Low calorie requirements as a tall (ish) male
phwdjones
Posts: 37 Member
I'm 6'1 and 26 years old, with a desk job, but my calorie requirements SEEM to be 1800 a day to really lose weight effectively. As I'm sure you all know thats not alot of food and I have a ravenous appetite. In order for me to lose weight I often go to bed hungry, because even when I pile my plate full of veggies aside from the main meat I don't feel satiated.
Is 1800 too low for a 6'1 male?
I've been trying to eat at this level for months and have struggled losing weight. As soon as I go over 2200 in a day when I wake up the next day I am usually 2lbs heavier on the scale, its incredibly frustrating.
I've been at this weight loss thing since August last year and ive lost 20lbs since then, but I am stuck in the 180-185 lb range for the past 2 months atleast, its unbearably miserable. I want to hit 170.
Is 1800 too low for a 6'1 male?
I've been trying to eat at this level for months and have struggled losing weight. As soon as I go over 2200 in a day when I wake up the next day I am usually 2lbs heavier on the scale, its incredibly frustrating.
I've been at this weight loss thing since August last year and ive lost 20lbs since then, but I am stuck in the 180-185 lb range for the past 2 months atleast, its unbearably miserable. I want to hit 170.
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Replies
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How are you measuring your calorie intake?0
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180-185 at 6'1 is pretty light and you want to go to 170?0
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A couple of things. First, you are already in the healthy weight range for your height, though you are at the upper limit, so weight loss will be slow. It's possible 1 lb per week is just too much of a deficit for you at this point. Would it be easier to be more patient and settle for a slower loss for a few more calories to eat?
Second, are you using a food scale? If not, it's possible you are eating more than you think. Doesn't help with the hunger, but at least you would know your cal needs aren't abnormally low.
You might want to play around with your macros to work on the hunger. If you're low in any of fat, protein, or fiber, try increasing that one to help with satiety. I do better with protein/fiber combos, but some people do better increasing their fat a bit even if that means giving up some volume.
Are you doing any strength training? If you do settle for slower loss, strength training can help improve your body shape separately from the actual weight loss.
Just some stuff to think about. Good luck!1 -
Also, you can't go by what the scale says the next day. That could be due to a salty meal or some other normal weight fluctuations. You need to look at the trend over weeks, as your weight will fluctuate up and down all the time.2
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I'm 6'1 and 26 years old, with a desk job, but my calorie requirements SEEM to be 1800 a day to really lose weight effectively. As I'm sure you all know thats not alot of food and I have a ravenous appetite. In order for me to lose weight I often go to bed hungry, because even when I pile my plate full of veggies aside from the main meat I don't feel satiated.
Is 1800 too low for a 6'1 male?
I've been trying to eat at this level for months and have struggled losing weight. As soon as I go over 2200 in a day when I wake up the next day I am usually 2lbs heavier on the scale, its incredibly frustrating.
I've been at this weight loss thing since August last year and ive lost 20lbs since then, but I am stuck in the 180-185 lb range for the past 2 months atleast, its unbearably miserable. I want to hit 170.
So just to think about that last part logically, to separate what you are doing from the effects and realize they are not what you think they are.
If 1800 is below what you burn allowing you to lose weight (you don't say what "effectively means" - may be some misinformation there), therefore what you are burning is well above that by probably at least 500 cal if not more.
If you eating a mere 400 more at 2200 causes weight gain - it is most obviously not eating more than you burn.
Therefor what can it be.
Water weight.
And if eating that much more causes that kind of increase - either the extra calories has extra sodium along with it - which is fine except for mental anguish about resulting water weight.
Or you are eating so far below your potential TDEE and are so glucose-stores starved that the mere refill of those stores along with attached water is decent amount of weight.
Like combo of both.
But the latter really points out the deficit is likely too much if it's that great an effect - seeing as how healthy weight range already.
