What do you have your calories set to?

aliciamariej1
aliciamariej1 Posts: 12 Member
in Health and Weight Loss
MFP tells me in order to lose 2 pounds a week I need to set my calories to 1,200 a day. I think that is a little aggressive. In order to lose 1 pound a week it sets me to 1,260 which is still seems pretty low to me. I work out 5 days a week and eat back some exercise calories but on rest days it's tough. Just wondering if anyone customized their calories and if it works for you? Thank you :smile:

Replies

  • middlehaitch
    middlehaitch Posts: 8,486 Member
    edited November 2017
    Agree with @Lillymoo01.
    If you are getting such small differences between 1-2lbs a week you have little to lose and aiming for .5lbs a week would be apropriate.

    You may like using a TDEE calculator which will even out your cals over the week. And yes you can customize your calorie goal.

    Cheers, h.
    I find this calculator accurate for lighter people.
    http://www.sailrabbit.com/bmr/
  • Eire228
    Eire228 Posts: 238 Member
    Mine is set to 1200 as well. I believe that's as low as MFP will go, because I'm set at 1200 no matter how much I want to lose. I find it VERY difficult to stay within this when I don't exercise (and sometimes even when I do!). I do my best when I'm in weight loss mode, and it generally works. I've had my metabolic rate measured (I think that's what it's called), and I was told I burn about 1450 calories a day without exercise. So I kind of use that as my guide. 1200 just doesn't seem reasonable to me!
  • Jancandoit7
    Jancandoit7 Posts: 356 Member
    MPF set mine at 1200 (1 pound a week) but I changed it to 1300 (before any exercise) Been losing a pound a week no problem- I also eat maintenance calories once every 7-14 days to keep from going insane and this doesn't affect loss either. My CW is 178 lbs.
  • MelanieCN77
    MelanieCN77 Posts: 4,047 Member
    I'm at 1380 right now. I've been in maintenance around 1600 since March but got a little weight creepage after a stressful month or two so I'm gonna try and get 4lbs off by new year. That's a half pound a week goal on 5'5 at 139, but I workout a lot and get plenty exercise cals. I don't really do 'rest' days so I always bank something extra.
  • brittneyalley
    brittneyalley Posts: 274 Member
    I eat about 1200/day. I’m short, so every calorie matters. At my goal weight, my maintenance is like 1300... :(
  • NicoleMckenzie2017
    NicoleMckenzie2017 Posts: 141 Member
    I am 5'8 and I have my calorie intake set to 1200 in order to lose two pounds a week. I struggled for about the first week trying to gauge what 1200 looked like and how I could incorporate all my meals and maybe a snack into the day. Since then my stomach has shrunk and I find it almost hard to eat the full 1200- but I also am being VERY mindful about the types of food I eat. Aka no fast food, not a lot of carbs, etc. if you feel like 1200 is too low even bumping it up a hundred or two calories a day makes quite a bit of difference! Good luck to you :smile:
  • jennydelgado09
    jennydelgado09 Posts: 119 Member
    I'm 4'11 and have my calorie goal set to 1600. I allow myself to eat all that. I don't eat back exercise calories. So it usually puts me at a net of 1200-1400. On days I don't exercise I try to stay under 1500. Its been working so far
  • sdolan91
    sdolan91 Posts: 250 Member
    I'm 5'4, currently 153 lbs.
    I ate 1,200 calories for 2 months, recently I changed it to losing .5 lbs a week and I eat about 1,400 a day now.
    I've lost 25 pounds.
  • chellekoren
    chellekoren Posts: 273 Member
    So I’m 5’2” and have reached 45 years old and seem to have reached a lowering of my metabolism. I’m having to not eat back my exercise calories and still exercise 5 days a week, twice being body weight exercises for muscle retention/growth. I’ve seemed to stopped the gaining and am hoping it starts coming off. Within one year, my current pace of exercise and about 1500 caps a day average still gave me weight gain. Pisses me off actually!
  • WhereIsPJSoles
    WhereIsPJSoles Posts: 622 Member
    It set me to 1260 for 1 lb a week too. So much better than 1200, loved getting that extra half a grape in. I set it to .5 lb a week instead so I’m up to 1320. It feels low, but when I put in my exercise it ends up being a decent amount I can eat back if I want.
  • pmm3437
    pmm3437 Posts: 529 Member
    edited November 2017
    I calculated calories for maintenance at my goal weight and sed., then set it manually. It allows for a higher deficit now, when I'm heavier, and gradually decreases as I get closer to my goal. Added benefit is that I wont have to change my routine/habits when I reach my goal.

