Calorie intake...I know, I know!
joybenyah
Posts: 20 Member
I know this is a hot topic, but I'm having a hard time eating 2,200 calories the MFP suggested for me. Can I lower that to 1500, or even 2000, and not feel like I'm cheating the system?
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Replies
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You can.
How much weight do you have to lose? How is it hard eating to your calorie goal?
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You could but I wouldn't.0
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Have you eliminated too many calorie dense foods from your diet?0
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@janejellyroll I'm not sure. I may just not be eating enough, but I get full quick so I stop eating. I do lean meats, vegetables and brown rice. I'm working on my snacks.0
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@janejellyroll I'm not sure. I may just not be eating enough, but I get full quick so I stop eating. I do lean meats, vegetables and brown rice. I'm working on my snacks.
Are you getting enough fat?0 -
are you POSITIVE you are weighing your food accurately? ALL OF IT?0
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My thoughts exactly. If you've jumped on the "I'm not going eat anything besides salads and chicken breasts" bandwagon, that will get old really quick. Can't say much else without more information.janejellyroll wrote: »Have you eliminated too many calorie dense foods from your diet?
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I know this is a hot topic, but I'm having a hard time eating 2,200 calories the MFP suggested for me. Can I lower that to 1500, or even 2000, and not feel like I'm cheating the system?
Probably. What are your stats, what did you tell MFP about your goals, and what do you put in for activity level and exercise?0 -
@strong_curves , my goal is 39 pounds0
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debsdoingthis wrote: »
My thoughts exactly. If you've jumped on the "I'm not going eat anything besides salads and chicken breasts" bandwagon, that will get old really quick. Can't say much else without more information.janejellyroll wrote: »Have you eliminated too many calorie dense foods from your diet?
I totally agree.
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If you're having a hard time eating 2200 calories, how did you end up in a position where you felt you needed to lose weight? One does not gain weight eating 1500-2000 calories per day.0
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Are you currently losing weight? If so, how much have you been eating? How many pounds per week have you been losing?0
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@lemurcat12, MFP said 2200 cal, 50% carbs, 30% protein, 20% fat. My activity level is gym 5 days a week, one hour. Rest days are Wednesdays and Sundays.0
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OP, are you using a food scale?
And how long have you been logging? How much are you losing per week?0 -
LyndseyLovesToLift wrote: »If you're having a hard time eating 2200 calories, how did you end up in a position where you felt you needed to lose weight? One does not gain weight eating 1500-2000 calories per day.
That's not true at all. My maintenance is 1800 cals and I'm not even down to goal weight yet. I can definitely gain weight eating 2,000 cals a day. (Substantially, if given enough time)
OP, it's different for everyone, which is why people are asking for stats. If you're taller and/or heavier, you should definitely keep that intake high. If you're shorter and/or lighter, you might need to drop it a little.0 -
@lemurcat12, MFP said 2200 cal, 50% carbs, 30% protein, 20% fat. My activity level is gym 5 days a week, one hour. Rest days are Wednesdays and Sundays.
Did you ask for 1 lb/week or what? If you did, I think it's fine to go under. If you said 2 lbs, I'd be less comfortable with it. Also, are you adding exercise calories to the goal and what did you say your activity level was (in other words, did you give it a higher activity level, like "active" and if so were you including exercise in your estimate).
2000 or even 1800 sound plenty high to me, for most, but if you are very tall you might have reason to eat more.0 -
I'm 6'2", 275 lbs and in my goals I selected sedentary lifestyle because I have a desk job. I do, however, walk a mile loop a couple times a day and go to the gym 5 days a week. I add those workouts to my daily exercise logs whereas I wouldn't if I selected a more active lifestyle. My recommended calories per day is 1690.
I don't know your height and weight but maybe you should re-evaluate what you entered in your goals. Seems to me that 2200 is a bit much to recommend unless it is including workouts. At least on your off days I don't think you'd want to eat nearly that much.