As suggested above, go to 1/2 lb weekly if you still have fat to lose in areas, and hit the weights hard - as likely losing all the fat you'd desire would you leave even more skinny fat, which is what likely has happened already.2 -
You get 1800? I am an inch taller than you and get 1200
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You get 1800? I am an inch taller than you and get 1200
Then you didn't enter male - because MFP won't go below 1500 for male.
And also likely selected an unreasonable weight loss goal rate, as obviously your daily burn isn't high enough to support whatever you selected if dipping to 1200.1 -
I'm 6'1 and 26 years old, with a desk job, but my calorie requirements SEEM to be 1800 a day to really lose weight effectively. As I'm sure you all know thats not alot of food and I have a ravenous appetite. In order for me to lose weight I often go to bed hungry, because even when I pile my plate full of veggies aside from the main meat I don't feel satiated.
Is 1800 too low for a 6'1 male?
I've been trying to eat at this level for months and have struggled losing weight. As soon as I go over 2200 in a day when I wake up the next day I am usually 2lbs heavier on the scale, its incredibly frustrating.
I've been at this weight loss thing since August last year and ive lost 20lbs since then, but I am stuck in the 180-185 lb range for the past 2 months atleast, its unbearably miserable. I want to hit 170.
Of course you will be heavier on the scale the next day if you eat more food than you normally do, but it's not fat, it's the extra food digesting through your system and some water weight.
You've posted similar posts before, have you tightened up your logging? If not go back and re-read all the advice you've been given previously, like in this one http://community.myfitnesspal.com/en/discussion/10623026/still-confused/p1
ETA: You still aren't logging weekends, so how do you know what your calorie intake is?4 -
We've had this discussion before. You CANNOT BE LOSING WEIGHT **IN SPADES** AT 1800 and GAINING at 2200.
Use a trending weight application. ADJUST BASED ON YOUR TRENDING WEIGHT OVER A PERIOD OF AT LEAST THREE WEEKS. By preference 4 to 6 weeks.
You're not doing that. You're chasing the ball and every water weight variation known to man.
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I'm 6'1 and 26 years old, with a desk job, but my calorie requirements SEEM to be 1800 a day to really lose weight effectively. As I'm sure you all know thats not alot of food and I have a ravenous appetite. In order for me to lose weight I often go to bed hungry, because even when I pile my plate full of veggies aside from the main meat I don't feel satiated.
Is 1800 too low for a 6'1 male?
I've been trying to eat at this level for months and have struggled losing weight. As soon as I go over 2200 in a day when I wake up the next day I am usually 2lbs heavier on the scale, its incredibly frustrating.
I've been at this weight loss thing since August last year and ive lost 20lbs since then, but I am stuck in the 180-185 lb range for the past 2 months atleast, its unbearably miserable. I want to hit 170.
ha 1800?? try 1200 a day and see how cranky you get. that aside, are you exercising? that's a good way to get your calorie allowance upped for the day, plus if you are you could be gaining muscle which is heavier than fat.1 -
Interesting. If you are 20% BF at 180-85 you'd have to lose almost another 20 lbs to get to 10% BF.
That would be around 160.
Do you lift weights?0 -
Interesting. If you are 20% BF at 180-85 you'd have to lose almost another 20 lbs to get to 10% BF.
That would be around 160.
Do you lift weights?
I do lift yeah but much less than before because on lower calories I just feel sluggish and *kitten*. I don't have the energy to get into the gym as much as I did. Plus all my lifts have gone down.
I have had a very reasonable diet for the past 3 months and yet my weight has gone down by about 3 lbs at most.0 -
Interesting. If you are 20% BF at 180-85 you'd have to lose almost another 20 lbs to get to 10% BF.
That would be around 160.
Do you lift weights?
I do lift yeah but much less than before because on lower calories I just feel sluggish and *kitten*. I don't have the energy to get into the gym as much as I did. Plus all my lifts have gone down.
I have had a very reasonable diet for the past 3 months and yet my weight has gone down by about 3 lbs at most.
If you're not willing to log accurately you can't keep doing the same thing and hoping for different results.3 -
Interesting. If you are 20% BF at 180-85 you'd have to lose almost another 20 lbs to get to 10% BF.
