benevempress Member

To reiterate what @notquittingthistime1984 said, your calorie allowance doesn't change unless you manually go into MFP and update your "Goals" under the "My Home" tab. It is suggested to do this every 10 pounds or so to maintain the same deficit amount you selected, because yes, as your weight decreases you burn less…

If you are getting gifts of food and looking for ways to get it out of the house, you can donate (unopened) boxes to local churches or food banks or you can gift them to neighbors, teachers, the fire/police departments, etc.

When you're adding up percentages to get to 100%, you have to consider the "other stuff" in your body too... the contents of your colon, water/blood/other liquids, your skin, etc. Therefore, I would say that 43.5% number is not all bones and organs.

Yes, you can certainly hold "leftover" calories over for another day, or not use them at all if you are eating nutritious, satisfying food and just not hungry any more that day. Many people do this when they have an event coming up where they know they'll want to consume more. Our bodies don't have 24-hour limits on…

I'm "happy with my weight" because I got to a point where I don't want to be any smaller or any bigger. I'm not happy with my body composition or how it looks naked, but I have accepted that it is what it is because at this point I'm not willing to do what it would take to change those.

I think your cost-benefit association for the one time events absolutely holds true for me when I'm eating things because I'm hungry and they are there (rather than because they are part of my daily plan). However, saying that using a painful or expensive or exhausting workout to raise the cost doesn't work for me because…

Short answer: Tell them you're done and then do what you want. Longer version: My mother was telling me I was too thin (after a 65 pound loss) but I wasn't sure I was done yet. I increased my calories a bit and told her, "It's okay, Mom. I've increased my calories. You don't have to worry." And then I proceeded to slowly…

Super strict is extremely hard to maintain during the living of your life. It is great that you are feeling highly motivated. I suggest finding ways to incorporate habits that you can stick to without feeling deprived. That is likely to lead to better long-term results than a very restrictive short-term "diet". You also…

I had someone complement me on my progress and ask the same, "How did you do it?" I answered simply, "I ate less and walked more." He got this disappointed look on his face. I think for some of us when we really aren't ready to make a change for life, a quick-fix or gimmick that allows us to keep doing what we've been…

My advice is to log it. The calories still count even if you don't, and pretending you didn't eat them isn't going to help. I'd been gradually loosening up and letting myself eat up to 200 calories over maintenance several days per week. Then one day last week I ate 800 calories over maintenance. Seeing that number shocked…

If you are not already using one, getting a weight trending app might help ease the anxiety about the weight "suddenly" sneaking back on and watching the results of variations in your routine (eating more calories, eating more salt, drinking less water, etc). The trend line shows which direction your weight is heading over…

1 pound of fat is roughly 3,500 calories. So if you eat 100 calories over maintenance 35 times without burning any of them, you may gain 1 pound. I say "may" because calorie amounts are estimates and it might take more or less than that, depending on how accurate all of your entries are for both eaten and burned.

In my perspective, there are three groups of people that have successfully lost weight: 1) those that have maintained their loss (often for years) but don't have to count calories most days. They have a pre-determined weight range that is acceptable and they regularly weigh themselves (or check the fit of some non-stretchy…

I'm fortunate in that there are only a very few people in my life who feel the desire to comment on my changed body. I didn't lose weight for anyone but me, and I didn't discuss it in any but the most minimal way. For example, if someone offered me a brownie at a office meeting, I would say that I was working to get…

For me, the simple way to not gain back the weight I lost is to keep logging my food/calories and weighing every day, taking action (reducing calories) if I gain a few pounds. I spent 30 years being overweight and hating my body and trying to find clothing that looked/fit decent. Then I started with MFP (calorie counting)…

You may want to post in the Losing Weight section rather than the Success Stories section. Congratulations on your success so far. Perhaps pre-plan some snacks for when you pick up the kids and get the urge to eat so that you already know what is on your plan and you can feel more in control? That helps me.

Welcome, Lena. Weigh and log everything. It works.

Have you updated your current weight in MFP so it is calculating your daily calories on your current size and not 80 pounds heavier? What is your height/weight/current daily intake?

It doesn't matter if she plans to keep eating 1200-1250 calories forever. But if she wants to slow her rate of loss or have a better estimate of maintenance calories or if someone else who is eating more calories reads this post, having the right weight DOES matter. For example, if a woman is eating 1750 calories and…

You should be updating your current weight in MFP every 10 pounds or so. This will keep your calorie amounts appropriate for your new body size (as we burn less calories the lighter we are). Under My Home>Goals>View Guided Setup (on the website) you can leave your starting weight the same, but enter your current weight and…

All of the above, and also that while you are in those months and months of 100 calorie deficit, you will have to be extremely precise in your weighing of food and database choices because it is VERY easy to eat 100 calories more than you think on any given day.

Agree. You had a rough day but you stayed with your plan to measure and log and in the end you found out that it wasn't a lot of calories over and feel better now. Compare that to folks who have a rough day and start eating off their plan, stop logging, and give up or wipe out their entire weekly deficit and don't even…

From the Help section: Home > General Questions / Getting Started > Can I reset my account data? Can I reset my account data? There is not currently a data reset feature available for the program. We will definitely consider making this option available in a future update. Our recommended option is to reset your starting…

I am told that, at least in the United States, the companies can be off by up to 20% as long as the error is "in favor of the consumer" (meaning that there is more in the package than they claim, not less). This is why if you are working with a small calorie deficit you really should weigh everything--even packaged foods,…

I've been maintaining my 68 pound loss for only about 1 month. I mentioned to my mother (who is also using MFP to lose weight) that I'm feeling like weighing my food this week is a burden I wish I didn't have to deal with. She replied, "Now that you've lost the weight and know about portions you don't have to weigh your…

While water poisoning is real, it is unlikely that a normally healthy individual drinking during the course of a day will experience it because the problem is largely about drinking more than you can excrete or having a significant electrolyte or blood sodium imbalance. From Scientific American:…

I use a 16 ounce cup (so I only have to get through 4 which somehow feels like less!). I drink one before breakfast since I'm usually thirsty upon waking. Then i drink two more over the 8 hours I'm at work, and only have to drink one more between getting home and going to bed. As you say, I rarely drink anything else, so…

I just saw this one: You can only burn 200 calories in exercise per day. After that your body slows down or stops other processes to compensate for any additional burn. I liked the other person's response. So on my 50 mile bike ride, the first 7 miles energy came from my body, and the last 43 came from magic. :)

I can accurately count my calories using just my eyes. I don't need to weigh my food because I know how much I'm eating. Therefore, the reason I'm not losing weight must be a medical condition that no one (including me or my doctor) has ever heard of.

How many calories were you eating when you were maintaining your weight compared to now? How much of a deficit are you using now? What was your goal weight range during maintenance compared to now? If your weight range was more than 2 pounds either way, how do you know you've made no progress? Are you using a weight…