weight loss for dummies
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there really isn't anything more to it.
Consume more calories than you burn.
Exercise isn't even for weight loss really it's for health and fitness...you can lose weight just by reducing calories.
Exact diet plan would be eat what you want/crave/love within your deficit.
Weight all solids, measure all liquids, log using the correct entries.
That's it.
Oh the 2lbs a week would be fine for now but you need to lower it eventually.
If you have 75+ lbs to lose 2 lbs/week is ideal
If you have 40-75 lbs to lose 1.5 lbs/week is ideal
If you have 25-40 lbs to lose 1 lbs/week is ideal
If you have 15 -25 lbs to lose 0.5 to 1.0 lbs/week is ideal
If you have less than 15 lbs to lose 0.5 lbs/week is ideal
As for your Macros (carbs, protien, fats) are more about nutrition than weight loss. I watch mine because I lift heavy weights and I need adequate protien to help heal the muscles.
Mind you protien keeps you feeling fuller longer.
To find your calories for weight loss just enter your info into MFP they do the work for you. But set reasonable goals, accurate activity levels etc.
No magic, no secrets.
If you enter all your data in at reasonable settings you should get about 1400-1500 calories a day to eat.
Then if you want to exercise log that, eat at least 50-75% of those calories back and you are golden.
This is good, but I like to burn more calories than I consume, generally I lose more weight that way.
Well the thing is, is that I was taking in about 1000 calories every day and burning about 1200 but the weight wouldn't cone off. And everyone said I was starving myself?
Most people take between 250cals - 1000 off their TDEE and eat that. Most people opt for a number over there BMR, then eat back 50%-75% of the calories they burn through exercise.
This means that you are properly fuelling your body. Burning off more than you eat will simply make you ill, either that it will make you crave fatty food and binge eat, and you won't lose weight.
The best way to lose weight is 1-2lbs a week. It's the healthiest, easiest and most substantial way to do it.0 -
there really isn't anything more to it.
Consume less calories than you burn.
Exercise isn't even for weight loss really it's for health and fitness...you can lose weight just by reducing calories.
Exact diet plan would be eat what you want/crave/love within your deficit.
Weight all solids, measure all liquids, log using the correct entries.
That's it.
Oh the 2lbs a week would be fine for now but you need to lower it eventually.
If you have 75+ lbs to lose 2 lbs/week is ideal
If you have 40-75 lbs to lose 1.5 lbs/week is ideal
If you have 25-40 lbs to lose 1 lbs/week is ideal
If you have 15 -25 lbs to lose 0.5 to 1.0 lbs/week is ideal
If you have less than 15 lbs to lose 0.5 lbs/week is ideal
As for your Macros (carbs, protien, fats) are more about nutrition than weight loss. I watch mine because I lift heavy weights and I need adequate protien to help heal the muscles.
Mind you protien keeps you feeling fuller longer.
To find your calories for weight loss just enter your info into MFP they do the work for you. But set reasonable goals, accurate activity levels etc.
No magic, no secrets.
If you enter all your data in at reasonable settings you should get about 1400-1500 calories a day to eat.
Then if you want to exercise log that, eat at least 50-75% of those calories back and you are golden.
FIFY0 -
there really isn't anything more to it.
Consume less calories than you burn.
Exercise isn't even for weight loss really it's for health and fitness...you can lose weight just by reducing calories.
Exact diet plan would be eat what you want/crave/love within your deficit.
Weight all solids, measure all liquids, log using the correct entries.
That's it.
Oh the 2lbs a week would be fine for now but you need to lower it eventually.
If you have 75+ lbs to lose 2 lbs/week is ideal
If you have 40-75 lbs to lose 1.5 lbs/week is ideal
If you have 25-40 lbs to lose 1 lbs/week is ideal
If you have 15 -25 lbs to lose 0.5 to 1.0 lbs/week is ideal
If you have less than 15 lbs to lose 0.5 lbs/week is ideal
As for your Macros (carbs, protien, fats) are more about nutrition than weight loss. I watch mine because I lift heavy weights and I need adequate protien to help heal the muscles.
Mind you protien keeps you feeling fuller longer.
To find your calories for weight loss just enter your info into MFP they do the work for you. But set reasonable goals, accurate activity levels etc.
No magic, no secrets.
