Absolutely confused...

Nikkilynn32710
Nikkilynn32710 Posts: 256 Member
in Health and Weight Loss
I have read posts on here where women eat 1200-1400 calories a day and lose weight and get to their "goal weight" by eating back their exercise calories....

Then I read that you have to eat above your BMR and if you exercise to "net" your BMR

Then some say not to eat back the exercise calories at all!!! I'm going crazy trying to figure this out!!

I have been on this freaking mountain for 15 months now trying to lose these last 5-10lbs. I have bumped my calories up to like around 1800 without eating any back. I have set it to the middle of my BMR and tried to net my BMR I have dropped it to 1200 calories and eating back the calories from exercise. I need to know what works!

I do Insanity 6 days a week. I'm in month 2 week 2 and I still haven't lost anything with it!!?!?! WTF!

Replies

  • jemachharo
    jemachharo Posts: 144 Member
    If you open your diary, I may be able to help. Not all calories are created equal. I struggled for years until I realized what foods work and don't work for me.
  • Nikkilynn32710
    Nikkilynn32710 Posts: 256 Member
    If you open your diary, I may be able to help. Not all calories are created equal. I struggled for years until I realized what foods work and don't work for me.

    Thank you so much!! Ok its open.
  • twinsies041
    twinsies041 Posts: 52
    bump!
  • Nikkilynn32710
    Nikkilynn32710 Posts: 256 Member
    BUMP!
  • Nikkilynn32710
    Nikkilynn32710 Posts: 256 Member
    Lame attempt at another bump :/
  • mfreeby
    mfreeby Posts: 199 Member
    Ok I looked at the last few days of your diary and:

    1) stop eating crap.

    That's about it!!! Cut anything processed OUT! That oughta do it. No one gets skinny eating chocolate bars everyday. Hope that helps!!!

    Also, you may want to monitor your sodium - try to keep it between 1,000 and 2,500 mg/day (you can't do that while eating processed food, btw).
  • 0EmmeNicole0
    0EmmeNicole0 Posts: 180 Member
    You truly have to take all the opinions you find here, do your OWN research and choose what works best for you and your body. Once you do that and commit to a plan you will find something that works and you will lose weight. And relax. Stress wont do your weight loss any good :happy:
  • tabinmaine
    tabinmaine Posts: 965 Member
    Ok I looked at the last few days of your diary and:

    1) stop eating crap.

    That's about it!!! Cut anything processed OUT! That oughta do it. No one gets skinny eating chocolate bars everyday. Hope that helps!!!

    Also, you may want to monitor your sodium - try to keep it between 1,000 and 2,500 mg/day (you can't do that while eating processed food, btw).

    ever heard of the twinkie diet ??? a calorie is a calorie..... no getting around that, it may not be "good for you" but it does not matter where your calories come from when you are talking weight loss.....
  • Mommyof3texans
    Mommyof3texans Posts: 347
    MFP is set up so you get a calorie goal that already has a deficit built in for fat loss, so that if exercise.. that deficit gets even bigger (i.e. too big) which is why they say to eat back exercise calories.

    If you choose to eat at your TDEE (maintenance) minus a 15 or 20% deficit say, then you don't need to eat those exercise calories unless you burn so much that you would net below your BMR that day.

    Some will say it doesn't matter what you eat as long as you eat at a deficit, but I think our bodies respond better with healthier foods, not to mention you get to eat a lot more when you eat healthier foods.

    Using me for example, my BMR is 1,321 and my TDEE for moderately active is 2,047. I set a 20% deficit as my calorie goal, or 1,638 calories. Even if I go up to 1,740, I'm still at a 15% deficit and will lose fat. I only eat some exercise calories if I'm in danger of netting below my BMR on days I burn more calories.

    Feel free to look at my diary or need help calculating any numbers.
  • jemachharo
    jemachharo Posts: 144 Member

    ever heard of the twinkie diet ??? a calorie is a calorie..... no getting around that, it may not be "good for you" but it does not matter where your calories come from when you are talking weight loss.....
  • jemachharo
    jemachharo Posts: 144 Member
    you are wrong about a calorie is a calorie. I believed that for a long time, but I have found that all calories are not created equal for some people. I can't eat starches/sugars. Give me equal calorie counts of healthier food ( protein, fruit, and veggies) and of starchy processed food - I will gain on the processed foods.

    It took me 50 years to finally figure out what works for my body - I have to eat fresh veggies, fruit, lean proteins, and whole grains to avoid gaining weight. No exceptions.
  • TrishOJ
    TrishOJ Posts: 5 Member
    I agree with Jemarchharo, all calories are not equal. I also viewed your diary and you should try to consume more protein and fiber, try a more natural diet and you may lose those last few pounds.
  • theartichoke
    theartichoke Posts: 816 Member
    I'm in no position to hand out advice to you but I can recommend a wonderful group I think you'd benefit greatly from. These women are amazing and their advice is worth its weight in gold. I hope this helps. Best of luck to you!

    http://www.myfitnesspal.com/forums/show/3834-eat-more-to-weigh-less
  • rjt1000
    rjt1000 Posts: 700 Member
    Ok I looked at the last few days of your diary and:

    1) stop eating crap.

