Need some Explanation (New and Confused)
BeccaLP12
Posts: 10 Member
So I'm slightly confused.
Ive been told the MFP daily calorie goal is to lose weight (my goals are 1200 calories a day, lose 2 pounds a week) without exercise?
Then I have a goal of burning 498 calories a day with exercise.
So, if I maintain the daily calorie goal, plus do the exercise, is it safe to say I will lose more than 2lbs a week?
Thanks for any help!
Ive been told the MFP daily calorie goal is to lose weight (my goals are 1200 calories a day, lose 2 pounds a week) without exercise?
Then I have a goal of burning 498 calories a day with exercise.
So, if I maintain the daily calorie goal, plus do the exercise, is it safe to say I will lose more than 2lbs a week?
Thanks for any help!
0
Replies
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MFP has you put in your general activity level and this does not take into account exercise. You need to add the calories you burn and eat those calories back, or some anyway. If you exercise enough to actually burn 498 calories (where did you come up with this number, btw?) you would need to eat some of those calories back. Most will say 50% - 75% of the calories, as calorie burns for exercise is usually inflated. You would have to work really hard to burn 500 calories.
Also, 1200 is the minimum calories you should be eating. 2lbs may be too aggressive depending on how much weight you need to lose. If you have 100 lbs to lose, 2 lbs is fine, but if it is say 40 or less, then you should aim for maybe 1 lb per week.1 -
You likely will, but unless you've got over 100 lbs to lose (and, at a guess, you don't, or MFP would have given you a higher calorie limit for 2lbs/week), that's not going to be safe or sustainable.
Your body can only burn so much fat in a day. Then it starts on muscle.
Plus, 1200 is the lowest number of calories that MFP will allow for women (for men, it's 1500), because any lower and it's almost impossible to meet your nutritional needs without medical supervision. Note: this may not apply if you are very short and very sedentary.
How much weight are you looking to lose?
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Becca, MFP is set up so you are supposed to eat back your exercise calories. So if you did 500 calories of exercise you should be eating 1700 calories. MFP sometimes overestimates calorie burns from exercise, so you should pay attention to your rate of loss and adjust accordingly.
Unless you are very obese it's not a good idea to try to lose more than two pounds a week. I know you want the weight to come off quickly, but you also don't want to suffer hair and muscle loss!2 -
@estherdragonbat
I'm 5'2 and trying to lose around 70lbs.
I just don't understand how I am supposed to lose weight if I eat back all the calories I burn?
I'm constantly walking at work, and burn around 500 calories each day with that. Then around 300 with an hour of Exercise.
So if I am supposed to eat back what I burn I should be eating around 2000 calories a day, which seems high to me!0 -
musicfan68 wrote: »MFP has you put in your general activity level and this does not take into account exercise. You need to add the calories you burn and eat those calories back, or some anyway. If you exercise enough to actually burn 498 calories (where did you come up with this number, btw?) you would need to eat some of those calories back. Most will say 50% - 75% of the calories, as calorie burns for exercise is usually inflated. You would have to work really hard to burn 500 calories.
Also, 1200 is the minimum calories you should be eating. 2lbs may be too aggressive depending on how much weight you need to lose. If you have 100 lbs to lose, 2 lbs is fine, but if it is say 40 or less, then you should aim for maybe 1 lb per week.
498 calories is what MFP says I should burn daily.0 -
Start by weighing and logging everything absolutely accurately. You are petite so this may not be true for you, but a person who is constantly walking plus doing an hour of exercise should be able to lose on quite a few calories. If you have 70 lbs to lose, you are probably used to eating more than you realize!@estherdragonbat
I'm 5'2 and trying to lose around 70lbs.
I just don't understand how I am supposed to lose weight if I eat back all the calories I burn?
I'm constantly walking at work, and burn around 500 calories each day with that. Then around 300 with an hour of Exercise.
So if I am supposed to eat back what I burn I should be eating around 2000 calories a day, which seems high to me!
0 -
@estherdragonbat
I'm 5'2 and trying to lose around 70lbs.
I just don't understand how I am supposed to lose weight if I eat back all the calories I burn?
I'm constantly walking at work, and burn around 500 calories each day with that. Then around 300 with an hour of Exercise.
So if I am supposed to eat back what I burn I should be eating around 2000 calories a day, which seems high to me!
MFP gives you a number based on your general activity and stats, minus calories. So the number MFP gives you is already giving you a deficit. When you do intentional exercise of any kind that's extra calories on top of your daily needs so you want to eat back some of those so your body isn't burning too much. Because estimates and devices like fitbits can overestimate calories most will recommend you eat half of those calories back to start and see how that works out for you. Does that make sense?
Also, you may find that 1lb a week may work out better for you than 2lbs, that'll give you a bit more calories to play around with. The loss will be a little bit slower, but if 1200 feels like a struggle a slower loss might help in the long run.0 -
@estherdragonbat
I'm 5'2 and trying to lose around 70lbs.
