Calories in- calories out. Quick question.
typicallyjazzy
Posts: 41 Member
So I'm still confused about the whole calorie in/out thing.
Yesterday I had a cheat meal that was about 2000 calories. Usually I eat about 1200 calories daily plus I burn off about 150 or so working out. So about 1050 calories daily. I'm pretty sure maintenance for me is about 1600 or 1700 calories daily. I know I didn't gain a pound or anything. And it seems like I was only 400-500 calories over maintenance yesterday.
The problem is, I want to burn off those extra 2000 calories in the next 7 days so that I won't be off track losing that pound for the week. I'm unsure what the result will be though.
If I burn off those cheat calories and still eat at my usual calorie deficit will I end up losing 2 pounds in the next 7 days? Or will I only burn off those extra calories and lose 1 pound- putting me back exactly where I was before my cheat day? Keep in mind I'll be eating 1200 calories a day and possibly burning 350 or so off through exercise this week.
Forgot to add.. I'm currently around 118 pounds. My goal is 116.
Yesterday I had a cheat meal that was about 2000 calories. Usually I eat about 1200 calories daily plus I burn off about 150 or so working out. So about 1050 calories daily. I'm pretty sure maintenance for me is about 1600 or 1700 calories daily. I know I didn't gain a pound or anything. And it seems like I was only 400-500 calories over maintenance yesterday.
The problem is, I want to burn off those extra 2000 calories in the next 7 days so that I won't be off track losing that pound for the week. I'm unsure what the result will be though.
If I burn off those cheat calories and still eat at my usual calorie deficit will I end up losing 2 pounds in the next 7 days? Or will I only burn off those extra calories and lose 1 pound- putting me back exactly where I was before my cheat day? Keep in mind I'll be eating 1200 calories a day and possibly burning 350 or so off through exercise this week.
Forgot to add.. I'm currently around 118 pounds. My goal is 116.
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Replies
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You can do all the numbers you want but even if you do the math right, you won't necessarily see the results you want. Weight loss is not linear, there are quite a few factors other than cico that affects weight.
Just do your normal exercise and eat the way you usually do, and don't sweat the rest.5 -
With so little to lose, 2lbs, your goal should be to lose no more than 0.5lbs/week. anymore than that and a larger % of any loss will come from lean muscle, not just the fat you want to lose.3
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Sorry to say it does not work that way! If cheat meals keep you out of your deficit, stop having cheat meals.
Secondly you have a measly 2 pounds to loose. Why is this calorie burning thing you want to do so detrimental? Forget the cheat, and keep going with your calories, but you should be NETTING 1200 calories which is for example:
1350 (calories consumed) - 150 (exercise) = 1200 NET GOAL
Setup your calories to loose .5 pounds a week, this will allow you to eat more and you can even exercise more in the days to come and even eat more, then you will not have to cheat and still net calories correctly.2 -
Weight loss isn't linear. You can do things perfectly for a week and either not lose or gain a little. That's because our bodies don't shed weight at a steady rate. You could go two weeks and so no change, then get on the scale the third week and have lost two or three pounds. Don't cut your calories too much and keep on your normal exercise routine. You'll be fine.
With that being said, you should also focus on a weight RANGE, not a specific number. That allows your body the fluctuations without being stressful. On the low number of your range? Feel free to have an extra cookie. On the high number of your range? Tighten up your logging. Having a 5lb-ish range is a lot less stressful in the long run and a lot easier to maintain.1 -
typicallyjazzy wrote: »Forgot to add.. I'm currently around 118 pounds. My goal is 116.
Ignore the "cheat meal". Those calories are in the past. I would recommend (as others have) to increase to 0.25-0.5 pounds loss per week. You are so close to goal that honestly 2 pounds probably won't make much difference aesthetically. A scale number is just a number. Not sure how tall you are so I can't say if this is too low or just right.
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Although I agree with changing your goal to .5 lbs a week. It is possible to calorie cycle. If you go over one day, you can even it out the next couple days. HOWEVER, it doesn't work for big numbers, and if you go under your min. calorie count for the day, that doesn't work either.
If you ate 2000 in one meal, first of, that's impressive, what did you eat?
2nd, you won't be able to calorie cycle 2000 calories in a week. Sorry, but it's not even worth trying.
3rd, look at it this way: you are mixing up your metabolism so maybe that will help your body not get stuck in starvation mode and help move the scale alittle (but don't worry too much about the scale, worry about your measurements)
You're doing a great job. Don't worry about 1 day, just don't make it a weekly habit.
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Although I agree with changing your goal to .5 lbs a week. It is possible to calorie cycle. If you go over one day, you can even it out the next couple days. HOWEVER, it doesn't work for big numbers, and if you go under your min. calorie count for the day, that doesn't work either.
If you ate 2000 in one meal, first of, that's impressive, what did you eat?
