So I tried increasing calories for 1 months

Options
babyblooeyes
babyblooeyes Posts: 67 Member
in Health and Weight Loss
The results are minimal at best only losing between 0.2 and 0.4/ week. I am figuring I should have at least been losing around 1 lb by eating 2100 calories and exercising to an average of 2500 calories per week. Actually, when I was on a 1600 calorie regimen I was losing more but it was at the beginning of my weight loss program. I am trying to figure out what is best here. My TDEE is 2300 (-20%), my BMR is between 1500-1700 depending on which scale you use. I am 242 lbs so the numbers should still be falling.

I am thinking of trying 1800 for a while and exercising to burn about 3500 as well, and not eating the exercise calories back does this seem reasonable?

Thanks a bunch

Replies

  • em9371
    em9371 Posts: 1,047 Member
    Options
    What activity level did you choose to get 2300? With that sort of calorie burn you should be moderately active.

    If your TDEE is 2300 and you have eaten 2100, thats why you have hardly lost anything, you have a deficit of only 200 per day which is 0.4lbs. Also you shouldnt eat back exercise cals when using TDEE figures as its already accounted for in the activity level, exercise cals are only eaten back on here because MFP doesnt include exercise in your daily activity level.

    Katch Mcardle is the most accurate BMR calculator as it takes body fat % into account.

    My numbers are pretty similar to yours. BMR 1570 using KM, workouts 3000 per week, TDEE around 2600 (mod active).
    I eat 1950, net around 1500, and lose 1.5 most weeks. Current weight is 202, I started @ 244 and ate 1900.

    Id go for 1800 with 2500 exercise, or 1900 with 3000 exercise, that way your net doesnt go too far below BMR. 1800 with 3500 exercise would net you 1300 which is on the low side for your weight.
  • babyblooeyes
    babyblooeyes Posts: 67 Member
    Options
    Right I haven't been eating my exercise calories back actually with the 2100 TDEE but it just seems too slow for me. I am hoping for 1-2lb weight loss at my size still. Now I have been gaining muscle but not enough to account for such a slow drop. Thank you so much for your input. I am going to aim for 1800 and only eat back if my NET drops below BMR. Do you think this sounds adequate?
  • Ashatack
    Ashatack Posts: 41
    Options
    Increasing your calories, unless you increase you activity as well will backfire. The less calories you take in and the more you burn the more weight you will lose. Im not sure what you did to figure your nessisary caloric intake but it seems pretty high. Mabye you should re-do your myfitnesspal information to find a more accurit number. I know we're not in the same weight class but it has me on a 1200 calorie diet... i wouldnt sugest going that far down but a reduction of calories would deffenetly help you.
  • em9371
    em9371 Posts: 1,047 Member
    Options
    Right I haven't been eating my exercise calories back actually with the 2100 TDEE but it just seems too slow for me. I am hoping for 1-2lb weight loss at my size still. Now I have been gaining muscle but not enough to account for such a slow drop. Thank you so much for your input. I am going to aim for 1800 and only eat back if my NET drops below BMR. Do you think this sounds adequate?

    that sounds good. You should be good for 2lbs until you get to around 70lbs to go, but it might be easier to stick to by going to 1.5.
    out of interest, what does MFP give you to lose 2lbs?
  • babyblooeyes
    babyblooeyes Posts: 67 Member
    Options
    MFP gives me 1430 but that is below my BMR and not ideal. So, I tried eating for the weight person I am going to be (2100) but wasn't losing much even though my exercise level is pretty high. Somewhere there must be a happy medium without the stress of not seeing any changes.

    You all are a great help!
  • em9371
    em9371 Posts: 1,047 Member
    Options
    MFP gives me 1430 but that is below my BMR and not ideal. So, I tried eating for the weight person I am going to be (2100) but wasn't losing much even though my exercise level is pretty high. Somewhere there must be a happy medium without the stress of not seeing any changes.

    You all are a great help!

