newbie q--can't adjust weight loss goals on MFP?

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halexxz
halexxz Posts: 2
in Health and Weight Loss
Hello!

I am a newbie to this site and I've gone through the forums, but didn't see any threads about this topic...forgive me if this has already been posted about.

Basically, I am confused because I want to lose 2 lbs a week, yet no matter what I enter in for my goals, activity level, etc, when I submit all of my information, MFP tells me that, if I follow its plan, I will lose about a pound per week.

I am 5'2.25", CW:114 lbs, and my GW is 105. I am lightly active as I am a student who walks regularly in addition to regular light yoga. I also exercise 6 days a week for an hour but I add that in as cardiovascular work, not my activity level. According to MFP, if I eat 1200 calories a day, I should lose 1 pound a week. I've tried to re-adjust my exercise goals, etc so that it will give me the proper calorie count in order to lose 2 lbs a week, as I have stated I want to, yet MFP does not change in its suggested caloric intake or its prediction of how much weight I'll lose per week.

Can anyone explain to me why this is? So far, I've found the calorie counting app on my phone super helpful and I want to keep using MFP to help my weight loss goals, but I want it to count accurately so I can lose 2 lbs a week, not 1. I hope my message makes sense, thank you everyone!

Replies

  • evonday
    evonday Posts: 141 Member
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    You need to eat 1200 calories for your body to have the minimal amount of nutrients it needs. So don't go lower. The lower your weight, the harder it is to lose weight. I would suggest taking the 9 weeks to lose 1 lb a week. It will be slow, but it will be much healthier for your body. I also suggest you eat back some of your exercise calories, not all if you don't want to, but some. You're body is a car, the food is your fuel, and you can't run it on empty.

    If you go lower, your body will start to cannibalize your muscle tissue and when you're done dieting, your metabolism will be lower than when you started. Which means it will be very easy to gain back.
  • halexxz
    halexxz Posts: 2
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    I see, that makes sense, thank you for your answer! 9 weeks at a 1 lb loss per week does feel really slow but obviously it wouldn't be worth it to eat less if that would jeopardize my metabolism/general health. You said that I could only eat back some of my exercise calories if I want, so if I aim to only eat back some rather than all (since MFP already calculates a deficit), does that mean I could expect to lose slightly more than 1 lb per week without it being too harmful for my metabolism?
  • Gshields42
    Gshields42 Posts: 69
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    Probably don't need to eat them all back, since the numbers are always going to be somewhat inaccurate anyway. 75-85% would probably be a good range, unless you are using particularly accurate methods of tracking calorie burn (eg HRM).

    If you are hungry, make sure you eat. Your body is probably trying to tell you something.

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