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.

Sounds like you're trying hard but most people under estimate what they are eating. I was shocked when I first sat down and listed everything in a day with accurate portions. I thought I was in the 2000 to 3000 calorie range when I was well over 3000 everyday. Once I started charting accurately I was able to truely reduce my intake to match the calories I burn.

Original Post by healthisinplease:

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

It really does make a big difference. I bought this little one on ebay about a year ago for dirt cheap and it's worked like a charm ever since. It's sorta small but I use a plastic 1cup measuring cup, hit the 'tare' button and then weigh the food. There's a bunch of other ones too that are inexpensive. Try it, you'll be surprised what a difference it makes!

http://cgi.ebay.com/500g-0-1g-Diamond-Digital -Weighing-Scale-Pocket-Scale_W0QQitemZ1703955 14314QQcmdZViewItemQQptZLH_DefaultDomain_0?ha sh=item27ac5d35ca

Oh, i just ordered that same scale on ebay, hope its accurate! Man that was dirt cheap.

I dont think my food-weighing-skills are off  though, i weighed 1 dl of water (weighs 100 grams) and it weighed 100 grams on the food scale i have now.

So i dont see how i could be underestimating my food intake.

Any more views?

Yes,

Unfortunately I share the same disgrace that you are on.

The thing is, I am 95% sure about what I eat and how much I intake, what I do not know is how much I really burn.

For that, I posted yesterday for some advice and so far no good has come out of it.

Sorry for not bringing you light, but you are not alone.

What is you take on my post?

Ok, I need some support here.

I have signed on CC first time last February, the 19th. So far so good, with ups and downs, plateaus, etc, etc, etc.

Late April when my first plateau hit me I was told I had to work out, otherwise I would never reach my goal. Fair enough.

I joined the gym with no will power whatsoever, (I just don't like it!). Few weeks later a personal trainer hooked me and since then I have her once a week.

Those are my test results so far:

22/05/09 16/06/09 30/07/09 21/10/09 total loss

weight 85kg 85kg 81kg 78,5kg 6.5kg

body fat 39.66% 39% 38.3% 36.81% 2.85%

back 44cm 43cm 41cm 40.5cm 3.5cm

chest 109cm 109cm 107cm 106cm 3cm

arms R 32, L 32cm 30.5 ,30.5cm 30, 30cm 29,28cm 3,5cm

waist 98cm 93cm 90cm 87cm 11cm

abdomen 114cm 113cm 106cm 107cm 7cm

hips 120cm 114cm 111cm 104cm 16cm

upper legs R 64, L 64cm 62, 62cm 60, 60cm 60, 60cm 4cm

all over the body: 48cm

PS. I work out 6,5 days a week, average 75minutes

My first goal when I start the gym was: reduce body fat to 23%, improve posture and loose 15kg (CC says 20kg and I disagree).

Average calorie intake:

Feb 1420

Mar 1148

Apr 1414

May 1185

Jun 1323

Jul   1401

Aug 1426

Sep 1255

Oct 1318

The question is: Is it good enough?

Honestly, I have no idea. Worst, I found a trigger which is way too naughty, but it works.

Have done it for the second time already, I go way under the 1200c ... lets say 800c a day for a week or so and it works wonders!!! The side effect is: I always come down with something, normally a cold.

Have started the kellogg's 2 meals a day a week ago and do not sleep for 3 nights, coughing and cold. All at once.

I am not really seeking recriminations or someone to tell me off because I am so stupid for doing that. I just want to know about you guys, how long does it take to get there? I have notice that you are all here for quite a long time, for that I am crying out loud

How long did you stick to each calorie range?

It took me a few weeks at the same calorie level to figure out what worked and what didn't. I'm 5'5 28 and was 186 in Feb. At lightly active I was eating about 1800 per day and the scale was moving.

I'm now 164 and find that 1600 works for me since the only exercise I do is walking. When my calories average out to around 2000 I don't lose at all. And it's weird, when I'm sticking to 1600 the scale will stay the same for like a week and then out of nowhere I'm 3lbs lighter and then sometimes it goes down a bit each day and then levels off... it'd be so much nicer if the deficit actually matched the scale at the end of the week but unfortunately it doesn't work that way.

Hi,  I looked at your profile and see you have already lost a lot of weight - congratulations. 

It isn't uncommon to hit a plateau.  I find taking a little break from the weight loss and enjoying a few weeks at maintenance calories can be helpful then get back to it.

Also try a new kind of exercise to give the body a bit of a shock, so for example if you usually use the elliptical trainer try a spin class or running. 

Do you take measurements as well as weighing yourself?   You do a lot of exericse so you might be losing fat and building muscle.  You may find you are losing inches even if the scale isn't moving in the right direction.

Original Post by ccassidy81:

How long did you stick to each calorie range?

Well i did 1600-1900 for the longest time. was losing slowly .5-1 lb a week. I ate 2000 cals for one week and lost 1.78 lbs. and i've been eating 2200 for about two weeks now, but i've had other factors such as recent "Theres no use, im not losing, whats the point in trying" -over indulgences. But this is the first week i've stuck to 2200 without getting off track, and not "made up for it" the next days by eating a bit less. But this weigh in will also be masked by my PMS water weight, so its like i can never get an accurate answer.

