How much should i really be eating?

I've tried so many different numbers.

1600,1800, 1900, 2000, 2200.

Nothing, zip, nada, zilch.

Im 5'5", weigh 185 lbs. Im 18, workout 5 sometimes 6 times a week for an hour. burning about 500-700 cals at the gym. I walk a bit in school, not too much, maybe about a mile summed up.

I lift weights 2 times a week, recently its been less, since my muscles have been fatigued, i could only do 5 minutes on the elliptical yesterday because of my theighs couldnt handle it that day. So i sticked to the 'mill.

At home i sit on the computer or do homework. Not much activity.

I weigh my food, though i do not have a digital food scale, the wheel thing isnt too inaccurate, is it?

I use a HRM to determine my burn, it has a chest strap, its asks for height, weight, gender, walk stride, run stride, and age.

Im beat. No weightloss for almost 2 months. Im throwing my hands in the air and im desperate for some help.

I too have had this problem. I finally figured out that not only do I have to watch calorie intake, but I have to eat low glycemic in foods... nothing "white", white white bread, rice, pasta. All whole grains. Very limited sugar, watch for corn syrup in foods or other "hidden" sugars. I tried doing just the reduced calorie thing and it did not work. The calories I eat must also be GI friendly.

worth looking into

If you are consuming 1600 calories/day and burning 500 calories/day at the gym, you are only getting 1100 calories/day towards your BMR. Once you go below 1200/day fot the basal your body may go into "starvation" mode. lower your metabolism and you will stay the same or even gain. That could also explain your tremendous fatigue. Make sure you are getting good quality protein, lots of vegetables & fruit (at least 4 servings each/day), whole grain carbohydrates and lots of fiber.  

One of the big problems many people have is trying to lose too fast and they get into this trap.

That is to loose 1 lb a week with moderate exercise.  If you want to loose more youcan eat less I would not go under 1200-1400. 3500 calories = 1 lb so either by cutting a little more calories or doing more exercise you can loose more. You need to eat to loose, your metabolsim will store fat if you do not feed it, think of it as a fire and food is the log to keep it burning to full potential.  Make sur eyou eat good carbs and good fats.  Stay away from lots of sugars, sodium (salts) and simple carbs.  Eat fruits and veggies, lean meat (fish, chicken, turkey), whole grian breads and cerials.  I use vitamins and suppliments as well. To get the total nutrition I need. Nutrition is a hugh part of being healthy and weight loss and keeping the weight off.  That is why we are in the Health and wellness industry.  To take the mission for nutrition to the streets and help one person at a time! 

It sounds as if you are not eating enough each day to satisfy your basal metabolic needs. You need to eat 1200 cal/day + calories represented by the exercise you are doing or your body will go into "starvation" mode, your metabolism will slow down and you will stop losing or even begin gaining. Your lowered immunity should be a clear signal to you that you need better nutrition to meet your goals.

Have you seen a nutritionist or a doctor? There could be something else going on. My nineteen year-old daughter has struggled with her weight. She was a competitive swimmer in high school spending 2-3 hours in the pool a day, but she could not lose weight. We found out later that she has several medical issues including hypothyroid, ADD, and hypoglycemia. Once we addressed her medical conditions the weight fell into line.

We went to the doctor,  because of what seemed like minor  issues. She was a B+ student who struggled to stay focused in class. We saw a nutritionist and she had a lot of neurological testing for the ADD, but she now feels better and is better able to cope with school. The weight loss was a bonus. Sometimes the obvious thing is not the problem, it is just the result.

If you are working that hard and not getting anywhere, go see a medical professional. One thing my daughter had to give up was diet soda. The 0 calories may sound great, but the phosphorus in sodas (diet or sugared) slows your metabolism down. She also had to switch from cereal or bread for breakfast to protein. She has either a protein shake ( protein powder, water, a little yogurt and fruit) or chicken for breakfast.

Good Luck!