2nd, you won't be able to calorie cycle 2000 calories in a week. Sorry, but it's not even worth trying.
3rd, look at it this way: you are mixing up your metabolism so maybe that will help your body not get stuck in starvation mode and help move the scale alittle (but don't worry too much about the scale, worry about your measurements)
You're doing a great job. Don't worry about 1 day, just don't make it a weekly habit.
:huh: starvation mode?2 -
typicallyjazzy wrote: »Forgot to add.. I'm currently around 118 pounds. My goal is 116.
Congratulations! You've met your goal, within the margin of error for measuring.2 -
One isolated large meal will have very little effect on your overall progress. Ignore it and go on.2
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Hearts_2015 wrote: »Although I agree with changing your goal to .5 lbs a week. It is possible to calorie cycle. If you go over one day, you can even it out the next couple days. HOWEVER, it doesn't work for big numbers, and if you go under your min. calorie count for the day, that doesn't work either.
If you ate 2000 in one meal, first of, that's impressive, what did you eat?
2nd, you won't be able to calorie cycle 2000 calories in a week. Sorry, but it's not even worth trying.
3rd, look at it this way: you are mixing up your metabolism so maybe that will help your body not get stuck in starvation mode and help move the scale alittle (but don't worry too much about the scale, worry about your measurements)
You're doing a great job. Don't worry about 1 day, just don't make it a weekly habit.
:huh: starvation mode?
starvation mode again! I have seen this at least 3 times today...
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NorthCascades wrote: »typicallyjazzy wrote: »Forgot to add.. I'm currently around 118 pounds. My goal is 116.
Congratulations! You've met your goal, within the margin of error for measuring.
This is a good point too..
And if you want to get down to brass tax, eating lower carb for a couple days, avoiding excess sodium, staying within the calorie range and perhaps getting a really good sweat on, would bring that down to 116 quickly maybe even lower!
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Although I agree with changing your goal to .5 lbs a week. It is possible to calorie cycle. If you go over one day, you can even it out the next couple days. HOWEVER, it doesn't work for big numbers, and if you go under your min. calorie count for the day, that doesn't work either.
If you ate 2000 in one meal, first of, that's impressive, what did you eat?
2nd, you won't be able to calorie cycle 2000 calories in a week. Sorry, but it's not even worth trying.
3rd, look at it this way: you are mixing up your metabolism so maybe that will help your body not get stuck in starvation mode and help move the scale alittle (but don't worry too much about the scale, worry about your measurements)
You're doing a great job. Don't worry about 1 day, just don't make it a weekly habit.
Not losing weight due to 'starvation mode' is a popular myth, but false. On the news last night I saw some painfully thin refugees being helped out of a boat. None of them weren't losing weight due to eating too little.
http://www.aworkoutroutine.com/starvation-mode/
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Weight loss isn't linear. You can do things perfectly for a week and either not lose or gain a little. That's because our bodies don't shed weight at a steady rate. You could go two weeks and so no change, then get on the scale the third week and have lost two or three pounds. Don't cut your calories too much and keep on your normal exercise routine. You'll be fine.
With that being said, you should also focus on a weight RANGE, not a specific number. That allows your body the fluctuations without being stressful. On the low number of your range? Feel free to have an extra cookie. On the high number of your range? Tighten up your logging. Having a 5lb-ish range is a lot less stressful in the long run and a lot easier to maintain.
Another vote for a weight range.
@Sued0nim - you've been in maintenance for how long now? What do you do about your weight range?1 -
Since Feb last year but I kept losing till about April since when I've had a 5-6lb weight range fluctuation
I'm fine if it's under the nominal 160 but when it hits 163 I start to panic a little as I feel I might be going back to yo-yo...I then slap myself and remind myself that water weight is a total be-atch
this is my maintenance fluctuations over the last year
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Although I agree with changing your goal to .5 lbs a week. It is possible to calorie cycle. If you go over one day, you can even it out the next couple days. HOWEVER, it doesn't work for big numbers, and if you go under your min. calorie count for the day, that doesn't work either.
If you ate 2000 in one meal, first of, that's impressive, what did you eat?
2nd, you won't be able to calorie cycle 2000 calories in a week. Sorry, but it's not even worth trying.
3rd, look at it this way: you are mixing up your metabolism so maybe that will help your body not get stuck in starvation mode and help move the scale alittle (but don't worry too much about the scale, worry about your measurements)
You're doing a great job. Don't worry about 1 day, just don't make it a weekly habit.
Thanks! I had a goal of 116 pounds by next week and I really wanted to get there just to prove it to myself.
Well, around 1600. I went to Burger King and because I was starving for some reason got a burger (590 calories), a regular small cheeseburger(270 calories) with small fries(320 or so calories) and then a little later I had yogurt from 32 Degrees (500 calories?). I'm actually not sure if it was 1600 calories because I don't know how many calories were in my cup of yogurt but that seems about right.
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