Scared to up my calorie intake.
goforkissy
Posts: 157 Member
I am terrified to up my calories!!! I have been in a plateau for MONTHS. I have read countless threads that say uping the calories worked for them, but i am just too scared to do it. I just bought my wedding dress for my wedding in 2013. I had back cleavage!!! Cried and cried, but also realized that i have a year and a half to fix this. Did anyone gain weight when they upped the calories? How much should i expect to gain before it starts to come off again? How long should i up my calories for? What if i just continue to gain weight? These are all the questions that just keep swimming in my head when i think about setting my calories higher. Anyone have any info or suggestions? I am at a loss at this point and think i might just have to slap some nipples on my back so that my soon to be husband can cop a feel while we dance at the wedding.
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Replies
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i am too, i have been loosing so very slowly all of this year and i know so many have told me i need to up my cals from 1300 to 1550... i am 5 ft 2 inches and have a thyroid disorder, so i have a hard time loosing to being with but upping them scares me that i will be eating close to what i was when i gained all my weight. I have not been exercising as much lately either just 30 min 5 days a week with the odd dog walk for 15 min here and there...i am afraid that if i up them i will gain or stall out completely. i upped mine from 1200- 1350 in Jan and feb and really didn't see much of a difference..0
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Read some of the stickies here:
http://www.myfitnesspal.com/forums/show/3834-eat-more-to-weigh-less0 -
I've been scared to up my intake too. Then I looked at my historical total cal, net calories and weight loss the following day and realized that the difference between my "big loss' days and my "big gain" days was eating 200 calories more a day.
So instead of going TDEE - 20% I decided to up to my BMR and started dropping again. That was only an increase of 200 calories a day for me.
Maybe try incrementally upping your calories in this way to see what happens.
Good luck.0 -
I upped mine from 1200 to 1310 and still nothing. That's why i am afraid to go any higher. Fat2fit says my BMR is 1426 but i just cant imagine eating that much and still not gain anything. Maybe i should just suck it up and do it. I can't imagine i could get any bigger.0
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I'm doing the same thing right now. I've tried everything else. What have I got to lose by upping my calories. If I gain a few extra pounds, at least I tried and I know I can work it off again.0
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The only time I DID see progress was when I upped my cals to just below TDEE. My TDEE is 2096.
Now I eat 2000 calories! I dont eat back any excercise cals though.
I am very near goal, so I may need just a very slight deficit to get my body working at losing again.
Very very satisfying to eat like a queen and lose inches and weight. I eat very healthily, but have some treats too. My exercise is moderate: 3 days strength training and one or two fast walks or a kickboxing routine thrown in. about 4 days max.
It takes time and determination though, so read up. the group Eat More to Weigh Less is excellent.0 -
I agree.. I'm terrified to up my calories as well. I'm doing a rest week. So no cardio and only lifting an trying to eat at maintanence. I originally planned this is the beginning of my diet; every 12 weeks I planned on doing it. My weight loss slowed down this week to almost 1/2 a pound when it was consistently a pound a week so now it's time to reset my
Metabolism but it is SOO intimidating! I'm okay with the thought of gaining muscle but I would hate to see the scale go up when I'm so close to my goal /=
I'll let you know how it works out for me0 -
What are your stats?? height, weiht, BMR TDEE etc ?? and how many cals are you currently eating per day and exercising ??
It is likely that is you have been undereating you will gain 4-5 pounds temporarily BUT you have ages til the wedding so if that is the problem then you can fix it and then some way before then
I have upped my cals to approx BMR plus exercise cals in the last 4/5 weeks religously - I gained about 4lbs, but my body shape looks better and I think and feel that I am getting smaller - just need to measure I guess! it's early days for me, but I am convinced it is the way forward:) I average 1900-2000 per day at the mo.
