Newbie here... with a few questions!

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nicki3us
nicki3us Posts: 4 Member
in Getting Started
So first let me say that i have never tried to lose weight by counting calories alone. It has always been Weight Watchers, SlimFast Atkins or diet pills etc etc you get the picture. I even went so far to use the pills you could buy over the counter back in the 70's-80's..DexaTrim ..I think?! Do they still make them I wonder!! LOL! So this is a new arena for me. My doctor wants me to do a plan of 1500-1800 calories and to keep carbs<130 daily. My MFP has given 1870 cal daily. So my question is do I aim for middle ground on the calorie range that was given due to carbs intake or would it make more sense to aim for the lower or upper end? I realize of course that more calories more food but was wondering if there is a ratio to go by as far as calories to carbs? Or does it even matter one way or another? I would like to lose 2lbs a week but I want to lose the healthy way and don't know which calorie amount would be the best way to go. Have lost 12lbs by low carbing but don't know if I can sustain it for a lifestyle change. I am on my feet and walking 8 hrs a day at work and wanted to get into the food plan first and then more exercise. I have been lurking over the message boards for a while and love how supportive everyone is. Hoping to be able to contribute and help others as we go. Thanks so much!

Replies

  • Faye_Anderson
    Faye_Anderson Posts: 1,495 Member
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    Purely from a weight loss point of view there's no need to do low carb, especially if you are finding it unsustainable. You can play around with your macro settings and find what works for you but I've found I have the best success at 40%carbs 30% fat 30% protein. When you say doctor do you mean GP? They have minimal nutrition training (my doctor advised a goal of 800 calories when I started :noway: ) I think the 1870 calories sounds a reasonable amount to start off with, stick at it for around 8 weeks and see where you're at, if you've not lost at least you have some room to lower your calories rather than starting at the lowest number and having nowhere to go. Good luck :flowerforyou:
  • AdventureFreak
    AdventureFreak Posts: 236 Member
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    macro nutrient proportioning has been very successful for me. I started with 40/30/30 carbs/fat/protein and worked with it from there based on my energy and feeling of fullness and settled on about 50/25/25. Remember that it is proportion by calories and a gram of protein/carb has 4 calories per and fat 9 calories per so don't look at raw gram measures for balance but calorie multiples. Everybody is different so your results and feelings may be different. listen to your body and it will tell you where you need to go.
  • Krikit34
    Krikit34 Posts: 125 Member
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    I'm in the same boat. My dr. gave me a range of 1200-1500. My MFP happens to fall right in there, but I worry less about that number and just try to stay within the range. Some days I'm at the low end, some days at the high end. I find it helpful having the range. A little more wiggle room at the end of the day and no anxiety because I don't hit "the number". I've averaged right around 2 lbs. per week since starting in Jan. I'm sticking with what my dr. has said, regardless of some of the advice on here. So far it's working.
  • downwardtrenz
    downwardtrenz Posts: 14 Member
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    1 gramof carbs = 4 calories, so you can work out your percentages from there. If you're to have less than 130 carbs that's 130 x 4 = your total calories for carbs. Take that a percentage of your total calories, then divide the remaining calories between protein and fat. Protein = 4 calories per gram and fat = 9 calories per gram.

    MFP can work it out for you if you go the settings page to set your goals, if you pick one, the rest work themselves out and you can tweak if necessary.

    Personally I would go with the range your doctor has set for you at least for a month and tweak if necessary.

    Good luck!
  • mmyelton
    mmyelton Posts: 1
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    My doctor put me on a 1200 calorie diet with 50% of my calories from lean protein. I did this for two weeks but found it wasn't sustainable for me. I spoke to my nutritionist who said that the doctor is making a recommendation based on what is best on average for everyone and my job was to become an expert on my own body. I now have adjusted my calories to 1300 per day and try to eat 33%/33%/33% for each. I feel much better and know that it's something I can keep up! I hope this helps.
  • scubasuenc
    scubasuenc Posts: 626 Member
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    If you have MFP set up for the right activity level and a 2lb per week loss, I would go with that. It isn't that much more than the doctor's estimate, and to be honest most GPs don't know much about nutrition. Less than 130 carbs per day isn't super low carb, it is just watching your carbs. I am a type 2 diabetic and I try to keep below 125 per day.

    You can start with the MFP goals for protein, fat and carbs, but I would use the protein goal as a minimum. Eventually you might find that you want to tweak the protein/fat/carb ratio. Personally, I've had success at 40% protein, 30% fat and 30% carb. I focus on trying to meet my protein and fat macros. I don't worry if I am under on carbs.
  • ccf_trainer
    ccf_trainer Posts: 86 Member
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    Let me start off by saying, that as a personal trainer and health coach, I STRONGLY advise you to never...ever use diet pills again. I do not recommend those. There are so many ways you can lose weight, it's just crazy, but there are some ways that are better than others. Counting calories is a good method, but not always the best. The last thing you want to do is limit yourself to the amount of vitamins and minerals you are going to need, but at the same time, as long as you are eating right, you should really be fine. I try to get my clients to not focus so much on counting calories as I map out their meal plans for they get on my nutrition program. My thing is this: Do you know how much proteins you need each day? How many meals are you eating? And do you know if you're getting enough antioxidants, vitamins, and minerals in your system? I tell my clients they need three basic things to help them reach their weight goals. They need macronutrients, micronutrients, and the absorption, which is very important. Those three things alone, along with a structured meal plan, will help you lose the weight.
  • nicki3us
    nicki3us Posts: 4 Member
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    Thanks everyone for your suggestions! Really appreciate your help on this journey!

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