Too few calories?

Emily3907
Emily3907 Posts: 1,461 Member
edited November 17 in Getting Started
I have a question about the calorie goal MFP has set for me. I need to lose a fair amount, almost 95 pounds. I have my setting set to sedentary because I work a desk job and my exercise is all over the place, sometimes 5-6 times a week, sometimes 2. (I am working on making this more consistent). MFP has my daily calorie goal set at 1260. That just seems pretty low and I am concerned about it being too low. I know I can adjust my daily goals and change the calorie setting, but at the same time, I don't want to eat too much and I really have no idea where to set it.

I recently changed over to MFP from Weight Watchers and on that program I had 37 P+ a day which if you use the 40-50 calorie goal to point ratio puts me at 1480 - 1850 calories a day. I know 1850 would be too much. I am just trying to find that sweet spot where I am losing fairly consistently, but not going too far one way or another.

Any thoughts on how to find this? Like I said, I am new to the whole calorie counting thing and my mind is still set on "points"!

Replies

  • l4it
    l4it Posts: 3 Member
    I think if you incorporate the excersice along with your meals, it gives you more calories per day....kinda like the plus points....earning those when you excersise. Also, I think if you are "hungry" a piece of fruit or something healthy like celery or carrots sticks would be ok to incorporate. I think the most important part is logging what you eat...its the whole accountability part.
  • kimny72
    kimny72 Posts: 16,011 Member
    edited April 2015
    Yes, you are supposed to eat back at least some of your exercise calories, so that 1260 would only be on days you don't exercise. I'm guessing you chose that you want to lose 2 lbs per week, you could try switching it to 1.5 lbs or even 1 lb and see what happens.

    Honestly the only way to find your sweet spot is trial and error. So if your gut is telling you 1260 is too low, reduce your weekly lb goal, eat the higher calorie amount for 3-4 weeks and see what happens. If you are losing too slowly, or if you are hungry all the time and struggling, adjust from there.

    Also, read the stickies at the top of the Getting Started forum and the Diet and Weight Loss forum - lots of good info. good luck :drinker:
  • rontafoya
    rontafoya Posts: 365 Member
    You should weigh yourself nude every morning, first thing. Track your calories. See what kind of trend is being established--are you treading water? Gaining? Losing? If so, too slowly? This may take a little bit of time, figuring out your own metabolism. Based on what you say above, if 1260 seems too low, you may not stick with it, and moreover, you may not have enough energy to work out. So try 1500 and see how you feel, and also see what that is doing to your weight. Then keep increasing your activity level without raising your calories. If you feel good, try 1400. If that feels good, work harder. If that feels good, try 1350. Keep weighing yourself. Is the rate at which you are losing weight working for you? Keep at it; this is a process. I lost 40 lbs in 18 months and 8 inches off my waist at 46 doing exactly what I described to you. Don't make the mistake of making too drastic of a change too fast--but do make progress. Be aggressive, but use your brain. Step by step.
  • Liftng4Lis
    Liftng4Lis Posts: 15,151 Member
    Yes, that is your base calories, (you'll be earning more through exercise). If you try it for a week and feel it's too low, then you can always change your goal to be less aggressive.
  • malibu927
    malibu927 Posts: 17,562 Member
    rontafoya wrote: »
    You should weigh yourself nude every morning, first thing. Track your calories. See what kind of trend is being established--are you treading water? Gaining? Losing? If so, too slowly? This may take a little bit of time, figuring out your own metabolism. Based on what you say above, if 1260 seems too low, you may not stick with it, and moreover, you may not have enough energy to work out. So try 1500 and see how you feel, and also see what that is doing to your weight. Then keep increasing your activity level without raising your calories. If you feel good, try 1400. If that feels good, work harder. If that feels good, try 1350. Keep weighing yourself. Is the rate at which you are losing weight working for you? Keep at it; this is a process. I lost 40 lbs in 18 months and 8 inches off my waist at 46 doing exactly what I described to you. Don't make the mistake of making too drastic of a change too fast--but do make progress. Be aggressive, but use your brain. Step by step.

    Not everyone can handle seeing the fluctuations, so she should only do this if she wants to.

    OP, if you think that number is too low, change your deficit to 1.5 pounds per week. It'll give you another 250 calories to work with so you won't feel like you're starving. And, as stated by the others, you can eat back some of your exercise calories as well.
  • rontafoya
    rontafoya Posts: 365 Member


    Not everyone can handle seeing the fluctuations, so she should only do this if she wants to.