That would be around 160.
Do you lift weights?
I do lift yeah but much less than before because on lower calories I just feel sluggish and *kitten*. I don't have the energy to get into the gym as much as I did. Plus all my lifts have gone down.
I have had a very reasonable diet for the past 3 months and yet my weight has gone down by about 3 lbs at most.
Don't even waste the time and energy trying to workout then if you'll be so underfed as to have a sucky workout.
If you aren't overloading, or as you describe, not even loading as much as you have in the past - your body has no need to keep that muscle - so you'll keep losing it until such time it is.
Keep it up and you'll lose even more muscle, and all that hard work that gave it to you.
Feel bad now about 20% BF - wait until then.
Or wait until you discover how hard to gain muscle back, and needing to eat in surplus gaining fat at the same time.
I'm getting the sense that won't go over very well mentally.2 -
tinkerbellang83 wrote: »
Interesting. If you are 20% BF at 180-85 you'd have to lose almost another 20 lbs to get to 10% BF.
That would be around 160.
Do you lift weights?
I do lift yeah but much less than before because on lower calories I just feel sluggish and *kitten*. I don't have the energy to get into the gym as much as I did. Plus all my lifts have gone down.
I have had a very reasonable diet for the past 3 months and yet my weight has gone down by about 3 lbs at most.
If you're not willing to log accurately you can't keep doing the same thing and hoping for different results.
I'm logging accurately. Dont even start this argument. Dont even respond to this post please.3 -
tinkerbellang83 wrote: »
Interesting. If you are 20% BF at 180-85 you'd have to lose almost another 20 lbs to get to 10% BF.
That would be around 160.
Do you lift weights?
I do lift yeah but much less than before because on lower calories I just feel sluggish and *kitten*. I don't have the energy to get into the gym as much as I did. Plus all my lifts have gone down.
I have had a very reasonable diet for the past 3 months and yet my weight has gone down by about 3 lbs at most.
If you're not willing to log accurately you can't keep doing the same thing and hoping for different results.
I'm logging accurately. Dont even start this argument. Dont even respond to this post please.
Someone mentioned that you aren't logging weekends. Accurately means Every Day. Your Food Diary is empty for Friday, Saturday and Sunday. Just Sayin'.8 -
tinkerbellang83 wrote: »
Interesting. If you are 20% BF at 180-85 you'd have to lose almost another 20 lbs to get to 10% BF.
That would be around 160.
Do you lift weights?
I do lift yeah but much less than before because on lower calories I just feel sluggish and *kitten*. I don't have the energy to get into the gym as much as I did. Plus all my lifts have gone down.
I have had a very reasonable diet for the past 3 months and yet my weight has gone down by about 3 lbs at most.
If you're not willing to log accurately you can't keep doing the same thing and hoping for different results.
I'm logging accurately. Dont even start this argument. Dont even respond to this post please.
Based on my experience (28 y/o, 6'1" 172 lbs) you're LBM (lean body mass) is very likely in the 145-150lb range so your estimate of 20% body fat is probably pretty close. You mentioned your workouts and lifts are suffering, are you sure you're getting adequate protein and sleep? I perform ok on ~1800 when cutting, however I prefer being closer to 2000, which still puts me at a 300-400 cal/day deficit. For reference I follow a 3-day/week full body lifting schedule with light cardio or some other form of active recovery on non-lifting days.
You say you're logging accurately but your diary does say otherwise; you may be logging accurately, but you're not logging consistently. Looking back at the last two weeks of your diary you're not logging on weekends and only finishing weekdays half the time, if that. I spent the first half of 2017 up around 180-185 and spun my wheels trying to cut fat for months because my logging wasn't 100% spot on and I was both targeting and eating more than I needed to be, basing my exercise calories from my heart rate monitor (600-700cal/workout). I took a hard look at my logging habits and my diet, improved both, and was able to slowly but consistently lose down into the low 170s in January after being in 177-180 in November/early December. In short, you'll need to adjust the effort you put into your nutrition tracking to get to where you want to be. The infographic linked below is a good demonstration of the different levels of controls and effort you need to put in to make this transition to <20% body fat.
https://www.precisionnutrition.com/cost-of-getting-lean-infographic2 -
tinkerbellang83 wrote: »
Interesting. If you are 20% BF at 180-85 you'd have to lose almost another 20 lbs to get to 10% BF.