I just don't understand how I am supposed to lose weight if I eat back all the calories I burn?
I'm constantly walking at work, and burn around 500 calories each day with that. Then around 300 with an hour of Exercise.
So if I am supposed to eat back what I burn I should be eating around 2000 calories a day, which seems high to me!
Your deficit is based on your not getting any exercise. If you exercise on top of that, you need more calories to fuel your workouts. The amount you burn may be over-estimated, so it's best to eat back half your calories to start with and see how you do.
And if you're feeling hungry, lethargic, etc., it's okay to go with a slower rate of loss. I set MFP for 1lb/week when I had 124 to go to goal. I was losing weight on 1720. And now, I'm losing on 1450. (I'm 5'3", by the way).
This is a marathon, not a sprint. Slow and steady is generally more sustainable.1 -
MichelleSilverleaf wrote: »@estherdragonbat
I'm 5'2 and trying to lose around 70lbs.
I just don't understand how I am supposed to lose weight if I eat back all the calories I burn?
I'm constantly walking at work, and burn around 500 calories each day with that. Then around 300 with an hour of Exercise.
So if I am supposed to eat back what I burn I should be eating around 2000 calories a day, which seems high to me!
MFP gives you a number based on your general activity and stats, minus calories. So the number MFP gives you is already giving you a deficit. When you do intentional exercise of any kind that's extra calories on top of your daily needs so you want to eat back some of those so your body isn't burning too much. Because estimates and devices like fitbits can overestimate calories most will recommend you eat half of those calories back to start and see how that works out for you. Does that make sense?
Also, you may find that 1lb a week may work out better for you than 2lbs, that'll give you a bit more calories to play around with. The loss will be a little bit slower, but if 1200 feels like a struggle a slower loss might help in the long run.
1200 calories Seems ideal to me, it's the fact of eating what I lose that I can't wrap my head around. Knowing that calories are often overestimated helps, eating back half of what I burn seems more realistic to me.
I suppose I'll eat the calories that MFP says I should (Plus half of what I burn) and see how much fat I am burning.
Thanks for the help everyone!1 -
rheddmobile wrote: »
Start by weighing and logging everything absolutely accurately. You are petite so this may not be true for you, but a person who is constantly walking plus doing an hour of exercise should be able to lose on quite a few calories. If you have 70 lbs to lose, you are probably used to eating more than you realize!@estherdragonbat
I'm 5'2 and trying to lose around 70lbs.
I just don't understand how I am supposed to lose weight if I eat back all the calories I burn?
I'm constantly walking at work, and burn around 500 calories each day with that. Then around 300 with an hour of Exercise.
So if I am supposed to eat back what I burn I should be eating around 2000 calories a day, which seems high to me!
I suppose I am probably used to eating more than I realize. I used to eat fast food multiple times a week.
I'm gonna try eating what MFP tells me to, but filling with healthy calories instead of the fast food, and see how that works.
Thanks for the help!1 -
The site takes into account the amount your body burns just by normal daily function (the calories you'd burn just by existing even if you were completely bed bound), plus an estimate based on the activity level you put in. Once that's factored in, the math comes out to you needing 1200 calories a day to lose 2 lbs a week. Any excess calories you deliberately work off beyond that in will make you lose more than that, which may be unsafe or unhealthy in the long run.
In other words, eating 1200 calories but exercising off 400 would leave your body with the same amount of energy to use as if you'd only eaten 800. Which is pretty much an extreme crash diet and not sustainable.2 -
Becca,
In order to burn off 1 pound of fat, your body needs a calorie deficit of 3500. The safest way to do this is to decrease your intake each day by 500kcal. The 1200 kcal goal is based on your current height and weight, and as mentioned it's the minimum intake to make sure your metabolism doesn't shut down in starvation mode. It's possible that you can't achieve that 500kcal deficit. My recommendation is to forget about the calorie goal for the first week or so and instead just use the food tracker to see how many calories you're actually consuming right now. It was a real eye opener for me when I had to record EVERY margarita and glass of wine.3 -
Skimmed through the replies but didn't see this spelled out clearly- to lose 2 lbs/week, you need a 1000 calorie/day deficit. MFP won't give you anything less than 1200 calories. So depending on your current maintenance calories, 1200 may or may not be enough to lose 2 lbs/week and if it's not, it's not in your best interests to have a goal of 2 lbs/week.0
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So I'm slightly confused.
Ive been told the MFP daily calorie goal is to lose weight (my goals are 1200 calories a day, lose 2 pounds a week) without exercise?
Then I have a goal of burning 498 calories a day with exercise.
So, if I maintain the daily calorie goal, plus do the exercise, is it safe to say I will lose more than 2lbs a week?
Thanks for any help!
