How to lose fat. (How net calories work)

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Nikoruo
Nikoruo Posts: 771 Member
in Health and Weight Loss
Hello friends!

Question: When trying to lose weight, are you supposed to eat back all your calories burnt throughout the day? I'll explain further...

So to lose 2 lbs a week i am told to eat 1200 calories on sedentary activity.
To lose 1.5 lb a week i must eat around 1470 on sedentary activity.

and

To lose 1 lb a week i must eat around 1720 calories on sedentary activity.

Now, I'm pretty sure I'm not considered sedentary on most week days as i do work and soon i'll be back at school and working. Therefore I have a pedometre tracking how many steps i take to get an estimate on how many calories burnt. On average, right now, I burn around 300 calories while at work just from walking around.....so, does this mean that if i intend to lose 2lbs a week still that i should now eat around 1500 calories a day so that my net will be 1200?

From what i know and what my dietitian said, 1200 calories is the lowest a woman of my age and height can go. So basically, i need 1200 calories just to run my heart, brain, lungs etc. anything else i do burns more calories than that. SO, netting under 1200 is not what i'm looking to do and even harmful to my body and weight loss right?

So my question(s) really is/are this/these.... how much SHOULD i be eating a day? How many calories do I eat back and should my net never go under 1200?

My basic stats: 23 year old female, larger bone structure, 217 lbs and looking to reach my goal of 150 lbs-ish (-67 lbs to go~!), 5"7', I do mostly cardio right now (not going to to weight lifting for a while :P)

Also, to maintain 150 lbs i hear I should be eating around 2000 calories a day on sedentary... so i don't know if that comes into the equation at all here.

Here's my basic day plan's as of this moment:

Monday-Thursday: I work (average burn 300 calories) + I do hiit cardio (average burn 400 calories)
Friday: I work (Average burn 300 calories)
Saturday: Bum around day (may do some shopping or general walking around, usually track calories using pedometer. Average burn 200 calories)
Sunday: I do hiit cardio (average burn 400 calories)[/i]

SO! That being said, each of my days should look different I presume if i always make sure that my net doesn't go under 1200. Or should I really eat what it tells me each day. As an example: I want to lose 2 lbs a week and therefore should eat 1200 calories a day. That means that monday through thursday i will net around 500 calories, friday i'll net around 900 calories, saturday i'll either sit at 1200 or 1000 calories and sunday will be about 800 calories.

Or! do I up them in accordance to how much i'm being active that day? As an example: I want to lose 2lbs a week and therefore I should eat 1200 calories a day + total amount burnt per day. Which means that monday through friday i will eat 1900 calories (netting at 1200), friday i would eat 1500 calories (netting at 1200), Saturday I'd eat 1200-1400 calories (depending on any activities i do), and sunday i would eat 1600 calories (netting at 1200).

It always feels as though eating back calories is kind of defeating the purpose so i'm not sure. Is example 2 the way to go? and when workouts come to mind, should i eat it all back or only half? Letting my net go below 1200 some days?

It's something i've been thinking of for a while so I'm not sure. If this has been answered before i did search up on my own for it but couldn't come across it completely explained. sorry if it's a repost! I've been eating around 1200 calories for a while and i do lose weight but i also gain it back just as quick soon after lately. Let me know what you think, should i eat back my burnt calories or let my net fall below 1200. Thanks!

Replies

  • SezxyStef
    SezxyStef Posts: 15,268 Member
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    Yes

    but to add with 17lbs to go 2lb or even 1.5 is agressive...
  • Nikoruo
    Nikoruo Posts: 771 Member
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    Yes

    but to add with 17lbs to go 2lb or even 1.5 is agressive...

    haha well i have more than 17 lbs to go. I have 17 lbs until i reach one of my goal points, and that's to be under 200lbs. In actuality i have around 67 lbs to go. Do i still go for less than 2lbs a week to lose? I'm thinking that i'll average eating around 1-1.5lbs to lose a week and then burn off the rest through regular exercise or general activity or work. What do you think about that?
  • KylaDenay
    KylaDenay Posts: 1,585 Member
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    Who wants to eat 1200 calories a day?? LOL...Yes eat back a majority of your exercise calories. Even though you have a good amount of weight to lose, I would stick with the 1-1.5 lb a week loss. At least that way you would not feel deprived. MFP always says 1200 to lose 2 lbs. I am sure you can lose 2 lbs with more than that according to what your TDEE is. Some people like to rush it and always want that 2 lb weight loss. If you are patient and rather take your time and do it right, then pick what is best for you :)

    Good luck!
  • SezxyStef
    SezxyStef Posts: 15,268 Member
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    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

    This is what most go with for it to be healthy and sustainable.

    I think that your goal should be to eat as much food as you can and still lose a reasonable amount of weight.