That would be around 160.
Do you lift weights?
I do lift yeah but much less than before because on lower calories I just feel sluggish and *kitten*. I don't have the energy to get into the gym as much as I did. Plus all my lifts have gone down.
I have had a very reasonable diet for the past 3 months and yet my weight has gone down by about 3 lbs at most.
If you're not willing to log accurately you can't keep doing the same thing and hoping for different results.
I'm logging accurately. Dont even start this argument. Dont even respond to this post please.
Based on my experience (28 y/o, 6'1" 172 lbs) you're LBM (lean body mass) is very likely in the 145-150lb range so your estimate of 20% body fat is probably pretty close.
So based on your experience, everyone of the same height and weight has the exact same BF/LBM ratio? Great. I just need to find a super-ripped person person at my height and weight who's had one of those expensive lab tests to accurate determine their BF%, and I can just assume mine is the same.0 -
lynn_glenmont wrote: »So based on your experience, everyone of the same height and weight has the exact same BF/LBM ratio? Great. I just need to find a super-ripped person person at my height and weight who's had one of those expensive lab tests to accurate determine their BF%, and I can just assume mine is the same.
I didn't say that applies to everyone, I was implying a similarity between the OP and myself based on age and what backstory he provided, and wanted to provide a reference behind a "yeah, sounds about right" reference to his body fat levels.
I also read the following a few years ago in article by Marc Perry and found it to be true given my subsequent experience and the body fat percentage measuring devices I have at my disposal (haven't done a DXA scan, not yet at least):
"Most guys with a few years of lifting experience have an LBM (a.k.a. lean body mass – everything in your body besides fat, including bone, blood, organs, and muscle) of 145lb. How do I know? Well, because I have data on tons of clients and it’s the magic number for the amount of muscle on the average guy who is 5’10, or 5’11”. If you have 145lb of LBM, that would imply you would need to get your body weight into the 150’s to look truly ripped (6% body fat)."
source: https://www.builtlean.com/2011/05/11/how-to-get-ripped-and-cut/
Based on the OP's description of himself and what I know I look like at 185lbs, it adds up; at least for a ballpark of "pretty close" at 20%. Regardless of if the OP is really at 19% or 25% (the difference between 150lbs and 140lbs LBM at 185lbs total), he needs to cut more fat to get where he wants to be.0 -
tinkerbellang83 wrote: »I'm 6'1 and 26 years old, with a desk job, but my calorie requirements SEEM to be 1800 a day to really lose weight effectively. As I'm sure you all know thats not alot of food and I have a ravenous appetite. In order for me to lose weight I often go to bed hungry, because even when I pile my plate full of veggies aside from the main meat I don't feel satiated.
Is 1800 too low for a 6'1 male?
I've been trying to eat at this level for months and have struggled losing weight. As soon as I go over 2200 in a day when I wake up the next day I am usually 2lbs heavier on the scale, its incredibly frustrating.
I've been at this weight loss thing since August last year and ive lost 20lbs since then, but I am stuck in the 180-185 lb range for the past 2 months atleast, its unbearably miserable. I want to hit 170.
Of course you will be heavier on the scale the next day if you eat more food than you normally do, but it's not fat, it's the extra food digesting through your system and some water weight.
You've posted similar posts before, have you tightened up your logging? If not go back and re-read all the advice you've been given previously, like in this one http://community.myfitnesspal.com/en/discussion/10623026/still-confused/p1
ETA: You still aren't logging weekends, so how do you know what your calorie intake is?
Seems like all these questions were addressed/answered in that previous thread.
If you keep doing what you've been doing, you'll keep getting what you've been getting. Simple as that.
[ETA:] LOL. I just read all the way through the previous thread and saw that I gave the exact same advice there.
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