i think my calories are too low

bobbijo72
bobbijo72 Posts: 63
edited September 26 in Health and Weight Loss
hey all.. so accordign to mfp they have me set at 1200 cals a day.. i did a calculator on another site and they say that i should be eating 1800 cals a day. i wonder if my cals are too low and that maybe why i am not losign anythign at all.. i mean NOTHING.. any suggestions?

Replies

  • andreadawn78
    andreadawn78 Posts: 12
    I am having the same problem. :(
  • size4sarah
    size4sarah Posts: 1
    Maybe you can look at your energy levels and how you feel?
  • bobbijo72
    bobbijo72 Posts: 63
    i even made changes and they still put me at 1200.. and im always hungry.. so i think i may up them.. and see if it changes anything..
  • sarcastje
    sarcastje Posts: 34 Member
    how much are you trying to lose? if you set it to over 1lbs a week i would say that is why.
  • becca0211
    becca0211 Posts: 250 Member
    You may need to eat 1800 calories a day to maintain your current weight, but MFP sets your calories at a deficit so that you loose weight even if you are not exercising. That is why when you do add exercise your calories go up.
  • erickirb
    erickirb Posts: 12,294 Member
    hey all.. so accordign to mfp they have me set at 1200 cals a day.. i did a calculator on another site and they say that i should be eating 1800 cals a day. i wonder if my cals are too low and that maybe why i am not losign anythign at all.. i mean NOTHING.. any suggestions?

    The other site would be taking your exercise into consideration whereas MFP adds the calories to the 1200 when you perform the exercise. As an example say you workout and burn 700 calories 5 times per week. MFP will give you 1200 x 2 days plus 1900x4 days, whereas this other site gives you 1800x7. So MFP gives you a total for the week of 13,100 (1200*2+1900*5) whereas this other site gives you 12600 (1800*7) which is only 500 calories different when you factor in your exercise. This is why you should eat your exercise calories.

    FYI, with only 10 lbs to go you should not have your goal to lose more than 0.5lbs/week otherwise you risk burning muscle, instead of fat, for fuel.
  • ShellyMacchi
    ShellyMacchi Posts: 975 Member
    are you eating back all or most of the calories you are burning with exercise?
    that gives you more calories available to eat.. the 1200 is the base for you to lose what you want to lose without any exercising.

    if you exercise you get more calories you need to be eating *S* it is the way mfp works.
  • pilotgirl2007
    pilotgirl2007 Posts: 368 Member
    I just recently started eating more calories than the 1200 MFP suggested (I figured out how many I wanted to eat by going to www.fat2fitradio.com they have some great tools and a great podcast!) I maintained for about a week and then now I have started losing about 1 pound a week which is better than the yo yo I was on.
  • Divaamyw
    Divaamyw Posts: 2
    I'm also having the same problem.....I'm a newbie, so any assistance anyone can give will be greatly appreciated:)
  • olyrose
    olyrose Posts: 569 Member
    Maybe check out some of the posts on here about eating your calories back. If you're exercising, you're burning off some of those 1200 calories, and then you're not getting enough for your body. I had no idea until I started reading these posts, and I think it's really helping.
  • bobbijo72
    bobbijo72 Posts: 63
    the other site give me 1800 with NO excersize to lose 1lb a week slowly and maintain .. to maintian my current weight it is liek 2000. and to lose with excersize its 1900 and change.. i just think 1200 is too low for me.. and yes.. i do eat back my excersize cals cuz it puts them in and eat up to my allwed amount.. sometiems go a few over. i would like to lose 10. but i seem to be hanging here.. where my body wants to be. even with excersize i see im getting tighter but not losing any ounces even.. strange.. mfp says if i keep eating like this you will be 137 in five weeks. that was like 4 weeks ago.. adn still not a pound changed... idk.. i just find it strange.. if my body wants to be 144.. ok. then thats where i stay but i dont want to be eating too little.. which i dont understand cuz i eat all day long!
  • sugarbeans
    sugarbeans Posts: 676 Member
    I tried to do the MFP suggestion of 1200 cal, however after a few weeks I felt tired and weight loss wasn''t happening. I consulted my personal trainer and she suggested that the lowest I go is 1500 as well as eating back my exercise calories, I felt that she was too high if MFP said 1200 so I brought mine up to 1400. Seems to be working better and I have more energy throughout the day, I didn't just go right to 1400 though I played with the numbers until I felt it was the right fit for me.

    I would try to experiment with your numbers and figure out what's right for you.
  • bobbijo72
    bobbijo72 Posts: 63
    i put in the exact same values on the other site as i put here. and this is what they give me...


    Women's Calorie Calculator Results

    These calorie calculator results will help you understand how many calories you need to maintain your current weight, and the number of calories needed per day to achieve your goal weight in a healthy, steady manner.

    You need 1943.8 calories per day to maintain your current weight without exercise.

    You need 1901.3 calories per day to reach your goal weight slowly and maintain that weight without exercise.

    If you reduce your current caloric intake to 1443.8 calories per day you will lose one pound per week without exercise.

