Is my diet good enough to lose a good amount of weight?
beepeear
Posts: 12 Member
Hello,
I currently weigh 160.2lbs and my goal is to reach about 145 by early October this year. I have a skinny fat body.
I am given an allowance of 1700 calories per day for extreme fat loss but usually only consume around 1300-1500. My diet is somewhat clean, I am eating good, it’s when I check my macros I get a bit confused. I am given 50% carbs, 30% protein and 20% fat.
I am usually going over my protein goals, and over my carb goals by maybe 5-7% each day. My fat % is usually spot on give or take 1%.
I am just wondering if I continued to diet like this and went to the gym doing cardio and weights 3/4 times a week, are my goals realistically achievable? I want to lose the skinny fat body type and start to look less “soft”
Thanks for reading, all advice appreciated
I currently weigh 160.2lbs and my goal is to reach about 145 by early October this year. I have a skinny fat body.
I am given an allowance of 1700 calories per day for extreme fat loss but usually only consume around 1300-1500. My diet is somewhat clean, I am eating good, it’s when I check my macros I get a bit confused. I am given 50% carbs, 30% protein and 20% fat.
I am usually going over my protein goals, and over my carb goals by maybe 5-7% each day. My fat % is usually spot on give or take 1%.
I am just wondering if I continued to diet like this and went to the gym doing cardio and weights 3/4 times a week, are my goals realistically achievable? I want to lose the skinny fat body type and start to look less “soft”
Thanks for reading, all advice appreciated
0
Replies
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If you're given 1700 calories, and that's for "extreme" fat loss too, why would you want to eat less than that?
To be sure how much you're actually eating, you have to log correctly. That includes, as a mimimum, a food scale.
Somewhat clean means nothing, clean means nothing, eating good means nothing, in the realm of diet. A healthy diet is balanced and varied, you can eat what you like, it's not a moral issue. To lose weight, you have to eat less.
You are not given 50% carbs, 30% protein and 20% fat, you're either mixing up protein and fat, or you have adjusted the settings.
If you're over your protein % goal and carb % goal, you'll be below your fat % goal. Don't confuse grams and percent.
If you eat below maintenance, but not go too low, and stay active, you will over time lose weight and become less soft.13 -
I am just wondering if I continued to diet like this and went to the gym doing cardio and weights 3/4 times a week, are my goals realistically achievable? I want to lose the skinny fat body type and start to look less “soft”
Thanks for reading, all advice appreciated
No. Realistically eating so little will force your body to sacrifice muscle and you will look even more soft. You should not be trying to lose more than .5 lbs per week and you need to forget the deadline since it is already causing you to do something unhealthy.
9 -
If you are measuring everything correctly, in weight and not volume/eyeball units, you're adding a weekly deficit of 1400-2800 cals to your extreme (2 lbs per week?) deficit. I don't think there will be much energy left for the cardio and weights part. Also, what's the activity level you selected on MFP, and how are you interpreting it?
Re-check your logs, and if accurate on both sides (cals in / cals out), you should consider eating more in my opinion.
If memory serves, that is the standard macro split which MFP is proposing. In a way, they were „given” the percentages.kommodevaran wrote: »You are not given 50% carbs, 30% protein and 20% fat, you're either mixing up protein and fat, or you have adjusted the settings.
Not being able to make ends meet perfectly in what concerns nutrient grams or percentages and overall calories is common and due to either MFP or product labels rounding up grams of C/P/F, some things getting subtracted, or inaccurately created foods in the database (MFP is a crowdsourced / collaborative database).1 -
I am just wondering if I continued to diet like this and went to the gym doing cardio and weights 3/4 times a week, are my goals realistically achievable? I want to lose the skinny fat body type and start to look less “soft”
Thanks for reading, all advice appreciated
No. Realistically eating so little will force your body to sacrifice muscle and you will look even more soft. You should not be trying to lose more than .5 lbs per week and you need to forget the deadline since it is already causing you to do something unhealthy.
Yes. Forget the deadline!
If you want to be less "soft", find ways to become more solid. Usually that means some sort of strength (progressive) program. The only way to lose fat is to eat at a deficit. The only way to lose fat and maintain muscle is through strength training and a deficit. Cardio helps with conditioning, but too much can cause too high of a deficit and cause you to lose muscle with fat. When you think about composition in this context, it means that your body fat % won't change as much as you want it to - that's how many people become "skinny-fat".