Eat protien after your work out to rejuvinate your muscles as well. A protien shake, protien bar ( be careful of the sugar content).  Read your labels.

I have similar numbers as you do and 1600 would be the maximum number of calories I could get away with and still lose at a discernible rate. Really, 13-1400 is more like it for me if I want to see two pounds per week. What I found helped when I did weight watchers was that when I fit in all of the veggie servings per day that were required I always kept the calories down in my losing range easily and without hunger. So, filling up on spicy hot V-8 juice and salads and hot vegetables made it not nearly so difficult. Weight watchers has a great zero point vegetable soup that helps too in cold weather. Make your calories as nutrient dense as possible as well. In between meals I take spirilina capsules ( it is a seaweed that is nutrient dense and curbs the hunger and it is actually really good for most people and keeps the blood sugar stable)  All these things help to keep the calories down.

1350 would be 2 lbs per week as 250 cals a day = 3500 per week.  I use the herbalife shakes with protien and total control which boosts my metabloism and curbs appitite, I take my muti vitamins, drink herbal tea concentrate and aloe and drink lots of water.  

Last year for Christmas I received a heart rate monitor.  I do over an hour a day aerobics.  The machines at the gym were telling me I was burning between 600 and 700 calories an hour.  I was so disappointed to find out that in fact I was only burning between 350 and 450. 

I started working out at Curves over a year ago, and started their weight management plan in February this year. Since January 2008, I have lost 20 pounds. I do the "high protein" weight management because I am less active than most people. (Do high carb if you are highly physically active, e.g. working out and doing physically demanding job.) I have recently switched to the high carb because I am working out and now have a job that requires me to be moving and on my feet a lot. The plan goes: 1200 calories for ONE WEEK, 1500 calories for THREE WEEKS, and then 2000-2500 for ONE MONTH. It has worked very well for me, and even during the cycles when my weight doesn't necessarily drop, the inches come off.  It's worked awesome for me, and I've recommended it to lots of people. The nice thing is that you don't necessarily have to give up any particular thing. It's all about your portions and making sure to have healthy snacks, like fruit or veggies, between meals. I was amazed how much I could eat, even at 1200 calories! Remember to also watch your carbs.

Original Post by diane1533:

Last year for Christmas I received a heart rate monitor.  I do over an hour a day aerobics.  The machines at the gym were telling me I was burning between 600 and 700 calories an hour.  I was so disappointed to find out that in fact I was only burning between 350 and 450. 

I can see why you're disappointed. The machines here tell me im burning either the same amount as my HRM, or the machine tells me im burning slightly less.

My BMR is 1672, about 2000 sedentary burn. and i've just cut down my exercise (to spend less time at the gym) to burning 500 when i go.

Not considering my age and weight, thats 2500. Eating 2000 a day should be fool-proof for me. And since im under 21, and have a BMI of 31, im sure im burning a bit more than 2500. Maybe 2700 or so.

2000 a day should be the magic number, i want to try this again..if THAT doesnt work, i need to go see my doctor..

Im getting a bodybugg next week, hope it could give me some more insight, i felt like i really needed one to tell me where i stand.

I feel your pain.  I too have been stuck, I think I'm at my "set point".  Anyway, I did buy the bodybugg and it's awaesome.  The only bad thing is once you see how much you are burning, you tend to eat a little more.  Thats been the case with me. On days where I'm burning over 2500, I tend to cheat. I've only lost 4lbs since using BB and its been 2 months.  I lost 14lbs on my own in 3 months, but then hit that plateau. I do recommend the BB, it is motivating to burn more.  Oh and the machines at the gym are not accurate with the burn.  Like one machine says I burn 12 calories per minute and when I check BB it was more like 8. Also on days when you feel sluggish, it reflects that as well.

I just popped your numbers in one of my calculators and it appears that you burn approximately 2500 calories per day, so to lose 1lb per week, you should be eating 2000 calories per day.  To see more loss, like 2lbs per week, you should shoot for 1500 per day.

a

Hello,

So sorry you are having this problem.  The same thing happens to me. . .

