Calories question?
TonyNeedstolooseweight
Posts: 50 Member
So im on 1600 to 1800 calories a day , but every single calorie calculator i use is saying i'd loose weight on 3000 calories , is it because my weight is high? I feel healthy and fine on the calories im eating , im eating the right foods doing the right stuff. Its more of a curiosity question than anything else.
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Replies
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What is your height, weight and activity level0
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tomcustombuilder wrote: »What is your height, weight and activity level
170cm / 145kg , power walking 3 times a day , morning noon and night sometimes 4 or 5 times a day! 2mph on incline of 4 to 8 , i increase the incline as i get further into my walk. Been doing this for a month now , lost 20 pounds so far.0 -
So you're 5'7" and 320 pounds currently.
Yeah, you'd lose weight at 3,000 calories, but nowhere near as much as you are. Even assuming some pounds from initial water loss, that looks like an aggressive loss rate. Not too high, but high.
How much protein are you getting? This site recommends 175g for you, which would be 40% of your current intake. You may want to consider going to 2,000 calories, while getting that much protein, and keeping up with your walking. A less aggressive loss plus a good amount of protein will help retain your muscle mass as you drop, so more of your losses will be fat.
https://examine.com/protein-intake-calculator/2 -
TonyNeedstolooseweight wrote: »tomcustombuilder wrote: »What is your height, weight and activity level
170cm / 145kg , power walking 3 times a day , morning noon and night sometimes 4 or 5 times a day! 2mph on incline of 4 to 8 , i increase the incline as i get further into my walk. Been doing this for a month now , lost 20 pounds so far.
Figure how many calories you've been taking in and how the weightloss has gone in the last few weeks. if you've lost 20 lbs in a month that's amazing so don't try to re invent the wheel calorie wise. Some of that was probably water weight though. Shoot for 2 ish lbs a week of loss. At 320 you could shoot for a bit more though until you lose more.2 -
Retroguy2000 wrote: »So you're 5'7" and 320 pounds currently.
Yeah, you'd lose weight at 3,000 calories, but nowhere near as much as you are. Even assuming some pounds from initial water loss, that looks like an aggressive loss rate. Not too high, but high.
How much protein are you getting? This site recommends 175g for you, which would be 40% of your current intake. You may want to consider going to 2,000 calories, while getting that much protein, and keeping up with your walking. A less aggressive loss plus a good amount of protein will help retain your muscle mass as you drop, so more of your losses will be fat.
https://examine.com/protein-intake-calculator/
I'm getting about 150grams of protein a day , i make sure both my lunch and dinner have a good amount in them . eating a lot of chicken and turkey. But its good to know i can go up to 2000 , my general rule of thumb is if im not hungry i don't eat , if i feel hungry drink water or a diet drink , and if the hunger remains have around 20grams of nuts. Its a good system , i get hunger but im learning to embrace it rather than suffer from it , its not painful or anything , it normally means my next meal is due in about a hour. I never go to bed hungry either , once the day is done im happy and content and go to sleep , and i start the morning off with a protein shake (diet version) , all of the meals are freshly prepared and home cooked to , and i knock 5 pounds off my total loss as water more than likely , but im just going by the scale. I guess i could find a diet protein bar of some kind , ill do my research on a suitable one to bump the protein up a little , maybe add some jerky into the mix. I also got a battle rope off amazon , thing is massive , ill add that into the mix very soon! Thanks for your reply
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^ Sounds like you've got a great plan, and you're on a good path. I would say good luck, but it doesn't seem like you need it.
Do consider starting to add some weights in the near future though.2 -
Myfitnesspal is set up so that you add in more calories for purposeful exercise into the Exercise tab. Your activity level is supposed to be just your daily routine (mailman, desk job, factory worker, etc.) Telling myfitnesspal that you exercise XX number of times (on the guided setup page) doesn't affect your basic calorie goals.
99% of other online calculators ask you your exercise level and then figure that into your daily Goal. That would require you to keep up that level of exercise. If you use other calculators, they're figuring in all those workouts. Myfitnesspal expects you to enter them separately into "Exercise."
Here's the difference, and how myfitnesspal calculates: https://support.myfitnesspal.com/hc/en-us/articles/360032625391-How-does-MyFitnessPal-calculate-my-initial-goals-
It's six of one, half dozen of the other. Depends on which way you want to account for purposeful exercise. Some people are good at sticking to the same exercises on a consistent basis and some people want a more granular accounting. I prefer to enter the exercise when I do it, but you do have the option to use a set daily calorie number by going to Goals and editing your calorie number if you would prefer to use the same calories every day. If you do that, you would not enter any exercise into this program.
