met with a diet coach today...was a good experience BUT
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You can print your food log-don't remember exact process and can't get out of here to check. Why log everything twice-much easier this way.0
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OK-found it. Go to bottom of food diary and click on "print report."0
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As I read all the discussions back and forth, I think laralosingit42 still does not get the fact that "net calories" in MFP includes the required deficit between calories consumed and calories burned. Ana3067 gave an excellent description, but after this "42" was still confused about "eating back exercise calories."
I am set up to lose 2 lbs / week (the max MFP allows, for good reason). I can tell you that maintaining a 1000 calorie deficit every single day is not easy. But my intake goal is 2000, and my burn goal is 3000. -1000 = deficit.
If I exercise today, and burn 200 calories, I have a -1200 deficit. In order to maintain my daily -1000 deficit, I need to eat 2200 calories (+200). Doing this **maintains the -1000 deficit set up in MFP.** And all things being equal, there will be a -7000 calorie deficit for the week, => -2 lbs.
Not eating the additional 200 calories creates a -1200 deficit, and could cause some health issues (and further mental issues from frustration). You'll lose weight a tad faster, but, as many have said, it will be impossible to maintain day after day for 50 weeks (-100 lbs).0 -
you are being mean. Do you know my coach personally?prattiger65 wrote: »Your coach is not too good. No one is being mean.
My coach is helping me be motivated by loving myself enough to work on my issues and helping me focus on my goals. i think my coach is good. what i am starting to realize from this thread is that this forum for the most part (not the nice and helpful responses) is "all knowing" and dismisses any effort to try and help somebody and judges new people who truly need help. I wonder if MFP wanted it this way.
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Why don't you print out your daily MFP results and put them in a notebook as your journal? That resolves the writing part of it. I would say ignore their calorie advice, and do what makes sense...then step back and ensure you are still getting the positive psychological support you're looking for. If so, keep moving forward. If not, find a new coach.0
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girlviernes wrote: »If you have a history of emotional eating or binge eating, that calorie range is even more BS. If this is a significant problem for you, please seek out a dietitian or psychologist with experience in this area (treatment of eating disorders especially binge eating disorder and/or stress eating).
yes i have done so. I dont have a long history of emotional eating or binge eating. Just recently but i do need help losing weight. I do think the calorie range is not right as to why i even started this thread.
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laralosingit42 wrote: »laralosingit42 wrote: »okay so this is more of a mental coach, somebody who is helping me with my emotional eating issues. Yes I agree that i should not take nutrition advice from them and they say upfront they do not offer than but more of emotional support once per week but the only thing that stumped me was the 1200-1400 range and also not to count my exercise in my calories as that is just a bonus. They also want me to write everything down and that seems annoying as i HATE paper/pen stuff, i type faster than i write. They told me not to use apps like MFP (well i could use it but then need to still write it down or just to look up calorie counts) as they are confusing ....this subject on which i completely agree. The net calorie thing on most weight loss apps screws with my head completely. always has.
How are they confusing?
1) type food
2) pick correct entry
3) enter in serving size or weight of food
4) eat.
As far as I know this is the ONLY app that uses net calories. All other apps have you enter in your activity level based on TOTAL activity, i.e. your TDEE.
Like I said, your coaches are shite.
this is a little harsh. I know about 5 apps that use net calories (it started years ago with livestrong site....it was before this site). since this trend started i literally do not understand if you need to eat back exercising calories or what. i know that sounds dumb but in the past when i had success at losing weight (years ago) i never logged my exercise calories or ate them back ...this was in the 90's. I am open minded but if anybody here can give me some advice (forget the freaking coach, i need her for some mental problems i have with food but does not mean i am going to follow what she says to a T on nutrition as i am not going to her for that reason).......if i want to keep a steady 2 lbs a week loss, i need to lose over 100 lbs, i am female , 5'4, 42 years old, sometimes i exercise, sometimes i do not...how should i set up MFP to do this correctly? Also, i have a fitbit and love it. This may sound dumb...i know you all know what to do, i have emotional issues related to food and that is why i have a coach but it does not mean I am going to follow what they say about exercise or nutrition. I will still exercise (as it helps with me anxiety and is just good for anybody) but need help tailoring MFP to the right calorie level for me so i can consistently lose. I am committed now and just am asking for help here.
