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How low is too low? (Calories)
knaslundjr
Posts: 9
Hey there. I'm 28 years old, 5'9" and I've lost 50+ lbs since I started MFP and probably over 100 lbs since before that (didn't check the scale when i was super fat, so I'm not totally sure. You know how it is...)
Anyway, what is ya'lls best advice on how many calories is too low for a young man? I hear conflicting advice from all corners. I usually do about 1200-1400 per day, but it often leaves me feeling weak and dizzy, especially now that I'm down to 177.
I've lost a ton of weight this way but I'm wondering if anybody else has any ideas? Thanks.
Anyway, what is ya'lls best advice on how many calories is too low for a young man? I hear conflicting advice from all corners. I usually do about 1200-1400 per day, but it often leaves me feeling weak and dizzy, especially now that I'm down to 177.
I've lost a ton of weight this way but I'm wondering if anybody else has any ideas? Thanks.
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Replies
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I should add that with exercise, I usually net about 700-1000 calories per day.0
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That is not nearly enough!!!
I would say 1800 minimum.
What do you want to look like when you are at your goal weight? If you eat that low cal then you are going to lose a good amount of muscle mass. Skinnyfat is what will be the result
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First of all congrats on all the weight loss, great job!! I don't think you sbould be feeling dizzy and weak though, that's not good
Perhaps you need to throw some healthy snacking into your diet. Look back at your meals... are they balanced with everything your body needs to be operating healthly???0 -
I should add that with exercise, I usually net about 700-1000 calories per day.
Whew bro that is crazy low. Really need to bump up those calories!0 -
Congrats on your weight loss!
Being dizzy or weak is a sign that your body isn't receiving enough nutrition. You definitely need to raise your daily caloric intake. I would increase them slowly and give your body a chance to adjust each time you raise them. You will likely see a small weight gain as you increase your calories. This is your body adjusting to getting the proper amount of fuel.
I would say - probably closer to 1800 NET calories a day would be ideal. What does MFP have you set at?0 -
Congrats on your weight loss!
Being dizzy or weak is a sign that your body isn't receiving enough nutrition. You definitely need to raise your daily caloric intake. I would increase them slowly and give your body a chance to adjust each time you raise them. You will likely see a small weight gain as you increase your calories. This is your body adjusting to getting the proper amount of fuel.
I would say - probably closer to 1800 NET calories a day would be ideal. What does MFP have you set at?
Thanks! MFP has me at 1700 calories a day (1 pound a week + sedentary lifestyle) but I always go under. I'm also not really "sedentary" but i put it there as a baseline. I usually exercise 3-4 days a week. I guess you could say that I've gotten addicted to weight loss! The idea of eating more calories makes me honestly afraid. I will do anything...ANYTHING to keep from being fat again.0 -
Raise them I know everyones giving nearly the same feedback and its hard to do after a large weight loss but for you're own health you need to get them calories up a little bit.0
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Your BMR is about 1854 (I used http://www.bmi-calculator.net/bmr-calculator/). You should not really net under this number.
Your TDEE is anywhere from 2225 to 3198.15, depending on your total activity level including exercise.
If you netted somewhere in between 1854 and 2225 cals per day, I would expect you to lose weight at a healthy pace.
Awesome work losing 51 lbs so far! Let's tune up those numbers and take it thru the home stretch with the metabolism running strong and efficiently! :drinker:0 -
Your BMR is about 1854 (I used http://www.bmi-calculator.net/bmr-calculator/). You should not really net under this number.
Your TDEE is anywhere from 2225 to 3198.15, depending on your total activity level including exercise.
If you netted somewhere in between 1854 and 2225 cals per day, I would expect you to lose weight at a healthy pace.
Awesome work losing 51 lbs so far! Let's tune up those numbers and take it thru the home stretch with the metabolism running strong and efficiently! :drinker:
Thanks for the info! A few quick questions:
Whats TDEE?
What's losing weight "at a healthy pace"? At my peak I was loosing 3lbs a week. Not healthy?