Up to you, but if you use the Guided Setup, you will get a higher number on the other calculators by the amount they figure you're using for all that exercise.2 -
TonyNeedstolooseweight wrote: »Retroguy2000 wrote: »So you're 5'7" and 320 pounds currently.
Yeah, you'd lose weight at 3,000 calories, but nowhere near as much as you are. Even assuming some pounds from initial water loss, that looks like an aggressive loss rate. Not too high, but high.
How much protein are you getting? This site recommends 175g for you, which would be 40% of your current intake. You may want to consider going to 2,000 calories, while getting that much protein, and keeping up with your walking. A less aggressive loss plus a good amount of protein will help retain your muscle mass as you drop, so more of your losses will be fat.
https://examine.com/protein-intake-calculator/
I'm getting about 150grams of protein a day , i make sure both my lunch and dinner have a good amount in them . eating a lot of chicken and turkey. But its good to know i can go up to 2000 , my general rule of thumb is if im not hungry i don't eat , if i feel hungry drink water or a diet drink , and if the hunger remains have around 20grams of nuts. Its a good system , i get hunger but im learning to embrace it rather than suffer from it , its not painful or anything , it normally means my next meal is due in about a hour. I never go to bed hungry either , once the day is done im happy and content and go to sleep , and i start the morning off with a protein shake (diet version) , all of the meals are freshly prepared and home cooked to , and i knock 5 pounds off my total loss as water more than likely , but im just going by the scale. I guess i could find a diet protein bar of some kind , ill do my research on a suitable one to bump the protein up a little , maybe add some jerky into the mix. I also got a battle rope off amazon , thing is massive , ill add that into the mix very soon! Thanks for your reply
Losing weight fast increases health risk. Obviously, it's your call how much risk you can tolerate, but I'd argue that actual weight loss rate is a better gauge of risk than perceived hunger. Many of us (like me) who've been obese got there partly because our hunger cues are screwed up. "Screwed up" isn't necessarily just "we feel OK eating too much". It can turn into "we feel OK eating too little".
A common rule of thumb is to avoid losing more than 0.5-1% of current weight per week, with a bias toward the lower end of that range unless under close medical supervision for deficiencies or health complications. That would be something like 0.75-1.5kg (1.5-3 pounds, roughly) per week maximum for you, for a while. (Yes, I did some fudge-y rounding in there.)
Very fast weight loss can risk losing more muscle mass than minimum, fatigue that bleeds calorie burn out of our day, weakness (ditto), hair thinning . . . at the mild end. At extremes, which of course are statistically less likely but still in the picture, fast loss can trigger compromised immune system, gallbladder problems, heart damage, etc.
Like I said, your risk tolerance is up to you. As someone who accidentally lost too fast at first, got weak/fatigued, then took multiple weeks to recover back to feeling normal, I'm a fervent believer in keeping risks moderate. Things were much better after I realized that MFP dramatically underestimates my calorie needs, a thing that's rare but possible. It was much better once I set my goals based on my actual loss rate. Much.
On top of that, weight loss tends to have a honeymoon period where motivation is high, fast loss feels motivating, and all systems are GO. But losing a meaningful total amount of weight is not a quick project with a nearby end date. Even at a fast loss rate, it's a many weeks to months to even years kind of effort. And after that, most of us want to stay at that healthy weight, which is a forever endeavor.
Consider the sustainability. Ideally, sometime during weight loss, we experiment, find, practice and groove in a new set of habits, routine patterns of eating and activity, that we can happily keep up forever to stay at a healthy weight. If we do that during loss, maintenance becomes just the simple addition of a few hundred daily calories, not some radical thing. Lots of people fail out of maintenance because they arrive there without a practiced plan. "Go back to normal" is a common maintenance approach . . . sadly, since that's the on-ramp to yo-yo regain, perhaps the least healthy lifestyle.
Honestly, we see a lot of people show up in the Community who are gung ho, losing fast, feeling motivated . . . then in a few weeks, they disappear. Maybe they disappear because some of us weren't supportive, from their perspective, no way to know. But I have suspicions. On the flip side, there are exceptions, but many of the people who are in the Community as long-term weight maintainers now trying to help others . . . well, seems like the most common pattern is that they went with a slow and steady, change routine habits kind of approach.
