Confused on Calorie intake! Help!

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katiejrichards14
katiejrichards14 Posts: 3 Member
in Health and Weight Loss
I have been doing Insanity for 3 weeks after a long break in working out. This time I am trying to follow the Nutrition plan to the letter. It has me eating 2,211 calories according to the equation included in the Insanity Nutrition Guide at 40% Protein, 40% Carb, 20% Fats.
- I started off eating 1200 and was starving, no energy, moody! Then, I read how not eating enough can cause your body to no lose also....so I upped my calories from 1200 to 2211 as the guide told me was needed for "very active" person of my size. I ate that many calories for 7 days and gaind 2lbs! :(
-Concerned about gaining after all this hard work I'm putting in... and money spent on all those groceries!! I wanted to figure calories best for me.
-So I added all calories burned from my last 7 days of work outs and it came to 2,534 calories burned just from exercise this week. I'm 30, my weight is now 177 and my height is 5'8'. My estimated BMR with the equation Insanity gives me is about 1603. Should I really be aiming to eat 1603 + my average daily burn of around 412 Calories? That would mean I need to eat around 2000 calories a day and not 2211?
Or should I just follow myfitnesspal? It tells me to eat 1830 and eat back calories as I exercise? What would you do if you were me to start losing??

Replies

  • azulvioleta6
    azulvioleta6 Posts: 4,196 Member
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    katiejrichards14 wrote: »
    -So I added all calories burned from my last 7 days of work outs and it came to 2,534 calories burned just from exercise this week.

    That's not VERY active. I sometimes burn that many calories in a single day. How many steps are you generally getting per day?

    Try putting your settings on sedentary and adding in your calories burned each day.

  • malibu927
    malibu927 Posts: 17,565 Member
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    One week is not enough time to tell if you're doing it right or wrong. That two pounds is most likely water weight, which can be from increasing your calories/starting Insanity/sodium intake/hormones/other factors.
  • TeaBea
    TeaBea Posts: 14,517 Member
    edited April 2015
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    TDEE (total daily energy expenditure) is maintenance including exercise. MFP does not include exercise. 2 different plans.

    If you are a regular exerciser then TDEE less a percent (or 500 for 1 pound a week, etc) is a good fit. You don't need to log any exercise. Scooby's and IIFYM are popular calculators. This is always a good number to have.

    If you are a reluctant (or irregular) exerciser then MFP is a good fit. You would log your workouts and eat a portion** of the calories back. A portion because calorie burns are estimates.

    Fast weight gain....I would be hesitant to call this actual weight gain. This could be normal fluctuation (of water weight) .....sore muscles can hold water, time of month, high sodium days, etc.
  • katiejrichards14
    katiejrichards14 Posts: 3 Member
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    Thank you! I shoot for 1200 and just eat back what I burn to see what happens. Guess I can always add/subtract little along the way if I find I'm still not losing.
  • erinelizabeth882
    erinelizabeth882 Posts: 102 Member
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    azulvioleta6 wrote: »
    katiejrichards14 wrote: »
    -So I added all calories burned from my last 7 days of work outs and it came to 2,534 calories burned just from exercise this week.

    That's not VERY active. I sometimes burn that many calories in a single day. How many steps are you generally getting per day?

    Try putting your settings on sedentary and adding in your calories burned each day.

    I think what she was saying was that 2,534 calories was what she burned in workout calories that week, not total calories burned in the week.
  • katiejrichards14
    katiejrichards14 Posts: 3 Member
    edited April 2015
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    I appreciate the responses and advice!

    Yes, that was one week of exercise that I burned 2,534 according to my heart rate monitor. I'm going to slowly adjust my calories down by a hundred or so for 7-10 days at a time until I find what works for me! I'm only 3 workouts away from completing the entire Month 1 of Insanity works outs which are 6 days a week and vary about 30-60 mins.

    I start Month 2 very soon and that kicks up the work outs to about an hour of High Interval Training sessions 6 days a week. I've read a lot of women report my same issue on the beach body site. Many seem to not lose until they enter Month 2. I guess I need to stick it out and stop being impatient. Patience is a key I'm told :smiley:

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