You have less than 10% of your body weight to lose. You should be going very slowly - if you don't want "softness".1 -
Thanks for all the replies!I am just wondering if I continued to diet like this and went to the gym doing cardio and weights 3/4 times a week, are my goals realistically achievable? I want to lose the skinny fat body type and start to look less “soft”
Thanks for reading, all advice appreciated
No. Realistically eating so little will force your body to sacrifice muscle and you will look even more soft. You should not be trying to lose more than .5 lbs per week and you need to forget the deadline since it is already causing you to do something unhealthy.
How much would you recommend a day? I’m not trying to really bulk up, just to slim down a bit more and add some muscle.kommodevaran wrote: »If you're given 1700 calories, and that's for "extreme" fat loss too, why would you want to eat less than that?
To be sure how much you're actually eating, you have to log correctly. That includes, as a mimimum, a food scale.
Somewhat clean means nothing, clean means nothing, eating good means nothing, in the realm of diet. A healthy diet is balanced and varied, you can eat what you like, it's not a moral issue. To lose weight, you have to eat less.
You are not given 50% carbs, 30% protein and 20% fat, you're either mixing up protein and fat, or you have adjusted the settings.
If you're over your protein % goal and carb % goal, you'll be below your fat % goal. Don't confuse grams and percent.
If you eat below maintenance, but not go too low, and stay active, you will over time lose weight and become less soft.
I haven’t touched a setting,I. Just put my details in and I checked my macros and it said those percentages to me. I am pretty new to the whole diet thing so it will take time for me to get right but I’m just wondering, am I trying to achieve too much in too short of a time frame?
Thank you
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[/quote]
Yes. Forget the deadline!
If you want to be less "soft", find ways to become more solid. Usually that means some sort of strength (progressive) program. The only way to lose fat is to eat at a deficit. The only way to lose fat and maintain muscle is through strength training and a deficit. Cardio helps with conditioning, but too much can cause too high of a deficit and cause you to lose muscle with fat. When you think about composition in this context, it means that your body fat % won't change as much as you want it to - that's how many people become "skinny-fat".
You have less than 10% of your body weight to lose. You should be going very slowly - if you don't want "softness".[/quote]
Should I be aiming to consume more calories also?
Thank you0 -
Should I be aiming to consume more calories also?
Thank you
You should be looking to eat whatever the target calories are - not more and not less (you can vary a little day to day, but try to hit that as an average for a week). When you set up MFP for your stats, I would set your goal at no more than 1 pound per week. MFP will automatically give you a calorie number, based on your height, weight, age, gender, and activity level. Try to be somewhat accurate in your estimated activity level - especially if it's relatively similar day to day. Then just eat how much it tells you to. Don't try to accelerate the deficit "just to be safe". Just eat your target. This process works. But you have to be (mostly) consistent, accurately weigh your food and have enough patience to give it enough time.1 -
How much would you recommend a day? I’m not trying to really bulk up, just to slim down a bit more and add some muscle.
You could just adjust your MFP setting to .5lb a week but assuming you entered 2lbs loss per week and got 1700 then you would add 750 back to get 2450. Your deficit for .5lb a week is 250 calories per day.
If you use a food scale and really zero in on logging accurately you may need to adjust your calories up or down if you are losing too fast or if 3 weeks go by and you haven't lost any.
You really want to slow way down anyway because until you find what you like with regards to adding muscle and tone you can't really decide what a good final weight will be for you.
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Should I be aiming to consume more calories also?
Thank you
Right now what is your weight doing?
Going down = Keep doing what your doing
Rapidly going down = Eat more
Stable = Eat a little less
Going Up = Eat less
Don't Know = Buy some bathroom scales
If you answered anything other than the 2nd option your not actually eating the calories you think you are.
Progressive weight training will help you look less "soft" in the long run. However, be warned it takes time, but that's not a problem as its a fun process.
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Silentpadna wrote: »
Should I be aiming to consume more calories also?
Thank you
You should be looking to eat whatever the target calories are - not more and not less (you can vary a little day to day, but try to hit that as an average for a week). When you set up MFP for your stats, I would set your goal at no more than 1 pound per week. MFP will automatically give you a calorie number, based on your height, weight, age, gender, and activity level. Try to be somewhat accurate in your estimated activity level - especially if it's relatively similar day to day. Then just eat how much it tells you to. Don't try to accelerate the deficit "just to be safe". Just eat your target. This process works. But you have to be (mostly) consistent, accurately weigh your food and have enough patience to give it enough time.