Jenny0 -
Read some of the stickies here:
http://www.myfitnesspal.com/forums/show/3834-eat-more-to-weigh-less
Do this.0 -
I just upped mine and I think it has gotten me out of my 8 month long plateau. I did gain the first week and then it started to drop again. You need to eat at least your BMR. I upped mine calories to 1710 from 1200.0
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The only time I lost was when I upped my calories - but - I also paid a lot of attention to my macros and really tried to hit them - meaning I upped my protein and fiber intake and kept my carbs at 40%. I felt like I was eating a lot and I was very satisfied - but I had more energy to work out - and also I started doing weights - not really heaving lifting but added a weight circuit to my routine 2 or 3 times a week - and I walk/jog either 4 or 5 times a week over my lunch hour. I say you have plenty of time to try it. But get your calories in my eating less processed foods, less flour and sugary foods, more real whole foods and more protein.0
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Jenny:
My stats are - 5feet 4 inches. weight is 148. BMR (from fat2fit) 1426 TDEE is 1823.
I eat about 1310ish daily. Sometimes more, sometimes less. And currently doing C25K and Jillian Michaels. Just got the insanity work out too, but haven't started.0 -
I upped mine from 1200 to 1310 and still nothing. That's why i am afraid to go any higher. Fat2fit says my BMR is 1426 but i just cant imagine eating that much and still not gain anything. Maybe i should just suck it up and do it. I can't imagine i could get any bigger.
I'm 5"2 and eat 2000 calories a day. MFP calories are 1520 plus I eat my exercise calories and I'm still losing. I will raise them again soon.0 -
i did that too, i upped mine to bmr and i eat back all exercise cals. so i always net my bmr no matter what. i lost 2.5 lbs a month steady when i was on 1200 cals but as soon as i learned about my bmr and upped my cals to that my loss has slowed right down, it's been 3.5 months now and only lost 2-3 lbs.... total... so scared to up more as i don't want it to slow down even more...0
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The decision to increase calories is not necessarily a permanent one, and therefore doesn't need to be... feared? Up the calories by 100 per day, and if there are no bad effects, up it again in a few days. Eventually something will happen, and if you like it, stay with it. If not, go back to your current plan. No need to gain 20 pounds before you switch back. You know how to do it.
Meanwhile, it may be that you need to look further at your calories in and calories spent. Are you exercising enough? It makes a difference. Not necessarily marathons or power lifting, but walking, playing golf, yard work, dancing, and the like are a big part of healthy weight loss.
Edit - looks like while I was typing, you answered. As Emily Letella would say... "Never mind."0 -
I upped mine from 1200 to 1310 and still nothing. That's why i am afraid to go any higher. Fat2fit says my BMR is 1426 but i just cant imagine eating that much and still not gain anything. Maybe i should just suck it up and do it. I can't imagine i could get any bigger.
I'm 5"2 and eat 2000 calories a day. MFP calories are 1520 plus I eat my exercise calories and I'm still losing. I will raise them again soon.
how many days do you exercise and how much do you burn? i am also 5.2ft and i put .5 lbs loss and it brought me to 1300 cals and my bmr is 1248.0 -
Just do it. Only time I've ever broken plateaus is upping my cals.
Someone said in some thread that when you eat so little (below your BMR), you are making your body slow it's metabolism down to get by with less. Is that really what you want, a lower metabolism?! No, of course not!
Up your cals, your metabolism will increase. it's all good.0 -
anybody scared to up your cals, just GO FOR IT!
most of you are considering it due to being in a plateau, so if you're getting nowhere at the minute then why not give it a try! at the very worst, if it doesnt work you will gain a few pounds, thats not the end of the world as a week or two at maintenance then going back down will also help break a plateau. If it does work, you get to eat more and lose.
Look at helloitsdans post 'in place of a roadmap' and eat at a 20% deficit from TDEE as per the numbers in the chart. Dan knows his stuff, he's not trying to trick you all into getting fat!
Im 201lbs, increased from around 1600 total / 1100 net in jan to 2000 total / 1500 net now. I gained 0.8 first week, then lost 3,2,1.5,3 in feb, and 1.5 EVERY week since then (apart from this week but that was due to large amounts of alcohol and pizza lol)
A few of my friends have also increased recently, going from below 1200 net to above BMR, and its helped them break plateaus that have been going on for months :-)0 -
I upped mine from 1200 to 1500 and I am STILL on a plateau, gaining and losing the same four pounds for about four months now. :explode:
Like you, I am worried about upping them again. I do feel a bit stuck as well. The best advice I would give is to get sound, clinical advice, from a real doctor or dietician who can devise a way forward that is best suited to your individual needs.
