Are you eating 1200 calories a day?

banks1850 · April 2008

Maybe you shouldn't be. Not everyone should be at a 1000 calorie (or close) deficit. For people who are close to their maintenance weight, I.E. people that have a BMI of 28 or less (if you don't know, click the tools tab and click the BMI tool) clinical research suggests that you should have no more then 500 or 600 calorie a day deficit, for people that are at normal BMI (25 or less) should be at a deficit of 500 or under. Why? You don't have the fat reserves to warrent this type of deficit, generally speaking, with the high deficit, and normal or slightly overweight BMI your body needs the fuel to continue supplying energy to your body. It WILL get that energy, if you have a large deficit, it will compensate by pulling energy from lean tissue (muscle) and that leads to less muscle mass, and a slower metabolism (because muscle at rest burn's 3 times the calories as fat of the same weight).

SIDE NOTE:
People with very atheltic bodies shouldn't rely on BMI as much because the calculation breaks down for people with very low body fat %

NOTE: I am not a doctor, nor am I a registered dietician, I am just a layman who has done some serious research on the topic and asked my doctor about it. He has concured.

banks1850 · April 2008

Maybe you shouldn't be. Not everyone should be at a 1000 calorie (or close) deficit. For people who are close to their maintenance weight, I.E. people that have a BMI of 28 or less (if you don't know, click the tools tab and click the BMI tool) clinical research suggests that you should have no more then 500 or 600 calorie a day deficit, for people that are at normal BMI (25 or less) should be at a deficit of 500 or under. Why? You don't have the fat reserves to warrent this type of deficit, generally speaking, with the high deficit, and normal or slightly overweight BMI your body needs the fuel to continue supplying energy to your body. It WILL get that energy, if you have a large deficit, it will compensate by pulling energy from lean tissue (muscle) and that leads to less muscle mass, and a slower metabolism (because muscle at rest burn's 3 times the calories as fat of the same weight).

SIDE NOTE:
People with very atheltic bodies shouldn't rely on BMI as much because the calculation breaks down for people with very low body fat %

NOTE: I am not a doctor, nor am I a registered dietician, I am just a layman who has done some serious research on the topic and asked my doctor about it. He has concured.

abbychelle07 · April 2008

Thanks for the update! Since I have so much to lose, I can eat 1800 calories and supposedly lose 1 lb a week, woo hoo! But thanks for the advice for the skinnys out there. :laugh:

kelpie06 · April 2008

Thanks banks,
That's interesting. I'm 5'7" and (last time I weighed myself) was at 139, only a few pounds away from my goal of 135. Really I'm not unsatisfied with where I am now but still, just one day to see myself at 135. Anywaaaayy, maybe that is why I am always a little over what MFP tells me I should be eating. I eat a good, well balanced diet and I make an effort listen to my body and to eat when I am hungry and not when I am bored, stressed, emotional, etc..
I guess I am just saying it's reassuring to hear that what I am doing is maybe ok.
Of course we'll see in May when I'm FINALLY allowed to get back on the scale.
What is the day exactly?!

AJCM · April 2008

Hi Banks - so last week I tried your recommendation of eating a little more (current BMI of 24) and voila! I lost a pound! Looking forward to weighing in this Monday and seeing what's happened this week (I don't live and die by the scale - but I can't join your challenge just yet! - the scale is still a motivational tool for me, and I need all the motivation I can get!).
:flowerforyou:

TamTastic · April 2008

Hey Banks,

I was looking at the calories given to me by ediets right now, based on my height, weight , age and activity level and based on working out 3-5 days a week (They average your workout to be around an hour each time), they have me on a calorie range of 1600-1700 (Seems like most of the meal plans average out to around 1630-1650) a day. That seems high on days I don't work out but low on days I go, which I guess averages out?? I emailed the ediets nutrition people to ask about working out and my 55 minutes on the elliptical 4 days a week and how much I burn and if I am eating enough, etc and they replied with

"The amount of exercise you do is considered in the total amount of calories you need for maintaining weight. Then we subtract the calories needed for promoting a deficit between the intake and the "usage", giving us the calories you need to eat. Do not worry about the numbers from the machine since they are irrelevant in this equation."

