Ladies - how many calories do you eat a day?
Options
Replies
-
moniqueholtman237 wrote: »ladyhusker39 wrote: »moniqueholtman237 wrote: »I maintain on about 1800 calories. Lately I've been eating 1200 a few days of the week, so I can have some super high days. I'm 5'4", 147, lift 5x per week, no cardio and lightly active.
1400 is my sweet spot for weight loss as well. If I log very carefully, I'll lose very slowly but it will come off.
Sounds just like me. I feel like I have to eat much less than other people to lose even just half a pound a week. Which is what made me wonder if maybe I'm not eating enough so my body stores what I do eat!
This doesn't even make logical sense. How could your body possibly store your food while simultaneously using it to fuel your body?
This is from Chris Kresser, a guy who specialises in nutrition:
While a slight caloric deficit can lead to sustainable weight loss (think 300-500 calories per day), much larger deficits induce changes in your body’s metabolism in order to keep your body in a homeostatic balance. Your body does not like major, drastic changes, and it will make modifications to your thyroid, adrenal, and sex hormones in order to reduce your overall caloric output.
This includes reducing active thyroid hormone, shutting down sex hormone production, and raising stress hormones like cortisol. (1, 2, 3, 4, 5) Chronically elevated cortisol leads to both leptin and insulin resistance, a disastrous hormonal state that can keep body weight high. (6, 7)
These hormonal changes can lead to stalled weight loss and body fat retention, along with many other negative health effects that go beyond weight loss resistance. So if you’ve been eating much less and exercising much more in a futile attempt to lose weight, consider whether this strategy has been working for you.
This is different from eating a 200-500 calorie deficit
4 -
moniqueholtman237 wrote: »ladyhusker39 wrote: »moniqueholtman237 wrote: »I maintain on about 1800 calories. Lately I've been eating 1200 a few days of the week, so I can have some super high days. I'm 5'4", 147, lift 5x per week, no cardio and lightly active.
1400 is my sweet spot for weight loss as well. If I log very carefully, I'll lose very slowly but it will come off.
Sounds just like me. I feel like I have to eat much less than other people to lose even just half a pound a week. Which is what made me wonder if maybe I'm not eating enough so my body stores what I do eat!
This doesn't even make logical sense. How could your body possibly store your food while simultaneously using it to fuel your body?
This is from Chris Kresser, a guy who specialises in nutrition:
While a slight caloric deficit can lead to sustainable weight loss (think 300-500 calories per day), much larger deficits induce changes in your body’s metabolism in order to keep your body in a homeostatic balance. Your body does not like major, drastic changes, and it will make modifications to your thyroid, adrenal, and sex hormones in order to reduce your overall caloric output.
This includes reducing active thyroid hormone, shutting down sex hormone production, and raising stress hormones like cortisol. (1, 2, 3, 4, 5) Chronically elevated cortisol leads to both leptin and insulin resistance, a disastrous hormonal state that can keep body weight high. (6, 7)
These hormonal changes can lead to stalled weight loss and body fat retention, along with many other negative health effects that go beyond weight loss resistance. So if you’ve been eating much less and exercising much more in a futile attempt to lose weight, consider whether this strategy has been working for you.
It also says absolutely NOTHING about storing what you eat.5 -
Between 1400-1500. I try not to eat back all of my work out calories. 5'6 and 279.1
-
moniqueholtman237 wrote: »ladyhusker39 wrote: »moniqueholtman237 wrote: »I maintain on about 1800 calories. Lately I've been eating 1200 a few days of the week, so I can have some super high days. I'm 5'4", 147, lift 5x per week, no cardio and lightly active.
1400 is my sweet spot for weight loss as well. If I log very carefully, I'll lose very slowly but it will come off.
Sounds just like me. I feel like I have to eat much less than other people to lose even just half a pound a week. Which is what made me wonder if maybe I'm not eating enough so my body stores what I do eat!
This doesn't even make logical sense. How could your body possibly store your food while simultaneously using it to fuel your body?
This is from Chris Kresser, a guy who specialises in nutrition:
While a slight caloric deficit can lead to sustainable weight loss (think 300-500 calories per day), much larger deficits induce changes in your body’s metabolism in order to keep your body in a homeostatic balance. Your body does not like major, drastic changes, and it will make modifications to your thyroid, adrenal, and sex hormones in order to reduce your overall caloric output.
This includes reducing active thyroid hormone, shutting down sex hormone production, and raising stress hormones like cortisol. (1, 2, 3, 4, 5) Chronically elevated cortisol leads to both leptin and insulin resistance, a disastrous hormonal state that can keep body weight high. (6, 7)
These hormonal changes can lead to stalled weight loss and body fat retention, along with many other negative health effects that go beyond weight loss resistance. So if you’ve been eating much less and exercising much more in a futile attempt to lose weight, consider whether this strategy has been working for you.
It also says absolutely NOTHING about storing what you eat.
No it does not. I recommend doing some more research about this topic. You can learn a lot right here on the MFP boards to start.
Edited to add: Focus your learning on the actual science which you can find many references to here in the forums as an easy place to start. Don't rely on a guy who "specializes in nutrition" or anyone who claims to be an expert. Look to the actual science behind what people are saying. And that includes anyone on here who makes claims. Ask them to back it up with proof.2 -
I am 5.4 and 54kg (120 pound) I weight train 4 times a week and cardio on 3 days. I average 2050 cals a day and maintain on this2
-
I'm 5'4" and 154 lbs right now - still losing a couple of pounds a month at 1560 calories. I do 45 - 50 min of cardio 5x/week and eat a couple of hundred of my exercise calories back fairly regularly. I'm 51 and in perimenopause and still managing to lose.1
-
I'm 5'8 and just under 180lbs. I aim for 2040 to lose 1lb a week, that's based on what I maintain on roughly with exercise already factored in (lifting 4-5 times a week) It's normal for weight loss to slow down as you get closer to your goal but 2lbs a month is still a good healthy amount.
