Am I not eating enough?
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louise5779 wrote: »You need to eat your goal and eat back some of your workout calories. Maximum 50%.
I don't see anything wrong with doing a 2 hour cardio workout. That's what I do 5 mornings a week. Some people just have a long endurance. I often watch people at the gym who get on each machine for 5 minutes and leave after a total of 30 minutes. That just doesn't work for everyone and I wouldn't call it a work out but a warm up! I don't feel like I have worked out unless I'm doing 2 hours or a distance run outside.
Please remember everyone is built differently no way could I cut to 30mins x 2 per week of cardio.
LOL. I don't think you would think my 20-30 workouts were warmups.0 -
acorsaut89 wrote: »I weigh 188 and I'm 5-2. . . Workout 4 times a week at the gym for 2 hours each day and do workouts at home on my 'off gym' days. How much should I be taking in a day to lose weight. . . About 1-2 pounds a week? I need to be back at 140.
Is 140 a healthy weight for you, or just what you feel you should be at? I feel like you're very focused on the scale and not so much on being healthy. If you're really only concerned about a number and not doing it for health/fitness/longevity of life reasons I feel like your success will not be as great or as long-term as it could be.
140 is what my doctor says i need to be at. I'm so focused on the scale because in order to have a healthy lifestyle, I need to be able to lose weight in a healthy way.
So basically I need to update my calorie intake amd keep doing the same workouts?
Well maybe . . . it's really hard to say what's the best for your body without knowing every single detail about you.
For example, according to my family doctor I should be at about 160lbs (using a BMI scale) but I'm not a petite woman, I'm 5'10 with broad shoulders . . . I'm like an amazonian woman lol. When I started working with a registered dietitian - whom I love, by the way - she suggested I do a body composition test, which is also called a Bod Pod sometimes. Anyways, keeping in mind to retain a healthy amount of fat stores, which everyone needs, she said I could realistically get to about 200 or 190 lbs. I'm not tiny in any way so a one size fits all BMI scale is probably not the best way for me, plus I'm active - I run 5 and 10 K distances and I lift heavy, working on Olympic lifts (snatch and clean and jerk, with complimentary lifts like dead lifts, squats, rows, high pulls, push presses, etc). And I came from being 340lbs, so being that big I had a little more muscle because I was carrying around so much extra weight.
Have you considered working with a dietitian? I highly recommend them - my work benefits covers mine, but even if they didn't and I met her outside of that I would pay for her.
Anyways, bottom line is that I would take 140 lbs with a grain of salt. I'm a good 8" taller than you, but the point of this is that the scale isn't always the best to measure a healthy weight across the board. Some pro athletes are considered in the obese category when using the BMI scale. I am definitely not a doctor, but if you want to find the best path/route and destination for you, it may or may not be what a "doctor" told you to do . . . I did a lot of research and a lot of trial and error before I figured out what works best for me, and that probably isn't going to be what works best for any one else. The human body is a tricky, tricky thing.
If you want to have long term success though, I would reduce your calories gradually if you feel you have to count calories. For example, if you were consuming net 3,000/day previously (let's just say) then keep the work outs but only net 2,500 or 2,750 a day for a while and then when you're used to that make another cut. If you cut drastically at the beginning you will see a big change at first but then once the cut wears off, you can't keep cutting enough to keep the loss going. NOT saying starvation mode, before anyone misinterprets what I'm saying.
What worked for me (again, keep in mind it's for me and I'm not saying it's the end all be all of weight loss) is to stop counting calories and look at the content of what I'm eating. For example, my RD got me eating every 3 - 4 hours, which I wasn't doing when I first started. And she taught me how to structure my meals - not just saying here's a list of the only foods you can eat. She said snacks should be a protein and a carb, meals should have half veggies, quarter protein and quarter carbs. How I make those work is totally up to me, but when she taught me how to structure, and then taught me about the foods that fit into each category I found I was gaining more knowledge because I do not want to eat chicken and sweet potato for the rest of my life, and she taught me how to substitute foods. Gaining the knowledge of what I'm putting in my body has been very helpful for me, but I'm doing it for fitness and we probably have different goals.