I haven't been following their meal plan close really but had used the calories as a guideline for a long time, espcially when first starting this, so I knew sort of how much to eat. If I were only working out 1-3 days a week, my calories would be in the 1400-1500 range.

Anyway, just wanted to get your take on how much they are giving me.

Thanks!
Tami
(again, my numbers are I am 193 (as of this morning, yes I looked! LOL!), 5' 5" and 33 years old. I work out 4 days a week and do 55 minutes on the elliptical + strength-training. I am probably going to start adding more and more walks/hikes to the days I don't hit the gym, since the weather is nice.

elliott062907 · April 2008

I have found that when I do all healthy day, no snacks, even the 100 cal ones, I just can't eat all my calories, and I'm doing just fine with it....

banks1850 · April 2008

Hey Banks,

I was looking at the calories given to me by ediets right now, based on my height, weight , age and activity level and based on working out 3-5 days a week (They average your workout to be around an hour each time), they have me on a calorie range of 1600-1700 (Seems like most of the meal plans average out to around 1630-1650) a day. That seems high on days I don't work out but low on days I go, which I guess averages out?? I emailed the ediets nutrition people to ask about working out and my 55 minutes on the elliptical 4 days a week and how much I burn and if I am eating enough, etc and they replied with

"The amount of exercise you do is considered in the total amount of calories you need for maintaining weight. Then we subtract the calories needed for promoting a deficit between the intake and the "usage", giving us the calories you need to eat. Do not worry about the numbers from the machine since they are irrelevant in this equation."

I haven't been following their meal plan close really but had used the calories as a guideline for a long time, espcially when first starting this, so I knew sort of how much to eat. If I were only working out 1-3 days a week, my calories would be in the 1400-1500 range.

Anyway, just wanted to get your take on how much they are giving me.

Thanks!
Tami
(again, my numbers are I am 193 (as of this morning, yes I looked! LOL!), 5' 5" and 33 years old. I work out 4 days a week and do 55 minutes on the elliptical + strength-training. I am probably going to start adding more and more walks/hikes to the days I don't hit the gym, since the weather is nice.

So I gather they take the total weekly calories, include workout calories, average them out and give you the same calories for every day of the week? I'm not sure if this is the best way (truely not sure, I'd have to look around). I can see the merits in it as it is probably much easier to maintain a specific calorie count every day then to customize it daily based on your exercise. I can't imagine it's a big problem though, at least until your bmi is around 25 or so. With the fat stores available I think this would probably work for you. Would it be better to eat the exact (or close) numbers every day instead? Probably, but that is much harder to do as you have to keep a much closer eye on your calories. So I imagine this way would be fine, the numbers look about right. For your weight/height 1800 or so is a maintenance calorie. So that would be an average of around 150 calories a day deficit, but if you add in 4 days a week of 55 minutes on the eliptical (call it 500 calories just to make it neat) your looking at just shy of 1 lb a week loss. Which is pretty good, you might even be able to bump the deficit up another 50 to 100 calories a day (if you think it won't make you feel to hungry.).
The big variable in this is how much muscle you have, because the more muscle the higher your RHR is. If you have a heart rate monitor, you may want to confirm this by wearing it all day (24 hours) on a day when you don't work out. That will give you a pretty accurate measurement of your Resting Heart Rate and you will know with more certainty whether this is the right amount for you.

ligytha · April 2008

Thanks!
This is really interesting. I am currently at a BMI of over 30, so I'll stick with the 2#/wk setting. I now definitely look forward to changing it once I get down to a BMI of 28!

banks1850 · April 2008

Hi Banks - so last week I tried your recommendation of eating a little more (current BMI of 24) and voila! I lost a pound! Looking forward to weighing in this Monday and seeing what's happened this week (I don't live and die by the scale - but I can't join your challenge just yet! - the scale is still a motivational tool for me, and I need all the motivation I can get!).
:flowerforyou:

Wow, so.... I'm not COMPLETELY full of it? :laugh:

Seriously though AJ, I'm very happy for your sucess, it's nice to know what we do actually makes a difference sometimes! :flowerforyou:

Life_is_Good · April 2008

Banks - I'm asking for a little advice, you seem to know what's going on around here

I started out at 165 -- want to be 140-145.
Over the last week I've added 200 calories/day (2 cups of milk) to my diet. I'm now eating around 1400 calories. I do count/eat my excercise calories.

Currently, my numbers are:
156 lbs, 5'7", BMR 1410, BMI 24.4
3 days 35 min cardio & 2-3 days strength.

What would you recommend my calories be?

GTOgirl1969 · April 2008

I have found that when I do all healthy day, no snacks, even the 100 cal ones, I just can't eat all my calories, and I'm doing just fine with it....

I agree with you there. I haven't eaten all my exercise calories ONE TIME. I always have at least 400 left over...I just can't eat any more!!

ColtsFan1912 · April 2008

i have to eat 500 more a day due to the fact i'm still breastfeeding.

banks1850 · April 2008

Banks - I'm asking for a little advice, you seem to know what's going on around here

I started out at 165 -- want to be 140-145.
Over the last week I've added 200 calories/day (2 cups of milk) to my diet. I'm now eating around 1400 calories. I do count/eat my excercise calories.

Currently, my numbers are:
156 lbs, 5'7", BMR 1410, BMI 24.4
3 days 35 min cardio & 2-3 days strength.

What would you recommend my calories be?

Oh man! You flatter me, but I'm no better at this then anyone else, I just have a really left sided brain so numbers are pretty easy for me. Which is why I'm so good at researching things I guess.
Ahh, I'll go by the numbers that I get. Assuming a somewhat active lifestyle, you should be at around 1950 calories for maintenance weight. Considering you are at a normal BMI I would probably recommend no less then 1500 calories a day. If you exercise, make sure you add in your exercise calories to that total. These things usually take a bit of tweaking, but that, to me, seems like a good starting point. I wouldn't expect much more then 1/2 to 1 lb a week of loss for average. AND, since you are at a healthy BMI, you should be mixing weight training in and really playing around with your exercise routine. You really want to try to keep your body off balance, keep your muscles guessing because muscles that are efficient at an exercise burn less calories to perform it.

Life_is_Good · April 2008

Banks - I'm asking for a little advice, you seem to know what's going on around here

I started out at 165 -- want to be 140-145.
Over the last week I've added 200 calories/day (2 cups of milk) to my diet. I'm now eating around 1400 calories. I do count/eat my excercise calories.

Currently, my numbers are:
156 lbs, 5'7", BMR 1410, BMI 24.4
3 days 35 min cardio & 2-3 days strength.

What would you recommend my calories be?

Oh man! You flatter me, but I'm no better at this then anyone else, I just have a really left sided brain so numbers are pretty easy for me. Which is why I'm so good at researching things I guess.
Ahh, I'll go by the numbers that I get. Assuming a somewhat active lifestyle, you should be at around 1950 calories for maintenance weight. Considering you are at a normal BMI I would probably recommend no less then 1500 calories a day. If you exercise, make sure you add in your exercise calories to that total. These things usually take a bit of tweaking, but that, to me, seems like a good starting point. I wouldn't expect much more then 1/2 to 1 lb a week of loss for average. AND, since you are at a healthy BMI, you should be mixing weight training in and really playing around with your exercise routine. You really want to try to keep your body off balance, keep your muscles guessing because muscles that are efficient at an exercise burn less calories to perform it.

