HIGH calories

Hey - it's probably right. When you're body is starving, you won't lose weight. The number of calories a person eats a day really depends on their size. For example, my boyfriend is allowed 1579, and weighs 228. I'm only allowed 1290, and weigh 156.

Actually, taking that test is a good idea.

I assume I can walk into a 24hr gym and take it without joining them.
Did you pay out of pocket or did it include your membership? If it's under a couple of hundred, it may be worth my while to do it.

I disagree. If your body is starving you will lose weight. And anything above 1500 calories is certainly not starving. It's like what they do on the biggest loser, they cut calories ridiculously and get fast and successful results.

The easy way to remember it is if you weigh 100 pounds, you need about 1000 calories a day to survive (without exercise). If you weigh 200 you'd need 2000 and so on. So if you want to weigh 120 pounds you'd cut your calories to 1200 and your body would lose weight and mass until it could sustain itself on that many calories.

Going under the 1800 is not going to kill you. Cut it down by one or two hundred and you'll be just fine.

I know this is a bit past due, but that person above is just plain wrong. The body does in fact go into starvation mode and you will lose weight if you eat below your recommended calories, BUT the weight you are most often losing is lean mass... not fat. So.. essentially you become skinny fat. Most people don't restrict their calories enough to achieve true starvation... so they simply plateau. Creating a 500 calorie per day deficit is the healthiest way to go about it... Additionally, if you were to severely restrict calories not only would your body rush to store fat, but you would also most definitely be malnourished... as I am sure many Americans are.

I know as I've lost weight (and tracked it on MFP), it has reduced my calories according to how much I've lost. I think that people at lower weights need to be consuming fewer and fewer calories as they lose weight, to continue to lose the weight. All bodies are different, and lose weight/burn calories at a different pace, so I would trust the info you received!

As one other poster had mentioned, your rate of loss is slower than most people, which will up your daily amounts. Also, you're a guy... which will up it from a (majority) of the members on here. The more you weight to start, the more you can eat to lose. Your age will affect it. There's so much that goes in to it, but this sounds like a decent number for you.

To be honest, with my age (22) and lifestyle (pretty active... walking half hour to and from the train every day with 4-5 gym sessions per week), if I wanted to lose 1 pound per week I could eat 1600 calories. For a guy, staying above 1800 sounds like a good jumping off point. As the weight comes off, just be sure to adjust as necessary

Totally ignore the guy part of that... NO clue where that came from lol

Not plain wrong. Studies show that in overweight people, starvation mode isn't harmful for your body. The physiology of starvation is to first break down stored glycogen and turn it into glucose, to fuel the body. During this stage of starvation there is an increased breakdown of glycogen rich fat. When the fat stores are exhausted the body starts breaking down proteins like muscle.

So as long as there are non-vital stores of energy in the body, it won't begin to digest important tissues like protein. That's why we evolved to have fat: for starvation. In times of famine the fat stores are designed to be used as fuel, sparing the muscles so our bodies can continue to survive and fight until food becomes available again.

Look at examples in the animal kingdom. Bears bulk up for winter and burn their fat stores all through hibernation. No, we're not designed for months without food, but we are designed to survive with little or no food every so often.

I'm not saying to starve yourself at all. Anorexics lose muscle mass and suffer serious health complications because not only do they starve themselves until their body is digesting itself, but they aren't getting the essential nutrients that food gives us. I'm saying that a controlled starvation mode, being mindful that you're still getting the nutrients your body needs to survive, is a surprisingly practical way to diet. When I first started dieting last year I lost 2 pounds a week by cutting my calories past what my personal trainer had told me to do, carefully putting myself onto the very cusp of starvation mode. While doing this diet I was still energetic and strong enough to continue teaching water aerobics classes and coach my swim team.


But... Your diet is all about your comfort level. My way is just a little bit faster, but in the end you'll have the same results. Your trainer is certainly not wrong, and you'll still get results either way.


Cite:
http://weightloss.beldholm.com/weightlossadvice/starvation.html
http://www.gabrielmethod.com/documents/holistic_primary_care_article.pdf
(Also, I'm an Anatomy and Physiology Major at the University of Arizona)

This argument for/against the volume of calories and eating exercise calories is exactly why you need to get the help of a doctor, registered dietitian and a certified personal trainer. With a team of proper scientific people, you will find what works for you.