If you enter all your data in at reasonable settings you should get about 1400-1500 calories a day to eat.
Then if you want to exercise log that, eat at least 50-75% of those calories back and you are golden.
FIFY
thanks...wow brain turd tonight...must remember to re-read posts after a night out drinking....:bigsmile:0 -
I'll post this here too since I don't know which of the two threads you posted today you are paying attention to.
Okay, so I looked up Strava. It looks like most people are saying that it has a 50% margin of error. That's huge. So you're probably overestimating your cals burned by up to 50%.
That's only part of the issue though, since even without exercise, you still only think you're eating 1200 calories. So you use a digital scale and weight everything you eat?
My continued impression is that you're overestimating calories burned, underestimating calories eaten and that you don't have a metabolic issue. It's entirely possible just highly unlikely.
Get checked out just in case but when the results come back, just know that you're going to have to be accurate with your food logging (to the gram) and you're probably going to have to estimate your calories burned by half.0 -
Actually if your goal is to lose weight its even simplier than calorie counting and exercise, its just calorie counting period. All you need to do to lose weight is to eat less than your body requires to maintain your weight. Up to you to determine what that number is, determine what you eat in a day and make sure what you eat in a day is below that number.
Everything else is detail.
Exercise is important for your health but exercising for health and weightloss are really two separate goals, they just happen to be goals you can achieve at the same time.0 -
http://scoobysworkshop.com/accurate-calorie-calculator/#results
This: plug yourself in there and it will tell you what to do. Then you can go into 'goals' and enter the information there. Then just carry on carrying on.
by the way, it's consume fewer calories than you burn - I'm sure someone's fixed that by now but just in case...
MFP works out your cals a little differently, because (a) it asks you what you want to lose a week which is DANGEROUS because a person starts dreaming and making up big numbers; and (b) it will give you a daily calorie amount, and when you exercise you can add extra calories for that day.
TDEE, or 'total daily energy expenditure' based diets will find out how much exercise you do, work out your TDEE, and then reduce your calorie quota by 5, 10, 15 or 20%, and then you just have to take your lumps as to how long that takes. If you do exercise it's already contained in that quota and you don't get to add extra.
Clear as mud? Either way is your option. You have to do the learning about how many calories are in a thing, and you have to find meals you can eat that are low calorie, yourself. There's no shortcut to that.
Having said that, it gets easier, and quicker, and the more you know, the easier it all becomes. Be brave and stick at it.0 -
there really isn't anything more to it.
Consume more calories than you burn.
Exercise isn't even for weight loss really it's for health and fitness...you can lose weight just by reducing calories.
Exact diet plan would be eat what you want/crave/love within your deficit.
Weight all solids, measure all liquids, log using the correct entries.
That's it.
Oh the 2lbs a week would be fine for now but you need to lower it eventually.
If you have 75+ lbs to lose 2 lbs/week is ideal
If you have 40-75 lbs to lose 1.5 lbs/week is ideal
If you have 25-40 lbs to lose 1 lbs/week is ideal
If you have 15 -25 lbs to lose 0.5 to 1.0 lbs/week is ideal
If you have less than 15 lbs to lose 0.5 lbs/week is ideal
As for your Macros (carbs, protien, fats) are more about nutrition than weight loss. I watch mine because I lift heavy weights and I need adequate protien to help heal the muscles.
Mind you protien keeps you feeling fuller longer.
To find your calories for weight loss just enter your info into MFP they do the work for you. But set reasonable goals, accurate activity levels etc.
No magic, no secrets.
If you enter all your data in at reasonable settings you should get about 1400-1500 calories a day to eat.
Then if you want to exercise log that, eat at least 50-75% of those calories back and you are golden.
This.0 -
there really isn't anything more to it.
Consume less calories than you burn.
Exercise isn't even for weight loss really it's for health and fitness...you can lose weight just by reducing calories.
Exact diet plan would be eat what you want/crave/love within your deficit.
Weight all solids, measure all liquids, log using the correct entries.
That's it.
Oh the 2lbs a week would be fine for now but you need to lower it eventually.
If you have 75+ lbs to lose 2 lbs/week is ideal
If you have 40-75 lbs to lose 1.5 lbs/week is ideal
If you have 25-40 lbs to lose 1 lbs/week is ideal
If you have 15 -25 lbs to lose 0.5 to 1.0 lbs/week is ideal
If you have less than 15 lbs to lose 0.5 lbs/week is ideal
As for your Macros (carbs, protien, fats) are more about nutrition than weight loss. I watch mine because I lift heavy weights and I need adequate protien to help heal the muscles.