For myself, I decided not to do anything during loss I wasn't willing to continue long term to stay at a healthy weight, except for a sensibly moderate calorie deficit. Other than that phase where I accidentally lost too fast, that's worked out OK. I've been at a healthy weight now for 7+ years, after about 3 previous decades of overweight/obesity. YMMV.
Regardless, I wish you excellent long-term outcomes, whatever route you choose, because IMO being at a healthy weight is a huge quality of life improvement.2 -
At an obese weight losing the extra weight quickly can be better than taking it slow and staying very overweight for longer. Once a good amount of the weight comes off then it can slow a bit.1
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tomcustombuilder wrote: »At an obese weight losing the extra weight quickly can be better than taking it slow and staying very overweight for longer. Once a good amount of the weight comes off then it can slow a bit.
I agree.
There's nothing wrong with quick weight loss when obese. This of course flies in the face of the icons of nutrition like the CDC or the USDA that say slow and steady weight loss is the best strategy for long term successes. This of course is reductive thinking like most of their recommendations simply because individual health measures are singularly in the hands of your personal medical Dr. and saying otherwise would leave the CDC et al open to litigation, and they're simply not in the business of individual health advice, full stop. Also there's really no science that supports that assertion, but plenty that actually says the opposite to be true. You have to keep in mind that if you decide to be aggressive in your weight loss, that that is the plan for short term and the journey down from your particular weight will probably entail a few different strategies along the way. Focusing on protein would be advisable and your energy is your own body fat, so I would be cutting back on carbs and I would try and consume as much whole nutrient dense and calorie sparing foods for overall satiation (lower fat). Of course the best thing you can do is your own research and not believe anyone on the interwebs, which is generally my approach. cheers
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/20443094/
The association between rate of initial weight loss and long-term success in obesity treatment: does slow and steady win the race?
Conclusion: Collectively, findings indicate both short- and long-term advantages to fast initial weight loss. Fast weight losers obtained greater weight reduction and long-term maintenance, and were not more susceptible to weight regain than gradual weight losers.
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/11707557/
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/25459211/
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^^^^ Correct
Someone obese will lose quickly on 1800-2000 calories and as they lean out, those calories will represent a smaller and smaller deficit so losses will automatically slow down1 -
Wow tons and tons of information from you guys , its important to note i didn't plan to loose so much weight a week , it just happened , im aiming for 2 or 3 pounds a week realistically , also worth noting my energy levels are fantastic in the morning noon and night , for 31 days ive not skipped one session on my treadmill and as the weight comes off i will further increase the speeds on it and so on... I just need to drop more weight so the impact on my joints isn't horrific but it stands at Three 2.0mph walks a day for 30 minute's on a incline. Also i don't deprive myself of crappy foods , i just find a better alternative to suit my lifestyle / health plan , for example pancakes? I make oat pancakes from a recipe i got online , burger and fires? I make turkey burgers and sweet potato fries and some low sugar bbq sauce or sweet chilli or nandos chilli jam! I will never deprive myself of food , because i know the repercussions to my health could be serve. I know my losses will balance out once i reach a certain weight and thats a case of lowering calories possibly and increasing cardio. But for the most part , this is the best diet i've been on in 4 years! And im optimistic3
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Hey Tony, sounds like you've got things under control! I'm about your height and started at 125kg/276lbs in January and am down to 99kg/218lbs today. I ate around 1700 calories per day more or less and I started like you losing a ton the first month and slowing down to 10lbs loss per month now. I'm assuming I'll reach 80kg/180lbs by the late fall if I stick with this.
You're a bit more active than me so you've got that going for you as well.
Keep it up! If you're curious I've got my profile public so you can check how it's gone for someone a bit ahead of you on the journey.3 -
Hey Tony, sounds like you've got things under control! I'm about your height and started at 125kg/276lbs in January and am down to 99kg/218lbs today. I ate around 1700 calories per day more or less and I started like you losing a ton the first month and slowing down to 10lbs loss per month now. I'm assuming I'll reach 80kg/180lbs by the late fall if I stick with this.
You're a bit more active than me so you've got that going for you as well.
Keep it up! If you're curious I've got my profile public so you can check how it's gone for someone a bit ahead of you on the journey.
Look threw your logs , great stuff!