I get afraid of eating more because I feel like I start to gain weight at around 1900 calories. I probably ate around 2500 on thanksgiving but gained an entire 4lbs THAT DAY! I'm just now working it off!0 -
Congrats on your weight loss!
Being dizzy or weak is a sign that your body isn't receiving enough nutrition. You definitely need to raise your daily caloric intake. I would increase them slowly and give your body a chance to adjust each time you raise them. You will likely see a small weight gain as you increase your calories. This is your body adjusting to getting the proper amount of fuel.
I would say - probably closer to 1800 NET calories a day would be ideal. What does MFP have you set at?
Thanks! MFP has me at 1700 calories a day (1 pound a week + sedentary lifestyle) but I always go under. I'm also not really "sedentary" but i put it there as a baseline. I usually exercise 3-4 days a week. I guess you could say that I've gotten addicted to weight loss! The idea of eating more calories makes me honestly afraid. I will do anything...ANYTHING to keep from being fat again.
First off.. adjust your activity level so that it represents your true daily activity. If you leave it at sedentary, you need to make sure you're logging EVERYTHING into your exercise log. An easier way to do it is to raise it to lightly active or even active depending on how active you really are. Having it too low and not counting anything is counterproductive.
Remember that MFP figures in a deficit for you already. So, eating back 1/2 or all of your exercise calories is important.
I understand being afraid of gaining the weight and being "fat" again. But, you have to take care of your body too. You HAVE to give it the proper fuel or you are only hurting yourself in the end.
Change your settings, follow MFP's recommendations, eat back part or all your exercise calories for at least a month. Remember that it isn't uncommon to see a weight gain when you increase your calories - DO NOT PANIC. DO NOT GIVE UP. DO NOT DROP YOUR CALORIES BACK DOWN. It will come back off as your body adjusts.0 -
This link will help you figure out your calories based on your height, weight, and age, plus exercise activity.
http://www.freedieting.com/tools/calorie_calculator.htm0 -
Your BMR is about 1854 (I used http://www.bmi-calculator.net/bmr-calculator/). You should not really net under this number.
Your TDEE is anywhere from 2225 to 3198.15, depending on your total activity level including exercise.
If you netted somewhere in between 1854 and 2225 cals per day, I would expect you to lose weight at a healthy pace.
Awesome work losing 51 lbs so far! Let's tune up those numbers and take it thru the home stretch with the metabolism running strong and efficiently! :drinker:
Thanks for the info! A few quick questions:
Whats TDEE?
What's losing weight "at a healthy pace"? At my peak I was loosing 3lbs a week. Not healthy?
I get afraid of eating more because I feel like I start to gain weight at around 1900 calories. I probably ate around 2500 on thanksgiving but gained an entire 4lbs THAT DAY! I'm just now working it off!
TDEE is how many calories your body burns based on your activities in a day.
Depending on how heavy you are, 3lbs a week can be normal but SHOULD slow down as you get thinner.
As for the 4lbs you gained on Thanksgiving? It was water retention. Your body isn't used to getting that amount of food. It wasn't a fat gain - it was simply water retention. Drink water. Flush your system. It'll go away. I promise.0 -
Congrats on your weight loss!
Being dizzy or weak is a sign that your body isn't receiving enough nutrition. You definitely need to raise your daily caloric intake. I would increase them slowly and give your body a chance to adjust each time you raise them. You will likely see a small weight gain as you increase your calories. This is your body adjusting to getting the proper amount of fuel.
I would say - probably closer to 1800 NET calories a day would be ideal. What does MFP have you set at?
Thanks! MFP has me at 1700 calories a day (1 pound a week + sedentary lifestyle) but I always go under. I'm also not really "sedentary" but i put it there as a baseline. I usually exercise 3-4 days a week. I guess you could say that I've gotten addicted to weight loss! The idea of eating more calories makes me honestly afraid. I will do anything...ANYTHING to keep from being fat again.
I say 'watch out' when I read that - men can be anorexic or bulimic too, y'know. It's about developing and unhealthy attitude and behaviours around food and exercise.