Thank you... I'll give it a try. I'm on your scale challenge, so that pressure won't be there, we'll see what happens in May

AJCM · April 2008

Hi Banks - so last week I tried your recommendation of eating a little more (current BMI of 24) and voila! I lost a pound! Looking forward to weighing in this Monday and seeing what's happened this week (I don't live and die by the scale - but I can't join your challenge just yet! - the scale is still a motivational tool for me, and I need all the motivation I can get!).
:flowerforyou:

Wow, so.... I'm not COMPLETELY full of it? :laugh:

Seriously though AJ, I'm very happy for your sucess, it's nice to know what we do actually makes a difference sometimes! :flowerforyou:

Of course you're not full of it!

You're great - thanks for the support. I really think that the reason this has worked for me, is the SUPPORT component! So thanks again to Banks and to everyone.
:flowerforyou:

banks1850 · April 2008

just wanna bump this for another day or so, just so some of the people who don't frequent the site quite as much get to read it.

arubabound · April 2008

thanks for bumping...because I don't always get a chance to read all the posts....on the days I don't excersise I feel like I have too many calories.....and I'm tempted to go WAY under.....just to make up for not excersising....but I do feel that as long as I eat less than my BMR calories I should lose weight....maybe slowly..and that I can maintain better because I'm eating "normal".Does that make sense?

banks1850 · April 2008

thanks for bumping...because I don't always get a chance to read all the posts....on the days I don't excersise I feel like I have too many calories.....and I'm tempted to go WAY under.....just to make up for not excersising....but I do feel that as long as I eat less than my BMR calories I should lose weight....maybe slowly..and that I can maintain better because I'm eating "normal".Does that make sense?

aruba, there are very specific times when you should eat under you're BMR. Usually Obese people can maintain calories under bmr until they are out of the 30's (BMR wise) but if you aren't obese, then eating under your BMR probably isn't a very good idea. Remember, BMR is what your body needs to function without adding in the calories needed to do ANY physical activity (like brushin your teeth, turning the page on a magazine, watching tv...etc) so staying consistantly below it is bad news for the body generally.

TamTastic · April 2008

I think if everyone would see what their maintenance calories are with a calculator, such as the one of those pasted below, they would then realize that 1200 calories is not a set in stone number and also, they would realize that you CAN eat the calories given to you and still lose because you are still significantly below the calories you would need to maintain.

The first one is pretty cool. You can figure out your maintenance calories and also the deficit you would need for weight loss and significant weight loss.

Keep in mind that they are all a little different, so just average them out. But, it does give you a good idea of where you are at and what you need to do for YOUR body.

http://www.freedieting.com/tools/calorie_calculator.htm

http://www.caloriecontrol.org/calcalcs.html

banks1850 · April 2008

I think if everyone would see what their maintenance calories are with a calculator, such as the one of those pasted below, they would then realize that 1200 calories is not a set in stone number and also, they would realize that you CAN eat the calories given to you and still lose because you are still significantly below the calories you would need to maintain.

The first one is pretty cool. You can figure out your maintenance calories and also the deficit you would need for weight loss and significant weight loss.

Keep in mind that they are all a little different, so just average them out. But, it does give you a good idea of where you are at and what you need to do for YOUR body.

http://www.freedieting.com/tools/calorie_calculator.htm

http://www.caloriecontrol.org/calcalcs.html

I think tam, you may be starting to feel the frustration that some of us "ole timers" feel. It's the nature of a post board to keep having to repost things, but it still becomes frustrating after a while. :happy:
After a while you get used to it, but it still gnaws at you from time to time. People who first come on here are sometimes looking for drastic changes, not realizing that doing anything body related that causes drastic changes can only have serious consequeces.
It's like Newton's 3rd law "for every action there is an equal and opposite reaction" this is SOOOOO true with the metabolism, the key is to keep the actions small and spaced out so the reactions to it aren't so horrible and difficult to deal with. Loose 20 lbs in 2 weeks and your body might just get pissed off and want to eat everything in sight for the next 2 weeks.

