Resetting your metabolism

lynn9
lynn9 Posts: 19 Member
edited October 2 in Health and Weight Loss
Since starting with MFP I've been steadily gaining weight. My MFP calculated calories were set at 1246/day. I varied between 1,100 - 1,400. Not counting exercise calories. We had our physicals at work and you meet with a dietitian after and I took a printout of my diary and explained that I just keep gaining (chalking it up to menopause) - she took one look and said I'm not eating enough! That I need to eat according to my BMR. Since the review with her was very limited time wise (5 mins), I came back to my desk and Googled BMR and lo and behold I'm supposed to be eating 1,500 just to lay in bed all day! I've been in STARVATION mode this whole time - grrr!!!! I do BFL (body for life) workouts and was not eating back my exercise calories. Based on BMR calcs my BMR + Exercise = 2,398 calories a day. I'm so worried that I'm totally screwed. I found an article by Jillian Michaels on resetting your metabolism and based on her calculations, I should be eating 2,100 calories a day for a month or two until it resets.

Has anyone tried resetting their metabolism this way? I went in and reset my MFP daily calories. I've been trying this since last Friday (9.16.11) and just for fun weighed myself on Monday and had lost 1lb already - yay!! Although, I have to admit its hard getting used to eating this much (healthfully). I'm so used to eating how I've been eating its hard to change the mental mindset.

I thought of going back to WW but I was always hungry and counting points was a drag. So, I ordered the Food Lovers System and am patiently waiting for it to arrive.
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Replies

  • BMcH
    BMcH Posts: 2
    I'd love to hear how this goes for you. I have never tried that - but I am curious about the outcome. I've been struggling with metabolism changes myself - so - if you find it to be successful, please share!
    Thanks
  • sineadangele1
    sineadangele1 Posts: 97 Member
    I've been having trouble losing anything and i think its because of the same issue. I was losing at first, but the last fifteen lbs won't come off and i feel like I'm starving myself. I'm eating 1,400 a day....could you possibly share the websites you found with the BMR and the Jillian article? I'd like to see what i SHOULD be eating and see if doing so makes a difference.
  • lenwie
    lenwie Posts: 240
    could you possibly share the websites you found with the BMR and the Jillian article? I'd like to see what i SHOULD be eating and see if doing so makes a difference.

    I'd like to see these too if possible :happy:
  • iAMaPhoenix
    iAMaPhoenix Posts: 1,038 Member
    bumpity bump...interested in this also.
  • graysmom2005
    graysmom2005 Posts: 1,882 Member
    Bump
  • christinairun
    christinairun Posts: 12
    hello,
    just start eating more often throughout the day. Think of your body as a machine that needs fuel...you don't want to run low. Also try drinking a glass of lemon water first thing in the morning. I wouldn't start eating a ton more calories a day than your body is used to , just don't eat the same amount every day. Make one day closer to 2,000 and than 300 less the next....keep your body guessing.
  • dlphncole
    dlphncole Posts: 19 Member
    Would love to see the article too!!
  • Stormyyy
    Stormyyy Posts: 247 Member
    Plz send us the article too, think this could relate to me also. Thanks. :)
  • Acg67
    Acg67 Posts: 12,142 Member
    you don't eat or set your diet according to your BMR, you eat at deficits the same or a surplus to your TDEE.

    if you want to "reset" your metabolism so to speak you can bump up cals to maintenance and eat there for a few days/weeks. Leigh peele has a good book called the metabolic repair manual that goes into stuff like that
  • fitby2012
    fitby2012 Posts: 167 Member
    I had the same issue. I was eating what I was told was maintenance and burning calories from there. I lost a little, and then gained. Now I am losing again, but only after finding out my lean body mass number. Now my adjusted sedentary BMR, or TDEE, is 1,916 calories. MFP originally calculated it to be 2,580 calories. Since my weight is more fat than muscle, at a TDEE of 2,580 I was "feeding the fat".

    So now, I am eating 1,600 or less on days I don't workout and about 1,800 calories on the days I do workout. I also watch carbs (40% or less), eat 5-6 meals per day, and I am not eating back my exercise calories. That is really helping my weight loss.

    If you have a lot to lose, try taking a look at your body fat percentage and lean body mass. It really helped me and I hope it helps you.
  • bentobee
    bentobee Posts: 321 Member
    I highly recommend you listen to the fat2fitradio podcasts. They discuss this issue often. Great information!

    You will most likely see a small increase at first when you increase your calories - and don't just start eating at the higher level right off the bat, wean yourself up to it. 100-200 calories more a day until you are there. After your body realizes it's getting the fuel it needs and has been missing you will start to see your weight dropping again.