    If you increase your current caloric intake to 2443.8 calories per day, you will gain one pound per week.

    Exercise and Calorie Needs

    If you exercise for 30 minutes each day, you may increase your caloric intake to 2166.1 calories per day and still maintain your current weight.

    If you exercise for 60 minutes each day, you may increase your caloric intake to 2444 calories per day to maintain your current weight.

    If you exercise for 30 minutes each day, you will be able to reach your goal weight with 2118.5 calories per day.

    If you exercise for 60 minutes each day, you will be able to reach your goal weight with 2390 calories per day.

    Macronutrients

    The United States Department of Agriculture suggests that approximately 50 percent of your calories come from carbohydrates, about 30 percent from fats, and approximately 20 percent from protein sources. One gram of protein has about four calories, one gram of fat has about nine calories, and one gram of carbohydrate has about four calories.

    You need 243 grams of carbohydrates, 64.1 grams of fat, and 97.2 grams of protein per day for 1943.8 calories to maintain your weight of 145 pounds.

    You need 237.7 grams of carbohydrates, 62.7 grams of fat, and 95.1 grams of protein per day for 1901.3 calories to maintain your goal weight of 135 pounds.
    Please remember that these calorie counts are based on the average of the population, you may need to adjust your calorie needs up or down slightly to get the results you want. These results are calculated to help you understand how many calories you need to maintain your current weight, or the number of calories you need to lose weight slowly
  • erickirb
    erickirb Posts: 12,294 Member
    the other site give me 1800 with NO excersize to lose 1lb a week slowly and maintain .. to maintian my current weight it is liek 2000. and to lose with excersize its 1900 and change.. i just think 1200 is too low for me.. and yes.. i do eat back my excersize cals cuz it puts them in and eat up to my allwed amount.. sometiems go a few over. i would like to lose 10. but i seem to be hanging here.. where my body wants to be. even with excersize i see im getting tighter but not losing any ounces even.. strange.. mfp says if i keep eating like this you will be 137 in five weeks. that was like 4 weeks ago.. adn still not a pound changed... idk.. i just find it strange.. if my body wants to be 144.. ok. then thats where i stay but i dont want to be eating too little.. which i dont understand cuz i eat all day long!

    Your deficit is too large for your body, change your goal to 0.5lbs/week and if your maintenance is 2000, it will give you 1750. At 145 lbs your maintenance is probably more like 1850, not 2000, if you are set to sedentary. And given that at 0.5lbs/week you will get 1600 cals to lose 0.5lbs/week.

    To get your maintenance calories according to MFP go to your goals tab and look for calories burned From Normal Daily Activity. That is your maintenance as calculated by MFP.
  • 36jessica
    36jessica Posts: 319 Member
    From what I've recently learned on this site 1200 cal. daily is the minimum you need to function properly. If you're exercising, you need to up the calories more or less equal to the amount you've burned. DON'T do what I've done for the past two days: Heavy (for me ) workouts and I didn't reach my minimum 1200. Now it's 7:00 p.m., I still have another 1350 cal to eat AND I just feel sick. I WILL NOT be making this mstake again.:sad:
  • bobbijo72
    bobbijo72 Posts: 63
    ha.. just changes my values. changed to sedintary. changed to lose 1lb a week..was at 2.. and put my excersize at 30 mintes a day.. and it stil lhas me at 1250.. idk. will see.
  • erickirb
    erickirb Posts: 12,294 Member
    ha.. just changes my values. changed to sedintary. changed to lose 1lb a week..was at 2.. and put my excersize at 30 mintes a day.. and it stil lhas me at 1250.. idk. will see.

    If this is the case MFP has your maintenance at 1750 (1250+500), I would still suggest 0.5lb/week given your goal and current weight 1lb/week may be too fast. MFP does not take that 30 minutes of exercise into account until you enter it in the exercise tab.
  • bobbijo72
    bobbijo72 Posts: 63
    oh... ok so you think i should bring my value up to .5 a week and then i think that brings me to 1450/day.. thanks.. i think that sounds better.
  • Kimrenaud
    Kimrenaud Posts: 118 Member
    I am a diebetic, my diatician put me at 1200 caloies for weight loss. 1800 for maintainance. Men start at 1800 for weight loss.
    my diet specified from counseling is 3- 30 carb meals, 2- 15 carb snacks a day. All veggies are free. Dr. says lean and green! So I was impressed by the sizes of food I can actually have. They showed us plastic foods. Its important to have some carbs, but do watch sodium and fats isalso huge in dieting. Choose foods under 400 grames of salt. Choose very lean meats, natural peanut butter (look in the diabetic sections of grocery staore, low carb, high fiber,low fat, sodium, very low sugar. sugar is in everything. dont use substitutes except trivia. Also thing high in fiber are great for you. I get to subtract fibers from carbohydrates so I get alittle more. Also sugar alchols are not counted the same as sugar. I can also subtract either fiber or SA from carbs which ever is highest. So far I have lost 57 lbs and have atleast 50 more to go! Good luck
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