I am not reaching my calories goal and haven't tracked exerc

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lunatletica
lunatletica Posts: 25
in Health and Weight Loss
Hi all,

I have been using MFP for only two weeks and I am loving it. It is actually my first experience counting calories and I am a bit cautious about it.

I am wondering if any of you could advise on the risk of being under my calorie count each day. MFP suggested an intake of 1200, but I have been at around 1000, I also haven't logged in my exercise (which has been just about 200 each day). I am feeling good and my energy has been fine. I actually can't imagine how I could eat more than what I am already eating...

Any thoughts or suggestions?

Thanks!

Replies

  • kacarter1017
    kacarter1017 Posts: 651 Member
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    You may do ok starting out if you don't eat all your calories or track your exercise, but as you lose weight, these two things will become important. Also, it should be 1200 NET calories- so if you're exercising 200 calories off each day, then you should be eating 1400 calories. Make sure they are healthy calories as well. Again, initially what you eat may not be so important, but as you continue on, sodium content, sugar content, etc become important and can hinder your weight loss if too high.

    Good Luck!
  • staciekins
    staciekins Posts: 453 Member
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    Let's say you were eating 3500 cals with no exercise every day and thats how you gained weight.
    So now, you wanna lose as fast as possible. You eat 1200 cals a day with no exercise. That's your minimum deficit. You add 400 cals of exercise. Your deficit becomes 800. So you add back that 400 by eating it making it 1200 cals deficit again. So, you eat a total of 1600 cals, with 400 cals burned with exercise. (Remember that 1200 deficit is the BARE MINIMUM! The more you lose, the more you need to intake.) That is still significantly less than what you were probably consuming before AND you don't risk putting your body into starvation mode nor do you risk being malnutritioned. WIN!
  • dawning
    dawning Posts: 32
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    I find that I am in an eating routine and i usally end up eating between 700 and 900 calories per day. Periodically I will eat more if I go out to dinner or a party. I have been doing this since January. It's not that I don't want to eat 1200 but I just don't with the way I eat.
  • Tankplanker
    Tankplanker Posts: 365 Member
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    Dont be offended but have you double checked your portion size against what you are recording?

    I find it very hard to eat my calories and eat healthy, if it wasn't for protein shakes I wouldn't get close.
  • LeeKetty1176
    LeeKetty1176 Posts: 881 Member
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    Dont be offended but have you double checked your portion size against what you are recording?

    I find it very hard to eat my calories and eat healthy, if it wasn't for protein shakes I wouldn't get close.


    This is a good point.... the closer to recording what you REALLY eat the better.

    try to keep your net cals about 1200 to stay out of starvation mode........ make little changes
  • dragonmaid78219
    dragonmaid78219 Posts: 15
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    As long as your eating healthy and staying under your calories I can't image there is a problem! Keep it up your doing great!
  • robin52077
    robin52077 Posts: 4,383 Member
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    Let's say you were eating 3500 cals with no exercise every day and thats how you gained weight.
    So now, you wanna lose as fast as possible. You eat 1200 cals a day with no exercise. That's your minimum deficit. You add 400 cals of exercise. Your deficit becomes 800. So you add back that 400 by eating it making it 1200 cals deficit again. So, you eat a total of 1600 cals, with 400 cals burned with exercise. (Remember that 1200 deficit is the BARE MINIMUM! The more you lose, the more you need to intake.) That is still significantly less than what you were probably consuming before AND you don't risk putting your body into starvation mode nor do you risk being malnutritioned. WIN!

    Please replace the word "deficit" with the word "NET" in this whole post. Your terminology is backwards even though you DO have the right idea by urging people to EAT MORE!:flowerforyou:

    The deficit is the difference between the maintenance calories and the net (ie. How much LESS you are eating per day). The NET is how much your body actually HAS to use for FUEL!:happy:
  • lunatletica
    lunatletica Posts: 25
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    Thank you all! This has been very helpful... I guess in conclusion I have to trust that the math will work and that slow is better than triggering starvation.

    Have a great Sunday!

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