    Good luck!
  • lynn9
    lynn9 Posts: 19 Member
    @Acg67 "...you don't eat or set your diet according to your BMR, you eat at deficits the same or a surplus to your TDEE." Could you explain the TDEE concept?

    @bentobee - good info - thanks!. Fortunately, I've naturally been increasing a bit a day out of fear of what you stated and just trying to get over the mental mindset of what I've been doing for so long. Its funny to log my food for the day and find out I still have 300-500 calories left over - weird!! And now I can feel 'bad' about it so to speak - lol.

    WebMD has a new food & fitness tool similar to this site. You can go through their calculator without creating an account to find out your caloric intake. They ask how you want to do it via four options. Eating less/workout more; eating less; working out more etc. I based my MFP calories from that output eating less and losing 1lbs/wk. They said I had to REDUCE my calories to 1854!!! I busted up laughing cause for me that means INCREASING by 600 some calories and then the whole debate on eating back exercise calories which if I did that - on my cardio days add 300-400.
  • gwenmf
    gwenmf Posts: 888 Member
    bump
  • shakybabe
    shakybabe Posts: 1,578 Member
    I find it confusing.. one site and also my body fat scales gives BMR in 1400's.... another site said 1670, this one gives me 1200.

    When I tried to eat more though like 1600-1700 I put weight on so I dropped it right back again.
  • Acg67
    Acg67 Posts: 12,142 Member
    @Acg67 "...you don't eat or set your diet according to your BMR, you eat at deficits the same or a surplus to your TDEE." Could you explain the TDEE concept?

    @bentobee - good info - thanks!. Fortunately, I've naturally been increasing a bit a day out of fear of what you stated and just trying to get over the mental mindset of what I've been doing for so long. Its funny to log my food for the day and find out I still have 300-500 calories left over - weird!! And now I can feel 'bad' about it so to speak - lol.

    WebMD has a new food & fitness tool similar to this site. You can go through their calculator without creating an account to find out your caloric intake. They ask how you want to do it via four options. Eating less/workout more; eating less; working out more etc. I based my MFP calories from that output eating less and losing 1lbs/wk. They said I had to REDUCE my calories to 1854!!! I busted up laughing cause for me that means INCREASING by 600 some calories and then the whole debate on eating back exercise calories which if I did that - on my cardio days add 300-400.

    TDEE is total daily energy expenditure and is basically your maintenance, BMR is just a part of your TDEE
  • lynn9
    lynn9 Posts: 19 Member
    According to this website's (http://www.free-workout-routines.net/tdee.html) formula for calculating TDEE mine = 2,096. They say to lose weight consume 200 - 300 calories less than your TDEE per day. So, do I set my MFP calories at 200 - 300 less?
  • koutroulakis
    koutroulakis Posts: 77
    I've tracked calories and WW points and wasn't losing weight, I finally invested in a bodymedia fit and it has helped me to see how many calories I was burning all day long including exercise calories. I looked back on past food logs and calculated that I was in a 1700 calorie deficit...which is WAAAy to little calories for my body to function...I looked at the WW points and saw that it was not enough for the level of activity I had each day.

    I would take your BMR and add any exercise calories to that each day...so if your BMR is 1500 and you workout burning 500 , eat about 2000.

    After a week evaluate your food log and how your body reacted to the extra calories.
  • CharlieBarleyMom
    CharlieBarleyMom Posts: 727 Member
    Try reading this entry and see if this helps you:

    http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/61706-guide-to-calorie-deficits
  • nikkit321
    nikkit321 Posts: 1,485 Member
    great thread
  • Acg67
    Acg67 Posts: 12,142 Member
    According to this website's (http://www.free-workout-routines.net/tdee.html) formula for calculating TDEE mine = 2,096. They say to lose weight consume 200 - 300 calories less than your TDEE per day. So, do I set my MFP calories at 200 - 300 less?

    i think you can start eating at around 10-20% less then your TDEE, so 200-400 cal deficit, stick with that for a week or two and evaluate how things are going.
  • souki19
    souki19 Posts: 58
    i found that MFP calories intake are pretty accurate. I mean most website outthere get the TDEE for the week and won't consider the days that the person is just sitting down and/or not working out.On the other hand, MFP gives all the options, if i don't workout somedays i usually eat about 1245 calories , but on the days that i do workout , i usually burn about 500-800 calories , so i eat about 1745-2045. So the key is to keep NETTING calories at a certain level. in addition , one day a week, i eat little bit more calories( about 200-300) to help increase my metabolism.
    remember this isn't a sprint , it is a marathon :) (just saying)
    Edit: in my head it made sense, i hope the way i wrote it down makes sense too :happy:
  • Jess5825
    Jess5825 Posts: 228
    bump
  • lynn9
    lynn9 Posts: 19 Member
    Opinions - on which Activity Multiplier to use to calculate TDEE. Here's the options:

    Step 2: Calculate You Activity Multiplier

    Pick your activity level from below and multiple it against your RMR:

    Sedentary (e.g., you do no exercising and have a desk job) = 1.2
    Lightly active (e.g., you participate in light exercise or sports 1 to 3 times per week) = 1.375
    Moderately active (e.g., you participate in moderate exercise or sports 3 to 5 times per week) = 1.55
    Very active (e.g., you train hard 6 to 7 per week in exercise and/or sports) = 1.725
    Extremely Active (e.g., you exercise or play sports hard everyday & have physical job or 2X day training, i.e. marathon, contest etc.)

    I used the Activity Multiplier of 1.55 to calculate my TDEE. My workout schedule is:

    M-F 4:30 am - Aero Pilates Performer 30 minutes
    M W F - 4:30 pm Cardio 20 - 40 minutes based on type
    T TH SA Weight/Strength Training 30 - 45 minutes. Following Body For Life. One week two upper and one lower body; next week two lower and one upper body workouts.

    I sit at a desk job but get up and move around for a few minutes each hour.

    Think I qualify for the Very Active multiplier?
  • iAMaPhoenix
    iAMaPhoenix Posts: 1,038 Member
    Wow...This is very helpful. I just did my TDEE and it gave me a daily caloric intake of 3171 for my activity level. I have been eating less than half that most days. Gonna ramp up the food intake in the next few weeks to see if I can escape this slump(plateau) I am in. Thanks for the thread.
  • Acg67
    Acg67 Posts: 12,142 Member
    Opinions - on which Activity Multiplier to use to calculate TDEE. Here's the options:

    Step 2: Calculate You Activity Multiplier

    Pick your activity level from below and multiple it against your RMR:

    Sedentary (e.g., you do no exercising and have a desk job) = 1.2
    Lightly active (e.g., you participate in light exercise or sports 1 to 3 times per week) = 1.375
    Moderately active (e.g., you participate in moderate exercise or sports 3 to 5 times per week) = 1.55
    Very active (e.g., you train hard 6 to 7 per week in exercise and/or sports) = 1.725
    Extremely Active (e.g., you exercise or play sports hard everyday & have physical job or 2X day training, i.e. marathon, contest etc.)

    I used the Activity Multiplier of 1.55 to calculate my TDEE. My workout schedule is:

    M-F 4:30 am - Aero Pilates Performer 30 minutes
    M W F - 4:30 pm Cardio 20 - 40 minutes based on type
    T TH SA Weight/Strength Training 30 - 45 minutes. Following Body For Life. One week two upper and one lower body; next week two lower and one upper body workouts.

    I sit at a desk job but get up and move around for a few minutes each hour.

    Think I qualify for the Very Active multiplier?

    this is where it kinda gets tricky and takes some trial and error. you can try using 1.55 monitor your weight for 2 weeks or so and determine if that was too high or not
  • lynn9
    lynn9 Posts: 19 Member
    I've been reading the message boards about eating back exercise calories and netting. I never paid much attention to my Net Calories. I ran a report for the last 90 days and I'm shocked to see that most days I've been WAY under - I mean there are days that my net was 200-300. This explains a lot and likely the reason that I've been gaining weight big time. So, after researching I went back to my Goals and let MFP make the calorie decision and I'm going to focus on my net calories and see what happens for the next two weeks. I figure since my exercise varies daily I'm already calorie shifting. If I don't lose anything then I'll bump my goal calories manually to my TDEE - 200 to start.

    The Jillian Michaels article I mentioned was from one of her e-newsletters a few years back. I don't have the URL any longer but I did copy the info and saved it on my hard drive. I'll pull it up and post it.
  • UsedToBeHusky
    UsedToBeHusky Posts: 15,228 Member
    Maybe you entered something wrong when you started your MFP account. I would look into it, and if it still doesn't make sense I would contact the site. The site is not designed to put you into starvation mode.
  • Stormyyy
    Stormyyy Posts: 247 Member
    Thanks for this Lynn and for the site to work out my tdee, i for one found it very interesting and made me realise if it's right i deffo don't eat enough and has given me the encouragement to up my daily intake a little at a time and besides i have nothing to lose as i'm not losing at the minute so it's worth a try. Thanks again :)
  • wozzy38
    wozzy38 Posts: 137 Member
    Love to see if this works for you!
  • Stormyyy
    Stormyyy Posts: 247 Member
    Watch this space Wozzy hehe Will let you know, fingers n toes crossed for me :)
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