I watch my calories . . .work out like crazy . . . and don't lose weight.

Unfortunately the only thing that works for me is no processed foods . . . no sugar, only healthy carbs like veggies, meat, fruit and some dairy.  Every time I give up bread and sugar I lose weight.  It just sucks and is no fun.  Esp. giving up cereal.  But it works.  I lose about 10 lbs. a month everytime I go back to no processed foods (basically if you don't know what's in it  or where it came from you don't eat it . . .read the labels/or use the "rot" rule . . if it sits on the counter and never rots then it is not real food, it's processed.)  As for sugar I switched to Agave so that I can still have coffee.  I still lose weight when I use Agave.  Anyway, that's just my two cents . . .

Good luck!  Hope you bust through the plateau soon!!

ps. . .the only plus is when I eat no processed foods I seem to be able to eat as much as I want and still lose weight.  I don't weigh or measure or count anything.  I just eat when I am hungry.  It's hard to overindulge on apples or steak or avocados. 

Anyway . . .good luck!

Firstly, from my own experience, you need to up your calorie intake. For a woman, I would aim for 1500-1700 cals a day, counting EVERYTHING, even butter that goes into mashed potato, etc, etc. You need to consume enough for the body to be able to burn it. If you don't consume enough calories then your metabolism will slow down & your body will hold on to the last meal, because the body is not satisfied with minimal calories.

For fitness, I would recommend a plan I currently use, which works a treat. I spend 2 nights a week running for approximately 20 minutes. My heart rate goes over 80% of my Maximum Heart Rate, so when I run, it will tone my body up but it will burn carbohydrates in my body, not fat. So I then spend 3 days in the gym, doing HIIT (High Intensity Interval Training), for just 20 minutes. Look it up on Google. It's results are so much better than spending60-75 minutes in the gym every night. Doing this my Heart Rate speeds up & slows down continuously & burns my fat for hours after exercise too. I incorporate weights with this, which also burns fat.

Alternatively, if you want to not work as hard as you have to in 20 minutes doing HIIT, then you could spend 45 mins to an hour, in the gym 4 days a week, keeping your heart rate at 65-75% of your Maximum Heart Rate. This will burn fat & not carbs.

Also, be sure to eat healthy 6 days a week, with ONE Treat Day every week. Don't go overboard on it, but have a chocolate bar, have a takeaway every now & then, etc. This is very effective on a long-term basis too.

I feel your pain... I am in the exact same boat !!!  I am about to give up.

I am 54, 210 lbs.  5"3'.

I started seeing a Personal trainer 2 months ago, I faithfully workout with him 2 days a week, I get to the gym one more day a week to work out for an hour. Mostly weight training, some cardio and resistance.

I tracked everything I ate for weeks, I first noticed I at about 1,000 calories a day, I instantly changed that to be eating about 1,500 calories a day ( good foods) I never was a sweet or fried food,  or processed  or junk food eater.

After 8 weeks of this... working out with the trainer and watching everything I eatI have only lost 1 pound !!! No inches !!!

I pretty much follow weight watchers foods and recipes... doing about 23 points.

I eat breakfast, and only snack with fruits and veggies. I am not a big bread eater either....  what else can I do help !!! I am about to give up.

Read the thread about Metabolic types and take the test to see what ratio of nutrients you need.  Then try 1500 cal with no processed foods and see if that works.

I lost my last 10# by cutting out box cereal and just eating a steel cut oat mix for breakfast; homemade WW bread for store bought.

Good luck.

I think you definitely need to drop your calories.  What does CC say that you should eat per day?  There is a tool on here that estimates that for you.  I exercise 3 x a week, weigh 157, am 5'6 and eat between 1200-1500 calories a day.  1800 sounds like maintenance and when you're stuck at a "set point", working out as much as you do, calorie drop is the next thing to do as long as you aren't eating too low already.