    That's about it!!! Cut anything processed OUT! That oughta do it. No one gets skinny eating chocolate bars everyday. Hope that helps!!!

    Also, you may want to monitor your sodium - try to keep it between 1,000 and 2,500 mg/day (you can't do that while eating processed food, btw).

    ever heard of the twinkie diet ??? a calorie is a calorie..... no getting around that, it may not be "good for you" but it does not matter where your calories come from when you are talking weight loss.....

    doesn't seem to be working for the original poster, though, does it?
  • MelMena
    MelMena Posts: 152 Member
    I set my carbs/protein/fat to 40/30/30 %. I felt that I needed to lower the carbs and bump the good fats and lean protein. I also monitor my sodium. My husband was eating great but not losing. We looked closer at his sodium and he was getting 3-4 times the recommended amount. Once he dropped the extra salt he started losing again.
  • jemachharo
    jemachharo Posts: 144 Member
    Finally had a chance to look at your diary. I don't see the daily menus of someone trying to lose weight. I would recommend cutting out candy and fries and heavily processed foods for a while. You don't have to give them up forever, but once you cut them out, you likely miss them. Focus on fresh food for a while - eat 7 servings of fresh veggies; 2-3 servings of fruit, and lean proteins like chicken, fish, turkey, filet mignon. Stick with whole grains if you want starches - whole grain bread, brown rice, farrow, bulgar, etc. Once you eat like this for a while, you may find you start craving healthier foods.

    Also, I don't remember if you said what type of exercise you do. I recommend alternating cardio intervals with strength training. You don't want to do the same thing every time.

    Hang in there - you can do this!
  • iwantahealthierme13
    iwantahealthierme13 Posts: 337 Member
    if you're doing insanity you're probably gaining muscle which is why your weight isn't budging... you're probably just losing inches.

    But yeah, I haven't looked at your diary so if you're eating fried crap and drinking soda then stop.
  • Nikkilynn32710
    Nikkilynn32710 Posts: 256 Member
    Thanks for all the replies on this. No I don't drink soda but I'm sure its the sugar that I consume. That has always been my issue. Especially this month when TOM was a week early. I can generally get my cravings under control but she surprised me by showing up early and threw everything off. I'll do better and try to be more focused especially on the processed stuff.
  • KelseyDawn84
    KelseyDawn84 Posts: 129 Member
    http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/538381-in-place-of-a-road-map
  • rjt1000
    rjt1000 Posts: 700 Member
    if you're doing insanity you're probably gaining muscle which is why your weight isn't budging... you're probably just losing inches.

    But yeah, I haven't looked at your diary so if you're eating fried crap and drinking soda then stop.

    no, not gaining muscle. You don't gain muscle in a calorie deficit. you lose muscle and fat. By exercising, you limit the amount of muscle lost but you still lose muscle tissue. You must be in a calorie excess in order to add muscle. Yuo add both muscle and fat but if you are working out, hopefully, you add more muscle than fat. That's why body builders do bulk and cut cycles.
  • tabinmaine
    tabinmaine Posts: 965 Member
    A calorie is a calorie folks.... lots of studies to prove that, and if it's not working for someone it's because either the calories are not being recorded properly or the exercise calories are being over estimated ....
  • opus649
    opus649 Posts: 633 Member
    A "calorie" is just a unit of measurement. To say a calorie of sugar is different than a calorie of butter is like saying a pound of muscle weighs less than a pound of fat. A calorie is a unit of heat. When people talk about counting calories, they are talking about counting the amount of heat necessary to process the food they eat.

    Studies have shown that the composition of the diet is mostly irrelevant when it comes to fat loss. If references would help (although they probably won't), here you go:

    http://opinionator.blogs.nytimes.com/2012/03/20/is-a-calorie-a-calorie/

    Excerpt:
    Here’s what is true, she said: “The studies that have measured calorie intake, that have put people on calorie-reduced diets and measured what happened, show no difference in weight loss based on composition of the diet.” When people are essentially incarcerated, when all intake is weighed and measured, they will lose weight if the calories in their diets are reduced — regardless of the composition of the diet.

    http://www.nejm.org/doi/full/10.1056/NEJMoa0804748

    Excerpt:

    Reduced-calorie diets result in clinically meaningful weight loss regardless of which macronutrients they emphasize.
  • redmapleleaf
    redmapleleaf Posts: 56 Member
    A calorie is a calorie folks.... lots of studies to prove that, and if it's not working for someone it's because either the calories are not being recorded properly or the exercise calories are being over estimated ....

    well if a calorie is a calorie then the OP wouldn't have a problem. She eats too much junk, processed food. Like others have suggested she should focus on a clean diet. No processed food, lean sources of protein, fruits, veggies, whole grains.
  • opus649
    opus649 Posts: 633 Member
    A calorie is a calorie folks.... lots of studies to prove that, and if it's not working for someone it's because either the calories are not being recorded properly or the exercise calories are being over estimated ....

    well if a calorie is a calorie then the OP wouldn't have a problem. She eats too much junk, processed food. Like others have suggested she should focus on a clean diet. No processed food, lean sources of protein, fruits, veggies, whole grains.