So in the end, just my experience for what it's worth. The best thing you can do is research and figure out what works best with your lifestyle and the end goals you want to achieve.0 -
XavierNusum wrote: »28 yo
5'2"
188lbs
8 hrs/wk exercise
plus "mom" activity
Your TDEE is around 3092 kcals for your level of activity!! That's how many calories it would take to maintain your current size! So that would put you at a 39% deficit. That is too extreme. That's not even taking into account you don't make it to 1200 kcals!!
With a more appropriate deficit fo 15-20% you should be eating 2474 kcal with your current activity level.
If you continue this calorie deficit it will have negative affects on your health. Just some symptoms are hormonal issues, restricted blood flow (cold hands & feet), irritability and even hair loss!
Please come by the EM2WL group (eat more 2 weigh less) to get more in depth explanations and help transitioning away from the yo-yo dieting of extreme deficits.
Just for a little more effect, OP; you wouldn't be at a 39% deficit...you'd be at a 61% deficit. 1200 is only 40% of your TDEE, thus you'd be eating TDEE -60%. You're eating at an extreme. You should be eating 1200 cals + 50-60% of your exercise cals to get into the 2000's. Eating at such an extreme is a recipe for failure.
Thanks for correcting me!!! I missed that!!0 -
I say over eating because I'm already full with being under 1200 calories and I stay very active. I log everything that I eat. I don't eat back my workout calories because I want to lose weight, not maintain it. I workout in the morning after I drop the kids off at school but don't log my workout till nighttime because I don't want to eat back those calories. I do weigh everything that I eat and scan all the barcodes. I've lost almost 6 pounds since the kids went back to school but only 2 since I started back with the app. . . Which that weight doesn't really count as weightloss because the body fluctuates so much.
I was home with my kids over the summer and we also took a very long vacation. . . . So eating right was hard to do when u spend 90 hours in the truck in 2 weeks. . . . I did do salads when we sat down but more junk food than anything else. I gained 18 pounds over the summer which has had me a little depressed and mad at myself.
I'm kinda stick and don't know what to do. . . .
(sorry, this kinda turned into a venting session)
Um....you do understand that is how MFP is designed to work....right? It's not telling you 1200 is your maintenance, it's telling you to net 1200 to meet your goal you entered (let me guess, 2lbs per week) calculated by the stats you entered.
Let's say we have a person who maintains at 2000 cals per day, to lose 1lb per week that would be a 250 cal per day cut.
Without Exercise; 2000 cals - 250 = 1750 (250 cal deficit to lose 1lb per week.)
Let's say this person adds in a 45 minute run to help with their cardiovascular health. This 45min run burns ~400 cals.
2000 + 400 now equals a maintenance of 2400
2400 - 250 = 2150 (250 cal deficit to lose 1lb per week and workout is properly fueled)
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You must eat to the minimum MFP is warning you about to avoid unintended side effects like muscle loss. If you haven't eaten enough during the day, finish off the day with a protein shake.0
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I think 140 is reasonable. that's what my goal is and I am the same height. we'll see as that weight gets closer
make sure you weigh everything. everything. if it goes in the mouth, it should go on the scale if possible
exercise should be logged. mfp is set up so that you should be eating your exercise calories. try eating about half because estimations are just that-estimations.
if you are having a hard time reaching your caloric goals, try eating something maybe like peanut butter. that stuff adds up quick. or something else high in calorie and preferable nutrient richsnowflakesav wrote: »not feeling hungry during the first week or so is typical. You have plenty of stored fuel in your muscles and liver. Once you run out of stored glycogen your body will tell you to eat.
this could also be the case0 -
I know it sounds like I'm starving myself. . . I'm not. I feel full with what I eat. By what everyone is saying, I need to add calories.