And well done on the losses! 0 -
Just did my first ever hour on treadmill!9
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Power talking 4 times a day now on 2.5mph going strong 5
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Day 151! and still going strong!
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Retroguy2000 wrote: »So you're 5'7" and 320 pounds currently.
Yeah, you'd lose weight at 3,000 calories, but nowhere near as much as you are. Even assuming some pounds from initial water loss, that looks like an aggressive loss rate. Not too high, but high.
How much protein are you getting? This site recommends 175g for you, which would be 40% of your current intake. You may want to consider going to 2,000 calories, while getting that much protein, and keeping up with your walking. A less aggressive loss plus a good amount of protein will help retain your muscle mass as you drop, so more of your losses will be fat.
https://examine.com/protein-intake-calculator/
262 pounds now from 320 , 80 pounds total loss! wow looking back at this post is insane lol3 -
TonyNeedstolooseweight wrote: »Retroguy2000 wrote: »So you're 5'7" and 320 pounds currently.
Yeah, you'd lose weight at 3,000 calories, but nowhere near as much as you are. Even assuming some pounds from initial water loss, that looks like an aggressive loss rate. Not too high, but high.
How much protein are you getting? This site recommends 175g for you, which would be 40% of your current intake. You may want to consider going to 2,000 calories, while getting that much protein, and keeping up with your walking. A less aggressive loss plus a good amount of protein will help retain your muscle mass as you drop, so more of your losses will be fat.
https://examine.com/protein-intake-calculator/
262 pounds now from 320 , 80 pounds total loss! wow looking back at this post is insane lol
Congrats. Keep it going. :flowerforyou:1 -
Good grief, Tony! How are you feeling?1
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herringboxes wrote: »Good grief, Tony! How are you feeling?
I feel fantastic , tons of energy , playing basketball everyday , walking everyday , feel like a new man , my vision of myself is still bleak , but im getting there with great support from my friends on mfp.3 -
TonyNeedstolooseweight wrote: »Retroguy2000 wrote: »So you're 5'7" and 320 pounds currently.
Yeah, you'd lose weight at 3,000 calories, but nowhere near as much as you are. Even assuming some pounds from initial water loss, that looks like an aggressive loss rate. Not too high, but high.
How much protein are you getting? This site recommends 175g for you, which would be 40% of your current intake. You may want to consider going to 2,000 calories, while getting that much protein, and keeping up with your walking. A less aggressive loss plus a good amount of protein will help retain your muscle mass as you drop, so more of your losses will be fat.
https://examine.com/protein-intake-calculator/
262 pounds now from 320 , 80 pounds total loss! wow looking back at this post is insane lol
Congrats on the 80 pounds total loss! May 5 was 121 days ago. I sure hope you are slowing down your rate of loss these days.
How many pounds per week has it been for the last month?1 -
kshama2001 wrote: »TonyNeedstolooseweight wrote: »Retroguy2000 wrote: »So you're 5'7" and 320 pounds currently.
Yeah, you'd lose weight at 3,000 calories, but nowhere near as much as you are. Even assuming some pounds from initial water loss, that looks like an aggressive loss rate. Not too high, but high.
How much protein are you getting? This site recommends 175g for you, which would be 40% of your current intake. You may want to consider going to 2,000 calories, while getting that much protein, and keeping up with your walking. A less aggressive loss plus a good amount of protein will help retain your muscle mass as you drop, so more of your losses will be fat.
https://examine.com/protein-intake-calculator/
262 pounds now from 320 , 80 pounds total loss! wow looking back at this post is insane lol
Congrats on the 80 pounds total loss! May 5 was 121 days ago. I sure hope you are slowing down your rate of loss these days.
How many pounds per week has it been for the last month?
Yeah its like 1 pound a week now 1.5 pounds a week.5 -
TonyNeedstolooseweight wrote: »kshama2001 wrote: »TonyNeedstolooseweight wrote: »Retroguy2000 wrote: »So you're 5'7" and 320 pounds currently.
Yeah, you'd lose weight at 3,000 calories, but nowhere near as much as you are. Even assuming some pounds from initial water loss, that looks like an aggressive loss rate. Not too high, but high.
How much protein are you getting? This site recommends 175g for you, which would be 40% of your current intake. You may want to consider going to 2,000 calories, while getting that much protein, and keeping up with your walking. A less aggressive loss plus a good amount of protein will help retain your muscle mass as you drop, so more of your losses will be fat.
https://examine.com/protein-intake-calculator/
262 pounds now from 320 , 80 pounds total loss! wow looking back at this post is insane lol
Congrats on the 80 pounds total loss! May 5 was 121 days ago. I sure hope you are slowing down your rate of loss these days.
