My report tells me I will weigh more in 5 weeks. How accurate is that?

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Fitnesspromiddleton
Fitnesspromiddleton Posts: 15 Member
in Getting Started
I seem to run around 1500 K a day and the report tells me I will actually weight more in 5 weeks. Yikes! Is this right?

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  • yarwell
    yarwell Posts: 10,477 Member
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    it's a broadly useless extrapolation from one day assuming the next 35 will be the same. The implication is that you had a calorie surplus that day.
  • upoffthemat
    upoffthemat Posts: 679 Member
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    I don't know how accurate that is. The calorie number MFP gives me is way lower than other sites and I know I can lose weight taking in more calories than they state. I don't know how different their calculation is or if it is true for you or not. Give it a couple of weeks and see what your reality is and then adjust. Everyone has different factors that influence how many calories they actually burn each day.
  • Fitnesspromiddleton
    Fitnesspromiddleton Posts: 15 Member
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    Thanks makingmark. I was thinking that too.
  • Ninkyou
    Ninkyou Posts: 6,666 Member
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    Take it with a grain of salt. Mine is usually within 2 lbs, and I kept track of the predictions for like 4 months in a spreadsheet. But the problem with the algorithm is that is assumes you eat exactly the same way for those 5 weeks... which no one does. It's more to just give you an idea of where you'd be if you continue following your goal.
  • BunnyBomb
    BunnyBomb Posts: 143 Member
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    I've found the weight loss predictions waaay off so wouldn't worry too much about it.

    Though I find using MFP as a useful tool to track everything, my nutritionist keeps banging on about how she doesn't advocate "calories" as a measure of whether I'm on course, there are just too many individual / personal factors so she says its a crude measure at best.
  • GsKiki
    GsKiki Posts: 392 Member
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    I think it depends on a person. For some it will be more accurate, for others not so much.
    For me personally it was not correct (it did show weight loss, but way faster than what it actually happened), but I know people that got it more or less accurate.
    If it shows you a lot of weight gain every day you might wanna check your daily routine.
  • srecupid
    srecupid Posts: 660 Member
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    I think it's pretty much completely useless
  • davidrip1
    davidrip1 Posts: 70 Member
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    I find it useful to get an idea how I did that day.Bunny Bomb, what does your nutritionalist suggest you consider during your weight loss?
  • cryptobrit
    cryptobrit Posts: 200 Member
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    makingmark wrote: »
    I don't know how accurate that is. The calorie number MFP gives me is way lower than other sites and I know I can lose weight taking in more calories than they state. I don't know how different their calculation is or if it is true for you or not. Give it a couple of weeks and see what your reality is and then adjust. Everyone has different factors that influence how many calories they actually burn each day.

    I am glad you said this Mark as I could not understand why my calorie recommendation was so low at 1200, even allowing for 'sedentary' exercise. I upped it to what it said was maintenance at 1400, and I can tell by my waistline and tummy things are already things are happening :-). I guess it is finding what is right for the individual. I am not a big eater to begin with but trying to spread out my 'little and often' regime across the day was very difficult, resulting in going dizzy and having hunger pangs which I never normally have. Since upping to 1400 this has been much better and manageable.
  • Cryptonomnomicon
    Cryptonomnomicon Posts: 848 Member
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    The best determination of what your TDEE ( (Total Daily Energy Expenditure) are your results. Obviously, the deficit that is right for you will depend on your personal circumstances and how well you deal with the deficit.

    http://community.myfitnesspal.com/en/discussion/819055/setting-your-calorie-and-macro-targets/p1
    cryptobrit wrote: »
    makingmark wrote: »
    I don't know how accurate that is. The calorie number MFP gives me is way lower than other sites and I know I can lose weight taking in more calories than they state. I don't know how different their calculation is or if it is true for you or not. Give it a couple of weeks and see what your reality is and then adjust. Everyone has different factors that influence how many calories they actually burn each day.

    I am glad you said this Mark as I could not understand why my calorie recommendation was so low at 1200, even allowing for 'sedentary' exercise. I upped it to what it said was maintenance at 1400, and I can tell by my waistline and tummy things are already things are happening :-). I guess it is finding what is right for the individual. I am not a big eater to begin with but trying to spread out my 'little and often' regime across the day was very difficult, resulting in going dizzy and having hunger pangs which I never normally have. Since upping to 1400 this has been much better and manageable.

    Agreed-The best determination of what your TDEE (Total Daily Energy Expenditure) are your results. Obviously, the deficit that is right for you will depend on your personal circumstances and how well you deal with the deficit.

    http://community.myfitnesspal.com/en/discussion/819055/setting-your-calorie-and-macro-targets/p1
  • cryptobrit
    cryptobrit Posts: 200 Member
    edited January 2016
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    BunnyBomb wrote: »
    I've found the weight loss predictions waaay off so wouldn't worry too much about it.

    Though I find using MFP as a useful tool to track everything, my nutritionist keeps banging on about how she doesn't advocate "calories" as a measure of whether I'm on course, there are just too many individual / personal factors so she says its a crude measure at best.

    I would agree with your nutritionist. I remember decades ago when first getting into nutrition reading about how different foods according to their fat content. but having the same calories can affect things. Apparently if an item such as bread with some low fat cheese on was 250 calories, and you also had the same 250 calories made up with the bread and butter/marge and full fat cheese (even though there would be less of it to make it the same 250 calories: The latter would be actually 'worth' a lot more and harder to lose due to the fat content. Fat is normally tripled when trying to lose weight compared to starch and protein. Yes, I know we need fat in our diet, but when you think of all the hidden fat and sugar in foods nowadays, it would be easy to think you are eating sensibly. So 250 cals worth of beans and toast would be easier to shed than 250 cals of even low-fat cheese/cheese slice due to the fat in the cheese. It is worth remembering for those who get genuinely hungry as they can choose more filling foods that are not as fatty. I made a smoothie for breakfast this morning with a non-home made yogurt. Even though it was barely a cup, I was horrified to find the calorific value was around 100 more than I would normally have with my wholemeal toast with low-fat cheese spread and sliced tomato. Must try and get back to making my own again!

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