    I log and eat back 100% of exercise calories from machine based estimates ( treadmill, eliptical, etc ), and I don't log for other exercise ( strength training, swimming, etc ).
  • callsitlikeiseeit
    callsitlikeiseeit Posts: 8,626 Member
    ive done it just about every way imaginable. I've lost 100 pounds so far.

    For me, going by what MFP gives you (in my case its 1200 a day) and eating back about half of exercise calories is pretty effective. If i know my logging is a little loose and im not being great with it, ill eat back even fewer calories, or none. but this is after YEARS of logging and losing and knowing what im doing and how inaccurate my calorie counts might be off (i maintained for a year without logging anything and didnt gain, so I developed a pretty good sense for it, it seems).

  • kandikorn96
    kandikorn96 Posts: 3 Member
    The longer it takes you to lose the weight, the more likely you are to keep it off. I wouldn't rush yourself. Take your time and get yourself into healthier habits, and the weight will come off in time!
  • Lesscookies1
    Lesscookies1 Posts: 250 Member
    I eat about 1700 calories a day.
  • Jody_ak
    Jody_ak Posts: 3 Member
    Mine are set at 1200 too, with macros at 40/30/30. That's also for a 2lb a week loss. I don't have much to lose though (10lbs) and I'm over age 50 and menopausal, which is a consideration when it comes to how many calories you need. I'm average height (5"5) but small boned. I'm very active but I try not to eat back my exercise calories. It's a challenge sometimes but I find 1200 pretty doable as long as I stick to eating clean and stay away from processed foods.
  • KailaLaFlor
    KailaLaFlor Posts: 20 Member
    Mfp gives me 1,200 for 1 lb a week. I usually end up eating 1,300 and have still averaged 1 lb a week anyway so far. I've gotten a bit wiser as to how to eat at that goal and not go crazy, mainly learning how to ration the calories where I get a lot for the time of day I'm the hungriest.
  • Aaron_K123
    Aaron_K123 Posts: 7,122 Member
    edited November 2017
    aliciamariej1 wrote: »
    MFP tells me in order to lose 2 pounds a week I need to set my calories to 1,200 a day. I think that is a little aggressive. In order to lose 1 pound a week it sets me to 1,260 which is still seems pretty low to me. I work out 5 days a week and eat back some exercise calories but on rest days it's tough. Just wondering if anyone customized their calories and if it works for you? Thank you :smile:

    MFP bottoms out at 1200. What that means is it won't ever go below 1200. If you want to lose 2 pounds a week you need to have a deficit of 1000 calories a day. MFP calculates the amount of energy you likely burn in a given day based on what information you entered into it and lets say it calculates that to be 1760 calories a day. Then it sees you want to lose 2 pounds a day so it calculates you need a deficit of 1000 calories a day. It subtracts 1000 from 1760 and gets 760 but it refuses to go below 1200 so it just spits out 1200 as your goal even though that isn't what you asked for.

    If you get a "1200" as your goal what that is basically meaning is "error, value too low...here is a 1200".

    That is why when you switched to 1 pound a week (which is a deficit of 500 calories a day) it only went up to 1260. A value of 1260 is probably accurate...meaning it calculated your daily burn is 1760, you want to lose one pound a week so thats 500 a day...1760-500 = 1260 so your goal is 1260. It isn't artificially adjusting that value to meet some minimum it has pre-programmed into it.

    Now as to how accurate that "1760" number is that is totally dependent on how you represented yourself. If you called yourself sedentary then that number might be artificially low if you don't just sit at a desk literally all day long.
  • Aaron_K123
    Aaron_K123 Posts: 7,122 Member
    Just for emphasis if MFP tells you your goal is "1200" what it is basically saying is "error"
  • cjsacto
    cjsacto Posts: 1,421 Member
    edited November 2017
    I like the calculators at www.fat2fittools.com. My maintenance at my goal weight will be about 1600-1700 calories, not counting exercise. I set my calories for 1500 and eat anywhere from 1000-1500, whatever I want in a given day. My daily average per week tends to be a little over 1300 according to MFP nutrition tab. I don't eat back exercise calories but I'm more likely to get close to 1500 on exercise days, have gone over just a few times. (I don't do hours of cardio so my exercise stipend is pretty modest anyway.) I pay a lot of attention to the nutrition of what I'm eating, not just calories, and I have various rules that help me. I find giving myself a little freedom this way is pretty stress-free and I'm averaging a little over a pound a week, about 22 lbs lost in 3 months, and I'm down 39 lbs from my highest ever weight. It's all estimates anyway, even with weighing and HR monitors, and I feel prepared to eat similarly for the rest of my life. I'm 17 lbs from my goal weight.

    I'm sure I'd have the same results if I set my daily goal for exactly 1300 and stuck to it religiously, but this way I can be a little flexible. I do take it seriously and I do weigh and measure, but I also eat out every week.

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