AM I EATING ENOUGH

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Replies

  • crash_clu
    crash_clu Posts: 359 Member
    Why are you trying to lose more weight? At 5'4 & 128, you're nicely placed in the recommended weight range for height. If you do light strength/weight training to tone up, you may in fact put on a little more weight as you build and tone muscle, but you're still going to be at a healthy weight.

    If you've plateaud, it may be that your body is telling you that it is happy where it is. Find a daily calorie intake that works for you for maintaining your body weight with your regular exercise and let your body tell you when it is happy.
  • Fit_Canuck
    Fit_Canuck Posts: 788 Member
    minimum you should eat is bodyweight * 10
    So if I were a 400 pound woman I should eat 4000 calories to lose weight? Some how I don't think so.

    Not sure about that math but if you use me as an example with a 2399 BMR and burning about 500 cals a day in workouts I shoot for 3000 cal a day. I'm losing weight and gaining muscle.

    So you're not "eating the "MINIMUM" recommended?

    God no, I was getting so sick on eating the MFP minimum, starving all the time, getting colds it just wasn't enough calories
  • BlowYourMind
    BlowYourMind Posts: 162
    I've confused people, but I meant to tone up, since the majority of people doing 30 DS are typically more toned than losing weight..
  • jules0516
    jules0516 Posts: 158
    As a newer person thats trying to understand how the whole calorie thing work..if I wasn't confused BEFORE reading this thread-I am now!!
  • tigersword
    tigersword Posts: 8,059 Member
    I've confused people, but I meant to tone up, since the majority of people doing 30 DS are typically more toned than losing weight..
    If you're not trying to lose weight, why are you eating so little? And why are you worrying about a plateau?:huh:
  • Drastiic
    Drastiic Posts: 322 Member
    As a newer person thats trying to understand how the whole calorie thing work..if I wasn't confused BEFORE reading this thread-I am now!!

    Just read this and you won't be confused anymore:
    http://body-improvements.com/resources/eat/
  • Prudiddy
    Prudiddy Posts: 262 Member
    I know exactly how you feel. I don't have the answers because I need help too just began the program.
    Good luck
  • brneydgrlie
    brneydgrlie Posts: 464 Member
    If you are not trying to lose weight, and instead you are trying to tone and gain muscle, then most of the exercise calories you eat back should be high in protein.
  • malins2
    malins2 Posts: 154 Member
    Today I wrote a blog about my successes eating MORE, and how you can do it too. :)

    http://www.myfitnesspal.com/blog/lillebanon/view/my-take-on-eating-more-to-weigh-less-254554

    And I mention this in the blog, but for sure, check out the group on here Eat More to Weigh Less

    http://www.myfitnesspal.com/forums/show/3834-eat-more-to-weigh-less

    Interesting, I followed your instructions in your blog to see how much I should eat and it turns out that if I would eat back all my exercise calories I would be eating too much... How I eat and exercise now I'm at a projected weightloss of about 0.5lbs a week according to Katch-McArdle, and according to MFP if I would eat even more I would lose 1 lbs/week...If I would eat like MFP says when I exercise I would actually gain weight according to Katch-McArdle. It's good to know when I get comments that I should eat all my exercise calories back! Because i think the Katch-McArdle is more correct than MFP.
  • MsMargie1116
    MsMargie1116 Posts: 323 Member
    I KNOW! I've been doing 1,200 + excercise cals for as long as I could remember, but I'm at a plateau and have been feeling helpless!

    if you're talking to me, i said "that's the minimum" a good place to start is bodyweight * 12... see how that goes for a month.

    No not you... But okay, so the minimum is like the 1,200 that MFP recommends?

    128 * 12 = 1536

    That's where you should start off at

    I don't know that is a correct calculation... I am at 281 and if i multiply that by 12, that's over 3,000 calories... that's how I gained... I think starting at the calculation MFP recommends plus eating all your exercise calories is good... or if you don't trust MFP's calculations, I would call my doctor or a nutritionist... :)
  • love4fitnesslove4food_wechange
    love4fitnesslove4food_wechange Posts: 6,897 Member
    minimum you should eat is bodyweight * 10
    So if I were a 400 pound woman I should eat 4000 calories to lose weight? Some how I don't think so.

    actually you could.
  • jules0516
    jules0516 Posts: 158
    As a newer person thats trying to understand how the whole calorie thing work..if I wasn't confused BEFORE reading this thread-I am now!!

