Just Starting and confused about calories

Try setting your weekly loss rate to 1 lb to get more calories.

Stick at that for a while. Give it a chance to work for you.

I ended up with better results at 1340 calories than I did at 1200. 😉

OMG! Apart from number of children (I stopped at 1) we have same scenario going on - 43, no longer a teacher, I also got up to 72kg and wanted to go down to 60kg (tick) and I can guarantee you that 1200 is too low.

Lots of advice, first one being not to use the MFP calculations but use the TDEE method which IMO is easier to navigate and doesn't require worrying about eating back calories.

I'll PM you.

clovergardens wrote: »

Thanks for all your comments. As mentioned, no idea really... Calories are so foreign to me. I thought Fruit was good for you, but apparently not when it comes to calories. There goes half my diet! Ha ha

Eating less calories than you burn will result in weight loss. Being accurate with measuring the food we eat (food scale) is the best way to make sure you’re eating fewer calories than you use over the course of the day. This means that in terms of strictly weight loss, it doesn’t matter what kinds of food you eat, as long as you are in that calorie deficit.

When you say “I thought fruit was good for you,” the term “good for you” is definitely vague and points to a “good food/bad food” mentality, which could make it tough to stick to your calorie plan (especially if you feel intense guilt over eating “bad” foods). To set yourself up for more success, try to remember that all food (even pizza, ice cream, and candy) can fit into your weight loss plan as long as you hit your calorie target. Yes, some foods will have more nutrients than others (some fruit is an awesome source of vitamin c and fiber, for example), and it’s important to remember that choosing certain foods (high protein, high fiber, or in my case, high fat) can help you feel fuller and stick to your plan for the day. But you should regularly make a little room for ALL the foods you like! It’s great practice to learn how to enjoy those things in moderate portions while keeping to your planned way-of-eating. My rule of thumb is that I don’t cut out any food that I’m not comfortable cutting out for the rest of my life.

Don’t stick to only what you think of as “healthy food,” because “healthy food” has no clear definition and each person will tell you something different about it. Is it low calorie foods? Low carb foods? Low fat foods? High-nutrient foods? Foods with no added sugar? Organic foods? Foods with no animal products? There is no set database of “healthy foods” because we need a VARIETY of foods to meet our nutritional needs and feel satisfied enough to stick to our way-of-eating long-term. Eat what you like in smaller portions, and tweak your choices/portions to make sure you’re feeling full and satisfied. Make weight-loss and weight-maintenance as easy on yourself as possible!