    If you consider that MFP goal is NET, once you add back your average exercise cals of 360 you are up to 1790, so not too different from your TDEE numbers.
    The goals on fat2fit (i assume thats where you got the 2100 from) are on the conservative side, so you can reduce further as long as you net above BMR. HOWEVER - if 2100 was the number in the table for your 'future self', this is not your current TDEE, you would add 20% therefore current TDEE would be 2625.
    based on 500 cals / lb, you would lose 2lb week by eating 1625, but this would net you below BMR. 1.5lb for eating 1875.

    Choose a number, stick with it consistently for 3-4 weeks and take measurements as well as using the scale.
  • babyblooeyes
    babyblooeyes Posts: 67 Member
    Options
    Thanks a lot em... I think what was happening on the 2100 was that I was pretty much full or tired of eating food by a certain point so then I would add a sugary drink or something sweet to fill the gap and make it 2100. I feel that this will suit me better without worrying about whether I ate enough calories for the day or not. On the weekends my shifts are so crazy and busy that sometimes I totally don't think about eating and then you see me trying to get in 1400 calories between 11 and 12am and it usually ends up being some sort of restaurant food (fast food) to fill the gap. I know this isn't helping but I am always on the go and always moving. If it isn't one thing it is another and then I add in exercise. Plan on only 30minutes and end up staying and hour or more because it feels good. I love to sweat and each week I can accomplish on more thing at the gym. Today I broke the 10 minute mile with a 9 minute mile that is a whole 1 minute difference from just last week. I strength train 3-4 days a week different parts of the body as well. Plan on moving to free weights soon but want to hold off until I have dropped some more weight because of my RA and the added weight will cause more pain. I am very positive that this will help. It isn't that I am in a rush per se, I just expected better results by now since starting this in January of this year given I am not a small girl.
  • huntindawg1962
    huntindawg1962 Posts: 277 Member
    Options

    Katch Mcardle is the most accurate BMR calculator as it takes body fat % into account.

    Not by any stretch of the imagination (at least for me). F2F website - KM technique lists my BMR as 2167. I paid and had it tested at a university and actual at test result is 2706. That puts the KM off by 20%. So if you are a believer that eating below your BMR is a guaranteed magical stall out (I do not subscribe to this theory myself) - then I would be skeptical on that (or drop the theory). The Harris lists me at something like 2400.
  • em9371
    em9371 Posts: 1,047 Member
    Options
    Huntingdawg - interesting!! How do they test at university? I might have to see if I can find somewhere to get mine checked!!

    Babyblooeyes - what works best for me is planning my day out the night before, then I know what I need to eat when, and I'm not panicking at last minute and ending up over / under cals. On your shift days, maybe take a pack of nuts to work. 100g is 800 cals, lots of protein and good fat so you don't end up with so many cals to eat late at night!

    Well done on the running too, a minute off your mile time is amazing especially considering your weight, so the pounds might not be coming off as fast as you would like but that's a huge improvement in your fitness!! 'm 40lbs less than you and my mile time is about 12 mins, there is no way in hell I could do 9 or even 10 minute miles :-(
  • ironanimal
    ironanimal Posts: 5,922 Member
    Options
    Increasing your calories, unless you increase you activity as well will backfire. The less calories you take in and the more you burn the more weight you will lose. Im not sure what you did to figure your nessisary caloric intake but it seems pretty high. Mabye you should re-do your myfitnesspal information to find a more accurit number. I know we're not in the same weight class but it has me on a 1200 calorie diet... i wouldnt sugest going that far down but a reduction of calories would deffenetly help you.

    No, no, no, a million times no.

    Using TDEE, you don't eat calories back. It averages your week based on your activity level.

    Also, at your age I can pretty much guarantee 1200 is way below your BMR.
  • huntindawg1962
    huntindawg1962 Posts: 277 Member
    Options
    Huntingdawg - interesting!! How do they test at university? I might have to see if I can find somewhere to get mine checked!!

    They have the special equipment where you are placed for an sampling period and it gathers data from several monitors including being in a "fish bowl" like contraption around your head to collect and analyze the CO2. The test itself is about an hour long. Someone sits with you to monitor that you remain still but yet don't fall asleep as apparently there is a slight uptick in the observed rate for a period at the point that you fall asleep.

Categories