Skinny Fat to Fit (Life Goal)

Timpolemistis
Timpolemistis Posts: 5 Member
in Health and Weight Loss
Hi! I'm 19 and skinny fat. I'm 6'2 and around 220. I have no access to the gym so I'm stuck with calisthenics which I'm not crazy about since I feel it's a lot harder. Anyways I have three questions, 1. Is the calorie calculator on here accurate since I feel 1600 is WAYYY too little for someone like me, 2500 was always ideal for weight loss from other calculators? And 2. How long will it take me to get to 185 if I'm consistent? Also, does the calculator include muscle gain? I don't want to reach my goal but end up being a stick. Thank you in advance to whoever can respond to my questions! Reaching 185 right now is my biggest goal right now and means everything to me. I'll finally be confident in myself since I'll be happy with myself and it's a feeling I've never felt before so I'm beyond excited! The app also says ill lose 20lbs by mid July so if that's true then :D

Replies

  • cmriverside
    cmriverside Posts: 33,940 Member
    edited May 2022
    You can Google body weight exercises...I think "Convict Conditioning" is one. Lots of ways to increase muscle without lifting actual weights, just using your body weight and gravity.

    As far as calories...1600 does sound low. Did you set it to "Lose 1 pound per week" and set your "Activity Level" as accurately as you can based on the choice it gives you? This site calculates differently than other sites, too. It expects you to add-in extra calories (in the Exercise tab) when you do it. Other calculators just factor in your exercise.

    Here's the explanation: https://support.myfitnesspal.com/hc/en-us/articles/360032625391-How-does-MyFitnessPal-calculate-my-initial-goals-
    (Go to the actual link I posted just above to see the links referenced in the following article)

    How does MyFitnessPal calculate my initial goals?

    When you create your profile, we ask you for your age, height, weight, sex, and normal daily activity level. We use these factors to determine the calories required to maintain your current weight. We also ask how much weight you would like to lose or gain per week, and with this goal in mind we subtract calories (for weight loss) or add calories (for weight gain) to determine your daily calorie and nutrient goals.



    We ask for your goal weight when you create your profile, but this is only for purposes of reporting how many pounds remain until you meet your goal. Your goal weight does not affect your initial calorie calculations.



    Additionally we also account for weekly exercise goals (which should not be included in your initial activity level), in order to provide an incentive for you to reach. However, we do not account for additional exercise outside of your reported daily activity level, until you actually perform and log exercise to your diary under the "Cardiovascular" section. Please see this article to understand why we do not currently calculate calories via strength exercises.

    Because your daily calorie goal already accounts for your intent to gain or lose weight at a particular rate, you can achieve your goal by eating the specified number of calories per day, with no additional exercise required. If you do exercise, your daily calorie goal will then increase for the day, to stabilize your weight loss or weight gain at the rate you initially specified.


    We set your daily calorie goal in Net Calories which we define as:

    Calories Consumed (Food) - Calories Burned (Exercise) = Net Calories

    This means if you exercise, you will be able to eat more for that day. For example, if your Net Calorie goal is 2000 calories, one way to meet that goal is to eat 2,500 calories of food, but then burn 500 calories through exercise.

    Think of your Net Calories like a daily budget of calories to spend. You spend them by eating, and you earn more calories to eat by exercising. We do not recommend women consume fewer than 1200 calories per day, or men fewer than 1500 calories per day. Eating too little can produce negative health effects.

    As you continue with the program, if your weight changes, your goals may also change. Please see this article for more information on how your goals will update.

    While the calorie goals we calculate for you are based on statistical averages, our millions of users have demonstrated these goals are accurate enough to provide positive results for almost anyone. For real member success stories please visit our success forums.

    If you would prefer a calorie goal that responds to your specific daily activity level, we suggest looking into our third party integrations. Several of our integrations offer solutions for monitoring your calorie burn over the course of the day, and can update your MyFitnessPal calorie goals based on this information.

    On the site you can find out more about our integrations here. In our Android and iOS apps, tap "Apps & Devices" in the Menu (or "More" page).

    If you are following a guided plan from your doctor or nutritionist, or if you have data you believe is more accurate than our estimated goals, please see this article for information about customizing your goals. You may also wish to consider upgrading to MyFitnessPal Premium, which allows advanced users or users with very specific nutritional goals to customize their nutrition plan with even greater control.

    You don't have to use 1600. You can set your own calorie goals if you already know what you need. Just go to Goals.

    Other than that, we all have to run the calorie experiment. I'd pick something like 2500 and do that for a month and see how it goes - then adjust if needed.
  • LaBellaHarris
    LaBellaHarris Posts: 63 Member
    Yeah, as a fellow skinny-fat kid, I'd say you probably want to set your own calorie goals, especially because you're actually looking to recomp your body and not to necessarily lose weight. I'm really steady on my weight but my BF% can vary and my "fit at 125lbs" looks VERY DIFFERENT from my "fat at 125lbs".

