it is. :-)0
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All, unless you, ve to fast for lab work or medical procedures :-)Again, thanks but no thanks.
I know how to listen to my body and when I go for my military style calisthenics followed by legit boxing for an hour at 9 AM I need to make sure I have fuel (food a.k.a., breakfast in my body) to endure. I admit that when I do morning cardio I almost always do it in a fasted state but for more intense activities I need the food. I am not overweight... just looking to lose the last few vanity pounds and really tone up. And again, I am a breakfast person... I wake up hungry and eat a healthy breakfast almost every day, and it fills me and satisfies me and gives me tons of energy to get through my busy mornings and into the early afternoon. I go for a light lunch and a heavier early dinner. I think my timings and food choices are spot on for my own personal overall health and wellbeing. I am happy with that and have no desire to change it. I am just looking for advice on my numbers and calorie range at this point.
^This - anyone who 1) tells you to skip meals, and, 2) tells you when you should and shouldn't eat is clearly a douche IMO. But everyone is different! :ohwell:
ad hominem attacks!
the last refuge of the incompetent....0 -
Again, thanks but no thanks.
I know how to listen to my body and when I go for my military style calisthenics followed by legit boxing for an hour at 9 AM I need to make sure I have fuel (food a.k.a., breakfast in my body) to endure. I admit that when I do morning cardio I almost always do it in a fasted state but for more intense activities I need the food. I am not overweight... just looking to lose the last few vanity pounds and really tone up. And again, I am a breakfast person... I wake up hungry and eat a healthy breakfast almost every day, and it fills me and satisfies me and gives me tons of energy to get through my busy mornings and into the early afternoon. I go for a light lunch and a heavier early dinner. I think my timings and food choices are spot on for my own personal overall health and wellbeing. I am happy with that and have no desire to change it. I am just looking for advice on my numbers and calorie range at this point.
^This - anyone who 1) tells you to skip meals, and, 2) tells you when you should and shouldn't eat is clearly a douche IMO. But everyone is different! :ohwell:
ad hominem attacks!
the last refuge of the incompetent....
Wow, big words.... You must be smart. I don't see an MD after your name and don't know your stats or history but seriously giving advice to skip meals is really ignorant. If you don't have legitimate and healthy advice is appreciate it if you would just leave this thread as I am seeking advice for real goals. Thanks.0 -
And btw, some days I eat two or even three breakfasts hahaha! I am hungriest in the morning and give my body what it needs. End if that story.0
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Sorry about re quoting. It came out wrong, but I was trying to tell steve098 that any physicians will encouragel you to have breakfast.0
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Sorry about re quoting. It came out wrong, but I was trying to tell steve098 that any physicians will encouragel you to have breakfast.
As i said, name one physician and a PM is OK.
The body does not need a morning meal. For ANY reason.
Guyton and Hall, the standard Medical Physiology textbook, supports that.
Repeat: NO doctor ANYWHERE will tell you that you need to eat a morning meal- unless you are on insulin or something.
Don't confuse what you hear on breakfast food commercials for SOUND MEDICAL ADVICE.
It isn't.
Surely this is irrelevant? The OP is a breakfast person who needs her breakfast! Why try to push your faddy style of eating on to her. You're not reading and answering her question, you're just trying to encourage her to do something that doesn't suit. Doesn't make sense? :ohwell:0 -
And btw, some days I eat two or even three breakfasts hahaha! I am hungriest in the morning and give my body what it needs. End if that story.
THIS ^^^
You said it girl!! :laugh:0 -
Sorry about re quoting. It came out wrong, but I was trying to tell steve098 that any physicians will encouragel you to have breakfast.
As i said, name one physician and a PM is OK.
The body does not need a morning meal. For ANY reason.
Guyton and Hall, the standard Medical Physiology textbook, supports that.
Repeat: NO doctor ANYWHERE will tell you that you need to eat a morning meal- unless you are on insulin or something.
Don't confuse what you hear on breakfast food commercials for SOUND MEDICAL ADVICE.
It isn't.