    If you eat for 1-1.5 that is about 1500 calories...and if you exercise eat back 50-75% of those calories to hit a gross of about 1600-1800...which when losing is a good amount of calories and you can fit stuff in easily...
  • Cheyenne_K_
    Cheyenne_K_ Posts: 31 Member
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    I eat 250 calories less than my maintenance and have my workouts get the rest of the slack. I've lost 10 ls in just under two months. I eat the same amount whether I work out or not.
  • Nikoruo
    Nikoruo Posts: 771 Member
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    Who wants to eat 1200 calories a day?? LOL...Yes eat back a majority of your exercise calories. Even though you have a good amount of weight to lose, I would stick with the 1-1.5 lb a week loss. At least that way you would not feel deprived. MFP always says 1200 to lose 2 lbs. I am sure you can lose 2 lbs with more than that according to what your TDEE is. Some people like to rush it and always want that 2 lb weight loss. If you are patient and rather take your time and do it right, then pick what is best for you :)

    Good luck!

    Haha yeah i do want it fast (who wouldn't!) but i want to do this right with the least amount of pain as possible haha. I am actually usually perfectly fine eating around 1200-1400 calories before netting. As in, i don't feel hungry.. Even if i worked or worked out. However i'm starting to feel like it may be causing me to plateau since i've only been able to jump up and down between 210 lbs-220 lbs lately and not much below. This is what is making me look at it. that i should raise my amount and just burn down. Though I just wasn't sure if my net isn't supposed to go below 1200 calories and if that's what is causing my metabolism to slow down or something. Haha so yes, i'm thinking i'll start eating around 1470lbs(lose 1.5lbs) to 1720lbs) and then taking of any general activity. Not letting my net go below, or much below 1200.

    Thanks for your input! :)
  • WalkingAlong
    WalkingAlong Posts: 4,926 Member
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    If you want to eat back, I would just do that with your HIIT workouts. 300 calories of walking at work isn't really what MFP is referring to with exercise. That should be part of your daily base activity level, in my opinion.

    I think you're fine aiming for 2 lbs/week, personally. It depends on your goals and tolerances. Some value slow losses with more eating, some want the scale to move to keep them motivated and don't care as much about eating a little more.
  • Nikoruo
    Nikoruo Posts: 771 Member
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    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

    This is what most go with for it to be healthy and sustainable.

    I think that your goal should be to eat as much food as you can and still lose a reasonable amount of weight.

    If you eat for 1-1.5 that is about 1500 calories...and if you exercise eat back 50-75% of those calories to hit a gross of about 1600-1800...which when losing is a good amount of calories and you can fit stuff in easily...

    Thanks! This sounds fair enough. I just wasn't sure where that switch was when you go from trying to lose 2lbs to 1.5 to 1 etc etc. So since i have 67 lbs to go i fall in the 1.5lbs a week. Therefore on a sedentary day i should eat around 1470. From there you suggest i eat back most if not all of my calories from general activity. And probably about 50-75% of my workouts?

    To be clear because i'm a visual person haha, i should:

    Monday-Thursday: I work (average burn 300 calories) + I do hiit cardio (average burn 400 calories) [EAT 1970(50% workout eaten back)- 2070(75% workout eaten back)]
    Friday: I work (Average burn 300 calories) [EAT 1770]
    Saturday: Bum around day (may do some shopping or general walking around, usually track calories using pedometer. Average burn 200 calories) [EAT between 1470-1670]
    Sunday: I do hiit cardio (average burn 400 calories) [EAT between 1670(50% workout calories)- 1770 (75% workout calories)]

    So i should do the 50%-75% eat back even if that means i fall below 1200 calories net slightly?
  • Nikoruo
    Nikoruo Posts: 771 Member
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    I eat 250 calories less than my maintenance and have my workouts get the rest of the slack. I've lost 10 ls in just under two months. I eat the same amount whether I work out or not.
    This sounds pretty legit. Although am I looking at my goal maintenance or my current maintenance. They are about 300 calories in difference at sedentary level.
  • Nikoruo
    Nikoruo Posts: 771 Member
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    If you want to eat back, I would just do that with your HIIT workouts. 300 calories of walking at work isn't really what MFP is referring to with exercise. That should be part of your daily base activity level, in my opinion.

    I think you're fine aiming for 2 lbs/week, personally. It depends on your goals and tolerances. Some value slow losses with more eating, some want the scale to move to keep them motivated and don't care as much about eating a little more.

    I hear you on that however, I did not include my base activity level (as sedentary is nearly the same as a Resting metabolic state or being in a coma according to some sites) and i don't think i fall into sedentary or lightly active as my daily activity isn't always the same i try to get a better estimate of what i'm burning with movement using a pedometre. That's why i have an estimate of around 300 calories burnt through walking around as a custodian for a 6 hour shift.

    Problem with 2 lbs a week now is that though i'm eating low (i calculate everything that goes in my mouth and use a scale and everything so it's very accurate), i am not really losing 2 lbs a week anymore and if i am i just bounce up and down a lot. Plateauing i think.