    Except that all of the scientific studies that have been done contradict you. It's much more likely that she's simply underestimating her caloric intake and overestimating her caloric needs.
  • slays1415
    slays1415 Posts: 22 Member
    Except that all of the scientific studies that have been done contradict you. It's much more likely that she's simply underestimating her caloric intake and overestimating her caloric needs.

    No, not all the studies. Pick up a copy of Gary Taubes' Why We Get Fat and what to do about it. He cites a boatload of studies showing that it's much more complex than just calories (mostly related to insulin, but other hormones too). Many people have a low tolerance for carbohydrates, especially the processed kind. So the Twinkie Diet will work for someone with good carb tolerance but not for those who have insulin resistance or trend toward it.

    As for the OP, you could go one of two directions. If you're not ready to give up your sugar/fries, etc., I'd start counting everything a lot more closely. Those types of carbs make you hungry again quickly, so if your diet is made up largely of those items, you are either starving all the time or you're eating way more calories than you think you are. However, that type of diet isn't healthy long term anyway, so why not go in direction two, and switch to a much cleaner diet with sweets in very small amounts or very infrequently? Hope that helps!
  • kadins_momma07
    kadins_momma07 Posts: 328 Member
    Ok I looked at the last few days of your diary and:

    1) stop eating crap.

    That's about it!!! Cut anything processed OUT! That oughta do it. No one gets skinny eating chocolate bars everyday. Hope that helps!!!

    Also, you may want to monitor your sodium - try to keep it between 1,000 and 2,500 mg/day (you can't do that while eating processed food, btw).

    ever heard of the twinkie diet ??? a calorie is a calorie..... no getting around that, it may not be "good for you" but it does not matter where your calories come from when you are talking weight loss.....

    Yeah but if you are loading up on junk, you are loading up on lots of other things too, which do matter!
  • redmapleleaf
    redmapleleaf Posts: 56 Member
    A calorie is a calorie folks.... lots of studies to prove that, and if it's not working for someone it's because either the calories are not being recorded properly or the exercise calories are being over estimated ....

    well if a calorie is a calorie then the OP wouldn't have a problem. She eats too much junk, processed food. Like others have suggested she should focus on a clean diet. No processed food, lean sources of protein, fruits, veggies, whole grains.

    Except that all of the scientific studies that have been done contradict you. It's much more likely that she's simply underestimating her caloric intake and overestimating her caloric needs.


    What scientific studies? and how does it contradict me? Have you looked at her food intake? Just from the previous two weeks where I have looked she has eaten some sort of chocolate bar/candy/cookies EVERY day. You don't lose weight eating that stuff EVERY day.
  • glassyo
    glassyo Posts: 7,740 Member

    What scientific studies? and how does it contradict me? Have you looked at her food intake? Just from the previous two weeks where I have looked she has eaten some sort of chocolate bar/candy/cookies EVERY day. You don't lose weight eating that stuff EVERY day.

    I don't have any scientific studies but I do have personal experience. I eat chocolate and cookies (not fried crap anymore but still crap) every day and still lose weight. It's not the healthiest way (or healthy at all) but it can be done.

    I'm late to the party and can't see the OP's diary but if she only has 5-10 lbs to lose, I probably would advise eating a bit more clean and putting her calorie deficit to 250 calories.
  • Nikkilynn32710
    Nikkilynn32710 Posts: 256 Member

    What scientific studies? and how does it contradict me? Have you looked at her food intake? Just from the previous two weeks where I have looked she has eaten some sort of chocolate bar/candy/cookies EVERY day. You don't lose weight eating that stuff EVERY day.

    I don't have any scientific studies but I do have personal experience. I eat chocolate and cookies (not fried crap anymore but still crap) every day and still lose weight. It's not the healthiest way (or healthy at all) but it can be done.

    I'm late to the party and can't see the OP's diary but if she only has 5-10 lbs to lose, I probably would advise eating a bit more clean and putting her calorie deficit to 250 calories.

    Like my end of the day remaining calories should be 250? I just started eating at 1270 Monday and bumped it back up to the middle of my BMR today. I was feeling sluggish and tired at that low set. Yes, I was able to drop 40lbs by eating what i wanted and just watching how much of it I ate. It only took me 6 months to lose the 40lbs. I have since maintained the weight for 15 months. I'm not stressing over trying to lose the last 10lbs but it would be awesome if I could. I know that I should eat better than what i do but I have a major eating disorder when it comes to food. I feed myself through my emotions no matter how I'm feeling. I have gotten better but I still eat sweets/crap if I'm depressed and I have been for a couple of weeks now. I'm trying not to make excuses I was just looking for advice on whether to up my intake or down my intake to help me off this plateau. Thanks for everyone who responded good and bad.

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