    OP, if you think that number is too low, change your deficit to 1.5 pounds per week. It'll give you another 250 calories to work with so you won't feel like you're starving. And, as stated by the others, you can eat back some of your exercise calories as well.[/quote]

    How else will you know what is working? It takes a week or two to know if a trend is developing. Sometimes less, but in fairness, about that. If you are eating too much, no progress is being made, no matter how much exercise you do. If you're not eating enough, you feel miserable and may give up. Seeing the fluctuations seems like a lesser evil than staying in the dark only to realize much later what you did was not working. Even on the biggest loser they weigh in weekly. If weight loss is your goal, you have to weigh yourself.
  • blossomingbutterfly
    blossomingbutterfly Posts: 743 Member
    I would suggest setting your goal to 1 lb per week. I started with over 100 to lose and set it to 1 lb per week. I've lost a fair bit too. There's no reason to start off so restrictively at all. And it's okay to eat food and go at it at a decent pace. You don't have to do it at 2 lbs a week. Enjoy this process!
  • LMS120yesIcan
    LMS120yesIcan Posts: 35 Member
    your setting at sedentary is causing your calories to be set low. Once you enter your exercise in, your goal calories For the day will go up. Yes to being more consistent in your exercising routine. Good luck!
  • malibu927
    malibu927 Posts: 17,562 Member
    rontafoya wrote: »

    Not everyone can handle seeing the fluctuations, so she should only do this if she wants to.

    OP, if you think that number is too low, change your deficit to 1.5 pounds per week. It'll give you another 250 calories to work with so you won't feel like you're starving. And, as stated by the others, you can eat back some of your exercise calories as well.

    How else will you know what is working? It takes a week or two to know if a trend is developing. Sometimes less, but in fairness, about that. If you are eating too much, no progress is being made, no matter how much exercise you do. If you're not eating enough, you feel miserable and may give up. Seeing the fluctuations seems like a lesser evil than staying in the dark only to realize much later what you did was not working. Even on the biggest loser they weigh in weekly. If weight loss is your goal, you have to weigh yourself.
    [/quote]

    Some people get discouraged seeing the scale go up a pound in one day. As long as they're doing it in a consistent setting (first thing in the morning, after using the bathroom and before eating) is all that matters, and 3-4 weeks will give them a sense of if they're doing it right to account for natural stalls and fluctuation.
  • magneticreikipaul
    magneticreikipaul Posts: 61 Member
    Emily3907 wrote: »
    I have a question about the calorie goal MFP has set for me. I need to lose a fair amount, almost 95 pounds. I have my setting set to sedentary because I work a desk job and my exercise is all over the place, sometimes 5-6 times a week, sometimes 2. (I am working on making this more consistent). MFP has my daily calorie goal set at 1260. That just seems pretty low and I am concerned about it being too low. I know I can adjust my daily goals and change the calorie setting, but at the same time, I don't want to eat too much and I really have no idea where to set it.

    I recently changed over to MFP from Weight Watchers and on that program I had 37 P+ a day which if you use the 40-50 calorie goal to point ratio puts me at 1480 - 1850 calories a day. I know 1850 would be too much. I am just trying to find that sweet spot where I am losing fairly consistently, but not going too far one way or another.

    Any thoughts on how to find this? Like I said, I am new to the whole calorie counting thing and my mind is still set on "points"!

    i'm not slating mfp but you need to go and get your bmr and bmi sorted before you follow mfp
    there is a very good online calculator here is the link http://www.bmi-calculator.net/bmr-calculator/
    just enter your details and your good to go
    it takes alittle working out as in the mathematical sense but it's worth it
  • Emily3907
    Emily3907 Posts: 1,461 Member
    Wow! Thanks for all of the awesome advice and tips. You all have definitely given me things to consider and think about.

    One thing I know for sure is that I need to be more consistent with exercise. I will definitely be checking out the link above for my bmr/bmi and adjust from there.

    I have also decided to give myself a couple of weeks to see what happens once I figure out my starting calorie goal to account for water weight and all. Then I will continue to adjust as I go.

    Thanks everyone for all of your help!
  • justfenix
    justfenix Posts: 30 Member
    rontafoya wrote: »
    How else will you know what is working? It takes a week or two to know if a trend is developing. Sometimes less, but in fairness, about that. If you are eating too much, no progress is being made, no matter how much exercise you do. If you're not eating enough, you feel miserable and may give up. Seeing the fluctuations seems like a lesser evil than staying in the dark only to realize much later what you did was not working. Even on the biggest loser they weigh in weekly. If weight loss is your goal, you have to weigh yourself.

    Weekly yes, daily no. Hell, I weighed two lbs less when I left the gym today wearing more clothes and with wet hair than I did when I got there (The early number annoyed me, so I tried again before I left). Rather than motivate me that just confused the hell out of me. Daily fluctuations just wreak havoc on your motivation which is why TBL does weekly since that is a more accurate representation of your progress.
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