    Just read this and you won't be confused anymore:
    http://body-improvements.com/resources/eat/

    I'm reading it now..THANK YOU!
  • Lift_hard_eat_big
    Lift_hard_eat_big Posts: 2,278 Member
    I was expecting to tone with 30 DS not lose weight, but I feel confused now.
    How do you expect to gain muscle mass eating at a deficit and not performing heavy weight training?
  • malins2
    malins2 Posts: 154 Member
    I was expecting to tone with 30 DS not lose weight, but I feel confused now.
    How do you expect to gain muscle mass eating at a deficit and not performing heavy weight training?
    Agree with this to some extent. I have managed to gain muscle and lose weight at the same time, but maybe me being overweight to start with made it easier?
    @fpacudan very off topic but that pizza slice just triggered some serious cravings...
  • love4fitnesslove4food_wechange
    love4fitnesslove4food_wechange Posts: 6,897 Member
    I was expecting to tone with 30 DS not lose weight, but I feel confused now.
    How do you expect to gain muscle mass eating at a deficit and not performing heavy weight training?
    Agree with this to some extent. I have managed to gain muscle and lose weight at the same time, but maybe me being overweight to start with made it easier?
    @fpacudan very off topic but that pizza slice just triggered some serious cravings...

    Well losing fat will allow you to see muscle already in place--how are you sure that you were in fact BUILDING muscle while losing weight? Yes, it is possible in the beginning stages but still quite difficult.

    On a side note--go eat some pizza ;)
  • Lift_hard_eat_big
    Lift_hard_eat_big Posts: 2,278 Member
    I was expecting to tone with 30 DS not lose weight, but I feel confused now.
    How do you expect to gain muscle mass eating at a deficit and not performing heavy weight training?

    That's where i come in freddie, i am the wizard. LETS GO EAT SOME POZOLE!!!

    Wizard huh, hook me up with a giant bowl of POZOLE then! Just as long as we finish eating before 7PM, I don't want the carb fairy to turn my carb surplus to fat at the strike of 7:01PM!
  • Lift_hard_eat_big
    Lift_hard_eat_big Posts: 2,278 Member
    I was expecting to tone with 30 DS not lose weight, but I feel confused now.
    How do you expect to gain muscle mass eating at a deficit and not performing heavy weight training?
    Agree with this to some extent. I have managed to gain muscle and lose weight at the same time, but maybe me being overweight to start with made it easier?
    @fpacudan very off topic but that pizza slice just triggered some serious cravings...

    Well losing fat will allow you to see muscle already in place--how are you sure that you were in fact BUILDING muscle while losing weight? Yes, it is possible in the beginning stages but still quite difficult.

    On a side note--go eat some pizza ;)

    Babe, you are absolutely correct! Many believe that they magically BUILD muscle while shredding. I truly wish building muscle was that simple. I kill myself day after day in the gym, lifting heavy weight (for me anyways) and building muscle is extremely slow!

    And Malin, that pizza was delicious, go out and have a slice, it won't reverse your progress.
  • malins2
    malins2 Posts: 154 Member
    I was expecting to tone with 30 DS not lose weight, but I feel confused now.
    How do you expect to gain muscle mass eating at a deficit and not performing heavy weight training?
    Agree with this to some extent. I have managed to gain muscle and lose weight at the same time, but maybe me being overweight to start with made it easier?
    @fpacudan very off topic but that pizza slice just triggered some serious cravings...

    Well losing fat will allow you to see muscle already in place--how are you sure that you were in fact BUILDING muscle while losing weight? Yes, it is possible in the beginning stages but still quite difficult.

    On a side note--go eat some pizza ;)

    Well, I obviously can't say for sure the muscles weren't there before. That is very unlikely though since I hadn't worked out AT ALL for about 20 years and when I started losing weight I started working out and lifting weights a real lot and my strength improved extremely much from not being able to do hardly anything to actually getting pretty strong. But my theory is I have been able to do it because my diet is very good.
  • malins2
    malins2 Posts: 154 Member
    And Malin, that pizza was delicious, go out and have a slice, it won't reverse your progress.
    I bet it was :)
  • alinn29
    alinn29 Posts: 4 Member
    I visited with my Dr before beginning mfp, and she told me the calories they give you as your goal (from a health stand point) are the bare min assuming your not moving. the more you exercise the more you need to eat. I actually got a warning from MFP that I wasn't eating enough,. I knew already but 90 degree weather makes me very unhungry. for the credit you get for say running you should eat at least 1/2 of what you burned. I am new so I am not expert, but diaries are pubic. I lost 3 lbs my first week and I weigh again tomorrow.. Good luck
  • toriaenator
    toriaenator Posts: 423 Member
    you're at my starting stats and i know how you feel! the problem isn't the number on the scale, its your body composition (I'm guessing). so you DEFINATELY need to up your calories ASAP because otherwise you will lose muscle mass and look "skinny fat" (a smaller version but still with fat) this is what happened to me.