Ok - easiest way to think about it is TDEE - whatever % and don't log your exercise. That's what you did in the 90s.
Second easiest is: set your goal, log your exercise, and eat half your exercise calories back.
I think a 2-3 lb weekly loss goal is pretty aggressive! (I would never be able to stick to that!)0 -
laralosingit42 wrote: »
you are being mean. Do you know my coach personally?prattiger65 wrote: »Your coach is not too good. No one is being mean.
My coach is helping me be motivated by loving myself enough to work on my issues and helping me focus on my goals. i think my coach is good. what i am starting to realize from this thread is that this forum for the most part (not the nice and helpful responses) is "all knowing" and dismisses any effort to try and help somebody and judges new people who truly need help. I wonder if MFP wanted it this way.
This poster is not being mean, they've simply told you the truth and it's clearly something you don't want to hear. As another poster said above, you should probably seek help for the psychological part of this journey from a trained professional with the proper degrees and training for dealing with people with ED or poor relationships with food. Seeking help from someone who recommends eating 1200 calories and isn't actually educated in either nutrition or psychology is not what you need right now.0 -
As I read all the discussions back and forth, I think laralosingit42 still does not get the fact that "net calories" in MFP includes the required deficit between calories consumed and calories burned. Ana3067 gave an excellent description, but after this "42" was still confused about "eating back exercise calories."
I am set up to lose 2 lbs / week (the max MFP allows, for good reason). I can tell you that maintaining a 1000 calorie deficit every single day is not easy. But my intake goal is 2000, and my burn goal is 3000. -1000 = deficit.
If I exercise today, and burn 200 calories, I have a -1200 deficit. In order to maintain my daily -1000 deficit, I need to eat 2200 calories (+200). Doing this **maintains the -1000 deficit set up in MFP.** And all things being equal, there will be a -7000 calorie deficit for the week, => -2 lbs.
Not eating the additional 200 calories creates a -1200 deficit, and could cause some health issues (and further mental issues from frustration). You'll lose weight a tad faster, but, as many have said, it will be impossible to maintain day after day for 50 weeks (-100 lbs).
This is a good explanation, thank you! One of the biggest issues that people who use MFP/dieting apps have is that they disregard the mental and health aspects of weight loss. Can you lose weight really quick? Sure. Will you feel good doing this? Hell no.
2lbs/week is sustainable for a while when obese or overweight. It is never recommended for the entire weight loss journey, especially if one exercises.0 -
laralosingit42 wrote: »girlviernes wrote: »If you have a history of emotional eating or binge eating, that calorie range is even more BS. If this is a significant problem for you, please seek out a dietitian or psychologist with experience in this area (treatment of eating disorders especially binge eating disorder and/or stress eating).
yes i have done so. I dont have a long history of emotional eating or binge eating. Just recently but i do need help losing weight. I do think the calorie range is not right as to why i even started this thread.
Your instincts were right on. The calorie range you were given is too low! Taking in only 1200 or 1400, and exercising, means your body is getting less than 1200.
1200 is the minimum your body needs for you to survive (BMR, basal metabolic rate).0 -
Hi, lara. Like others I think 1200-1400 without eating back exercise calories is too low and probably dangerous if you have a tendency to binging anyway. It also sounds like you are feeling the same way.
I started with possibly similar stats to yours: I was 44 and 5'3 at 220, and wanted to lose 100 lbs. I've lost 95 so far. (I think aiming for 2 lbs/week when you have that much to lose--as sodakat's chart indicates--is totally appropriate if you are satisfied at the deficit level that you are eating, which I was. Normally 1-2 lbs/week or 1% of your current weight are considered healthy rates of loss.)