Life_is_Good · April 2008

Bump for mickiedawn

TamTastic · April 2008

I think if everyone would see what their maintenance calories are with a calculator, such as the one of those pasted below, they would then realize that 1200 calories is not a set in stone number and also, they would realize that you CAN eat the calories given to you and still lose because you are still significantly below the calories you would need to maintain.

The first one is pretty cool. You can figure out your maintenance calories and also the deficit you would need for weight loss and significant weight loss.

Keep in mind that they are all a little different, so just average them out. But, it does give you a good idea of where you are at and what you need to do for YOUR body.

http://www.freedieting.com/tools/calorie_calculator.htm

http://www.caloriecontrol.org/calcalcs.html

I think tam, you may be starting to feel the frustration that some of us "ole timers" feel. It's the nature of a post board to keep having to repost things, but it still becomes frustrating after a while. :happy:
After a while you get used to it, but it still gnaws at you from time to time. People who first come on here are sometimes looking for drastic changes, not realizing that doing anything body related that causes drastic changes can only have serious consequeces.
It's like Newton's 3rd law "for every action there is an equal and opposite reaction" this is SOOOOO true with the metabolism, the key is to keep the actions small and spaced out so the reactions to it aren't so horrible and difficult to deal with. Loose 20 lbs in 2 weeks and your body might just get pissed off and want to eat everything in sight for the next 2 weeks.

I don't know if it's so much a frustration thing but more just wanting people to be good to themselves and not suffer, you know? I was going below my net calories for awhile without even realizing it or thinking about it because I was burning like 700 calories a day and then only consuming like 1500. But, once it hit me what I was doing, I have upped my calories and am doing fine.

But, I refuse to suffer and starve anymore and the great thing about a healthy weight loss plan is that you don't have to and that realization is a beautiful thing.

Just treat your bodies well, eat foods good for it and that will help fuel you, exercise, limit your calories ENOUGH but not too much, and you will lose weight.

neome90 · April 2008

Thanks so much for the information......It was a question I was mulling around in the back of my brain. :huh:

FatDancer · April 2008

Thanks Bubba!

banks1850 · April 2008

Lol, bubba! Where does that one come from I wonder?

The guys on my baseball team used to call me David Wells cuz he was an overweight lefty pitcher
here is a picture:

http://tinyurl.com/5hrfe2

now they call me Casey Fosum because he is an UNDER weight lefty pitcher:

http://tinyurl.com/5d9umy

I would never wear my hair like that though, Man he looks like a 70's porn star!:noway:

FatDancer · April 2008

I got in the habit of calling male friends Bubba when I worked for Naval Officers...so it's a compliment, nothing to do with weight or Baseball.

Did you want me to start calling you "Casey Fosum" "South Paw"?

kerikitkat · April 2008

I'm glad you posted this, Banks. I was being a littlle paranoid this week that I have my calories set too high (claiming a lightly active lifestyle when my new desk job might actually put me in the sedentary range during the weeks...). After reading your post though I'm just going to stick with what I've got and see what happens.

Regardless of any numbers, I know that I have made a SIGNIFICANT change in my lifestyle and eating habits. I'm only about 15 pounds heavier than I would like to be, but I was eating such incredible crap and didn't really even realize it. So whether or not I see results right away, I'm confident that this is good for my body no matter what. It doesn't seem that I could have changed this much and NOT see results, though!! So not too worried now that I really think about it.

ps - This website rocks, I think I'm addicted... it's like I gave up cigarettes only to become addicted to health instead :laugh:

alimassa · April 2008

Hey Banks....I always enjoy reading your advise.....

I found this interesting because I have been off the exercise routine all week and not stayed totally within my calorie range....which btw is 1200. I am 5'7 and have weighed in this week at 133....which is actually down a pound this week. I had leveled off for a few weeks. Funny how that works. I used to do weight watchers and noticed the same thing....sometimes it the weeks you are "bad" in the middle of all the good weeks that you actually loose.

Keep the good thoughts coming!!

:drinker: Ali

Are you eating 1200 calories a day?

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