How do you work out your calories ???

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pipmcgrath
pipmcgrath Posts: 26 Member
in Health and Weight Loss
Hi, I lost 6 stone 9 lbs. Then had a dodgy gallbladder was ill for 6 months and ended up putting on exactly 2 stone. Fully recovered now and wanting to get that off. According to this I should be having 1200 calories to lose 2 lbs a week? I find that awfully low. I have flitted in and out of MFP in the past and found it hard to only eat that amount when I was 2 stone lighter and got to a stage it was impossible to lose anymore. Any thoughts? I'm 5.5, 36 and exercise 3 / 4 times a week for 45 mins to an hour.

Replies

  • pipmcgrath
    pipmcgrath Posts: 26 Member
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    2 stone heavier now than when I was in this pic. Trying to get back to that.
  • DeguelloTex
    DeguelloTex Posts: 6,652 Member
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    If you think 1200 is too low, you can set a less aggressive weight loss goal.
  • Azuriaz
    Azuriaz Posts: 785 Member
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    You don't have to lose 2lb a week. You can set it at 1lb or even 1/2lb. Sad to say I never noticed that much of a calorie bump when I did that, though. Not enough to curb my impatience. But you might be more adult about that whole patience thing than I am!
  • CurlyCockney
    CurlyCockney Posts: 1,394 Member
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    You will get some calories back to eat when you input your exercises on MFP, and you can always go for a less aggressive loss (.5-1lb per week) to get a bigger goal. Well done on the 6st9lb though!
  • janejellyroll
    janejellyroll Posts: 25,763 Member
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    If MFP's calorie goal seems too low, you can always adjust your weight loss goal to be less than two pounds. That way you'll get to eat more.
  • kshama2001
    kshama2001 Posts: 27,988 Member
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    pipmcgrath wrote: »
    Hi, I lost 6 stone 9 lbs. Then had a dodgy gallbladder was ill for 6 months and ended up putting on exactly 2 stone. Fully recovered now and wanting to get that off. According to this I should be having 1200 calories to lose 2 lbs a week? I find that awfully low. I have flitted in and out of MFP in the past and found it hard to only eat that amount when I was 2 stone lighter and got to a stage it was impossible to lose anymore. Any thoughts? I'm 5.5, 36 and exercise 3 / 4 times a week for 45 mins to an hour.

    Your ticker says you only have 19 pounds to lose - with that low an amount, set your weight loss goal for 0.5 pounds per week.

  • pipmcgrath
    pipmcgrath Posts: 26 Member
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    Thanks will put it up to 0.5lbs. Try it for a few weeks and see what happens. I wish I knew how many calories I was eating when I lost the bulk of my weight. Going to be trial and error I guess and see what happens. Least I've stopped gaining. But haven't lost anything since I had my operation either in June.
  • Optimistical1
    Optimistical1 Posts: 210 Member
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    Have you tried Zumba, Cize, Body Jam, or Ujam? They are insanely addicting dance classes (at least for me) where you will burn between 250-500+ calories per hour long session. Just about every fitness center offers them. Some instructors are better than others, you need to try a few classes to see which ones you like the best. Personally, I have a hard time hitting my 1200 daily without adding in a daily cardio class.
  • vivelajackie
    vivelajackie Posts: 321 Member
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    It's going to be a lot of trial and error. I have altered my calorie intake based off of progress multiple times over the 1.5 years I've been focused on losing weight.
  • cwolfman13
    cwolfman13 Posts: 41,868 Member
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    so set your goal to lose 1 Lb...that will increase your calories...you're selecting the most aggressive approach with 2 Lbs per week rate of loss goal..that's a 1,000 calorie per day deduction from what you would need to maintain...so while 2 Lbs per week doesn't sound like a lot necessarily, 1,000 calories per day deficit sure does...

    select a less aggressive goal.

    also understand that your calorie targets are calculated based on your stats and daily activity WITHOUT exercise...so when you exercise you get extra calories to account properly for that activity...just make sure you're leaving some kind of an allowance for estimation error. many people simply cut their exercise calories in 1/2 which is rather arbitrary, but if you don't want to bother with figuring out more realistic burns, it works fine.
  • PinkPixiexox
    PinkPixiexox Posts: 4,142 Member
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    1200 is very low. I 'put myself' on a 1200 calorie plan when I first started out. I did lose 2lb a week but I was incredibly hungry, miserable and fed up with the whole process. I then was introduced to the wonderful MFP - found out I could eat a solid 1500 and still be losing weight each week, albeit a little slower - but that's a sacrifice I was more than willing to take for a healthy mind as well as body! Good luck!

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