My workouts consist of 30 minutes on the treadmill (sometimes more), the resistance machines and another cardio machine such as a stationary bike or elliptical. I am only able to go to the gym 4 times a week because of mine and my kids schedules. On Tuesdays and Thursdays, I have leg days and Wednesdays and Fridays I have arm days.
My calories burnt - I go off of the machine that I'm using. I enter my weight and it periodically takes my heart rate and it keeps track of my calories burnt. I do log my weights into myfitnesspal but it doesn't count calories because it's a 'strength' and not cardio.
I also do jumping Jacks, squats, switch kicks, planks, etc on my off days at the gym.
I know this weight won't come off quick. . . I'm sorry if I made it seem that way. I have been struggling with my weight since I had my 2nd child, 5.5 years ago.
I log EVERYTHING that I eat and usually only have water. I stay away from cokes. I base my calorie intake based on what myfitnesspal says when I scan Barcode and the actual label itself.
If you are using the numbers off machines, then know that they overestimate. For example, for a 40 minute run the treadmill renders a number of 400 plus calories, but my heart rate monitor will say anything 260 to 300. I run 3 times a week. I eat all my exercise calories back based on evidence that I'm pretty accurate with logging (weight loss first, now maintenance), but if I ate what the machine said I'd gain weight over time.
Therefore, you are probably eating just a bit more than you realize, which is a good thing if you are still losing weight. You will just lose it a bit slower, which is a good thing too.
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Hi! I am also 5'2". Used to weigh 194, now I am down to 121. My advice is eat lots of protein (I aim for 100g a day) and strength train to keep that muscle while you lose so you don't end up skinny and flabby. I found myself getting that way after doing so much cardio and eating mostly carbs. My cellulite got continuously worse even though the scale was going down. I researched and learned a great deal on mfp. I have lost the last 15 pounds doing hardly any cardio and lifting heavy weights and eating about 1700 cals a day. My body has gotten firmer and I am finally pleased with what I am seeing.0
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acorsaut89 wrote: »I weigh 188 and I'm 5-2. . . Workout 4 times a week at the gym for 2 hours each day and do workouts at home on my 'off gym' days. How much should I be taking in a day to lose weight. . . About 1-2 pounds a week? I need to be back at 140.
Is 140 a healthy weight for you, or just what you feel you should be at? I feel like you're very focused on the scale and not so much on being healthy. If you're really only concerned about a number and not doing it for health/fitness/longevity of life reasons I feel like your success will not be as great or as long-term as it could be.
At 5'2" it's still considered slightly overweight. I'm the same height and my initial goal is 136, to get me out of the overweight category. 140 at her height is not at all unrealistic.0 -
If you're weighing everything correctly to log, then the only thing I can think to point out is not eating back your exercise calories. If you've logged everything, eaten dinner and still are really short, it's ok to go out and get something that's considered junk food (high calorie, low nutrients). You don't have to keep them in the house, walk down to the nearest gas station and get something there. Drive up to the nearest Brahms and get a small cup of ice cream. I end up usually drinking a can of soda if I'm short for the day and not hungry anymore. Or, if you feel you need to not eat any junk food, get some cashews. Very dense in calories for the small portions and full of other things your body would like. (that's assuming you don't have a tree nut allergy, of course)
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acorsaut89 wrote: »acorsaut89 wrote: »I weigh 188 and I'm 5-2. . . Workout 4 times a week at the gym for 2 hours each day and do workouts at home on my 'off gym' days. How much should I be taking in a day to lose weight. . . About 1-2 pounds a week? I need to be back at 140.
Is 140 a healthy weight for you, or just what you feel you should be at? I feel like you're very focused on the scale and not so much on being healthy. If you're really only concerned about a number and not doing it for health/fitness/longevity of life reasons I feel like your success will not be as great or as long-term as it could be.
