Upping your calories

I've been struggling soooo hard this past week so I decided to up my calories to losing 1lb a week instead of 2lbs and I feel much more happier with it. I have a little more room to experiment with. Also finding it easier to stick too.

Hmmm....maybe I need to increase as well, will read over when I can see straight - it's sooo late!

I'm still struggling with this.... the 1400 isn't too bad, it's the days when I exercise and end on 1700-1800 that feels crazy to me! I do feel like it's justified as I feel weak and lethargic if I don't, so it's not like I feel full or i'm bingeing, but it's just the mentality of telling myself it's ok to eat 1800 cals and I won't get fat.

The thing i'm struggling with most is eating healthy food with the extra calories, I plan my healthy meals and snacks and then when I have to add an extra 400 for exercise it's hard to find things that aren't chocolate and cake! Yesterday I ended up eating a piece of cheese and peanut butter on toast! lol

WOW.. I guess I have been doing everything wrong. I have been maintaining 1200 calories, even though I run abough 4-5 times a week and am training for my 2nd half-marathon. This must be why I'm so tired and stuck at the same weight. I'm new to MFP, and have about 15 pounds to lose. I previously lost 20 pounds on the Jillian Michaels plan, where she recommended 1200-1400 calories for me. So when MFP said 1200 calories, I went with it. I'm going to adjust my goals and see what happens. It certainly would be nice to eat more than 1200 cals a day.

My BMI is 20.6. Im shooting for 55kg but I dont really know why. The more I look at myself in the mirror, the more I think its kind of stupid idea. I think a healthy 57kg (5lb less than now) will be really nice. I have not been loosing for 2 weeks now, so I decided to also slow it down to 0,5lb/week and see what happens!

You guys with BMI in the 20 to 23 range. Be very careful. IMHO, most people in that range should be looking to stay the same weight, maybe by losing some fat then gaining back some muscle, but at that level, the fat loss will be extremely slow (in the range of 1/4 lb per week if you're pretty strict about your nutrients), and the quality of the food you eat should be your main focus.

Just MHO.

How do you go about doing this? Is it just maintaining weight and exercising? I'd be quite happy to stay at my current weight but still have huge thighs that have masses of fat on them and I don't see how it will go without losing weight? I'm trying really hard to get fit and toned and feel like my wobbly thighs are holding me back! Of course the first thing I jump to is losing MORE weight when I probably don't need to.

I'll tell ya, but you're probably not going to like it, nobody does. Patience. The way to lose fat with little weight loss is to train your body by doing relatively intense exerises (multiply types, resistance, HIIT, cardio...etc.), eating healthy, and eating consistently. This takes time. Basically, when your body is receiving all the nutrients it requires in the right amounts, it will store fat the way it's designed to.

You can help it along with a very modest calorie deficit, and mixing up your workout routines, but in reality, it takes a long time to remove the last few pockets of fat.

Now, there's nothing wrong with dropping some more weight to get rid of that fat a little faster, as long as it's done with the understanding that you probably should be adding a few lbs of muscle afterward, which also takes time, and requires eating at a small calorie surplus; and should be done in a healthy manner (I.E. with a small deficit and good quality nutrients). This is obviously my take on things, others may have different takes, but really, the last few lbs of fat that you want to get rid of are the worst, they're usually very stubborn.

this thread makes a lot of sense. i am thinking of going for 0.5lbs a week now as i only have another 3lbs to go, and tbh im not bothered about how long it takes as im pretty happy with what i see in the mirror. Id like to build some muscle but i dont want to look too beefed up if that makes sense.

I like the shred dvd for this reason as ive been a lot leaner since ive been doing it and use 3lbs.

this thread makes a lot of sense. i am thinking of going for 0.5lbs a week now as i only have another 3lbs to go, and tbh im not bothered about how long it takes as im pretty happy with what i see in the mirror. Id like to build some muscle but i dont want to look too beefed up if that makes sense.

I like the shred dvd for this reason as ive been a lot leaner since ive been doing it and use 3lbs.

you wont' "look to beefed up", it takes a very concerted effort for a woman to put on lots of muscle mass. I mean a REALLY concerted effort. You ladies can do a lot of things that we can't do, but one thing you really can't do is match our testosterone output, sorry but you need testies for that one. And testosterone is what builds large mass. 2 ways to do it for women, eat SUPER clean, get on a really kick *kitten* (and time consuming) weight training program, eat at a calorie surplus with relatively high protein levels (say 30 to 35%) and wait a LOOONG time (usually a few years for body builder type results). If you aren't doing this, then you don't need to worry about putting on to much bulk. The other way is to take steroids, and if you're doing that, you know it (no matter what Barry Bonds says!).

this thread makes a lot of sense. i am thinking of going for 0.5lbs a week now as i only have another 3lbs to go, and tbh im not bothered about how long it takes as im pretty happy with what i see in the mirror. Id like to build some muscle but i dont want to look too beefed up if that makes sense.

I like the shred dvd for this reason as ive been a lot leaner since ive been doing it and use 3lbs.

you wont' "look to beefed up", it takes a very concerted effort for a woman to put on lots of muscle mass. I mean a REALLY concerted effort. You ladies can do a lot of things that we can't do, but one thing you really can't do is match our testosterone output, sorry but you need testies for that one. And testosterone is what builds large mass. 2 ways to do it for women, eat SUPER clean, get on a really kick *kitten* (and time consuming) weight training program, eat at a calorie surplus with relatively high protein levels (say 30 to 35%) and wait a LOOONG time (usually a few years for body builder type results). If you aren't doing this, then you don't need to worry about putting on to much bulk. The other way is to take steroids, and if you're doing that, you know it (no matter what Barry Bonds says!).

ok no steroids here and def no testosterone so im safe! lol!

anyhoo, i upped my cals and boy do i feel more energetic! so def right move for me!