How many pounds per week has it been for the last month?
Yeah its like 1 pound a week now 1.5 pounds a week.
Great! That is safer and sustainable
How many sizes are you down?0 -
I think it was 48 inch waist down to 38 inch waist , could be 37 inches now due to these current jeans falling off to lol But im buying a new pair of jeans in a new size once a month.
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Thumbs up 👍0
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Ha! You're smarter than me. I was holding mine up with belts! And I spent a good several months wondering if my second leg would fit in my pants when I finally bought the right size!
As long as you're willing to adjust AND KEEP ADJUSTING... the current rate sounds like a good basis to have to keep going. Not sure why your vision is bleak because you're doing awesome.
Now try to keep this going and going and going like an energizer bunny. Not the weight loss per se--eventually you will be at normal weight and the loss can not and should not continue forever-- but the general feeling that you've got right now. Ride it and keep riding it till it becomes your expectation and new normal for the day!
Sure... years down the road it may fade but hopefully the new behaviours will be embedded by then!
How many cal a day are you more or less taking in nowadays on average?1 -
Ha! You're smarter than me. I was holding mine up with belts! And I spent a good several months wondering if my second leg would fit in my pants when I finally bought the right size!
As long as you're willing to adjust AND KEEP ADJUSTING... the current rate sounds like a good basis to have to keep going. Not sure why your vision is bleak because you're doing awesome.
Now try to keep this going and going and going like an energizer bunny. Not the weight loss per se--eventually you will be at normal weight and the loss can not and should not continue forever-- but the general feeling that you've got right now. Ride it and keep riding it till it becomes your expectation and new normal for the day!
Sure... years down the road it may fade but hopefully the new behaviours will be embedded by then!
How many cal a day are you more or less taking in nowadays on average?
Anywhere between 1700 to 2000 calories a day , could be as low as 1600 a day depending on the day and the mood , and some meals are just lower in calories. Ignored all the carb scare mongering and all the fat scare mongering , and made a balance between carbs , fiber , and protein and it works for me. I made a post recently on my page , when i was out shopping i got a view of myself from a huge mirror a shop had and it looked like i hadn't lost any weight , i felt massive! My mind set soon changed though and i felt better after a few hours.
And i've had a total of 2 cheat meals on this lifestyle change to , had a few mouthfuls of a high carb high fat Chinese meal and i just couldn't eat anymore , full sugared coke just made me feel sick after 1 can , but i normally crumble after a cheat meal , this time its different. I eat my cheat meal and return to dieting as soon as i've finished eating.
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Your self image will take time to join reality.
Try fitting in a door way with another person, or pass to the outside of a sign between the sign on the sidewalk and the road.... look at pictures of you, especially next to other people, not the mirror and you may be surprised.
Hmmm.... you know I'm gonna say it. Slow down and smell the roses. Your biggest danger is rebound. Try to get used to stuff you like enough and enjoy enough eating in the 2 to 2.5k range (ie start planning for eventual maintenance).
You're buying tickets to the maintenance raffle. Start setting things up by buying extra tickets. Your danger time for regain is not counted in months; but years.... so start setting up ways of moving and eating for the next few years not just the next few months! 😉😘3 -
Your self image will take time to join reality.
Try fitting in a door way with another person, or pass to the outside of a sign between the sign on the sidewalk and the road.... look at pictures of you, especially next to other people, not the mirror and you may be surprised.
Hmmm.... you know I'm gonna say it. Slow down and smell the roses. Your biggest danger is rebound. Try to get used to stuff you like enough and enjoy enough eating in the 2 to 2.5k range (ie start planning for eventual maintenance).
You're buying tickets to the maintenance raffle. Start setting things up by buying extra tickets. Your danger time for regain is not counted in months; but years.... so start setting up ways of moving and eating for the next few years not just the next few months! 😉😘
Had to read this a few times to get the jist , i am genuinely happy on this diet , the only thing i will eventually swap out is the leaner meats for more fatty meats , like chicken wings (homemade ofc) but i the genius thing to come out in the last few years , halo top ice cream! 390 calories a tub , life is good! Also when im down a little lower ill be replacing zero fat yogurt with full fat yogurt.4
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