I seriously think you're missing the point. It is irrelevant whether doctors recommend you eat breakfast or not. Most people here are looking to lose weight, and a consistent piece of advice you hear is that you should eat breakfast to kick start the metabolism for the day after about 8 hours of no food. That's the idea of breakfast - BREAK the [overnight] FAST.0 -
Buy the Primal blueprint. You may be surprised at how conventional wisdom has steered us all wrong.0
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My advice is not professional but I do see a nutritionist every other week. Of course weigh your food, you should know exactly what you are putting in your body, you will never know where your problem is if you are guessing. Also look for exactly what, down to the brand, you ate on mfp, I rarely find they don't have it. Never eat under 1200 calories, your body starves under 1200, as for your calories burned try a gadget such as a heart rate monitor, or a fitbit. If you don't know what your workout intensity is you could be out of your fat burning range and working too hard.0
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Buy the Primal blueprint. You may be surprised at how conventional wisdom has steered us all wrong.
^^^^ try before you buy - check out www.marksdailyapple.com
Plus the podcasts0 -
Breakfast to "kick start" metabolism?
OUCH! OUCH! OUCH!
Again:. Google "Hagan" and "Breakfast:Least important Meal of the Day"
It is a Kindle site.
DON'T BUY ANYTHING!
But read the first freebie 40 pages of the book.
Learn.
I don't feel the need to find out whether I should be eating breakfast or not - it's mine, OPs and everyone else's choice. I would also prefer to listen to advice of nutritionists (and no, I'm not going to 'name them' - no reason to justify myself to you).
At the end of the day, people do what works best for them. If not eating breakfast works best for you then I applaud you. But leave us breakfast-lovers alone. Thanks 0 -
What I have found with my body is that it never does what the math tells me it will do. I up my calories and lose two pounds a week, I bump it down and stop losing all together. Something will work for a while and then suddenly every this stops and I have to change it up. My advice is to try different things when what you're doing stops working for you. As we go through this journey our bodies and needs will change. It is just trial and error.
Start something new, see if it works, repeat. I have found this becomes easier as soon as you let go of, "I have to lose some weight everyday or I'm failing" mentality.0 -
Breakfast to "kick start" metabolism?
OUCH! OUCH! OUCH!
Again:. Google "Hagan" and "Breakfast:Least important Meal of the Day"
It is a Kindle site.
DON'T BUY ANYTHING!
But read the first freebie 40 pages of the book.
Learn.
I don't feel the need to find out whether I should be eating breakfast or not - it's mine, OPs and everyone else's choice. I would also prefer to listen to advice of nutritionists (and no, I'm not going to 'name them' - no reason to justify myself to you).
At the end of the day, people do what works best for them. If not eating breakfast works best for you then I applaud you. But leave us breakfast-lovers alone. Thanks
Man touchy.
The OP posted the thread so they could get different perspectives on what they could do (it's called advice or tips).
In fact I think you were the first to pitch in.
As this is not your thread and you are a participant in it (as we all are), why no let it be about the OP.
We can all put forward our suggestions and then the OP can take a look at them, if they see one they find of interest - hopefully they will do their own research and if it stacks up they can run with it.
If you must have your breakfast - great, I think the post you are disagreeing with is only stating that it's not particularly necessary to eat a breakfast and not advocating that people shouldn't eat it (it's that if they chose not to then - fine - no harm, no foul).0 -
Breakfast to "kick start" metabolism?
OUCH! OUCH! OUCH!
Again:. Google "Hagan" and "Breakfast:Least important Meal of the Day"
It is a Kindle site.
DON'T BUY ANYTHING!
But read the first freebie 40 pages of the book.
Learn.
I don't feel the need to find out whether I should be eating breakfast or not - it's mine, OPs and everyone else's choice. I would also prefer to listen to advice of nutritionists (and no, I'm not going to 'name them' - no reason to justify myself to you).
At the end of the day, people do what works best for them. If not eating breakfast works best for you then I applaud you. But leave us breakfast-lovers alone. Thanks
Man touchy.
The OP posted the thread so they could get different perspectives on what they could do (it's called advice or tips).
In fact I think you were the first to pitch in.
As this is not your thread and you are a participant in it (as we all are), why no let it be about the OP.
We can all put forward our suggestions and then the OP can take a look at them, if they see one they find of interest - hopefully they will do their own research and if it stacks up they can run with it.
If you must have your breakfast - great, I think the post you are disagreeing with is only stating that it's not particularly necessary to eat a breakfast and not advocating that people shouldn't eat it (it's that if they chose not to then - fine - no harm, no foul).
I agree.
If you read the previous posts OP has made her feelings clear re breakfast yet this guy (don't know his name) keeps bringing up the subject of why you shouldn't eat breakfast as it is 'unecessary'. I'm simply making the point, as you are, that everyone makes their own decisions and no-one should preach what is the 'right' and 'wrong' way of doing things.0
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