If you ate 1200 calories per day and then essentially burned off 500 with exercise and didn't eat those calories or some portion of those calories back, that would be the same thing as just eating 700 calories for the day. That doesn't sound particularly healthy to me.
You burn calories 24/7...it is likely that you burn around 1400 calories just by existing and doing nothing else...then you burn calories going about your day to day. Exercise is not factored into your activity level and thus not factored into your calorie target...common sense would dictate that the more you move, the more fuel your body would require...a car that commutes 200 miles per day would need more fuel than a car that just goes around the corner for groceries.2 -
what did you set your activity level to in MFP - from what you said - then lightly active to active might be an appropriate setting (it tends to default to sedentary)0
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A favorite read. It explains how MFP determines your calorie goal: http://community.myfitnesspal.com/en/discussion/10569458/why-eating-too-little-calories-is-a-bad-idea/p12
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musicfan68 wrote: »MFP has you put in your general activity level and this does not take into account exercise. You need to add the calories you burn and eat those calories back, or some anyway. If you exercise enough to actually burn 498 calories (where did you come up with this number, btw?) you would need to eat some of those calories back. Most will say 50% - 75% of the calories, as calorie burns for exercise is usually inflated. You would have to work really hard to burn 500 calories.
Also, 1200 is the minimum calories you should be eating. 2lbs may be too aggressive depending on how much weight you need to lose. If you have 100 lbs to lose, 2 lbs is fine, but if it is say 40 or less, then you should aim for maybe 1 lb per week.
498 calories is what MFP says I should burn daily.
This will be based on how often you told the system you want to exercise. It's not really a goal you need to stick to, and it won't affect the calorie calculations. It's just a number MFP spits out for you as a guideline based on what you told it. Personally, I don't find that daily burn number useful and I've always ignored it.1 -
diannethegeek wrote: »musicfan68 wrote: »MFP has you put in your general activity level and this does not take into account exercise. You need to add the calories you burn and eat those calories back, or some anyway. If you exercise enough to actually burn 498 calories (where did you come up with this number, btw?) you would need to eat some of those calories back. Most will say 50% - 75% of the calories, as calorie burns for exercise is usually inflated. You would have to work really hard to burn 500 calories.
Also, 1200 is the minimum calories you should be eating. 2lbs may be too aggressive depending on how much weight you need to lose. If you have 100 lbs to lose, 2 lbs is fine, but if it is say 40 or less, then you should aim for maybe 1 lb per week.
498 calories is what MFP says I should burn daily.
This will be based on how often you told the system you want to exercise. It's not really a goal you need to stick to, and it won't affect the calorie calculations. It's just a number MFP spits out for you as a guideline based on what you told it. Personally, I don't find that daily burn number useful and I've always ignored it.
I've always thought it was dumb for MFP to ask people for their exercise goal during set-up. To me, it implies that information is going to be used in setting a person's calorie goal.2 -
@estherdragonbat
I'm 5'2 and trying to lose around 70lbs.
I just don't understand how I am supposed to lose weight if I eat back all the calories I burn?
I'm constantly walking at work, and burn around 500 calories each day with that. Then around 300 with an hour of Exercise.
So if I am supposed to eat back what I burn I should be eating around 2000 calories a day, which seems high to me!
If you were 5'2" - 190 pounds - 25 YO - and sedentary, your daily calorie expenditure is in the neighborhood of before 1980 calories before exercise. To lose 1.5 pounds a week (2 pounds a week is too aggressive)......you would reduce 1980 by 750 calories. So if you ate 1,230 calories and did zero exercise....you lose 1.5 pounds a week.
http://scoobysworkshop.com/calorie-calculator/
My Fitness Pal gave you a calorie limit with ZERO exercise factored in. Eating back exercise calories just gets you back to the original deficit you set up. You can use the calculator above to include exercise. That way you get the exercise calories built in.
Aggressive weight loss makes you more prone to lean muscle loss. So if you want a lower body fat %, faster is not better.0 -
A favorite read. It explains how MFP determines your calorie goal: http://community.myfitnesspal.com/en/discussion/10569458/why-eating-too-little-calories-is-a-bad-idea/p1
Was just about to go searching for Mildred, you saved me the bother
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Becca,
In order to burn off 1 pound of fat, your body needs a calorie deficit of 3500. The safest way to do this is to decrease your intake each day by 500kcal. The 1200 kcal goal is based on your current height and weight, and as mentioned it's the minimum intake to make sure your metabolism doesn't shut down in starvation mode. It's possible that you can't achieve that 500kcal deficit. My recommendation is to forget about the calorie goal for the first week or so and instead just use the food tracker to see how many calories you're actually consuming right now. It was a real eye opener for me when I had to record EVERY margarita and glass of wine.
Starvation mode in this context is a myth.
http://community.myfitnesspal.com/en/discussion/1077746/starvation-mode-adaptive-thermogenesis-and-weight-loss/p11
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