Is 1600 calories a day too many to lose weight slowly?

jasminejordan
jasminejordan Posts: 6
edited November 8 in Health and Weight Loss
So far I have lost 2 stone and 4 pounds but these last few weeks I haven't lost a thing because I am really lacking motivation, I have been eating 1200-1400 calories a day depending on how active I have been but on weekends I have been drinking and eating more so the whole of the next week I have been getting back down to my weight just to wreck it the following weekend, now I'm struggling to even eat 1200 on week days, I haven't gained any weight but I am feeling pretty crappy and am wondering if eating 1600-1700 calories every day including the weekend (and obviously excersising some days too) would help me to carry on losing? My ideal goal is to lose another stone, weather I will get there or not I don't know, I like my figure now but I'm terrified and obsessing Incase I weight if I eat more than 1200-1400 calories a day!!
Thanks

Replies

  • RGv2
    RGv2 Posts: 5,789 Member
    Ht/wt/age/activites.

    At 20 years old, you shouldn't be gaining/maintaining at 1200-1400 unless you're like 4ft tall.
  • BarbieAS
    BarbieAS Posts: 1,414 Member
    How many calories you can eat in a day and continue to lose depends entirely upon how many you're burning each day, which is vastly different for everyone. We're not able to answer that for you without knowing your weight, height, and activity level, at a minimum. Some people may lose very well on 1,600; for others, they may not lose at all (or very very slowly).

    Here's a good site where you can figure out how many calories you burn per day on average (also known as your TDEE): http://scoobysworkshop.com/accurate-calorie-calculator/. Figure that out, and with only a stone left to lose, deduct somewhere between 250 and 500 calories per day from that and make that your calorie goal (you should lose between 0.5 and 1 lbs per week). If you aren't losing at the rate you expect after maybe 4-6 weeks, you can re-evaluate and adjust up or down as needed (even the site I gave is just an estimate, individual bodies will still vary, or maybe you over- or under-estimated your activity level). Just give it some time first.
  • jasminejordan
    jasminejordan Posts: 6
    I'm not gaining or trying to maintain at 1200-1400 it's the weekends that is causing to maintain, I am wondering if I can still lose if I eat 1600-1700 a day every day including weekends
  • BarbieAS
    BarbieAS Posts: 1,414 Member
    Also, if you find yourself eating much more on weekends, you can always take a weekly approach to your calorie tracking. For example, let's say you decided that 1,600 was an appropriate goal for you (based on the above). You can always eat 1400 during the week, saving 1,000 extra calories for the weekend over and above your 1,600 goal (so up to 2,100 per day on the weekend). Then you have some more wiggle room on the weekends for a bit of a splurge, and you know exactly what you can eat/drink without "blowing it." That works well for a lot of people, and it might be worth a try.
  • Sued0nim
    Sued0nim Posts: 17,456 Member
    Depends on your height and weight

    I'm 5'8 and set to lose 0.5lbs a week and have 1610 calories a day but exercise for more ...and I save some for weekends or blow outs so I stay around or under my weekly goal

    Give yourself a break then regroup and go for it
  • orchidee1987
    orchidee1987 Posts: 97 Member
    Hi there. What are your height, weight and activity level ? Try to calculate your TDEE (on scoobyworkshop calorie calculator for example) and take off 15-20 % and .... Just give it a shot !
    I'm 5'3-5'4 and did lose weight consistently at 1600-1700 calories on average per week(total, so including exercise calories- TDEE method). My starting weight was 69 kilos and i am down to 57-58 kilos
  • Lasmartchika
    Lasmartchika Posts: 3,440 Member
    edited November 2014
    It could be possible... figure out what you're TDEE is using the website http://scoobysworkshop.com/accurate-calorie-calculator/#top put your info, level of activity you do weekly, and the amount of calories it gives you is the amount you eat everyday. I'm 5'3" and that website has me at almost 1700 according to my activity level. So like I said it's possible, you don't have to suffer eating only 1200. :flowerforyou:

    Oh yeah, choose -15% so you have enough calories to eat AND still be able to lose weight.
  • jasminejordan
    jasminejordan Posts: 6
    I'm 5'7" and 12stone, I have an active job and do try to do some kind of excersise even if only for 20 minutes or so a day
  • cwolfman13
    cwolfman13 Posts: 41,865 Member
    It depends...there's not some kind of magic number that you lose, maintain, or gain on...those numbers are highly dependent on your stats and overall activity level.

    I say go for it...and make adjustments as per your real world results.
  • MKEgal
    MKEgal Posts: 3,250 Member
    edited November 2014
    jasminejordan wrote:
    I'm not gaining or trying to maintain at 1200-1400 it's the weekends that is causing to maintain, I am wondering if I can still lose if I eat 1600-1700 a day every day including weekends
    If you're currently eating [1300 x 5 = 6500] during the week, and who knows what on weekends, and maintaining,

    and you want to eat [1600 x 7 = 11200] during the whole week and lose weight,

    the only way you're going to be able to do that is if you're currently eating more than [(11200 - 6500) / 2 = 2350] on Sat. & Sun. so that by eating less than that you will be eating fewer calories than you currently are.

    Here's a blog post I did about setting goals, including weight, calories, and macros
    http://www.myfitnesspal.com/blog/MKEgal/view/2014-06-08-setting-goals-667045

    And links to more helpful info.
    http://www.myfitnesspal.com/blog/MKEgal/view/2014-08-10-newbie-help-post-685689

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  • diannethegeek
    diannethegeek Posts: 14,776 Member
    jasminejordan wrote: »
    I'm 5'7" and 12stone, I have an active job and do try to do some kind of excersise even if only for 20 minutes or so a day

    You'll want to run the numbers yourself, but you and I have similar stats. I'm 5'8" and 170-ish pounds, but I'm also 10 years older than you. fwiw, I lose about a pound a week at 1700 calories/day. You'll have to try 1600 and see how it works for you.
  • MKEgal
    MKEgal Posts: 3,250 Member
    jasminejordan wrote:
    I'm 5'7" and 12stone, I have an active job and do try to do some kind of excersise even if only for 20 minutes or so a day
    12 stone = 168 lb
    At 5'7" you should be 120 - 155 lb [8.5 - 11 stone]
    http://www.shapeup.org/bmi/bmi6.pdf

    So you're very close to being at a healthy weight. The weight loss will happen very slowly.
    To get to 155 lb, eat 1550 cal / day & ignore exercise calories.
    Once you get there, nudge the calories up until you're maintaining. It will probably be about 15 cal / lb.
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