Mind you protien keeps you feeling fuller longer.
To find your calories for weight loss just enter your info into MFP they do the work for you. But set reasonable goals, accurate activity levels etc.
No magic, no secrets.
If you enter all your data in at reasonable settings you should get about 1400-1500 calories a day to eat.
Then if you want to exercise log that, eat at least 50-75% of those calories back and you are golden.
FIFY
thanks...wow brain turd tonight...must remember to re-read posts after a night out drinking....:bigsmile:
:drinker:0 -
there really isn't anything more to it.
Consume more calories than you burn.
Exercise isn't even for weight loss really it's for health and fitness...you can lose weight just by reducing calories.
Exact diet plan would be eat what you want/crave/love within your deficit.
Weight all solids, measure all liquids, log using the correct entries.
That's it.
Oh the 2lbs a week would be fine for now but you need to lower it eventually.
If you have 75+ lbs to lose 2 lbs/week is ideal
If you have 40-75 lbs to lose 1.5 lbs/week is ideal
If you have 25-40 lbs to lose 1 lbs/week is ideal
If you have 15 -25 lbs to lose 0.5 to 1.0 lbs/week is ideal
If you have less than 15 lbs to lose 0.5 lbs/week is ideal
As for your Macros (carbs, protien, fats) are more about nutrition than weight loss. I watch mine because I lift heavy weights and I need adequate protien to help heal the muscles.
Mind you protien keeps you feeling fuller longer.
To find your calories for weight loss just enter your info into MFP they do the work for you. But set reasonable goals, accurate activity levels etc.
No magic, no secrets.
If you enter all your data in at reasonable settings you should get about 1400-1500 calories a day to eat.
Then if you want to exercise log that, eat at least 50-75% of those calories back and you are golden.
This is good, but I like to burn more calories than I consume, generally I lose more weight that way.
The MFP calorie goal has you eating less than your body burns in a day , trying to exercise away everything you eat is not exactly healthy
I agree, what I meant was do not consume more than you burn to lose weight, I don't know why I said it that way! That is unhealthy.0 -
Well the thing is, is that I was taking in about 1000 calories every day and burning about 1200 but the weight wouldn't cone off. And everyone said I was starving myself?
Most people underestimate how many calories they eat and over estimate how many calories they burn even when they use a program like MFP. For example I noticed that you put 'hike' for your walks, were you actually hiking on a trail or walking beside a road? If you were walking six miles on a road then it's possible that you weren't actually burning 1,000 calories. MFP says I would burn over twice the calories hiking 6 miles than I would walking 6 miles. If that is the case you may have only been burning 400 or 500 calories, thinking that you were burning 1,000.
e. also you need to make sure you are actually eating enough to maintain basic health too, otherwise you will start destroying your muscles, and it is your muscles that help you burn fat!
See, I was wondering the same thing! I use the Strava App and I'm walking on trails at my park. When taking into consideration the "feet climbed" that increases my calorie burning. I really think I just need to get a heart rate monitor to be completely sure of my exercises.0 -
I think you are misunderstanding the concept of eating less than your burn - it's not eat less than what you burn in exercise, it's eat less than what your body burns all day long, in a 24 hour period, sleeping, walking around your home, brushing your teeth, sitting on the couch, working, etc. Our bodies are constantly burning calories, even at rest.
That's why we were saying you were starving yourself by eating 1000 cals and burning 1200 in exercise which leaves you with basically nothing - your body burned those exercise cals in addition to whatever you normally burn all day long (your BMR or basal metabolic rate). If you were in a coma, the hospital would feed you your BMR. You are not in a coma, so you should be eating more that whatever your BMR is. MFP figures that out for you and gives you a daily goal - it's simple.
Example - my BMR is around 1400 cals, and my body burns about 2100 cals a day when I'm active. I eat 1800-2000 calories a day, less than what I burn all day, so I lose weight.
