Worried I am not gonna lose on 1200 calories a day

tbullucks06
tbullucks06 Posts: 128
in Health and Weight Loss
Hello everyone! This is my second time back to MFP. I was using SparkPeople but just got bored with it. I always liked MFP better. I had to quit MFP though and go back to Spark because I was not losing weight with MFP following their guidelines. I've seen a few posts now from others on here saying the same things. I am worried I am gonna have the same problem again. When I was with Spark, I was given 1200 - 1550 calories a day even if I did no exercise at all. My doctor also said to eat no more than 1500 calories a day. Also, I am exercsing so I wonder how to incorporate that into the calories. What do you think if I stick to eating 1500 a day regardless and then also eat any of the calories I burn? I'm trying to figure out how to make this work for me since I like MFP so much better. Can anyone help?

Replies

  • mcarter99
    mcarter99 Posts: 1,666 Member
    I bet you'll lose on anywhere from 1200-1500 a day so you could just pick the level you're comfortable with. If you pick 1500 and 'eat back', your losses might be very slow, it's hard to tell. It just depends what you want more-- a higher intake level or speedier losses. Neither intake level is going to damage anything. I would listen to your doctor's advice and not worry about 'eating back'. The only reason there is to do that is if you want to limit your losses to the speed MFP assigns you (and not lose any faster). And that might be good advice for someone eating at 1200 and doing 1000 calories of exercise a day.

    Good luck!
  • donna_glasgow
    donna_glasgow Posts: 869 Member
    why not aim between 1200 and 1500 and mix it up a bit day to day :) you would lose on both numbers :)
  • Steph4454
    Steph4454 Posts: 164 Member
    I would just try to stay inbetween those numbers and see what happens. I'm trying the Total TDEE minus 30% right now to see what will happen. Its a trial and error type of deal :) Dont stress over it! Good luck!
  • gmarriottfccla
    gmarriottfccla Posts: 64
    See, the thing is, 1200 is the absolute minimum. Your BMR could actually be higher than that, because everyone's metabolism varies from 8-15 calories burned per pound per day. So, in short, you could technically be eating FAR UNDER your BMR, causing you to lose weight very easily, or there is a slight possibility that 1200 is your actual BMR. In that case, all you have to do is burn 100-200 calories per day while limiting processed sugar, sodium, and saturated fats, and you'll lose weight with no problem. But I'm 90% sure that you're probably eating under your actual BMR, so don't worry about it! (:
  • ninick
    ninick Posts: 44 Member
    You will lose on 1200 a day to start up, but it will not last. It will be difficult to maintain and too little calories slows down your matabolism, you have to determine a calorie level that's right for your body.

    there are lots of great threads outthere, I read this one and it changed the way I approach weight loss, and I am actually eating more, exercise(cardio) less and am looking better!
    http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/538381-in-place-of-a-road-map

    hope this helps.
  • myfitnessnmhoy
    myfitnessnmhoy Posts: 2,105 Member
    You have a range to play within, I'd start at something in the middle and eat back your exercise calories. Try it for at least 2-3 weeks, preferably a month. See how you feel and whether you are losing weight then. If you feel good and are losing weight, congrats, go with that plan until you need to change things up again.

    If you feel good and are not losing weight, drop a couple hundred calories a day and go another few weeks and see if the weight loss starts up.

    If you feel crappy and are not losing weight, add a couple hundred calories a day and go another few weeks and see if you feel better and the weight loss starts up.

    Also, check your fats, carbs, and proteins and try to get those in balance. Feeding your whole body all the nutrients it needs goes a long way toward feeling good and burning lots of calories.
  • natpalit
    natpalit Posts: 113 Member
    I would set your daily goal for between 1200 and 1550, and if you go over on a single day, don't worry about it.
    If you use the smartphone app, then there is a way of seeing your weekly average intake. As long as this is between your goal calories, then individual days don't matter as much.

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