There could be an underlying reason for your plateau. I am giving myself 'til the end of May and if I am still stuck that is what I shall do!
I have been paying close attention to what I am eating, and have felt better for it. I have also introduced a bit more cardio in the form of C25k, along with my weight training.0 -
Jenny:
My stats are - 5feet 4 inches. weight is 148. BMR (from fat2fit) 1426 TDEE is 1823.
I eat about 1310ish daily. Sometimes more, sometimes less. And currently doing C25K and Jillian Michaels. Just got the insanity work out too, but haven't started.
if 1823 is the number from the chart, that is not current TDEE, its TDEE for your goal weight.
I ran your numbers, current TDEE is 1961 Lightly active, 2210 moderate. If you are doing C25K and JM, I would say you are more than lightly active.
As you dont have much to lose you should be aiming for 0.5-1lb per week without net going below BMR of 1426.
Eat 1960 would get you 0.5lb
Eat 1710 for 1lb.
This includes exercise so no need to log and eat back.
If you burn more than 284 per day exercising, 1lb will be too much (1710-BMR 1426 = 284).
Also BMR can vary hugely depending on body fat %, so I would get your BF checked and rerun to work from Katch Mcardle BMR.0 -
The only time I lost was when I upped my calories - but - I also paid a lot of attention to my macros and really tried to hit them - meaning I upped my protein and fiber intake and kept my carbs at 40%. I felt like I was eating a lot and I was very satisfied - but I had more energy to work out - and also I started doing weights - not really heaving lifting but added a weight circuit to my routine 2 or 3 times a week - and I walk/jog either 4 or 5 times a week over my lunch hour. I say you have plenty of time to try it. But get your calories in my eating less processed foods, less flour and sugary foods, more real whole foods and more protein.
^^^^ this!0 -
I want to know this just because I'm at the low end of my weight range so I automatically need to eat less....my bmr is about 13000
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Jenny:
My stats are - 5feet 4 inches. weight is 148. BMR (from fat2fit) 1426 TDEE is 1823.
I eat about 1310ish daily. Sometimes more, sometimes less. And currently doing C25K and Jillian Michaels. Just got the insanity work out too, but haven't started.
if 1823 is the number from the chart, that is not current TDEE, its TDEE for your goal weight.
I ran your numbers, current TDEE is 1961 Lightly active, 2210 moderate. If you are doing C25K and JM, I would say you are more than lightly active.
As you dont have much to lose you should be aiming for 0.5-1lb per week without net going below BMR of 1426.
Eat 1960 would get you 0.5lb
Eat 1710 for 1lb.
This includes exercise so no need to log and eat back.
If you burn more than 284 per day exercising, 1lb will be too much (1710-BMR 1426 = 284).
Also BMR can vary hugely depending on body fat %, so I would get your BF checked and rerun to work from Katch Mcardle BMR.
Thank you for the info. I just upped my calories to maintenance mode to try this out. I am up to 1680 calories now. I will try it at this for a little and see if it helps. It's pretty close to the 1710 suggested. I guess it can't hurt to try. I do have a while before the wedding to change things up a bit. Thanks again!0 -
Try it! Even if it doesn't work for you, you won't gain enough weight to damage your efforts.
I upped my calories from 1350 to 1980 (my BMR) on May 1. I'd been at a plateau for 4 months. Since May 1 I've lost 9 lbs. But the best thing is I have tons more energy so I move more, I'm never hungry so the cravings have all but disappeared and I'm able to eat more fruit and grains so my nutrition is much better.