    So what i'm really looking for (slow or fast) is the healthy way to continue from hereon that will allow me to lose as much weight as possible. I hear that eating less than 1200 in net is both unhealthy and detrimental to the metabolism.
  • FoxyLifter
    FoxyLifter Posts: 965 Member
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    Why wouldn't you start lifting now? I would think that you'd want to save as much muscle as possible. Muscle is very hard to build and you'll lose more if it on a deficit and you're just doing cardio. It's obviously up to you, but I would highly recommend trying to maximize your fat loss and minimize your muscle loss by doing some sort of resistance training.
  • Nikoruo
    Nikoruo Posts: 771 Member
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    Why wouldn't you start lifting now? I would think that you'd want to save as much muscle as possible. Muscle is very hard to build and you'll lose more if it on a deficit and you're just doing cardio. It's obviously up to you, but I would highly recommend trying to maximize your fat loss and minimize your muscle loss by doing some sort of resistance training.
    Well at the moment I do 60 mins of cardio and that's all that really fits into my schedule. Since Cardio burns the most fat it's what i need right now, I can't even see muscles through my fat haha. So it's something i'm putting off a bit. I'm also not really into weight lifting as much and i don't have much at home to do any real good routines. I'm hoping to start the gym once i get closer to my healthy range and therefore i'l have all the machines at my disposal.

    So right now I'm just looking at fat loss without weight lifting. I find the cardio that i'm doing is also making me stronger/ strong enough for me. As for working muscle groups, all i'm trying to do right now is squats, push ups and sit ups.

    But yes, not interested in the weight lifting right now and it doesn't fit in the cards. Sticking to cardio for a while longer. For the next 40 or so lbs or until i hit a plateau again where i can't change it through diet.
  • Azdak
    Azdak Posts: 8,281 Member
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    Keep it simple: 1600 cals per day, 30-30-40 protein, fats, carbs. Unless you do a lot more extensive exercise than you are doing now, don't eat exercise calories. Be consistent. Eat good food.

    You are significantly overestimating your activity calories (by counting them twice), but there is also no need to stay at 1200 cals/day.
  • Nikoruo
    Nikoruo Posts: 771 Member
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    Keep it simple: 1600 cals per day, 30-30-40 protein, fats, carbs. Unless you do a lot more extensive exercise than you are doing now, don't eat exercise calories. Be consistent. Eat good food.

    You are significantly overestimating your activity calories (by counting them twice), but there is also no need to stay at 1200 cals/day.

    Well technically I'm counting calories when i do my cardio and then again when I'm working through the ol pedometer. Just because i have my activity level at nothing when i actually do do something in the day so i am trying to figure out how much i actually do burn off daily. It is always different wich is why i can't just put it up to lightly active. Some days i burn only 100 calories approx a day and all the way up to 700 ish calories so i am trying to figure out how much i should be eating around for each day as they are all unique. I did try eating at one amount all the time but found that i was just bouncing up and down again constantly ):
  • bjshields
    bjshields Posts: 677 Member
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    Cardio does NOT burn the most fat. The more muscle you have, the more your burn. Your mitochondria (which determines your metabolism) is found inside your muscle cells. That's why guys have an easier time losing weight than women do; they tend to have more muscle than we do. Lift some heavy weights, girl! :drinker:
  • FoxyLifter
    FoxyLifter Posts: 965 Member
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    Cardio does NOT burn the most fat. The more muscle you have, the more your burn. Your mitochondria (which determines your metabolism) is found inside your muscle cells. That's why guys have an easier time losing weight than women do; they tend to have more muscle than we do. Lift some heavy weights, girl! :drinker:

    Yes! This! Look up some free programs like Startng Strength or StrongLifts 5x5. Do that 3x a week and cardio when you can. You want to keep the muscle while losing the fat. Trust us! At least to some resistance training like the app You Are Your Own Gym if you don't have access to weights.

    I know you want to get the fat off ASAP, but this is not a race. Your body composition will be much more flattering. No joke.
  • Nikoruo
    Nikoruo Posts: 771 Member
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    Cardio does NOT burn the most fat. The more muscle you have, the more your burn. Your mitochondria (which determines your metabolism) is found inside your muscle cells. That's why guys have an easier time losing weight than women do; they tend to have more muscle than we do. Lift some heavy weights, girl! :drinker:

    Yes! This! Look up some free programs like Startng Strength or StrongLifts 5x5. Do that 3x a week and cardio when you can. You want to keep the muscle while losing the fat. Trust us! At least to some resistance training like the app You Are Your Own Gym if you don't have access to weights.

    I know you want to get the fat off ASAP, but this is not a race. Your body composition will be much more flattering. No joke.

    haha the best i could do is switch out some days of cardio for at home weight or resistance training. Problem with that is i hear you don't burn much fat for a while (until muscles build up) and that I have no way to track otherwise. The other thing i don't like about weight lifting is how sore it makes me for days on end. I know no pain= no gain but when i'm sore from weight lifting it's even hard to lift my extra weight around lol. Though like i mentioned in an earlier comment, i am starting some exercises for muscle growth but slowly. (modified crunches, modified pushups and squats galore)

    Thanks for the suggeestions though, i'll look them up. I figured i'd be more comfortable starting weight training after i get under 200lbs. Everytime i've tried otherwise i just cant get passed doing them for only like 2 times and then giving up because i can't calculate what i'm losing calorie wise, nor can i even properly stand lol.

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