Confused about Calories?!

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quietasariot
quietasariot Posts: 198 Member
in Health and Weight Loss
I am a bit confused about calories and calorie intake! (Also, hello, I've been a MFP member for nearly a year!)

I've lost 45 pounds in the past 11 months with a lifestyle change - I went from being sedentary (very) and eating fast food a lot, and processed foods at home; to being very active (I try to get to the gym or make an outdoor run 5-6 days a week, just depends on my schedule!), eating out rarely and making food at home, from scratch, as much as possible.

(I refuse to call it a diet: this is my new way of life and that's all there is to it!)

So... my confusion is this. I work out. I enter my workout in MFP. I enter my foods. I am usually left with a deficit... however, the problem is: I AM NOT HUNGRY! How can I possibly make up a 500 calorie deficit if I'm not hungry? I was eating about 1400 calories a day; I increased to 1600 (or, I should say, I have struggled to increase to 1600...) and lost 4 pounds in the week I increased my caloric intake. So really, if my caloric intake is HIGHER... then I lose MORE weight? I don't know why this just doesn't make a lot of sense to me. I calculated my BMR x activity level and it puts me at 2546 for maintenance. From what I read, I need to reduce this by at least 500 calories, which would put me at about 2000 calories. It doesn't seem realistic to me to eat so much and still lose weight.

So. ...any insight? Can anyone relate? Any ideas for people like me who just don't have much of an appetite but need to lose weight?

I am 66", 185 pounds now (started at 230!), and I'm 27 years old. I've also had two kids :).

Replies

  • ezramedic
    ezramedic Posts: 119
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    You're awesome. Someone will definitely have the answer for you - I've seen quite a few posts around on this topic - and there are a lot of very educated people on here, who will be able to give you an in-depth explaination. (I am NOT that person!)
  • shanea98
    shanea98 Posts: 32 Member
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    You should always eat your BMR no matter in effort to maintain lean muscle mass. When noting your activity factor-- thats what accounts for your activity on a day to day basis- thats what you do in the real world, You may include your daily exercise as part of this- that makes your day Kcal needs hight automatically. If you have a seditary job, then note that and then the weight loss per week you prefer- keep in mind 2# is really on the high side and 1# is more realistic.
    I have been stuck in the same weight for about a month now, not straying from kcal and eating back exercise kcal,but what I have noticed is that I am not meeting my fat levels or even coming close, so that is my plan of attack this next few weeks

    MFP is designed to assist people in losing weight regardless of there activity choice (to exercise or not), thats why you eat back your exercise kcal in effort to keep metabolism motivated.
  • marybsalmon
    marybsalmon Posts: 46 Member
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    I agree with shanea98. Always eat your BMR. If you don't eat enough you'll start burning muscle instead of fat. Keep your metabolism going by eating several small meals a day. Try adding in a mid-morning snack and an afternoon snack. I eat cheese sticks like Sargento's Provolone-Mozzarella or string cheese. Greek yogurt is also good because its high in protein....toss in some blueberries and it tastes really good and give you an antioxidant boost. You could also snack on a granola bar. There are a lot of good choices for snacks that will help increase your caloric intake without making you too full to eat the next meal. But don't skip meals! Otherwise you'll slow down your metabolic rate and stop losing weight.
  • jacksonpt
    jacksonpt Posts: 10,413 Member
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    Everyone has an optimal caloric intake where you are getting enough cals to fuel your body but are still losing weight at a healthy and steady pace. The trick is finding it.

    A lot of people are dead set on the idea that the fewer cals they eat the more weight they will lose. But they forget the fact that the body needs a certain amount of fuel (cals) just to function - pump blood, breathe, digest, etc. People also forget that your body needs certain cals to things like muscle preservation, hormone production, etc. So the optimal caloric intake for most people is higher than what they think it is. That's what you're seeing.

    Now, the opposite is also true... while you don't want to eat too few cals, you also don't want to eat too many. That part is pretty obvious to most people.


    As for being hungry and eating more cals and all that... if you are having a hard time hitting your goal, focus on more calorie dense foods - nuts and beans are a great place to start. Don't buy fat free things, go with 2% or whole milk, go with 80% lean ground beef and ribeye steaks, etc.
  • quietasariot
    quietasariot Posts: 198 Member
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    Jackson - at about 1400-1500 calories a day I am losing 1-2 pounds a week. Last week I increased to 1600 (not on every day, it was such a struggle :/) and lost 4 pounds. I was seriously shocked on my weigh-in day... I think higher is definitely better.

    I don't buy fat-free stuff usually, LOL. I have two very skinny kids who have a hard time keeping weight on.

    So rather than 93/7 ground beef, go for a higher fat percentage?? I usually go low fat on the beef because 1. we don't eat it all that often and 2. I don't like how the 80% tastes.

    Mary - thank you! I don't eat much cheese (dairy sensitive) but thank you for the ideas!!! They are super helpful :)

    Shanea- I'm a full time college student, plus I have two kiddos so I feel like I'm always on the go! Plus with exercise.. I'm a busy girl. Lol. Excellent point about eating back the cals to motivate metabolism. I didn't think of it like that.

    Thank you everyone!!
  • jacksonpt
    jacksonpt Posts: 10,413 Member
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    Don't forget that the scale is horribly inaccurate. Or more precisely, reflective of a lot of things besides fat loss. I wouldn't make any judgements based on 1 week increments. Pick a number that is realistic but not easy and do that for a month and see where you end up. If, after a month, you aren't happy with results or think you can't sustain it long term, then make some changes.

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