Calories needed in order to lose weight??

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Jesse13
Jesse13 Posts: 72
in Health and Weight Loss
I Am confused. I have not been losing weight for the last week or so. I am netting less than 1200 because I am burning 500-900 calories per day at times. Should I be consuming more? How can I know how many calories to eat in order for my stubborn metabolism to burn fat and lose weight?


Please help?????

I will make my diary public so that you all can see and please make any recommendations....I so truly appreciated.

Replies

  • melizerd
    melizerd Posts: 870 Member
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    Search eating exercise calories


    You need to be netting at least 1200 calories a day, eat your exercise calories. Your body needs fuel! Your car doesn't run on empty and neither does your body :D

    I've always eaten back about half my exercise calories (no heart rate monitor so I want to be on the safe side) I've lost 73lbs in 1 year with no plateaus.
  • nelson6500
    nelson6500 Posts: 33
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    Don't go under 1200 calories. I do on occasion but it is only by hundred or less. Take into account your excersize calories. Each fruit and vegatables for the extra calories. No processed sugars.

    Good luck!
  • SarahBear9708
    SarahBear9708 Posts: 71
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    I'm confused about this too....why wouldn't having less calories help?

    I did this before about a year ago, where I swear I took in even less calories then I am now...and I lost like 10 pounds in 2 weeks. I realize that wasn't healthy so I'm taking in more calories then I was then, but still.

    One of my friends told me that she consumed about 800-1000 calories a day and lost 55 pounds over the course of like 8 months or so....I'd love to do that. But so far, I just seem to lose some weight, then gain some weight.
  • Pebble321
    Pebble321 Posts: 6,554 Member
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    I don't think that many people have to eat as low as 1200 to lose weight, so going under probably isn't doing you any favours.
    Having had a quick look at your diary, there is a serious amount of processed food in there which means that you will be taking in lots of sodium and starchy fillers so if there is any way you can cut that down and get some real home cooked food full of veggies and chicken/meat/fish, your body might respond very well. I didn't see much fresh fruit or veggies there, these can be great snacks, along with almonds, natural yoghurt, oatmeal (cooked from actual oats with fruit added for sweetness), eggs, that kind of stuff.
    I think the other thing is consistency. Try picking a calorie amount (like 1200 net or whatevery MFP recommends for you to lose 1 pound a week) and stick as close to this with healthy foods as you can. The odd bit of processed stuff won't do any harm but real food can only make you healthier (and will probably save you money as well).
  • michedarnd
    michedarnd Posts: 207 Member
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    There is a kind of arm-band that shows how many calories you are actually burning. That might help. Also, there are stubborn bodies that go into anabolic mode (I think that that's the term) and refuse to lose -- fairly easily. Sometimes, you can pull your body out of it by going OFF of the diet for a couple of days (don't go crazy). Basically, you have to tell your body that you aren't going to starve it. Also, you sometimes need to change your exercises around. Your body can often decide that it will become extremely efficient at the exercise that you are doing, and that will reduce its weight-loss effectiveness. You need to make certain you aren't eating close to bedtime (you lose MUCH better if you don't). Moreover, if you are doing any form of weight training (and you will lose much more slowly if you aren't), you MAY be replacing fat with muscle, and muscle is denser than fat. You may still shrink in size, but you will not lose actual POUNDS. What I would do is try one thing at a time until you kick-start your body back into weight-loss mode, but if you are losing SIZE, don't worry about numerical plateaus week-to-week unless you are not gaining strength or endurance OR losing size. I know how frustrating this gets. I once took 2 years to lose 30 pounds on an 1100 calorie diet while working out 4 hours a day (2 hours cardio, 2 hours weight-training), 6 days a week. Note: DON'T do THAT.
  • Nicholec2003
    Nicholec2003 Posts: 158 Member
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    i had this exact same question when I first got on here. I got a lot of good answers. Here is the link the that thread. http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/321363-calorie-confused
  • Pebble321
    Pebble321 Posts: 6,554 Member
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    I'm confused about this too....why wouldn't having less calories help?

    I did this before about a year ago, where I swear I took in even less calories then I am now...and I lost like 10 pounds in 2 weeks. I realize that wasn't healthy so I'm taking in more calories then I was then, but still.

    One of my friends told me that she consumed about 800-1000 calories a day and lost 55 pounds over the course of like 8 months or so....I'd love to do that. But so far, I just seem to lose some weight, then gain some weight.

    Having less calories can certainly help you lose weight in the short term but there are a few potiential problems that can occur in the medium/longer term:
    - your body might not cope well with very reduced calories. It can mean that your metabolism slows down which will only make it harder to lose weight next time.
    - sticking to very low calorie amounts is HARD. This means you are more likely to fail, binge, give up.
    - you might be missing out on critical nutrition that your body needs to stay healthy. As well as missing out on good foods that give you energy.
  • michedarnd
    michedarnd Posts: 207 Member
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    Also, try taking a multi-vitamin. If you don't have your full nutrition, your body panics.
  • Jesse13
    Jesse13 Posts: 72
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    Thank you ALL!

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