Please focus on your health, physical and mental. Weak and dizzy = not healthy. Do whatever you can to help yourself become more balanced - see your GP, a good nutritionist... look up RELIABLE info on the web, read RELIABLE (not crazy) books, talk to friends and family, do whatever but find ways of being healthy, please.0 -
Your BMR is about 1854 (I used http://www.bmi-calculator.net/bmr-calculator/). You should not really net under this number.
Your TDEE is anywhere from 2225 to 3198.15, depending on your total activity level including exercise.
If you netted somewhere in between 1854 and 2225 cals per day, I would expect you to lose weight at a healthy pace.
Awesome work losing 51 lbs so far! Let's tune up those numbers and take it thru the home stretch with the metabolism running strong and efficiently! :drinker:
Thanks for the info! A few quick questions:
Whats TDEE?
What's losing weight "at a healthy pace"? At my peak I was loosing 3lbs a week. Not healthy?
I get afraid of eating more because I feel like I start to gain weight at around 1900 calories. I probably ate around 2500 on thanksgiving but gained an entire 4lbs THAT DAY! I'm just now working it off!
TDEE is basically maintenance level of calorie intake. To lose weight, you need to eat between your BMR and TDEE.
Healthy pace is generally concidered 1-2 pounds per week.0 -
One more thing...
In order to have gained 4lbs of true weight on Thanksgiving you would have had to consume 14,000 calories OVER your maintenance calories. Not the calories MFP gives you in order to lose weight - but the calories you'd eat each day to maintain your weight.
You didn't eat an extra 14,000 - so it wasn't true weight.0 -
Your BMR is about 1854 (I used http://www.bmi-calculator.net/bmr-calculator/). You should not really net under this number.
Your TDEE is anywhere from 2225 to 3198.15, depending on your total activity level including exercise.
If you netted somewhere in between 1854 and 2225 cals per day, I would expect you to lose weight at a healthy pace.
Awesome work losing 51 lbs so far! Let's tune up those numbers and take it thru the home stretch with the metabolism running strong and efficiently! :drinker:
Thanks for the info! A few quick questions:
Whats TDEE?
What's losing weight "at a healthy pace"? At my peak I was loosing 3lbs a week. Not healthy?
I get afraid of eating more because I feel like I start to gain weight at around 1900 calories. I probably ate around 2500 on thanksgiving but gained an entire 4lbs THAT DAY! I'm just now working it off!
TDEE is how many calories your body burns based on your activities in a day.
Depending on how heavy you are, 3lbs a week can be normal but SHOULD slow down as you get thinner.
As for the 4lbs you gained on Thanksgiving? It was water retention. Your body isn't used to getting that amount of food. It wasn't a fat gain - it was simply water retention. Drink water. Flush your system. It'll go away. I promise.
Spot on. More stuff in the "unofficial faq" http://www.myfitnesspal.com/groups/home/457-unofficial-mfp-faq0 -
I weigh 172lbs & maintain at 2700cals/day as an office worker who does some sort of exercise pretty much everyday.
You need to get over the fear of getting fat. It doesn't happen overnight.
You should read the thread about how to fix a damaged metabolism also as having such a great deficit for a long period of time will have slowed the metabolism.
Also, what sort of exercise are you doing?
And as was said, you didn't gain 4lbs of fat in a day. I would go as far to say that is nearly physically impossible.0 -
I weigh 172lbs & maintain at 2700cals/day as an office worker who does some sort of exercise pretty much everyday.
You need to get over the fear of getting fat. It doesn't happen overnight.
You should read the thread about how to fix a damaged metabolism also as having such a great deficit for a long period of time will have slowed the metabolism.
Also, what sort of exercise are you doing?
And as was said, you didn't gain 4lbs of fat in a day. I would go as far to say that is nearly physically impossible.
I usually do about 45 - 65 minutes of elliptical 2-3 days a week. I usually burn between 400-600 calories when I exercise, depending on whos calculations I'm using. I never eat back my calories.