With respect to the question about exercise calories, I think it may seem confusing because it differs depending on how the calories are set. Apps like MFP assume that you might not do any exercise (whatever you plan) so give you a calorie goal that assumes no exercise. If they had considered your exercise the goal would have been different (since the deficit is achieved partly through exercise), so when you exercise you eat it back. (One problem with counting exercise is that it's hard to figure out the calories exactly, so lots of people here who do it that way eat back only 50-75% of the exercise calories MFP would give them. That's basically what I did for a large portion of my weight loss. I also agree that a Fitbit tends to estimate really well if you have one and can be an alternative. My Fitbit has generally been right on.)
Sometimes people experienced with working with those losing weight prefer less precise measures that build in lots of error, because lots of people underestimate the calories they are eating and overestimate their exercise. Others don't, however. I never did, so a calorie goal that assumed I would (and I tend to agree that the suggested goal to you depends on such an assumption) would be wrong. I dislike someone assuming that another is likely to count calories incorrectly because she is overweight, and thus I tend to object to such artificial low goals or the advice to ignore exercise since it wouldn't be significant anyway as rather insulting and wrong until someone proves to have difficulty losing, at least.
There is an alternative way (actually a couple of them, at least), that doesn't require you to try to keep track of exercise, however. One has you estimate your maintenance WITH the exercise you are doing and then subtract calories from that (it's often called the TDEE method). Another approach which is similar, and which I kind of like, is to do the MFP method but take a goal of only 1 lb (if you exercise reasonably heavily) or 1.5 lbs (if you do regular but lighter exercise) and then not eat back exercise. That should both give you about 2 lbs/week if you exercise and insure that you still lose when you exercise less.
I'm currently doing something similar to this. I am eating at about maintenance without exercise and then letting the amount I exercise determine my deficit. (This also happens to come out the same as if I used the TDEE method, but I think it's easier to understand.)
For my mental health I don't think of the purpose of my exercise as to lose weight, though, but something I do whether I'm trying to lose or not, for fitness. It sounds like you feel the same, as you said you exercise because you like to.
Good luck! It gets a lot easier as you pick a plan and get used to it.0 -
This may sound really simple. Use MFP to track your food and exercise. Be in a caloric deficit if that makes sense to you. Print off your food logs. Give them those if that's all they are interested in.
Insofar as how many calories you should be consuming - go with what your doctor tells you. If these folks are there for emotional support and know lots of 'tricks' to help with emotional eating then that's great. We all need help. However, once they go down the road of offering nutritional advice, setting caloric goals, limiting food...then they are really operating outside of their field.
Remember - YOU are paying THEM, so if you want to record with MFP and it gives them the information they need - tell them that is how it is going to be.
If they want to know, for example, the TIME of day you eat your B,L,D,S - then just jot the time in the notes section. Don't let them make this more complicated and stressful than it is!
Let us know how it goes. Good luck!0 -
If you are an emotional eater I agree with your coach on your calorie count. You have to break your addiction to food as comfort. If you are forced to find other ways to deal with your problems you can get a handle on your addiction. I would like to add that for emotional eaters having strict set diet helps too. If you plan out exactly what you will eat and when you will eat it for a few months you will stop looking at food as a reward/friend/crutch/punishment/savior and start looking at it as fuel. This is different from people who eat because they are hungry all the time. They need a slower approach that gradually trains them to want less. Different problems need different solutions. Take a multivitamin and plan exactly what you will eat to ensure you are only putting things in your mouth that have the best nutritional value possible for your goals.0
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If you are an emotional eater I agree with your coach on your calorie count. You have to break your addiction to food as comfort. If you are forced to find other ways to deal with your problems you can get a handle on your addiction. I would like to add that for emotional eaters having strict set diet helps too. If you plan out exactly what you will eat and when you will eat it for a few months you will stop looking at food as a reward/friend/crutch/punishment/savior and start looking at it as fuel. This is different from people who eat because they are hungry all the time. They need a slower approach that gradually trains them to want less. Different problems need different solutions. Take a multivitamin and plan exactly what you will eat to ensure you are only putting things in your mouth that have the best nutritional value possible for your goals.
