Calorie goals versus range

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pinuplove
pinuplove Posts: 12,874 Member
in Food and Nutrition
If someone were to look at my food diary they would see that I rarely ever meet my calorie goal for the day. I have seen it said by some members that they don't like giving kudos to someone who was under their calorie goal for the day because they aren't following the guidelines laid out by MFP by eating less than they are allowed (not < 1200, just less than their goal), and that kind of bothers me.

I don't like having a goal. I prefer a range. I have my goal set for .5 lb loss per week. This is 1650 calories. However, I know that my goal for 1 lb loss per week is 1410, and 2 lb per week is 1200. So I stay between 1650 and 1200. All three goals are perfectly valid according to MFP. Some days, like today, I don't feel like eating much, get busy and forget my snacks, or plan my meal only to realize I'm full when I've only eaten half the food on my plate. Other days I eat right up to my limit. As long as my net calories are > 1200 and < 1650, I'm happy.

Replies

  • JessieRichelle
    JessieRichelle Posts: 19 Member
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    I'm glad you posted this! I needed some input/advice on what to do. I had my calories set to 1200, and I go to the gym every day. I've also drilled into my head for some reason that I had to be BELOW the mark, no matter what. I was NOT receiving results. In fact, I think I slowed my metabolism a bit. I upped my limit to 1400-1500, and have adopted the mind-set of "If I'm below it, so be it. If I'm above it, I'm ok as long as I'm in the range." Hoping this new method works out better.
  • penelepurr
    penelepurr Posts: 204 Member
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    good point, I have been thinking about that myself. My goal cal is 1470 for a pound a week, but a range does allow for a healthier frame of mind; i.e., not getting anxious or worrying bc you might go over with this one piece of food.
  • pinuplove
    pinuplove Posts: 12,874 Member
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    Mentally, I HATE seeing that number go red, which is why I initially reset my goal for a higher limit. I would rather go to bed hungry than turn red, which isn't really healthy. This works so much better for me, and hopefully it helps some of you too :smile:
  • chaoticxinsane
    chaoticxinsane Posts: 54
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    I had to do the same thing. Apparently I'm as stingy with my calories as I am with my money! I was set to 1200 calories at 2 pounds a week, but seeing that big red text with a negative number psychs me out and sends me on a guilt trip even if it's only by like... 5.

    So I keep a note of how many 1 pound per week is (~1600), 2 pounds per week is (1200), with my goal set to the median of 1.5 (~1400) and just try to stay within that almost 400 calorie range. Definitely helps me trick my anxiety into letting myself do this in a healthy and sane manner.
  • auntiebabs
    auntiebabs Posts: 1,754 Member
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    Amen PinUpLove...


    I'm not a very consistent person so I was much more successful when I gave myself a range.

    ROCK BOTTOM: 1200 calories net.
    TARGET: MFP lose 1 lb/week (when my target calories got to 1200 I switched to lose 1/2 lb/wk)
    TOP: Maintain my goal weight.
    (Safety Valve: Maintain my current weight (remember to recalculate this as your weight changes)

    As long as I stayed within my range i would continue to lose.
    As long as I didn't shoot past my safety valve I shouldn't gain.
    I found this was a good way to gauge just how good or bad a day.

    I also realized that just because I didn't meet my MFP goal, didn't mean I wasn't making progress in the right direction
  • 1DEH
    1DEH Posts: 23
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    If someone were to look at my food diary they would see that I rarely ever meet my calorie goal for the day. I have seen it said by some members that they don't like giving kudos to someone who was under their calorie goal for the day because they aren't following the guidelines laid out by MFP by eating less than they are allowed (not < 1200, just less than their goal), and that kind of bothers me.

    I don't like having a goal. I prefer a range. I have my goal set for .5 lb loss per week. This is 1650 calories. However, I know that my goal for 1 lb loss per week is 1410, and 2 lb per week is 1200. So I stay between 1650 and 1200. All three goals are perfectly valid according to MFP. Some days, like today, I don't feel like eating much, get busy and forget my snacks, or plan my meal only to realize I'm full when I've only eaten half the food on my plate. Other days I eat right up to my limit. As long as my net calories are > 1200 and < 1650, I'm happy.
  • 1DEH
    1DEH Posts: 23
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    Perfect as far as I'm concerned. As a matter of fact, I couldn't have said it better myself. Good job.
  • jadedone
    jadedone Posts: 2,449 Member
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    I have my calories set at 1700, but I aim to eat ~1500-1600, on exe3rcise days I am targeting 1800. As long as I am in range for the weeks average, I am happy.

    I like to congratulate when people make good food choices, and have enough calories. (i.e. not under 1000 and plenty of produce)
  • BlueObsidian
    BlueObsidian Posts: 297 Member
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    I am the same way. I set my goal for 1.5 pounds per week, but as long as I'm within 250 calories either way, I figure I'm within the 1 to 2 pound range and am happy with that.
  • ishallnotwant
    ishallnotwant Posts: 1,210 Member
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    That's exactly what I did! I set my cal goal for .5 per week so that I cold have wider flexibility with my cals if I want to do some calorie cycling. I really like it this way!
  • nickyrobinson
    nickyrobinson Posts: 161 Member
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    One of the things that I noticed that the iPhone app has that the web site doesn't is a weekly bar graph that shows every day's net calories PLUS the average net calories for the week. So I can tell at a glance if I am doing OK for the whole week. This is really handy when I had a "way over" day (and those happen) or several high days... I'd love the graph to have lines that mark a range, so not only my target, but also maintenance and .5 lbs/week more than I've set as my target.
  • mego07
    mego07 Posts: 234 Member
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    I love that you posted this. I, too have a range and rarely hit below 1200. I know for my body type and how active I am, anything below 1200 wouldn't be healthy. I am happy if I hit anywhere between 1150-1300. I see more results now that I have a range than to religiously stick to 1200.

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