should I change my daily calorie intake?

mghanie
mghanie Posts: 105 Member
edited November 8 in Health and Weight Loss
Hi, so I've been o MFP for a while and I've lost a lot of weight on here. This is going to be a loong question, bear with me :)

When I reached my goal weight of 135 I bumped up my calories to eat at maintenance, which was 1634 or something around that, but since I started working at a theme park I've been gaining weight. Probably 10 pounds since I started there, I've been there for a year. I've noticed an increase in my weight after a couple of months. So I decided to cut calories again and try to lose some of that weight. My calorie intake is set at sedentary and I try to stay at or below 1389 calories per day. I haven't lost any weight yet...its been months. I have a step counter and I used it at work the other day and I walk around 7,000 to 10,000 steps while at work. The calorie cut that use to help me lose weight isn't working anymore. Do I need to reduce my calories? I'm scared to increase my calories because I do not want to gain anymore weight. Any help would be welcome! thank you :)

Replies

  • passwordisnotpassword
    passwordisnotpassword Posts: 31
    If you're hovering around 140-145, I don't think there would be much harm in lowering it. I'm not a dietitian, but I think you would be okay dropping down to 1200, or so as long as you listen to your body!! I'm 125 and 1200 is my max calorie intake. I generally eat about 1000 though. I know it's too low, but I feel great and function well. On days where I need more energy than normal, i eat more.
  • Chrisparadise579
    Chrisparadise579 Posts: 411 Member
    if you are exercise DO NOT cut your calories please, itll only hurt you, if you arent losing weight we need to look at a few things first. 1 what do your macros look like ie your fat, carbs, and protein. Then are you exercising? if not start doing some form of exercise 4-6 days a week. if neither of those work we actually have to increase your calories very slowly to repair your metabolism
  • erickirb
    erickirb Posts: 12,294 Member
    Do you weigh solid foods and measure liquids? If not you may be eating 10-50% more than you think you are.
  • mghanie
    mghanie Posts: 105 Member
    I just use measuring cups most times...
  • mghanie
    mghanie Posts: 105 Member
    Any other suggestios?
  • concordancia
    concordancia Posts: 5,320 Member
    You are really walking the minimum, at best to be active. Have you considered adding strength training? Building muscle will help you look good and, since muscle burns more calories than fat, it will help you maintain your weight.
  • LivingtheLeanDream
    LivingtheLeanDream Posts: 13,342 Member
    concordancia wrote: »
    You are really walking the minimum, at best to be active. Have you considered adding strength training? Building muscle will help you look good and, since muscle burns more calories than fat, it will help you maintain your weight.

    ^^this
  • Liftng4Lis
    Liftng4Lis Posts: 15,151 Member
    If you're not weighing, you're unsure of your calories and most likely not in a deficit. With only 10 pounds to lose, your logging needs to be pretty tight.
  • mghanie
    mghanie Posts: 105 Member
    edited November 2014
    Thanks guys! I'm gonna look into getting a digital scale and start some weight lifting. :)
  • GaleHawkins
    GaleHawkins Posts: 8,159 Member
    mghanie wrote: »
    Hi, so I've been o MFP for a while and I've lost a lot of weight on here. This is going to be a loong question, bear with me :)

    When I reached my goal weight of 135 I bumped up my calories to eat at maintenance, which was 1634 or something around that, but since I started working at a theme park I've been gaining weight. Probably 10 pounds since I started there, I've been there for a year. I've noticed an increase in my weight after a couple of months. So I decided to cut calories again and try to lose some of that weight. My calorie intake is set at sedentary and I try to stay at or below 1389 calories per day. I haven't lost any weight yet...its been months. I have a step counter and I used it at work the other day and I walk around 7,000 to 10,000 steps while at work. The calorie cut that use to help me lose weight isn't working anymore. Do I need to reduce my calories? I'm scared to increase my calories because I do not want to gain anymore weight. Any help would be welcome! thank you :)

    Or you could just make sure and not eat/drink theme park food at work that has added sugar. :)
  • mghanie
    mghanie Posts: 105 Member
    ^Lol thanks, but i dont eat anything from there.
  • Blueseraphchaos
    Blueseraphchaos Posts: 843 Member
    A big vote for the food scale! Go by weight...a tablespoon of peanut butter, for instance, is very high-calorie and often more than the weight suggested (14 grams is usually less than a tbsp). That can really throw your logging off if you don't have much to lose.
  • GaleHawkins
    GaleHawkins Posts: 8,159 Member
    mghanie wrote: »
    ^Lol thanks, but i dont eat anything from there.

    That is great because that is a place to get tripped up fast. :)

  • ana3067
    ana3067 Posts: 5,623 Member
    As mentioned, food scale helps. also if you're eating food at work, that will make it much harder to lose weight unless you can accurately track it.

    Otherwise, recalculate your TDEE from an external website like health-calc or exrx.net adn subtract 10-20% from it, set as your goal and see if you lose weight over the next month. If not then lower the goal a bit.
  • mghanie
    mghanie Posts: 105 Member
    What is the best sit to recalculate mt TDEE?
  • 2013sk
    2013sk Posts: 1,318 Member
    edited November 2014
    If your around 140-145, don't only eat 1200 calories - That's nothing.

    Im around 147lbs, and there is no way I would only be eating that, I would be starving.

    Visit the iifym.com website to work out your macros (Ie carbs, protein, fat) will also tell you how many calories you need to lose weight or maintain.

    Work out your BMR, BMR is the amount of calories your body needs to just be alive, I think mine is 1450 and you should never net under your BMR - So 1200 is a NO NO!!!
  • ithrowconfetti
    ithrowconfetti Posts: 451 Member
    edited November 2014
    ana3067 wrote: »

    Otherwise, recalculate your TDEE from an external website like health-calc or exrx.net and subtract 10-20% from it, set as your goal and see if you lose weight over the next month. If not then lower the goal a bit.

    Hey, OP! She's already very kindly provided you with two. I've included the hyperlinks.

    Like most have said, it may prove to be beneficial to you to weigh as much of your food as possible. And unless you have an underlying medical condition, please consume added sugars/foods from the theme park as you please. Don't listen to those who tell you to stay away from specific foods. No single food item is to be blamed for bad health/weight. Eating things in excess is. But of course, if we're talking about helping you lose weight efficiently, then eating foods that you can personally measure/prepare would help. Good luck, OP!
  • Sued0nim
    Sued0nim Posts: 17,456 Member
    mghanie wrote: »
    Hi, so I've been o MFP for a while and I've lost a lot of weight on here. This is going to be a loong question, bear with me :)

    When I reached my goal weight of 135 I bumped up my calories to eat at maintenance, which was 1634 or something around that, but since I started working at a theme park I've been gaining weight. Probably 10 pounds since I started there, I've been there for a year. I've noticed an increase in my weight after a couple of months. So I decided to cut calories again and try to lose some of that weight. My calorie intake is set at sedentary and I try to stay at or below 1389 calories per day. I haven't lost any weight yet...its been months. I have a step counter and I used it at work the other day and I walk around 7,000 to 10,000 steps while at work. The calorie cut that use to help me lose weight isn't working anymore. Do I need to reduce my calories? I'm scared to increase my calories because I do not want to gain anymore weight. Any help would be welcome! thank you :)

    I would imagine you aren't logging your calories properly
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