How Many Calories Did You Eat Before MFP?

your stomach doesnt shrink, your body gets used to smaller amounts .

no idea how many i ate before MFP- probably 2500 ish, more sometimes

I have no clue....lol. maybe 3000?

I'm pretty sure that my calories out part of the calculation was off due to a few factors. I started gaining weight and i was probably eating 3500 calories a day, at least. I gained a lot of weight very quickly. Then i cleaned up my diet and started seeing a registered dietician/m.d. and was still gaining weight, albeit much more slowly, and I'm not even sure if mfp was a thing at that point, but we estimated my daily calories to be about 2000 (at which point i should have been losing weight but wasn't). Them my dr and i fixed a few things and finally i started losing weight around the same time i started continuously tracking on mfp (although I'd had an account for a couple years before i started continuously teaching).

I can't wait until i can once again eat 2000 calories to maintain my weight, lol. Now that everything has been fixed, i just hope nothing else goes wrong that will need to be fixed in order to keep my "calories out" part of the equation in order.

I don't know.
I started with a calorie goal of 1330 and it wasn't very difficult at all for me so probably somewhere between 1300 and 2000 with a very sedentary lifestyle.
I pre-log 3 meals and 1-2 snacks every day. I eat what I have planned. I know I am getting enough calories and I tell myself that. I drink water and wait before eating more. I chew gum in I have an urge to stick food in my mouth out of boredom.

I don't really know how many calories I was eating daily before joining MFP but once I joined I logged in a few things that I would normally have and the numbers were unbelievable, not just the calories but the amount of sugar I was consuming was almost triple what I should be having.......I actually cried after seeing the results. Now whenever I am craving something I will log it in and usually seeing the numbers on the screen will help me pass on having it. I will occasionally treat myself but now I plan it into my day and I stick to ONE serving. I have only been doing this for 18 days and it is amazing how much better I feel since getting my sugar intake under control.

SabrinaLovesPandora wrote: »

I'm trying so hard not to even look in the direction of Starbucks right now. I'm trying to see how long I'll last making my food, given my small amounts of patience.

I worked at Starbucks for a long time. I'm pretty sure my overindulgence was the cause for my final 20lb weight gain a couple of years ago.

But! For you to be successful, you shouldn't outright avoid things. You can indulge in Starbucks and still lose (I've recently switched from frappuccinos, to lattes, to plain iced coffee, to an iced americano, to two shots of espresso on ice with one pump of hazelnut - it takes weaning, haha)! Same goes for anything else - cookies, pizza, whatever. Don't just give it all up. Learn moderation and portions and keep it all within your calorie allotment.

I started at 200~lbs, down to 187lbs, and personally eat 1,500 calories. That's what I'm comfortable at. I don't binge, I don't slip, I feel satisfied, and I'm losing. Trying to lose .5lb a week and KEEP it off.

I've slipped a few times while calorie counting but continued to count, even on a really bad day (which is literally the same as an old "normal" day for me) and I usually top off at 2,500 - 2,700 calories.

I have no clue either, way over 2000 calories most days. I didn't start counting calories until I had to lose the weight

Best guess is 4000.

According to a calculators... Looks like about 2000ish. I'm 5'3" and now eating about 1400 calories/day, sometimes more.

I'm definitely a fan of gradual changes. You dropped from 3000 to 1200... That's not going to be easy. I would bump up a bit to 1400-1500 and change your goals to lose half a pound a week. Focus on foods that make you feel full and focus on your foods (no mindless snacking). Make good choices and you don't have to feel hungry also, water, water, water! A glass before you eat, while you eat and after you eat. It helps me so much!

You are asking one question. I (perhaps wrongly) hear another.

How FAST were you gaining at 3000cals? With your stats you were either gaining more than a couple of pounds each and every week, or you are extremely active.

If you are very active and spending close to 2800cals a day, 1200 cals represents a >50% cut from your TDEE. i.e. it is more than extreme.

You shouldn't be THAT hungry in order to succeed.

If you are that hungry you're cutting more than you should, you are making yourself miserable, and you are increasing the likelihood of failure.

http://community.myfitnesspal.com/en/discussion/1080242/a-guide-to-get-you-started-on-your-path-to-sexypants/p1

http://fit101.org/the-step-by-step-guide-to-losing-weight-with-myfitnesspal/

In particular consider whether you are trying to lose weight by indiscriminately losing both muscle and fat, or whether you would prefer to do everything you can to lose mostly fat. Or whether your real goal is just to be stronger. Or whether your goal is to have six pack abs.

Hint: only one of the above goals can be accomplished on a 50% cut off TDEE, and it is the one that involves the highest loss of lean mass.

If you take 100 females who are the same age and height as you, 53 weigh more than you do today. At your goal weight, 71 would weigh more than you do.

I can at least account for two, usually three or four strawberry frosted Pop-Tarts. I ate those every day.


I tried my hand at recreating a day. What I really want to do is try recreating the Wednesdays when I would go to Kroger and buy as much as I could to eat that day. That'll probably be a little easier as I would typically eat the entire package to hide the evidence from my family.

SabrinaLovesPandora wrote: »

(You don't have to answer if you don't want to )

To begin with, I'm 5'3, 125 lbs and naturally pretty small framed and my GW is 110. I averaged about 3000 calories a day and, since starting MFP 3 days ago, I only eat around 1200 a day now.

It's hitting me pretty hard, as I used to be constantly eating.

What did/do you do to help when you stopped eating so much? Did it get any easier? And does your stomach really shrink when you stop frequently over-eating?


Thanks for the advice!!

You only have 15 pounds to lose - you should be eating more, IME. Your goal should be set on here to lose .5lbs/week.

For your original question, I have no idea. A lot probably, but I also had some untreated medical conditions.