I was scared too! So far I'm glad I upped the cals.0 -
So obviously what you are doing isn't working otherwise you wouldn't be questioning your method. So I can tell you, I have designed plans for 200+ people on this board and every single one of them is eating 20% below their TDEE and every one is losing weight or cutting fat; depending on the stage they are at. Where they saw the biggest difference is when they stopped doing so much cardio and started doing strength training. ST is what will eliminate body fat and make you smaller and tighter and it will do it faster than cardio. Now what you can do is slowly increase your calories (200 calories a week) to minimize the weight gain. I can tell you, weight won't determine how you look in a wedding dress, body fat will. Below is proof. BTW, if you want to do insanity and get the results, you need to eat a lot of calories. Just go on the beach body website and you will see 120 lb girls eating 2000 calories.
http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/392784-skinny-fat-vs-fit-photo?hl=skinny+fat
http://www.nerdfitness.com/blog/2011/07/21/meet-staci-your-new-powerlifting-super-hero/0 -
Jenny:
My stats are - 5feet 4 inches. weight is 148. BMR (from fat2fit) 1426 TDEE is 1823.
I eat about 1310ish daily. Sometimes more, sometimes less. And currently doing C25K and Jillian Michaels. Just got the insanity work out too, but haven't started.
if 1823 is the number from the chart, that is not current TDEE, its TDEE for your goal weight.
I ran your numbers, current TDEE is 1961 Lightly active, 2210 moderate. If you are doing C25K and JM, I would say you are more than lightly active.
As you dont have much to lose you should be aiming for 0.5-1lb per week without net going below BMR of 1426.
Eat 1960 would get you 0.5lb
Eat 1710 for 1lb.
This includes exercise so no need to log and eat back.
If you burn more than 284 per day exercising, 1lb will be too much (1710-BMR 1426 = 284).
Also BMR can vary hugely depending on body fat %, so I would get your BF checked and rerun to work from Katch Mcardle BMR.
Thank you for the info. I just upped my calories to maintenance mode to try this out. I am up to 1680 calories now. I will try it at this for a little and see if it helps. It's pretty close to the 1710 suggested. I guess it can't hurt to try. I do have a while before the wedding to change things up a bit. Thanks again!
Good choice, but only if "I will try it at this for a little" means "I'll try this for a month." Don't throw up your hands in frustration after a week or ten days. You will see results after a couple of weeks to a month. Don't give up.0 -
I was too, but trust my trainer explicitly who suggested I increase my caloric intake.
I'm 5'5, 43 yrs old and 156lbs. I have been plateaued for the past 6-8 weeks.
I work out 5x a week, an hour a time with an avg burn of 400 calories each session. I do both cardio and strength training.
I was eating 1300 a day, but he upped my intake to 1500-1550. I lost 3 lbs this week.
:happy:
It is a scary concept to grasp that eating more means losing, especially when eating too much is why most of us ended up on this site in the first place. Just remember that your body needs fuel to function. Eat healthy, and healthy portions to make it happy!0 -
bump0
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While I am a huge fan of the eat more to weigh less club...I might consider moving up more gradually. If I read your posts correctly you are going from 1310 to 1610? That is a pretty big jump. IMO- you may suffer less immediate anxiety and be more likely to let it ride for while if you move a little slower. Up it by 100 to 150 each week... give the metabolism some time to jump start. I don't know what you do for excercise-- but this would assist you as well as you up the cals- as long as you eat back those cals. Just my two cents...
You are probably right. That does sound like a big jump in calories. I have set it to 1430 for the moment. I am not sure if i am going to be able to eat that much at the beginning, but i can work up to it if not. I do some jillian michaels, but currently doing c25k more than anything.
Thanks for the advice.0 -
It doesn't hurt to try! I followed Psulemon's advice (thank you, btw!) and upped my calories several months ago and have been steadily losing on average a .5 pound per week. I had stalled out for two months prior to that.
You will see a small initial gain of maybe 1 to 2 pounds but it's not a real weight gain and will go away. Also be aware that it may take about 4 weeks for everything to balance out and to start seeing movement on the scale again. You just have to stick with it for awhile and it will work.
I'm 5'3, now 129 lbs and eat 1750 calories a day and try to workout at least 3 to 4 times a week. I found it was so much easier to just have my excerise calories already factored into my daily goals instead of trying to eat them at the end of the day after I finished my workout.0
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