140 is what my doctor says i need to be at. I'm so focused on the scale because in order to have a healthy lifestyle, I need to be able to lose weight in a healthy way.
So basically I need to update my calorie intake amd keep doing the same workouts?
Well maybe . . . it's really hard to say what's the best for your body without knowing every single detail about you.
Anyways, bottom line is that I would take 140 lbs with a grain of salt. I'm a good 8" taller than you, but the point of this is that the scale isn't always the best to measure a healthy weight across the board. Some pro athletes are considered in the obese category when using the BMI scale. I am definitely not a doctor, but if you want to find the best path/route and destination for you, it may or may not be what a "doctor" told you to do . . . I did a lot of research and a lot of trial and error before I figured out what works best for me, and that probably isn't going to be what works best for any one else. The human body is a tricky, tricky thing.
If you want to have long term success though, I would reduce your calories gradually if you feel you have to count calories. For example, if you were consuming net 3,000/day previously (let's just say) then keep the work outs but only net 2,500 or 2,750 a day for a while and then when you're used to that make another cut. If you cut drastically at the beginning you will see a big change at first but then once the cut wears off, you can't keep cutting enough to keep the loss going. NOT saying starvation mode, before anyone misinterprets what I'm saying.
What worked for me (again, keep in mind it's for me and I'm not saying it's the end all be all of weight loss) is to stop counting calories and look at the content of what I'm eating. For example, my RD got me eating every 3 - 4 hours, which I wasn't doing when I first started. And she taught me how to structure my meals - not just saying here's a list of the only foods you can eat. She said snacks should be a protein and a carb, meals should have half veggies, quarter protein and quarter carbs. How I make those work is totally up to me, but when she taught me how to structure, and then taught me about the foods that fit into each category I found I was gaining more knowledge because I do not want to eat chicken and sweet potato for the rest of my life, and she taught me how to substitute foods. Gaining the knowledge of what I'm putting in my body has been very helpful for me, but I'm doing it for fitness and we probably have different goals.
So in the end, just my experience for what it's worth. The best thing you can do is research and figure out what works best with your lifestyle and the end goals you want to achieve.
At 5'2", 140 is a perfectly reasonable weight goal. At 5'4", I'm aiming for 125 and that isn't even the bottom of the healthy weight spread for my height.
And I respectfully disagree. If OP is struggling to eat up to 1200 calories, counting calories is the best thing she can do right now, to ensure she is getting enough calories and nutrition to be healthy and fuel her workouts.0 -
I gained 18 pounds over the summer because we were on vacation and we indulged on things that we don't get where we live. . . . . I didn't even use myfitnesspal this summer, I just started when my kids went back to school and I got back to the gym. . . . . .
So how many calories should I be consuming a day? I know there is a problem with what I'm doing. . . That's why I asked for advise.
Log half the calories from your exercise and eat that plus your original goal (1200, from what you said). If MFP isn't letting you close that means you are logging less than 1000, I believe (they change this on occasion which is why I'm not sure).
How long have you been doing this?
It's common to not feel hungry at first, but I think it's wiser to ensure you are eating at a sensible, sustainable amount so you don't crash or binge or just decide you can't keep it up once that wears off. When I first started logging I was surprised to see I was below 1200, but I kicked up my calories a bit (easy enough to do--just add back in a bit of cheese or olives or use olive oil when cooking vegetables or have an extra banana) and am really glad I did as I think it would have been hard to sustain what I was doing, even though I was enjoying it fine at the time. More significantly, at a certain point you won't be able to make improvements in fitness without fueling it, and as you said that's important to you. Also, going too low counteracts the positive effects of the exercise in retaining muscle mass.0 -
I opened up my food diary. . . .0
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Eat more. Try not to use generic entries like "generic italian pizza". Weigh your foods. Compare the numbers you get to a site like the USDA food database. It gets easier as you go.
