HELP! Trainer upped calories by 1000?

Hey OP, lots of different advice, eh?

I would freak at jumping 1000 calories in one go to...don't think I could do it.

Well FWIW there is a rule of thumb that you shouldn't eat less than body weight X 10, which for you would be 1750 calories a day. So in your shoes I think I would try that first - 1750 - then if you are still losing try bumping it 100 a day, still losing bump it another 100 a day, etc. It may well be that you can be happy and losing well on 2200, but this way the scale is less likely to jump up on you. More food is good, right?

I've been eating less than body weight X 10. Naughty of me..OTOH there is also another little tidbit out there that you can supposedly pull 31 calories a day from every pound of fat. Could be that number is higher than my actual, but if it is 31 calories a pound then I could theoretically eat only about 700 calories a day and still not burn through lean mass. Not going to push it that far though.

I am in a diabetes prevention program right now...and I was averaging 1300-1400 calories a day. Now my lifestyle coach (she is highly qualified) is telling me to eat 1850 calories a day. This is even with still being fairly sedentary and have not started any real workout routine. The first few days I felt miserable trying to eat so much more, and really thought that this was not going to work.

Now...it's only been 8 days eating more than I was...and I've held steady at 1.5 lbs lost for the last 3 days. It's still early, but it is showing promise....eat more to lose more. I know it sounds counter-productive...but if your trainer is licensed and trustworthy you might want to try out what they say for a little bit at least. Especially since you are on a workout routine....the more you workout the more your body needs.

Francl27,

Why do you say "No way..."? I just used the same calculator and this is what is said for me:

5'10"
167 lb.
49 Years
Moderately active
It said to lose 2 pounds a week, I'm at 1287 or so.
I try to keep my Net Calories below 1300 and usually eat less than half my exercise calories back. I just started this journey, so I've seen no results yet.

But, my question is why do you say "No way" when that is what the calorie calculator is saying? Are you saying it is not a good tool?

ilex70 wrote: »

Well FWIW there is a rule of thumb that you shouldn't eat less than body weight X 10, which for you would be 1750 calories a day. So in your shoes I think I would try that first - 1750 - then if you are still losing try bumping it 100 a day, still losing bump it another 100 a day, etc. It may well be that you can be happy and losing well on 2200, but this way the scale is less likely to jump up on you. More food is good, right?

Total body weight x 10 is used as a rough estimate to calculate BMR for individuals who are not particularly overweight. Therefore if a person eats that amount per day (so gross calories - no eating back exercise calories) their deficit will be created through planned exercise, unconscious physical activity and energy cost of digestion. Therefore weight loss should occur.

The trainer's suggestion of 2,200 calories equates to about the OP's total body weight x 12 which is a rough estimate to calculate maintenance calories for a sedentary lifestyle. Same principle applies as above but the deficit generally comes from planned exercise. The higher calorie intake may allow the individual to do more exercise however comfortably which can be good for body composition - the eat more do more approach.

And yes, more food is a nice bonus!

SingingSingleTracker wrote: »

torid10 wrote: »

I am 5'3 and currently weigh about 175lbs. I am trying to lose right now, so that is why I am so confused as to why he would give me such a large number of calories to consume.

Looks like a target of dropping a pound a week means you should be eating 1321 calories per day at your age/height/weight. 2200 Calories a day is going to have you gaining nearly a pound a week.

But OP is not sedentary.

torid10 wrote: »

I am 5'3 and currently weigh about 175lbs. I am trying to lose right now, so that is why I am so confused as to why he would give me such a large number of calories to consume.

I am 5' 3", and I lost weight from 143 to 116 lbs. I had a desk job and did no exercise. I lost the first 20 lbs eating 1400 cals at the rate of a lb/wk. While you're not going to 'die' eating a net of 1400 cals, you should be able to eat quite a lot more than that to lose 1 lb/wk.

Cindy01Louisiana wrote: »

Francl27,

Why do you say "No way..."? I just used the same calculator and this is what is said for me:

5'10"
167 lb.
49 Years
Moderately active
It said to lose 2 pounds a week, I'm at 1287 or so.
I try to keep my Net Calories below 1300 and usually eat less than half my exercise calories back. I just started this journey, so I've seen no results yet.

But, my question is why do you say "No way" when that is what the calorie calculator is saying? Are you saying it is not a good tool?

Well for one, at 5'10" and 167lbs, you're already at a healthy weight. You should not be aiming to lose 2lbs per week.

auddii wrote: »

Cindy01Louisiana wrote: »

Francl27,

Why do you say "No way..."? I just used the same calculator and this is what is said for me:

5'10"
167 lb.
49 Years
Moderately active
It said to lose 2 pounds a week, I'm at 1287 or so.
I try to keep my Net Calories below 1300 and usually eat less than half my exercise calories back. I just started this journey, so I've seen no results yet.

But, my question is why do you say "No way" when that is what the calorie calculator is saying? Are you saying it is not a good tool?

Well for one, at 5'10" and 167lbs, you're already at a healthy weight. You should not be aiming to lose 2lbs per week.

So is 130 pounds for that height. ;-)

sllm1 wrote: »

I would give 1800 or so a go for awhile to see what happens. I wouldn't add 1000 a day for sure.

I have upped my calories in the last 6 months to fuel my workouts, and I feel like I'm on a much better track than when I tried to eat too little. I'm still losing. I'm more focused on getting fitter and less on moving the scale down as quickly as possible.

I agree! 2200 calories seems excessive. 1800 is what my trainer told me. I actually have MFP set to 1500, some days I eat less some days I eat more. I am still losing.

Cindy01Louisiana wrote: »

Francl27,

Why do you say "No way..."? I just used the same calculator and this is what is said for me:

5'10"
167 lb.
49 Years
Moderately active
It said to lose 2 pounds a week, I'm at 1287 or so.
I try to keep my Net Calories below 1300 and usually eat less than half my exercise calories back. I just started this journey, so I've seen no results yet.

But, my question is why do you say "No way" when that is what the calorie calculator is saying? Are you saying it is not a good tool?

People answered already, but OP is not sedentary. We don't know how active she is though, but the fact that she has a trainer suggests that she exercises... so 1400 is probably too low (I'm 5'5", was 10 years older than OP when she started, and never ate under 1650 calories to get down to 132 pounds - but I weigh everything).

In your case, 2 pounds a week is way too aggressive, as people have mentioned.