Super confused on calories

WannaBHottyMommy
WannaBHottyMommy Posts: 55 Member
edited November 18 in Food and Nutrition
So I am very confused about the number of calories I should be eating. In order to lose weight I need to be in a deficit, I get that but how do I know how many calories I should eat, is the calorie range based on my weight? I am 5'4 and 163lb female.
So lets say my calories shouldn't exceed 1500 and I consistently eat 1200, will I lose weight or will my body store my fat b/c I'm not eating enough? Add in exercise and I'm eating 1200 and burning 250 that means I can up my calorie but then do I lose weight?
Like seriously pls break this down for me.

Replies

  • JJS1979
    JJS1979 Posts: 177 Member
    It's unfortunately not an exact science, there are some calculators online you can use to get a base but then it is just trial and error. Try for 10-15% deficit and see how that works and then after a couple of weeks adjust. Don't just go straight to the lowest calories because then you will have nowhere to cut once your body adapts. I think for woman they should not go below 1200 calories so keep that in mind when you are trying to lose weight. Look up TDEE Calculators and this will give you your total energy expenditure including exercise. This is the number you should reduce by 10-15% and then go from there.
  • janejellyroll
    janejellyroll Posts: 25,763 Member
    The calorie range that MFP gives you is based on your current weight, your activity level, and the goals you input.

    Your body will not store fat if you don't eat enough, but undereating can impact your mood, energy, and even your health. That's why most people should not try to eat under their goal. Plus, most people find a deficit easier to sustain when they're eating a reasonable amount of food.

    If your calorie goal from MFP is 1,500, then eat that. If you exercise, eat back at least some of those calories (some people eat all of them and do well, some people are concerned that their method for estimating calorie burn may provide an over-estimate so they just eat back a portion of the calories -- like 50-75%).

    The goal MFP gives you will already put you at a deficit (assuming you told it your goal was to lose weight), so you can hit that goal and already be at a deficit. It doesn't count exercise, so if you make your deficit bigger, you can eat at least some of those calories too.
  • TeaBea
    TeaBea Posts: 14,517 Member
    WannaBHottyMommy wrote: »
    So I am very confused about the number of calories I should be eating. In order to lose weight I need to be in a deficit, I get that but how do I know how many calories I should eat, is the calorie range based on my weight? I am 5'4 and 163lb female.
    So lets say my calories shouldn't exceed 1500 and I consistently eat 1200, will I lose weight or will my body store my fat b/c I'm not eating enough? Add in exercise and I'm eating 1200 and burning 250 that means I can up my calorie but then do I lose weight?
    Like seriously pls break this down for me.

    Your body will not store fat because you aren't eating enough.

    Try eating at least 1200+50% of exercise calories. Here's why - large deficits make it harder for your body to support existing lean muscle mass. Most people want to reduce their body fat %.....not just the number on the scale. The 50% comes from the fact that calorie burns are often tough to nail down. After several weeks, if you find you are losing faster than expected....eat more. If you find you are losing slower than expected, eat less.
  • cmriverside
    cmriverside Posts: 34,458 Member
    Have you read the "Getting Started" threads? This site uses a slightly different calculation than what JJS1979 suggested above....

    Here's the post(s) that are really helpful.

    http://community.myfitnesspal.com/en/discussion/10300331/most-helpful-posts-getting-started-must-reads#latest
  • cross2bear
    cross2bear Posts: 1,106 Member
    If you put your stats into MFP and tell it how much you want to lose per week (and dont say 2lbs per week unless you have 75 or more pounds to lose) then you will be given a number of calories per day to consume - say 1500. that 1500 calories is then your goal for each day, and it includes the deficit you need to lose weight.

    If you then go out and exercise, and you calculate by whatever means you do so, that you are burning another 250 calories doing that exercise, then that gets added to your initial 1500 to make 1750 calories. You can still eat the 1500 and ingnore the exercise calories, creating a larger deficit, or you can eat some of those exercise calories back - it is usually suggested that you dont eat more than 50% of them (so 125 calories from a 250 calorie burn) because fitness trackers are horribly inaccurate and you may not actually have burned what you think you have.

    Your body will not store fat in a deficit. Just put that right out of your head.