I have adjusted the goal to 1lbs a week and it’s bumped my calories up to 2200 a day.
Another thing that may be worth noting, when it comes to my diet, I really do not like a lot of foods, and whilst I do consume a lot of proteins and try to include some vegetables in my meals, my lunch throughout the day are things like fibre 90 bars and such, although I am under my calories, will this diet effect anything at all
Thanks
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Stockholm_Andy wrote: »
Should I be aiming to consume more calories also?
Thank you
Right now what is your weight doing?
Going down? = Keep doing what your doing
Rapidly going down? = Eat more
Stable? = Eat a little less
Going Up? = Eat less
If you answered anything other than the 2nd option your not actually eating the calories you think you are.
Progressive weight training will help you look less "soft" in the long run. However, be warned it takes time, but that's not a problem as its a fun process.
To be honest I have only been dieting for a week as of today so I haven’t really seen any major changes as of yet
1 -
Stockholm_Andy wrote: »
Should I be aiming to consume more calories also?
Thank you
Right now what is your weight doing?
Going down? = Keep doing what your doing
Rapidly going down? = Eat more
Stable? = Eat a little less
Going Up? = Eat less
If you answered anything other than the 2nd option your not actually eating the calories you think you are.
Progressive weight training will help you look less "soft" in the long run. However, be warned it takes time, but that's not a problem as its a fun process.
To be honest I have only been dieting for a week as of today so I haven’t really seen any major changes as of yet
In that case eat what MFP tells you (being as accurate in logging as you can) and see where it takes you over the coming week and months.0 -
Silentpadna wrote: »
Should I be aiming to consume more calories also?
Thank you
You should be looking to eat whatever the target calories are - not more and not less (you can vary a little day to day, but try to hit that as an average for a week). When you set up MFP for your stats, I would set your goal at no more than 1 pound per week. MFP will automatically give you a calorie number, based on your height, weight, age, gender, and activity level. Try to be somewhat accurate in your estimated activity level - especially if it's relatively similar day to day. Then just eat how much it tells you to. Don't try to accelerate the deficit "just to be safe". Just eat your target. This process works. But you have to be (mostly) consistent, accurately weigh your food and have enough patience to give it enough time.
I have adjusted the goal to 1lbs a week and it’s bumped my calories up to 2200 a day.
But still... Which activity level have you selected on MFP? And how does your normal day look like, from the point of view of exercise?
I'm asking because a lot of us tend to overestimate our activity level.3 -
SabAteNine wrote: »Silentpadna wrote: »
Should I be aiming to consume more calories also?
Thank you
You should be looking to eat whatever the target calories are - not more and not less (you can vary a little day to day, but try to hit that as an average for a week). When you set up MFP for your stats, I would set your goal at no more than 1 pound per week. MFP will automatically give you a calorie number, based on your height, weight, age, gender, and activity level. Try to be somewhat accurate in your estimated activity level - especially if it's relatively similar day to day. Then just eat how much it tells you to. Don't try to accelerate the deficit "just to be safe". Just eat your target. This process works. But you have to be (mostly) consistent, accurately weigh your food and have enough patience to give it enough time.
I have adjusted the goal to 1lbs a week and it’s bumped my calories up to 2200 a day.
But still... Which activity level have you selected on MFP? And how does your normal day look like, from the point of view of exercise?
I'm asking because a lot of us tend to overestimate our activity level.
I have set it as active, I walk about a lot and when at work I move around a lot and tend to go to the gym 3/4 times a week, I believe I am too active for lightly active but not enough for highly active, I personally believe I have set the correct level
1 -
SabAteNine wrote: »Silentpadna wrote: »
Should I be aiming to consume more calories also?
Thank you
You should be looking to eat whatever the target calories are - not more and not less (you can vary a little day to day, but try to hit that as an average for a week). When you set up MFP for your stats, I would set your goal at no more than 1 pound per week. MFP will automatically give you a calorie number, based on your height, weight, age, gender, and activity level. Try to be somewhat accurate in your estimated activity level - especially if it's relatively similar day to day. Then just eat how much it tells you to. Don't try to accelerate the deficit "just to be safe". Just eat your target. This process works. But you have to be (mostly) consistent, accurately weigh your food and have enough patience to give it enough time.
I have adjusted the goal to 1lbs a week and it’s bumped my calories up to 2200 a day.