    Another good place to look up body weight circuits and training tips is Darebee.com (a lot of the Daily Dares are great for just throwing some extra movement into your day).
  • Kiwi2mfp
    Kiwi2mfp Posts: 166 Member
    Sometimes you have to just feel out the calculators. I dropped 7 pounds the first week of my diet....this week I don't use to feel out the accuracy of the calculator because most of the is water weight. After that is when I start feeling out the calculator....how do I feel? Am I dizzy? Tired? Ravenously hungry? Or do I have energy and feelings of well being? Also am I dropping more or less than 1-2 pounds a week? If I am dropping more than 2 pounds, then my calorie deficit is too low. If I am dropping less than 1 pound a week, then my calorie deficit is too low or nonexistent. It is going to take you a few weeks to figure out your body needs. Calculators can only do so much. Computers and human "experts" don't know every human body on the planet. This is when you become an expert on you. What food make you feel good physically while you still lose weight. Now, as for how long will it take you...That depends on if you lose a lot of water weight in the first week and then what your weight loss goal is...1 or 2 pounds a week. I calculate by using my goal. I am 29 days in, started at 217 at 5'7" female. The first week I lost the 7 pounds and I have lost about 2 pounds a week since. The second week I lost a bit more so I recalculated my calorie deficit. I have lost 15 pounds in 29 days. I expect a slower weight loss thus next month...no more than 8 pounds. Weight loss slows a bit as you weigh less because you burn less calories. As this happens, you might have to readjust your calorie deficit but do not ever go below the lowest healthy calorie intake for your height. I actually wrote down a weekly goal weight and am checking them off as they come. I surprised myself with being ahead of goals. Pay attention to getting adequate protein intake if you don't want to lose muscle mass in this process.
  • Kiwi2mfp
    Kiwi2mfp Posts: 166 Member
    Man , I wish I can edit my last comment. It is a mess. Hopefully you get where I'm going with it.
  • cmriverside
    cmriverside Posts: 33,940 Member
    Kiwi2mfp wrote: »
    Man , I wish I can edit my last comment. It is a mess. Hopefully you get where I'm going with it.

    You can edit for one hour -
  • sijomial
    sijomial Posts: 19,811 Member
    The phrase "skinny fat" is misused about 90% of the time!
    At 220lbs you are not remotely skinny so don't set off on the wrong path trying to fix a problem you don't have. Under-trained or under-muscled is not the same as skinny.

    1. Is the calorie calculator on here accurate since I feel 1600 is WAYYY too little for someone like me, 2500 was always ideal for weight loss from other calculators?
    It's because you are choosing an aggressive rate of loss you get a far too low a calorie target. Yes the calculator here is as accurate as all the others but as it excludes exercise you need to factor that in. If you want a true comparison set both kinds of calculator to weight maintenance and add your weekly average exercise to the MyFitnessPal number.
    Yes 2500 may well be a decent start point whether that's 2500 every day or MyFitnessPal's variable daily goal that adds up to 2500 x 7 averaged over the week doesn't really matter.

    2. How long will it take me to get to 185 if I'm consistent?
    Depends on the size of your calorie deficit but the quicker you aim for the more you compromise your chances of getting to 185 AND having the physique you desire at the same point.

    3. does the calculator include muscle gain?
    Not really sure what you mean here? Exercise is part of your calorie needs and adding muscle is a metabolically demanding activity but just adding a few pounds of muscle makes very little difference to your daily calorie needs. It's using your muscles that is the potential big calorie burner. With caveat that weight training itself is a low calorie burn rate.

    Good news!
    At 19 and with plenty of fuel stored you are primed to add muscle the quickest and easiest you ever will. Even with sub-optimal training your progress will outstrip anyone that has been training for a significant number of years. You can negate that advantage though by going for rapid weight loss.
    Do the right things (moderate deficit, consistent training primarily) and you will get the right results - but maybe not as fast as you would wish.

  • PAV8888
    PAV8888 Posts: 13,585 Member
    As at the very least two posters above you have indicated, you are a prime candidate for increasing muscle and reducing fat. IF you train hard. IF you eat smart. IF you take advantage of age and hormones!

    BUT: You don't fire and forget muscles! Woohoo. I look good. Girls/boys come on down. I never have to exercise again.

    Just saying that finding something to DO with the muscles so that you keep on either training or just making good use of them after you're at your perfect weight... is good. And yes, if competitive bodybuilding is your thing that's fine. Even the training itself can be your goal. Some of the more difficult progressions are major goals and commitments off and by themselves. But move towards ADDING reasons for keeping up with exercise and muscles beyond "just" losing weight and looking good for a vacation/special event.

    It's great that the selections you made in the app created a situation where you would be attempting to lose 20lbs by June. But if you follow through with that the one thing you WON'T do is create good preconditions for building muscles. Absolute optimal muscle growth involves an energy surplus. Your current condition (sufficient stored energy) is the next most optimal one. Take advantage of this. But plan on spending a year or two.

    If you're not willing to spend a year or two... well then, think twice.

    I'm serious and maybe a bit of a *kitten*. But a LARGE NUMBER of people here on MFP start their yo-yo dieting lifetime by going for quick diets and quick results when they were in their late teens and early twenties.

    Don't be one of them *or one of us*. Tackle the problem, tackle it well and smartly, tackle it "permanently". Be patient and appreciate what your body can do for you!
  • PAV8888
    PAV8888 Posts: 13,585 Member
    Correction : not necessarily a year or two losing the initial 35lbs but definitely the better part of a year losing it, and then landing at your magical weight and then continuing to be just as mindful if not more than you were while losing in order to maintain.

    At least the same amount of time as your were losing. Look up the statistics on rebound regain within six months to two years of weight loss.

    You're attempting a 16% of bodyweight reduction. Spend 32 to 40 weeks to get there and another 64 to 80 maintaining and you will be in good shape. Get too flush with success and pay no attention much before that and the same hormones that are going to
    help you build muscles today are going to do their best to *kitten up* with your success.

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