When to increase cals??

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TraceyDonna
TraceyDonna Posts: 60
in Health and Weight Loss
Ok. This is probably a very common question, but ...

Ive been doing this for around two months now and have lost 13lbs so far. I have a mainly sitting down job but do a 30 min cardio class most weekdays. I more or less always eat back the cals I have earned from this, and I always "relax" the cals on a Saturday (ie dont really count, if Im honest).

My query is .... Im still at the 1200 cals that this site set me at when I started out, and it is working. However, how do I know when to increase the cals? I am hungry quite a lot of the time but it does seem to be working for me. Im aware though that I will need to increase the cals at some point. Just have no clue when ....

Thanks x

Replies

  • hipbonesthighgap
    hipbonesthighgap Posts: 111
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    BUMP
  • fteale
    fteale Posts: 5,310 Member
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    I increased my cals to give me 1/2 a lb a week loss when I got to 10 lbs away from goal.
  • hewhoiscd
    hewhoiscd Posts: 1,029 Member
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    Depends on your rate of weight loss and how close you are to your goal weight. The closer you are to your goal weight, the slower you should approach it. Generally speaking, try for 1 to 2 pounds per week max if you have a fair bit to go. Then go for 1 pound per week when you get closer, then half a pound per week when you get within 5 to 10 pounds. And so on.

    IMO anyway, worked for me :)

    There really is no dead set way of doing it, just have to find what works for you.
  • jenbo100
    jenbo100 Posts: 13
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    My recommendation would be to calculate your BMR (Basal Metabolic Rate) for your GOAL weight

    http://www.bmi-calculator.net/bmr-calculator/

    That will tell you how many calories you need to eat per day in order to maintain that weight, then you should slowly begin increasing the number of calories you eat until you hit that level. Make sure that you increase the calories with low fat foods rather than high otherwise you are more likely to stop losing weight.

    The 1200 limit is brilliant for faster weight loss but obviously isnt that sustainable especially if you're hungry all the time. You may see the speed of the weight loss decrease but there is no reason why you shouldn't continue to loose until you hit your goal weight.

    The other thing I would say is to be careful not counting one day a week. Although I think you shouldnt count calories for the rest of your life, having a difference between weekdays and weekends will stop your mindset from changing. You will continue with bad snacking habits and larger portions etc whereas you are more likely to naturally reduce the calories if you do it everyday meaning that you will no longer have to count calories, it will become second nature. Also, you need to burn 500 calories more than you consume to loose 1lb a week, therefore if you are eating 1000 calories more on Saturday (easily done with a takeaway and bar of chocolate) than the other days you could end up undoing two days of hard work!

    I hope that makes sense and helps!
  • docHelen
    docHelen Posts: 198
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    for me as i'm small, it doesn't matter how big or smaller i set my target to loose, i'm always given a 1200 target. So i think i shall only up my calories when i get to my goal (which i'm now very very close to). Iike you i have had a steady loss up till now so am wondereing if i would eventually dissapear to nothing if i carry on!!
  • TraceyDonna
    TraceyDonna Posts: 60
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    for me as i'm small, it doesn't matter how big or smaller i set my target to loose, i'm always given a 1200 target. So i think i shall only up my calories when i get to my goal (which i'm now very very close to). Iike you i have had a steady loss up till now so am wondereing if i would eventually dissapear to nothing if i carry on!!

    That did make me laugh!!! I must admit, Ive thought the same though. If you just keep on going, at what point does your body stop losing. Or do you just continue to lose until you fall down a grate!! lol x
  • thirtyandthriving
    thirtyandthriving Posts: 613 Member
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    I am not really ever that hungry because of my diet. Maybe there are better foods that you could be choosing that will get you fuller longer. My goal was set at 1200 up until yesterday. I had only lost 0.2 lb last week so I increased my calories by choosing the "1lb per week" option and I have already lost 1.6lbs since doing this. When what you are doing is no longer working then you should change your calories for a couple days to a week. You can look at my diary if you want, just ignore yesterday since my calories were set higher. My key is big breakfast lots of snacks.
  • LisaMariaCallow
    LisaMariaCallow Posts: 170
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    If you change your goals to lose 1 lb/wk it will increase your calories. I've been in maintainance for about a month & have been playing with the calories. There's not an exact science; I eat around 1300-1500 cals/day, and I NEVER eat back my exercise calories (those are my bonus for the day!!), I know people say you should, again that's me.

    Anyway, good luck, congrats on the 13 lbs, friend me if you want!!

    :drinker: (BTW-that's coffee in 1 hand, water in the other!!)
  • cabriniswamr1011
    cabriniswamr1011 Posts: 10
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    Hi, Tracey!
    First opportunity I have had to read and respond ot your question. I had the same question and found it in a book titled, "Nutrient Timing for Peak Performance" by Heidi Skolnik. I purchased this book through amazon so it was a lot less expensive then it's retail counterparts. Now, while it's true that the book is directed towards athletes, I have found this book to be useful for anyone regardless of athletic prowess. I coach a master's swimming team, am a competitive swimmer myself, and run stroke clinics. I've referred this book to several people who have had the very same questions as you (including myself) and we have all found it to be a tremendous help! Hope this helps!
    Darvin
  • ozycat
    ozycat Posts: 72 Member
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    bump
  • psuLemon
    psuLemon Posts: 38,411 MFP Moderator
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    The best way to be able to eat more calories is exercise. I eat 2600 or more and don't have trouble losing weight. Actually from what I have seen, most people tend to under eat. The biggest and best way (from my experience) is utilizing the Katch McArdle formula to determine caloric needs (link below will explain). To make it short, you evaluate your exercise and lifestyle to form a factor that is multiplied by your basal metabolic rate (BMR) and then creates a deficit. You then eat the same amount of calories a day and your exercise will essentially cycle your net calories. Below is an example of what I mean


    For example a 125 person @ 25% body fat has a BMR of 1288.5. If this person works out 5 times a week and has a sedentary job (desk job) they have a TDEE factor of 1.55. So 1288.5 x 1.55 = 1997.5 . If this person has 20 lbs or less of weight to lose, you subtract 250 calories from the TDEE to equal 1747.2; this number is your caloric needs to lose .5 lbs a week. This is the Katch McArdle formula. Using this, you eat 1747 calories a day but you don't need to log or eat back your exercise calories as it's figured into the TDEE factor



    http://www.cordianet.com/calculator.htm


    http://www.shapefit.com/basal-metabolic-rate.html

    Just some food for thought. Let me know if you want to know more.

    Lemon

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