Daily caloric needs, HELP!! :)

harymarshman
harymarshman Posts: 1
edited February 23 in Health and Weight Loss
I just started unloading trucks 4-5 days a week, switched from a job that kept me standing in one place all day, and need help adjusting my caloric needs. I bought a pedometer and I"m averaging about 17,000 steps at work alone. I'm pulling pallets or carrying boxes for most of my 8 hour shift. At home I have light housework to do everyday that keeps me on my feet for 1-3 hours. I have a 2 year old and a 7 month old. Before I switched jobs I was eating 1500-1600 calories a day. Obviously I can't keep eating that few, I'm starving all the time, but I'm not sure what to put my activity level at to help me figure out how much I should be eating a day. I've been losing about 2 lbs per week and would like to keep it at that without putting my body into starvation mode. I stopped my gym membership temporarily while my body adjusts to the new hours I'm keeping and to the new job. (I'm so sore lol.) A couple quizzes I took said I was very active but that's hard for me to believe. (Mostly because of my history of inactivity and general laziness.) This is probably a silly post with common sense questions but I've spent most of my life overweight, "morbidly obese" the last several years. I want to lose weight but I want to do it the right way. All of this is new to me lol.

Replies

  • tibby531
    tibby531 Posts: 717 Member
    I would try "active" to start. :)
  • jtrack3d
    jtrack3d Posts: 91
    I'd think since weight changes are slow and sometimes in spurts, it might be time to just adjust your intake up a little at a time and see the impact. I'm no expert, but mathwise, if a 500 daily deficit loses weight, then if you added that 500 back, you'd maintain. Add back to your old BMR the 500 you subtracted and if you continue to lose you may need more.... if you stay the same... it was too much... but at least you shouldn't lose ground.
  • _KitKat_
    _KitKat_ Posts: 1,066 Member
    Maybe try the TDEE method, I will have to find it, but one of the sites calculators actually itemizes your week by hours of activities. Once you have your TDEE try TDEE -20%= goal or TDEE - 500 calories (per lb loss weekly) = goal.

    Try these calculators for now...
    http://iifym.com/tdee-calculator/

    To other posters...
    I am having a hard time finding the one, it was for TDEE but let you put in weekly hours of different activities, if anyone knows what I'm talking about and can link...it would be great.


    OP in case you don't know....TDEE method your exercise is already figured in, you do not eat eexercise calories back and your goal is the same daily.
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