Calories and eating to that amount

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luvmyches
luvmyches Posts: 5
in Health and Weight Loss
Good Morning! I am still fairly new here. I have a question. I have been given 1560 calories a day on the tracker to eat. I am not able to exercise at all, so my weight loss depends entirely on portion control and food I eat. I have been doing MFP now for almost 3 weeks and have not lost any weight at all. My question is am I supposed to exactly 1560 calories per day, or can I eat 1450 to 1560 or ??? I am feeling that 1560 calories per day with no exercise at all to burn anything is too much. I am nearing 49 years old, female, and 5ft 8in in height. Due to physical problems which I wont go into now, my ability to exercise/work out and really burn calories doesnt exist anymore. :-( I was looking through the site trying to get an idea of what I am supposed to do for calorie intake. As I said, I have not lost any weight yet and have been doing this now for just shy of 3 fulls weeks (tomorrow will make it 3 full weeks).

** Please note that while I did in fact join back in Sept, I never really did any tracking out here before a few weeks ago. I was doing WW and Sparks and came out here because so many were talking about this site as well!

Replies

  • Acg67
    Acg67 Posts: 12,142 Member
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    in order to lose weight you need to be in a caloric deficit, so if you take in less calories then you are burning, you will lose weight. you don't have to hit an exact number
  • luvmyches
    luvmyches Posts: 5
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    So the 1560 is the max for the day and it is okay if I dont reach it everyday? Staying below may actually be the better option for me?
  • mrbobbles
    mrbobbles Posts: 2
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    As long as you stay abouve 1200 and under the 1560 you should be good. When i first started it took a few weeks for any wait to go but since then its been a steady 1 to 2 lb a week. Stick with it and you'll do fine :-)
  • J_Matt
    J_Matt Posts: 13
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    So the 1560 is the max for the day and it is okay if I dont reach it everyday? Staying below may actually be the better option for me?

    1560 is the max. It is ok to come below but not to the fact that you are starving yourself.
  • morganadk2_deleted
    morganadk2_deleted Posts: 1,696 Member
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    So the 1560 is the max for the day and it is okay if I dont reach it everyday? Staying below may actually be the better option for me?

    :grumble: not to far below :flowerforyou:
  • ElizabethRoad
    ElizabethRoad Posts: 5,138 Member
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    I don't think it would be harmful to eat less. You're only talking about 100 calories less. Remember everyone is different, maybe you need slightly less calories than the average person, especially if your activity is limited. Or maybe you could do some minor exercise like walking? You didn't go into detail so I don't know what your limitations are, but maybe there is something you can do.
  • Acg67
    Acg67 Posts: 12,142 Member
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    So the 1560 is the max for the day and it is okay if I dont reach it everyday? Staying below may actually be the better option for me?

    your max for the day is your TDEE (assuming you're trying to lose weight), which is how many calories you burn in sum total during the day.

    Again as long as you maintain a caloric deficit you will lose weight. If you are not, the first thing i would look at is if you are underestimating caloric intake
  • luvmyches
    luvmyches Posts: 5
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    Okay, Thanks!! Glad to hear that I am in the same boat as some of the rest of you---it can take a while to happen!!! I will keep trying though.
  • juicyfruitkk
    juicyfruitkk Posts: 95 Member
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    Staying a little below is fine but you need calories to function and if you eat too little your body will think you're going into starvation mode (and store fat). I suggest not only staying in your calorie range if you can't work out but eat low calorie foods that keep you full (fruits/veggies/lean protein/beans). I've been on here for about 6 weeks I think and only gone over my calorie count 3 times and have been losing about 2lbs per week. YOU CAN DO IT :)
  • dls06
    dls06 Posts: 6,774 Member
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    I lost all my weight without exercise. I don't care what anyone says, I know it is not something I would not do forever so I did not want to rely on it. I wanted to learn to eat healthier. You need to get a food scale and portion everything you eat. You are probably eating more then you think. Also eating healthier lets you eat more. Eating healthier stops cravings. If you are going over your goals for the day you will not lose. You should have your Diet Profile set on sedentary.
    No one can do this for you. You need to educate yourself on healthy eating and stay within your goals....
  • ElizabethRoad
    ElizabethRoad Posts: 5,138 Member
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    Staying a little below is fine but you need calories to function and if you eat too little your body will think you're going into starvation mode (and store fat). I suggest not only staying in your calorie range if you can't work out but eat low calorie foods that keep you full (fruits/veggies/lean protein/beans). I've been on here for about 6 weeks I think and only gone over my calorie count 3 times and have been losing about 2lbs per week. YOU CAN DO IT :)
    OK but let's not get out of hand here. No one is going to starve on 1450 calories a day.
  • luvmyches
    luvmyches Posts: 5
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    A lot of the calorie inputs I have using I have been manually putting into the tracker right from the packages and recipes I am using... I have been measuring too and making sure that a half a cup is a half a cup!! I was just wondering if the 1560 was maybe too high, which is why I was wondering about doing 1450 to about 1560 instead and seeing if that pulls any loss results on the scale.

    **was just reading some of the prior posts...I do have it set on sedentary and I personally would never go below about 1375 in calorie intake anyway. I dont like listening to my stomach growl all the time!!!
  • RMinVA
    RMinVA Posts: 1,085 Member
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    I am the same height and age as you. And unfortunately, WHAT you eat to hit that calorie count plays a much more significant role in weight loss than it may have if we were 20 years younger.

    20 years ago, i could have eaten just about anything, and as long as I stayed in my calorie range, I would lose weight. These days I have to eat much cleaner and really limit the presence of certain foods in my diet. Otherwise, the scale just doesn't budge.

    I also agree that you may be eating more than you think. Focus on portion control and invest in an inexpensive food scale: it's more accurate than using measuring cups and could be an eye opener.
  • marianne_s
    marianne_s Posts: 986 Member
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    So the 1560 is the max for the day and it is okay if I dont reach it everyday? Staying below may actually be the better option for me?

    your max for the day is your TDEE (assuming you're trying to lose weight), which is how many calories you burn in sum total during the day.

    Again as long as you maintain a caloric deficit you will lose weight. If you are not, the first thing i would look at is if you are underestimating caloric intake


    MFP has already calculated the deficit in her total calorie allowance.

    So, to answer the OP's question - yes, you will still lose weight without any exercise eating the set calorie amount. Whatever amount you've got your weekly loss set to, that is what you sill lose... Obviously, this depends on what you're eating.... keeping your diet 80/20 as much as possible.... 80% healthy - 20% not so much :)

    Also, eating slightly under your set calore amount now & then isn't going to cause any issue.
    Also
  • juicyfruitkk
    juicyfruitkk Posts: 95 Member
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    @ Elizabethroad.....
    Nope, you're right. She hadn't stated how much less she was going to eat per day; I just don't think its healthy to eat below 1200/day :) That's all
  • luvmyches
    luvmyches Posts: 5
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    I did say 1450 to 1560... about 100 calories less or so! And again, I cant go below about 1350ish anyway because otherwise my stomach is telling me about it!! Been there, done it. I found that out the hard way doing WW and points and doing calories side by side with the points. Thanks everyone for the feedback!!

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