Once you know you're being more accurate, eat what MFP recommends, plus about 50-75% of any earned exercise calories. I personally would not log 60 minutes of gardening.0 -
I opened up my food diary. . . .
Just my initial gut reaction is very simple:
1. You've stated a couple times (quite emphatically) that you weigh everything. Yet literally EVERYTHING in your diary yesterday is not weighed. It's all entered as "1 slice", "3 eggs", "1 scoop", "1 cup".
2. Also over the last 7 days, you only have 2 full days of logging.
You have no idea what you're actually eating (in terms of caloric intake)
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I'm going to be honest here. A lot of times when people say they're getting full it's because they've changed their diets to include a lot of low calorie, high volume food. You are not doing that. Yesterday you had some eggs and toast and a bologna sandwich. Don't get me wrong, there's nothing wrong with that, I'm not judging what you eat. But the quantity, I don't see how you can possibly be full on such a meager amount of food.0
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I looked at your diary.
You don't believe you weigh all your food. I say this because most of your entries are generic. It's easy to get into a bad habit of eyeballing those things we eat every day, or even copying over yesterdays foods and not reweighing for today.
You don't log everything you eat. I say this because (1) your calories are so low on most days that if you were truly eating that little you would be losing weight pretty fast, (2) there's lost of meals missing, and (3) you would be exhausted (number three is an assumption you are not exhausted because it's not mentioned in your posting).
Your exercise calories are probably overstated because you either get the numbers from the machines or you use MFP or other internet/app for your burn numbers. Also, you logged gardening. Even if you don't do it every day, it's still part of your activity level. The only things that you record calorie wise is cardio.
This all adds up to show that you are eating more calories than you believe you are.0 -
I didn't realize that I need to be weiceoverturf wrote: »I opened up my food diary. . . .
Just my initial gut reaction is very simple:
1. You've stated a couple times (quite emphatically) that you weigh everything. Yet literally EVERYTHING in your diary yesterday is not weighed. It's all entered as "1 slice", "3 eggs", "1 scoop", "1 cup".
2. Also over the last 7 days, you only have 2 full days of logging.
You have no idea what you're actually eating (in terms of caloric intake)
Ididn't realize that I need to be weighing bread and eggs. . . . The nutritional facts match up to what myfitnesspal says. . . Now I'm even more lost
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I didn't realize that I need to be weiceoverturf wrote: »I opened up my food diary. . . .
Just my initial gut reaction is very simple:
1. You've stated a couple times (quite emphatically) that you weigh everything. Yet literally EVERYTHING in your diary yesterday is not weighed. It's all entered as "1 slice", "3 eggs", "1 scoop", "1 cup".
2. Also over the last 7 days, you only have 2 full days of logging.
You have no idea what you're actually eating (in terms of caloric intake)
I didn't realize that I need to be weighing bread and eggs. . . . The nutritional facts match up to what myfitnesspal says. . . Now I'm even more lost . And I don't log full days because sometimes I don't eat breakfast or lunch. . Sometimes it's more of a brunch.
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I didn't realize that I need to be weiceoverturf wrote: »I opened up my food diary. . . .
Just my initial gut reaction is very simple:
1. You've stated a couple times (quite emphatically) that you weigh everything. Yet literally EVERYTHING in your diary yesterday is not weighed. It's all entered as "1 slice", "3 eggs", "1 scoop", "1 cup".
2. Also over the last 7 days, you only have 2 full days of logging.
You have no idea what you're actually eating (in terms of caloric intake)
Ididn't realize that I need to be weighing bread and eggs. . . . The nutritional facts match up to what myfitnesspal says. . . Now I'm even more lost
You focus on the bread and eggs? How about the '1 cup and 1 scoop'? That's by far more important. And matching to MFP's database can be quite iffy as much of what's in there is entered by users, so make sure what you are selecting matches the weight and calories of your entry based on the nutrition labels of your own purchases.0
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