But still... Which activity level have you selected on MFP? And how does your normal day look like, from the point of view of exercise?
I'm asking because a lot of us tend to overestimate our activity level.
I have set it as active, I walk about a lot and when at work I move around a lot and tend to go to the gym 3/4 times a week, I believe I am too active for lightly active but not enough for highly active, I personally believe I have set the correct level
Sedentary: Spend most of the day sitting (e.g. bank teller, desk job)
Lightly Active: Spend a good part of the day on your feet (e.g. teacher, salesperson)
Active: Spend a good part of the day doing some physical activity (e.g. food server, postal carrier)
Very Active: Spend most of the day doing heavy physical activity (e.g. bike messenger, carpenter)
I have a desk job but do get up quite often, climb 8 flights of stairs three times a day + some more at home and in the subway, get 16k steps in daily and an hour of weight training every two days. Occasionally I run. I am set as Lightly Active, and maintain a little bit under the calorie limit which MFP gives me.
The gym sessions burn very, very little, realistically. It may be that you are overestimating your activity level.1 -
SabAteNine wrote: »SabAteNine wrote: »Silentpadna wrote: »
Should I be aiming to consume more calories also?
Thank you
You should be looking to eat whatever the target calories are - not more and not less (you can vary a little day to day, but try to hit that as an average for a week). When you set up MFP for your stats, I would set your goal at no more than 1 pound per week. MFP will automatically give you a calorie number, based on your height, weight, age, gender, and activity level. Try to be somewhat accurate in your estimated activity level - especially if it's relatively similar day to day. Then just eat how much it tells you to. Don't try to accelerate the deficit "just to be safe". Just eat your target. This process works. But you have to be (mostly) consistent, accurately weigh your food and have enough patience to give it enough time.
I have adjusted the goal to 1lbs a week and it’s bumped my calories up to 2200 a day.
But still... Which activity level have you selected on MFP? And how does your normal day look like, from the point of view of exercise?
I'm asking because a lot of us tend to overestimate our activity level.
I have set it as active, I walk about a lot and when at work I move around a lot and tend to go to the gym 3/4 times a week, I believe I am too active for lightly active but not enough for highly active, I personally believe I have set the correct level
Sedentary: Spend most of the day sitting (e.g. bank teller, desk job)
Lightly Active: Spend a good part of the day on your feet (e.g. teacher, salesperson)
Active: Spend a good part of the day doing some physical activity (e.g. food server, postal carrier)
Very Active: Spend most of the day doing heavy physical activity (e.g. bike messenger, carpenter)
I have a desk job but do get up quite often, climb 8 flights of stairs three times a day + some more at home and in the subway, get 16k steps in daily and an hour of weight training every two days. Occasionally I run. I am set as Lightly Active, and maintain a little bit under the calorie limit which MFP gives me.
The gym sessions burn very, very little, realistically. It may be that you are overestimating your activity level.
Wouldn’t you class as active though, because you are active enough to suggest, it seems that you don’t sit down a whole lot, I’m just wondering just how active someone who is set at highly active must be if you are set to lightly active.
What will this change in terms of my weight goals etc, will it just grant me more/less calories per day?
Thanks for your replies
0 -
SabAteNine wrote: »SabAteNine wrote: »Silentpadna wrote: »
Should I be aiming to consume more calories also?
Thank you
You should be looking to eat whatever the target calories are - not more and not less (you can vary a little day to day, but try to hit that as an average for a week). When you set up MFP for your stats, I would set your goal at no more than 1 pound per week. MFP will automatically give you a calorie number, based on your height, weight, age, gender, and activity level. Try to be somewhat accurate in your estimated activity level - especially if it's relatively similar day to day. Then just eat how much it tells you to. Don't try to accelerate the deficit "just to be safe". Just eat your target. This process works. But you have to be (mostly) consistent, accurately weigh your food and have enough patience to give it enough time.
I have adjusted the goal to 1lbs a week and it’s bumped my calories up to 2200 a day.
But still... Which activity level have you selected on MFP? And how does your normal day look like, from the point of view of exercise?
I'm asking because a lot of us tend to overestimate our activity level.