You're exactly right! I had no clue what the eat less than you burn thing meant. I assumed it meant that if you want to lose weight you're gonna have to exercise to burn the calories you eat that day. Especially because I have a desk job where I sit all day long. So I assumed my body only naturally burns maybe a couple hundred a day? I never knee all the other stuff! I know I sound so ignorant but, hey, I'm new here!. Lol0 -
I'll post this here too since I don't know which of the two threads you posted today you are paying attention to.
Okay, so I looked up Strava. It looks like most people are saying that it has a 50% margin of error. That's huge. So you're probably overestimating your cals burned by up to 50%.
That's only part of the issue though, since even without exercise, you still only think you're eating 1200 calories. So you use a digital scale and weight everything you eat?
My continued impression is that you're overestimating calories burned, underestimating calories eaten and that you don't have a metabolic issue. It's entirely possible just highly unlikely.
Get checked out just in case but when the results come back, just know that you're going to have to be accurate with your food logging (to the gram) and you're probably going to have to estimate your calories burned by half.
Well I know that I have definitely measured everything out correctly and if I don't have any way of weighing, I just high ball it. (Ex. I may eat a grilled chicken strip and I can't find that in mfp so I will just say "5oz of chicken" even though I know that's too high I would rather be safe than sorry) and I have definitely been wondering if Strava is inaccurate because 1000 calories just seemed to go to be true. I think I need to invest in an accurate heart rate monitor for tracking calories. And the more I though about it the more I reakized that true since I have been dieting I have lost at least 2lbs per week but when I FIRST started dieting I was losing MUCH more. (Probably just water weight) So since in the beginning it was just falling off, now its slowing down. HOWEVER, I have noticed that my weight will be lower at the end of a day that I didn't work out opposed to the end of a day that I did work out. Any ideas on why that would be? By the way I truly appreciate you're help and support!!0 -
Weighing yourself is definitely appealing and it's hard not to but an accurate way to determine if you are losing weight is to measure yourself. Muscle weighs more than fat so you may see some increases or be disappointed because you didn't lose as many pounds that you thought you had. For me the scales say I've lost around 5 pounds but I can tell that my thighs and calves are so much more toned from the walking I've been doing and my cankles are disappearing. 0
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Check out this thread if you like.
http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/1161976-adopt-a-noob-official-mfp-thread
The Adopt-A-Noob program, is for noobies, such as yourself, to find a qualified mentor from the 9 pages of qualified MFP's offering their services. Please read the first post in the thread, and follow the instructions. Don't post in the thread. Read through the 9 pages of mentors offering services, and choose a few who you think would best suit you. Then, PM them, and offer any info about yourself that you think would make you and the mentor a good fit. Many of the mentors offering services on the first pages may be full up. But, there are alot of mentors who have posted fairly recently, on the last couple of pages of the thread. Who, I'd think, would more likely be available.
If you can find the right mentor, they will probably gladly answer all your questions, one on one.0 -
Check out this thread if you like.
http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/1161976-adopt-a-noob-official-mfp-thread
The Adopt-A-Noob program, is for noobies, such as yourself, to find a qualified mentor from the 9 pages of qualified MFP's offering their services. Please read the first post in the thread, and follow the instructions. Don't post in the thread. Read through the 9 pages of mentors offering services, and choose a few who you think would best suit you. Then, PM them, and offer any info about yourself that you think would make you and the mentor a good fit. Many of the mentors offering services on the first pages may be full up. But, there are alot of mentors who have posted fairly recently, on the last couple of pages of the thread. Who, I'd think, would more likely be available.
If you can find the right mentor, they will probably gladly answer all your questions, one on one.
This is SO awesome! Thank you soo much!0 -
There's so much that goes into weight loss. Might I recommend some books to help you out? My fav is "the slow down diet" by Marc David and my own book (shameless self promotion) "the weight loss shift: be more, weigh less" by Michelle Hastie.0
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There's so much that goes into weight loss. Might I recommend some books to help you out? My fav is "the slow down diet" by Marc David and my own book (shameless self promotion) "the weight loss shift: be more, weigh less" by Michelle Hastie.
Actually to lose weight by definition there is less that goes into weight loss
Hope your book is free otherwise your post may well be outside the rules of this site0 -
There's so much that goes into weight loss. Might I recommend some books to help you out? My fav is "the slow down diet" by Marc David and my own book (shameless self promotion) "the weight loss shift: be more, weigh less" by Michelle Hastie.
Solid first post.....0
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