    You really are urged to eat to your calorie limit to ensure that you get adequate nutrition and that you dont set yourself up for excessive hunger, which can lead to over eating or even to binges, which can undo any progress that you may have made.

    And be patient, as you will not see immediate weight loss, but as long as you are following the plan, it will eventually show.

    good luck!

  • rybo
    rybo Posts: 5,424 Member
    It won't store fat because you are eating too little. However too steep a deficit can cause issues with sustainability, feeling run down and caving in on dieting.
    Pick one of the calculators to get a maintenance estimate. Reduce 250-500 calories from that and follow for 3-4 weeks. Adjust intake as needed depending on weight trend. If you exercise consistently, I'd aim to incorporate that factor into your daily intake, as opposed to estimating calorie burn and eating them back. If your exercise is sporadic and potentially significant, then eat back at least 50% of the estimate. Adjust as needed.
  • cangler
    cangler Posts: 104 Member
    edited May 2017
    you may have to experiment to figure out your true deficit since we're all different depending on many factors (age, sex, activity level, genetics, etc.), but thru trial and error -- i just kept lowering my calorie budget (by 50-100 cals per day) every 2-4 weeks until i slowly and consistently loss weight and then had to lower it even more when i hit a plateaus. it seemed those calorie calculators (for me at least) were too high and i didn't really want to lose more than .5 - 1 lb a week, or more than 4 - 5 lbs a month... felt beyond that was too fast (just personal opinion), and really depends on how much weight you have/want to lose.. obviously somebody that is 50+ lbs overweight could get away with losing at a faster pace. when i first started, i simply logged my food of what i normally ate, obviously i wasn't losing so slowly adjusted as needed until i did start losing.

    it's really that simple.
  • Tried30UserNames
    Tried30UserNames Posts: 561 Member
    In the Home section of the site, fill out your goals in your diet profile information section. It should tell you how many calories to eat. Usually it's best to tell it you want to lose 1 lb or 1/2 lb per week rather than 2 lbs per week. The slower loss is more sustainable.

    Then, in your exercise diary, each day you can add in any additional exercise you do and it will add more calories for that each day.

    Just eat as much as MFP tells you. If, after about a month, you haven't lost anything for some reason, you can try lowering calories if you need to.
  • WannaBHottyMommy
    WannaBHottyMommy Posts: 55 Member
    JJS1979 wrote: »
    It's unfortunately not an exact science, there are some calculators online you can use to get a base but then it is just trial and error. Try for 10-15% deficit and see how that works and then after a couple of weeks adjust. Don't just go straight to the lowest calories because then you will have nowhere to cut once your body adapts. I think for woman they should not go below 1200 calories so keep that in mind when you are trying to lose weight. Look up TDEE Calculators and this will give you your total energy expenditure including exercise. This is the number you should reduce by 10-15% and then go from there.

    I tried one calculator that said 1715 calories for sedentary, I'm not sure if I should choice sedentary or light exercise though,I have a desk job, but barely sit down but to eat at night until bed time, so maybe that helps some of my day time sitting, plus I do get about 3 days in of exercise on a bad week.....

  • cmriverside
    cmriverside Posts: 34,458 Member
    Use lightly active. Track your food for a month. Adjust if you don't get the expected results. It is your experiment to run, it's what we all have to do. All the calculators are meant to be a starting point - we are all slightly different, so keep track closely and adjust if needed.

    It's about consistency and accurate food logging.
  • cmriverside
    cmriverside Posts: 34,458 Member
    I would also say, if you're going to use this site for your food logging, just use its goal wizard...the TDEE calculators are much more general.

    Read those "Getting Started" posts I linked above.
  • JJS1979
    JJS1979 Posts: 177 Member
    cmriverside wrote: »
    Use lightly active. Track your food for a month. Adjust if you don't get the expected results. It is your experiment to run, it's what we all have to do. All the calculators are meant to be a starting point - we are all slightly different, so keep track closely and adjust if needed.

    It's about consistency and accurate food logging.

    This Exactly ^^^ :)
  • WannaBHottyMommy
    WannaBHottyMommy Posts: 55 Member
    Yes I did read a few of those post CMRIVERSIDE, very helpful stuff. Thank you all, I do feel a little better informed.
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