I used to eat out of boredom. I used to binge unrelated to hunger. I used to over-eat at times when upset or stressed.
No, a 1200 calorie goal is NOT a good recommendation for someone who needs to lose over 100lbs. It is not a good goal for 99% of people.0 -
If you are an emotional eater I agree with your coach on your calorie count. You have to break your addiction to food as comfort. If you are forced to find other ways to deal with your problems you can get a handle on your addiction. I would like to add that for emotional eaters having strict set diet helps too. If you plan out exactly what you will eat and when you will eat it for a few months you will stop looking at food as a reward/friend/crutch/punishment/savior and start looking at it as fuel. This is different from people who eat because they are hungry all the time. They need a slower approach that gradually trains them to want less. Different problems need different solutions. Take a multivitamin and plan exactly what you will eat to ensure you are only putting things in your mouth that have the best nutritional value possible for your goals.
Okay, I actually have formal training in this area, and what you have posted has no empirical basis and is basically counter to everything eating disorder therapists would recommend.
Original poster, I'm glad you found a coach who could be good support for you, but I am seriously concerned about the advice you have received. It really calls into question to me their training and knowledge base.
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Also, OP - you're not dumb.
MFP's method confuses a lot of people, particularly because the exercise calories in the database are off for many. Which is why they work around it by using heart rate monitors and the like, or only eating half their exercise calories back, or using the TDEE method and not logging their exercise.
You're also wise to question the advice you were given and to ask for help. girlviernes knows her stuff, she's one person worth listening to.0 -
girlviernes wrote: »If you are an emotional eater I agree with your coach on your calorie count. You have to break your addiction to food as comfort. If you are forced to find other ways to deal with your problems you can get a handle on your addiction. I would like to add that for emotional eaters having strict set diet helps too. If you plan out exactly what you will eat and when you will eat it for a few months you will stop looking at food as a reward/friend/crutch/punishment/savior and start looking at it as fuel. This is different from people who eat because they are hungry all the time. They need a slower approach that gradually trains them to want less. Different problems need different solutions. Take a multivitamin and plan exactly what you will eat to ensure you are only putting things in your mouth that have the best nutritional value possible for your goals.
Okay, I actually have formal training in this area, and what you have posted has no empirical basis and is basically counter to everything eating disorder therapists would recommend.
Original poster, I'm glad you found a coach who could be good support for you, but I am seriously concerned about the advice you have received. It really calls into question to me their training and knowledge base.
Thank you, i agree with you and the last poster as well (the one after you). Thanks for not being judgmental.0 -
DancingMoosie wrote: »All you have to do is enter your goals, exactly how you just stated them, into mfp and then follow the calorie goal it gives you. You can log your exercise and eat it back. If you still want to use the coach for the mental aspect, go ahead.
Got to this post
Thought yup0 -
laralosingit42 wrote: »Best weight loss coach (of course i have never really had one but most personal trainers that i have had bad experiences with think they are coaches and nutritionists, lol) i have ever me with as this person did not tell me what to eat, how to eat it, or anything. This was more of a mental training which i found amazing. I agree with everything they suggest (they make it so simple) except they want us to "journal" (like written journal) everything. I LOVE MFP and they said we can use those apps to find calories but do not use them to track as if we add is exercise it will just confuse us and encourage us to eat more. I sort of agree with this as i am one of these people who likes to exercise ....just to get my stress out honestly...and I also like to see the rewards of burning the calories but not sure we should be eating back those calories. They recommend the typical 1200-1400 per day calories (i have over 100 lbs to lose) but i also like to exercise. My coach said i could log on MFP and then also keep a manual journal as well for her to see which i can do and have no problem with but not to log my exercise. Can we turn this off somehow on MFP. Can we log it and see the calories but not have it effect our calories for the day?
With 100 calories to lose, you should be eating a whole lot more.0
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