Thoughts on advice from a personal trainer.

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judy11351
judy11351 Posts: 33 Member
in Health and Weight Loss
I met a young lady today who is a personal trainer and we talked about how many calories I should be eating. I am 63 - 5' 7" and 193 lbs. Fit Bit and my scales have me at 2345 calories to stay where I am and she suggested that I need to eat the 2345 calories and to lose 1 lb. a week to work out and burn the 500 calories a day, that this would be the healthiest way to lose. She feels that I am not eating enough, I lift weights and do cardio 3 days a week at the gym and try to get in 1 -2 days of cardio at home. I'm afraid if I eat that much I will gain weight. My dairy is open. Thoughts please ... thanks

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  • williams969
    williams969 Posts: 2,528 Member
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    Is the 2345 figure WITH your exercise you described? I'm thinking yes, since 2345 for a sedentary, older female of your size is too high. If this is the case, simply eat 500 cals/day less than that, maintain the level of activity that you do, and that should turn into ~1lb/week loss. Simple as that.

    No need to do an ADDITIONAL 500 cal/day of exercise just to eat 2345, since your activity level is already moderate/very active.
  • Aaron_K123
    Aaron_K123 Posts: 7,122 Member
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    Well if all the numbers you gave were accurate then technically your personal trainer is correct. If you truly had a non-exercise caloric need of 2345 and you ate 2345 while exercising enough to burn 500 calories then yes you would lose 1 pound per week.

    I will admit however that with your stats (63 years old, 5'7 and 193 pounds) 2,345 calories for maintenance does sound pretty high. I mean if you are very active in your life then maybe but I see why you are skeptical about that number.
  • rachelg145
    rachelg145 Posts: 185 Member
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    agree, eat 500 less calories/day and continue regular workout routine.
  • judy11351
    judy11351 Posts: 33 Member
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    Thank you for your help.
  • judy11351
    judy11351 Posts: 33 Member
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    I think misunderstood what the 2345 meant. On my fitbit page it is in the circle of calories burned, but I never reach that goal. My average tdee for 3 weeks is 1949.
  • KathieZ123
    KathieZ123 Posts: 10 Member
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    :flowerforyou: If I eat more I will gain weight. Doing the best I can right now. My best is good enough. Be kind to yourself.:indifferent:
  • StaciMarie1974
    StaciMarie1974 Posts: 4,138 Member
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    Sounds like the trainer says your TDEE now is 2345, and you should work out more to burn an additional 500 and eat at 2345. That would work - but doesn't mean its the only/best way. No harm in increasing your activity if you're medically able to do so, but if you're female with a TDEE of 2345 then eating ~1800 would accomplish the 1 pound per week and be easily enough calories for proper nutrition. If you're male, its doable as well.

    Just read your additional post. 2345 is goal TDEE, 1949 is actual. For me (141 pounds, 39, female, 5' 5.5") I have to work really hard to burn 2150. If 1949 is your true # perhaps aim to hit 2000 (challenging ourselves = good) and eat 1500-1700 for .5 to .75 loss per week.

    Each expert has a limited viewpoint. A trainer wants you to work more. Its what they do. In reality you have to think about what's best for yourself, not what is preferred by the next expert.
  • judy11351
    judy11351 Posts: 33 Member
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    Thanks everyone for your input. :-)

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