If you want to start upping your calories but don't want to gain weight then I'd suggest gradually increasing them over time. Based on your weight loss you could probably go up around 200/250 a day to start, try that out for a few weeks and adjust as necessary. Also, if you haven't factored your exercise into your daily activity level already, then you should be eating back exercise calories as the deficit is already created without any exercise, just as the activity level you set MFP up with, and eating too little consistently over time can have a detrimental effect on weight loss.1 -
I"m 5'6 @ 155lbs and I eat 1850-2K to lose 1lb/week. I'm pretty active1
-
I'm 5'6-3/4" just found out last week that I shrunk! Almost an inch! Not happy. Lol. Currently 169.5 pounds, started at 254.6
I eat around 1350-1400, except for Sunday I have a high calorie day. I workout 4-6 days a week, usually 45 min lifting heavy, 45 min cardio. I'm losing an average of 1.25 pounds a week since November 20 right now1 -
OP you're losing 0.5 a week so you can up your calories to 1650 right away if you want to maintain.
I'm 5ft 2 and maintain 125lbs eating 1950-2000 calories. I work out 5 days a week x 30-40mins.1 -
I'm 31yo, 5'3" and 168lbs and eat 1560 on rest days and at least half my exercise calories on workout days. I lose about 1lb per week (averaged out as I maintain for a couple weeks then the scale moves down about 2lbs).1
-
My base is about 1400 calories to lose 1/2 kg a week (a little bit over a pound). I'm usually active enough to eat 1700-1800 calories, more on long run days. When I want to eat more I have a low day and spread the calories among other days or use them up in one day if I have something special planned.1
-
I am almost 47, 5'3" tall, weight = 113 (approximately) and I eat an average of around 1400 calories regularly with low activity level due to a terrible back. I have used a FitBit in conjunction with MFP for many years in order to maintain my weight appropriately and it helps me to determine how many or how few calories I can eat in order to maintain my weight. I HATE clothes shopping.
My biggest thing to keep me full is PROTEIN! I have a protein-something for breakfast (yogurt or egg whites, typically), and try very hard to have some kind of meat at both lunch and dinner as well. It really helps keep me full.1 -
46, post-menopausal, 5.2.5", 118lbs after a 150lb loss.
I eat 1500-2200 a day depending on activity level. Sedentary days only get me 1350 cals, so I keep moving.1 -
If hunger is your issue, try intermittent fasting to lose the last few. It's more a schedule to eat, and I'm never hungry.2
-
The last few pounds are the hardest and lifting heavy weights retains water in your body to heal the muscles.It sounds like your not eating enough maybe if you up your calories to 1700 to 2000 slowly as you are already at a pretty healthy weight ..If it's fat your wanting to loose bring the fat down to 45g a day in your diet but up the protein times your weight DO NOT STARVE yourself.Listen to your body. Cut back on heavy cardio.2
-
susann4041 wrote: »The last few pounds are the hardest and lifting heavy weights retains water in your body to heal the muscles.It sounds like your not eating enough maybe if you up your calories to 1700 to 2000 slowly as you are already at a pretty healthy weight ..If it's fat your wanting to loose bring the fat down to 45g a day in your diet but up the protein times your weight DO NOT STARVE yourself.Listen to your body. Cut back on heavy cardio.
losing .5lbs a week is definitely not starving, and adding even more calories would put her at maintenance. I'm confused by your suggestion.1 -
1200-1400.. i dont exercise very much at all1
-
HeidiMightyRawr wrote: »I'm 5'8 and just under 180lbs. I aim for 2040 to lose 1lb a week, that's based on what I maintain on roughly with exercise already factored in (lifting 4-5 times a week) It's normal for weight loss to slow down as you get closer to your goal but 2lbs a month is still a good healthy amount.
If you want to start upping your calories but don't want to gain weight then I'd suggest gradually increasing them over time. Based on your weight loss you could probably go up around 200/250 a day to start, try that out for a few weeks and adjust as necessary. Also, if you haven't factored your exercise into your daily activity level already, then you should be eating back exercise calories as the deficit is already created without any exercise, just as the activity level you set MFP up with, and eating too little consistently over time can have a detrimental effect on weight loss.
What calories were you set to to lose I've 38lbs to goal weight you are the same height/weight as me?0 -
5'7.5, 125lbs, 34yo female, working out 5-7x a week, 3x a week weights, loosing on 2300. I maintain on 2500-3000 calories, sometimes more when I do long runs (over 15 miles).4
Categories
- All Categories
- 1.4M Health, Wellness and Goals
- 391.4K Introduce Yourself
- 43.5K Getting Started
- 259.7K Health and Weight Loss
- 175.6K Food and Nutrition
- 47.3K Recipes
- 232.3K Fitness and Exercise
- 390 Sleep, Mindfulness and Overall Wellness
- 6.4K Goal: Maintaining Weight
- 8.5K Goal: Gaining Weight and Body Building
- 152.7K Motivation and Support
- 7.8K Challenges
- 1.3K Debate Club
- 96.3K Chit-Chat
- 2.5K Fun and Games
- 3.2K MyFitnessPal Information
- 22 News and Announcements
- 922 Feature Suggestions and Ideas
- 2.3K MyFitnessPal Tech Support Questions