I have set it as active, I walk about a lot and when at work I move around a lot and tend to go to the gym 3/4 times a week, I believe I am too active for lightly active but not enough for highly active, I personally believe I have set the correct level
Sedentary: Spend most of the day sitting (e.g. bank teller, desk job)
Lightly Active: Spend a good part of the day on your feet (e.g. teacher, salesperson)
Active: Spend a good part of the day doing some physical activity (e.g. food server, postal carrier)
Very Active: Spend most of the day doing heavy physical activity (e.g. bike messenger, carpenter)
I have a desk job but do get up quite often, climb 8 flights of stairs three times a day + some more at home and in the subway, get 16k steps in daily and an hour of weight training every two days. Occasionally I run. I am set as Lightly Active, and maintain a little bit under the calorie limit which MFP gives me.
The gym sessions burn very, very little, realistically. It may be that you are overestimating your activity level.
Wouldn’t you class as active though, because you are active enough to suggest, it seems that you don’t sit down a whole lot, I’m just wondering just how active someone who is set at highly active must be if you are set to lightly active.
What will this change in terms of my weight goals etc, will it just grant me more/less calories per day?
Thanks for your replies
Well back-to-back, being on my feet only amounts to some 3, 3.5 hours per day. Compared with the options which MFP gives you (food server, postal carrier), it's considerably lower. You'd *think* the description above counts as active, but in my experience of dutiful spreadsheeting and weighing and everything, it does not - for me. I know people who worked as food servers and they were busting their *kitten* all day
If you switch to Lightly Active, it will lower your calorie allowance.
In closure, you're only dieting for a week. There's really not a definitve „best way” of starting out. What's important is you did start out. Now you can give it time, don't change up things too often, and pay attention to how your body reacts to food, exercise and everything. Adjust and tweak as you go.2 -
SabAteNine wrote: »SabAteNine wrote: »SabAteNine wrote: »Silentpadna wrote: »
Should I be aiming to consume more calories also?
Thank you
You should be looking to eat whatever the target calories are - not more and not less (you can vary a little day to day, but try to hit that as an average for a week). When you set up MFP for your stats, I would set your goal at no more than 1 pound per week. MFP will automatically give you a calorie number, based on your height, weight, age, gender, and activity level. Try to be somewhat accurate in your estimated activity level - especially if it's relatively similar day to day. Then just eat how much it tells you to. Don't try to accelerate the deficit "just to be safe". Just eat your target. This process works. But you have to be (mostly) consistent, accurately weigh your food and have enough patience to give it enough time.
I have adjusted the goal to 1lbs a week and it’s bumped my calories up to 2200 a day.
But still... Which activity level have you selected on MFP? And how does your normal day look like, from the point of view of exercise?
I'm asking because a lot of us tend to overestimate our activity level.
I have set it as active, I walk about a lot and when at work I move around a lot and tend to go to the gym 3/4 times a week, I believe I am too active for lightly active but not enough for highly active, I personally believe I have set the correct level
Sedentary: Spend most of the day sitting (e.g. bank teller, desk job)
Lightly Active: Spend a good part of the day on your feet (e.g. teacher, salesperson)
Active: Spend a good part of the day doing some physical activity (e.g. food server, postal carrier)
Very Active: Spend most of the day doing heavy physical activity (e.g. bike messenger, carpenter)
I have a desk job but do get up quite often, climb 8 flights of stairs three times a day + some more at home and in the subway, get 16k steps in daily and an hour of weight training every two days. Occasionally I run. I am set as Lightly Active, and maintain a little bit under the calorie limit which MFP gives me.
The gym sessions burn very, very little, realistically. It may be that you are overestimating your activity level.
Wouldn’t you class as active though, because you are active enough to suggest, it seems that you don’t sit down a whole lot, I’m just wondering just how active someone who is set at highly active must be if you are set to lightly active.
What will this change in terms of my weight goals etc, will it just grant me more/less calories per day?
Thanks for your replies
Well back-to-back, being on my feet only amounts to some 3, 3.5 hours per day. Compared with the options which MFP gives you (food server, postal carrier), it's considerably lower. You'd *think* the description above counts as active, but in my experience of dutiful spreadsheeting and weighing and everything, it does not - for me. I know people who worked as food servers and they were busting their *kitten* all day
If you switch to Lightly Active, it will lower your calorie allowance.
In closure, you're only dieting for a week. There's really not a definitve „best way” of starting out. What's important is you did start out. Now you can give it time, don't change up things too often, and pay attention to how your body reacts to food, exercise and everything. Adjust and tweak as you go.
Thanks for the advice!:) I’m just going to stick eating a few more calories now and see how I feel in a month or so, hopefully I will start to see or feel some results to let me know that it’s working.
Once again, thanks a lot
0
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