I realize I do need to get over the Fear o' Fatness. The mental challenge may be even harder than the physical challenge of losing weight.
I have noticed that it's gotten harder to lose weight lately. Maybe I'm getting thinner or maybe I've slowed down my metabolism on accident?0 -
Oh and I'm glad to hear that I didn't *really* gain 4lbs in a day. Difficult for me to imagine how all that could be water, but that's why I'm here asking questions I guess!0
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If you did gain the weight in thanksgiving it's probably because your metabolism has slowed down because your calorie intake per day is very low. (plus I agree with what the others have said about this)
Remember, don't be scared to live life. Your here because you want a better lifestyle change and a better future. not because your scared of your past.
Embrace it, love it and enjoy your food as you learn to lose weight the healthy way :flowerforyou:
Good job so far with your weight loss. AND good on you for searching for answers :happy:0 -
OK new plan: I've set MFP for "lightly active". Now my net goal is 1880/day.
I guess I'll try to hit that every day plus try to eat back half my exercise calories?
Maybe I'll try this for a month and let everybody know how it went...0 -
You are 5' 9" and you go ///what? 170lbs? And you are fit now from working out right? So what are your measurements?...muscle is denser than fat ...So if you are fairly went built from working out then you won't be losing much more weight/ You need to check your body fat ..you might be where you are meant to be and unless you start burning muscle...you might not lose any more weight...My stepson is 5' 7" and almost 200lbs...not an ounce is fat...he is wicked!!!0
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Sounds like a good plan, make sure you give your body time to adjust. And don't freak out if the scales jump around a little - I would wait at least 6 weeks consistently hitting this 1800 number. If you find it too hard and the fear gets to ya you could try increasing your cals more slowly - maybe an extra 200 cals day and then another 200 cals a day in 2 weeks etc.0
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Sounds like a good plan, make sure you give your body time to adjust. And don't freak out if the scales jump around a little - I would wait at least 6 weeks consistently hitting this 1800 number. If you find it too hard and the fear gets to ya you could try increasing your cals more slowly - maybe an extra 200 cals day and then another 200 cals a day in 2 weeks etc.
I would normally say yep. But seriously, I don't know how you could last so long at your stats eating that amount.
Eat 1800 minimum. Eat all your exercise cals.
Incorporate some resistance training. Google starting strength for a good beginners program. The last bit of weight to lose is quite often actually found by increasing weight via muscle
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Your BMR is the minimum you should eat...don't go below that0
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I have noticed that it's gotten harder to lose weight lately. Maybe I'm getting thinner or maybe I've slowed down my metabolism on accident?
Yes and yes. Also, you probably need to add in some strength training to all that elliptical work, or you might find yourself too skinny with too little muscle tone.0 -
Exactly this ^^ I eat a minimum of 1600 calories a day + my exercise calories and I have maintained between 122-126lbs since Jan 2011. I really cannot understand how at your weight and height you have lasted so long on such low intake. My body would be shutting down if I were NETing 700-1000 calories a day.Sounds like a good plan, make sure you give your body time to adjust. And don't freak out if the scales jump around a little - I would wait at least 6 weeks consistently hitting this 1800 number. If you find it too hard and the fear gets to ya you could try increasing your cals more slowly - maybe an extra 200 cals day and then another 200 cals a day in 2 weeks etc.
I would normally say yep. But seriously, I don't know how you could last so long at your stats eating that amount.
Eat 1800 minimum. Eat all your exercise cals.
Incorporate some resistance training. Google starting strength for a good beginners program. The last bit of weight to lose is quite often actually found by increasing weight via muscle
1800 cals + your exercise cals sounds like a great baseline/minimum for you. Chris Davey knows what he's talking about. Resistance training is also a must! If you're looking for motivation, replace that elliptical with crossfit 3x a week and you'll see amazing results. Weight loss + muscle growth in no time. Or just start up with the calisthenics or military style training. Whatever floats your boat.
Rock on and congrats on the weight loss so far :bigsmile:0
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