    you should start doing weight training ASAP and up your calories to at least 1600, and more if your also doing cardio. weight lifting will work wonders as long as you are consistent!

    trust me, the 1200 calorie thing will get you nowhere- don't focus on the scale, focus on losing inches and on building muscle!
  • BlowYourMind
    BlowYourMind Posts: 162
    Well, you're right. I suppose it's because I used to weigh 122 and now I'm 128 but I don't look significantly different, but I know it's possible to be at that weight. So I'm not sure as to whether or not I should or need to lose more or I should gain muscle mass. However it seems like I've been getting great feedback!
  • BlowYourMind
    BlowYourMind Posts: 162
    My brother told me that the more fat you have the more calories you require in order to feed those fat cells, but of course, when you're at a deficit your body has to chomp on sources that are not calories you are already giving yourself by eating. So I'm planning to use my scale to see my maintenance and work from there! Thank you for all the help guys, I think I'm fine from here!
  • lillebanon
    lillebanon Posts: 214 Member
    I wrote my first blog today about my successes eating MORE to weigh LESS. It includes full instructions for ANYBODY to figure out how much they need to be eating. :wink: And then how to customize your MFP goals to match your new calculations!

    http://www.myfitnesspal.com/blog/lillebanon/view/my-take-on-eating-more-to-weigh-less-254554
  • Rosa1213
    Rosa1213 Posts: 456 Member
    Oh God, I get so confused every time I read one of these threads...
    I also get the strong urge to go weigh myself :/
  • Mindmovesbody
    Mindmovesbody Posts: 399 Member
    I wrote my first blog today about my successes eating MORE to weigh LESS. It includes full instructions for ANYBODY to figure out how much they need to be eating. :wink: And then how to customize your MFP goals to match your new calculations!

    http://www.myfitnesspal.com/blog/lillebanon/view/my-take-on-eating-more-to-weigh-less-254554

    I joined the group eat more to weigh less. I was skeptical at first. Upped my cals, waited two weeks practically chomping my fingernails off in the meantime...hopped on the scale yesterday after a 3 week plateau and BAM 1.2 DOWN!!! Thank you EM2WL!!! I now feel full, full of energy and only eat back my exercise calories if I am netting below my BMR. Once you understand BMR and TDEE figuring out your REQUIRED cals for maintenance and weight loss is much easier. As someone who is experiencing that this works, at least check out the group! They have a great link to a great article on plateau there as well.
  • themommie
    themommie Posts: 5,033 Member
    I think everyone is different. My opinion is you should start with what MFP suggests, then if you are not losing after 3 weeks or you stop losing you need to adjust things either try zig zagging cals , this has worked for me, add more cals up at 100 cals a week until you start losing again, change up exercise. Find what works for you. I have been at MFP for 21 mths eating 1250 or under a day. I do not eat back exercise cals. I have tried zig zagging the cals when I have slowed or stopped losing. But I have lost 101 lbs so this works for me. I am now at maintenance so now I need to start upping my cals and find out what maintenance cals works for me....I hope this helps
  • jodyw83
    jodyw83 Posts: 38
    You should never go below 1200 calories because then you are just left feeling hungry all the time and it will drive you crazy. The added weight loss benefit is exponentially lower once you go below that 1200. You will keep losing weight, but at a much slower weight. If you are hitting a plateau then maybe re evaluate what you are eating. Are you including EVERYTHING in those recipes honestly? The oil that you coat pans with, or the one chip you grazed on. You could be surprised how little stupid things can add up and impede your progress. Good luck! You will get past this and reach your goal weight!
  • TinkrBelz
    TinkrBelz Posts: 866 Member
    I looked at your diary...I just did a quick glance.

    What you might need to do is change what you are eating. You are not eating badly, but if you want to build muscle (not a body builder) you need to eat either your lean weight in protein and I have read other say, your weight in protein.

    I increased my calories and then dropped my carbs to 100 and increased my protein to 150. When I did this, I noticed the fat shedding off and that is when my muscles underneath that thin 10lb layer of fat started showing though.

    Your scale may not budge since you aren already a low weight, but you may see a difference in the mirror...and that is what counts the most!!!

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