And as others have said, make sure you don't miss a single crumb when entering into your diary. Supplements like fish oil have calories. That bit of butter you add has calories. Your drink? Stick of gum? It seems to me, especially in the beginning, the more I go over my list the more I catch that I had missed.0 -
@LyndseyLovesToLift 2200 calories is a lot when you are actually taking the time to log everything. I'm this position because of the types of calories I was eating and how I cook. That should be a "duh"! I'm not a gym head that does protein shakes or take things to help build muscle. I know I have to burn fat first. Don't be critical and not think of other factors.0
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@lemurcat12 I said 1lb/wk, and I'm average height. Thank you so much for the advice!0
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@LyndseyLovesToLift 2200 calories is a lot when you are actually taking the time to log everything. I'm this position because of the types of calories I was eating and how I cook. That should be a "duh"! I'm not a gym head that does protein shakes or take things to help build muscle. I know I have to burn fat first. Don't be critical and not think of other factors.
Weight gain is more about how MUCH you're eating than what you're eating. I eat a lot of foods that people would say is "bad" and I still lose weight. I'm losing weight eating white rice, I'm losing weight eating fried chicken, I'm losing weight eating all of the same foods I've always eaten except I make sure to weigh/measure all my portions. You don't have to only eat chicken breast (
), brown rice and veggies.
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LyndseyLovesToLift wrote: »If you're having a hard time eating 2200 calories, how did you end up in a position where you felt you needed to lose weight? One does not gain weight eating 1500-2000 calories per day.
I often have this question; if someone gains enough weight that they want to lose some, how come they all of a sudden find it difficult to eat enough to reach a calorie goal that should see them losing weight. This goal must be less than they used to eat, during the time they gained the weight. The reason is I am jealous and wish I could be in the same position
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LyndseyLovesToLift wrote: »If you're having a hard time eating 2200 calories, how did you end up in a position where you felt you needed to lose weight? One does not gain weight eating 1500-2000 calories per day.
I often have this question; if someone gains enough weight that they want to lose some, how come they all of a sudden find it difficult to eat enough to reach a calorie goal that should see them losing weight. This goal must be less than they used to eat, during the time they gained the weight. The reason is I am jealous and wish I could be in the same position
I think it happens a lot when people drastically change their diet and eliminate many of the foods they were eating previously.0 -
@strong_curves , when I say types of calories, I mean like fast foods, cookies, Dairy Queen... Trust me, I still eat fried foods, white rice, and beef. I'm just cutting back on how much of it I eat. I'm not on this salad and chicken bandwagon0
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LyndseyLovesToLift wrote: »If you're having a hard time eating 2200 calories, how did you end up in a position where you felt you needed to lose weight? One does not gain weight eating 1500-2000 calories per day.
I often have this question; if someone gains enough weight that they want to lose some, how come they all of a sudden find it difficult to eat enough to reach a calorie goal that should see them losing weight. This goal must be less than they used to eat, during the time they gained the weight. The reason is I am jealous and wish I could be in the same position
Two possibilities (in my experience):
1. They're not eating what they think they are. They're underestimating all of their portions and eating more calories than they believe they are, leading to being full.
2. They are eating less calorie-dense foods (like veggies) than they were before they started, so they're able to eat a lot more bulk.
(I'm sure there might be more scenarios, but these are the two I've run into in my own dieting life and the two I've seen from other people here on MFP)0 -
@strong_curves , when I say types of calories, I mean like fast foods, cookies, Dairy Queen... Trust me, I still eat fried foods, white rice, and beef. I'm just cutting back on how much of it I eat. I'm not on this salad and chicken bandwagon
People can eat as much fast food, cookies, and Dairy Queen as they want. As long as they stay under their caloric goal they will lose weight. If you were only eating 2200 calories a day or less while still eating those "bad" foods, you would still have been losing weight.0 -
I think it happens a lot when people drastically change their diet and eliminate many of the foods they were eating previously.[/quote]
I totally agree!
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@strong_curves , when I say types of calories, I mean like fast foods, cookies, Dairy Queen... Trust me, I still eat fried foods, white rice, and beef. I'm just cutting back on how much of it I eat. I'm not on this salad and chicken bandwagon
Good! I'm happy to hear that!
Just a couple of small suggestions:
If you aren't already, use a food scale to weigh/measure your portions. You don't have to do it forever (unless you want to that is) but using a food scale gave me a better understanding of portion sizes.
Be patient - don't cut too dramatically, imo it just leads to binging.
There's a LOT of good information here, utilize it! It makes the whole weight loss thing so much easier imo.0 -
@jprewitt1, I'm not sure how many calories I was eating before, but I was gaining.0
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I ate between 1200 and 1400 calories a day for a year and very great. Just pay attention to how you feel on a daily basis.0
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