Original Post by louisehoward79:

Hi,  I looked at your profile and see you have already lost a lot of weight - congratulations. 

It isn't uncommon to hit a plateau.  I find taking a little break from the weight loss and enjoying a few weeks at maintenance calories can be helpful then get back to it.

Also try a new kind of exercise to give the body a bit of a shock, so for example if you usually use the elliptical trainer try a spin class or running. 

Do you take measurements as well as weighing yourself?   You do a lot of exericse so you might be losing fat and building muscle.  You may find you are losing inches even if the scale isn't moving in the right direction.

Thank you,.

But I do vary my exercise, if you read my journals, I just started jogging again. i dont just use one machine at the gym either..

I am aware of this "losing inches but not lbs" thing, and i WISH that was my problem. Thing is im not losing squat, period. No inches no lbs. An inch-half an inch here and there for the past 2 months, but thats it.

I think i've gone off track enough to kickstart my metabo again, haha. 4 days of complete over indulgence, no calorie counting, about 3500+ cals. Last night at about 3000 cals. I 've been zig zagging between highs and lows on accident on the days i ate to much, then sticking to 2200 otherwise, so my overall weeks average is 2200.

Can someone please give me advice on how much i should eat please?

I'm sure there are plenty of other members who can give you better advice but I don't think anyone can really give you a specific number, you'll have to figure that out on your own. If you were losing on 2000 then there's your starting point. Were you really hungry with that amount? If so, stick to 2200 for a couple more weeks and see how that goes.

Since you've lost a bit of weight already you may not continue to lose at the rate you were before. At least that's how it worked for me, but everyone is different.

I get what you're going through though, and it does suck. You want to make sure you're not over/under eating and not wasting time but it takes time to figure out that magic number. Huh. Catch 22 I guess. Anyway, good luck and TRY to be patient! It'll pay off in the end

Original Post by ccassidy81:

I'm sure there are plenty of other members who can give you better advice but I don't think anyone can really give you a specific number, you'll have to figure that out on your own. If you were losing on 2000 then there's your starting point. Were you really hungry with that amount? If so, stick to 2200 for a couple more weeks and see how that goes.

Since you've lost a bit of weight already you may not continue to lose at the rate you were before. At least that's how it worked for me, but everyone is different.

I get what you're going through though, and it does suck. You want to make sure you're not over/under eating and not wasting time but it takes time to figure out that magic number. Huh. Catch 22 I guess. Anyway, good luck and TRY to be patient! It'll pay off in the end

I've already wasted lots of time :( I would realistically be 178 by now. Im still stuck at 185. I just wish i could find that magical number. I noticed that since i started eating from 1600+ and at 2000, i was getting more hungry, and more satisfied at 2000 than less. Eating 2200 cals a day i dont feel hungry.

Im getting a BodyBugg and hopefully that will give me the insight i need, because at this point i have no idea how much im burning.

You may already be doing this but, based on what you've written, I suspect that you could be eating less calories if you ate smarter. My first advice would be to focus a little more on what kinds of foods you're eating. Even working out an hour a day, I am able to stay sated on way less than 2000-2200 calories by eating the right combination of food at the times of day that work best for my body. But, the reality is that sometimes you may have to trick your body into feeling full by eating a lot of things that have little or no calories several times a day or you're going to be hungry sometimes. You can't lose weight if you aren't eating at least a little less than your body needs.

I'm burning about 2500 calories a day and over the last month, I've been eating an average of 1900 on a 1700 calorie diet. I actually shoot for 1500 a day to try to make up for the days that I eat too much (I have an eating out addiction and little support at home). Despite some setbacks and poor choices, my diet has gotten better both calorie and nutrition-wise over time. I have been able to have 1400 calorie days where I haven't gone hungry at all, have had decent energy and have even put in a workout. Obviously, I try to recreate these days whenever possible.

Here's how I've been doing it: I found a website that lists the recommended daily nutritional intake for a 2000 calorie diet (http://www.netrition.com/rdi_page.html). My diet is more strict than this but I went through and figured out what percentages of each food I should be eating. So, regardless of whether I have a 2000 calorie day or a 1600 calorie day, I try to make certain that my diet is balanced correctly. Then, I tracked my menu and wrote down which breakfasts, lunches and dinners gave me the most energy or left me wanting.

Everyone is different but I figured out that if I have fruit and yogurt for breakfast, I need a snack before lunch and often still feel hungry. Fruit, yogurt and snack =  250 cals. But, if I have a bowl of cereal, I make it all the way to lunch on 150 cals and didn't see any difference in my energy level. Eat breakfast as early as possible and eat the same breakfast every day for a few days, and each day, wait until you get hungry again after that meal and write down the time.  After you do this for about three days, switch, and try eating a different food for breakfast for another couple of days- I do even better if I eat an egg for breakfast but choose not to eat so many calories that early because I work out in the afternoon and would rather have the extra protein (and calories) in my lunch instead. See if you can find a pattern or preference and try this with lunch or dinner, too. After doing this for a few weeks, I was able to compare the weeks that I lost the most weight with what types of things I was eating at the time.

Make lunch bigger than dinner and eat dinner early! You can always have a snack after dinner if you get hungry again.

On days that I don't work out, I shoot for 1400-1600 cals and on days that I do (always for an hour) I go for 1600-1800.  I don't always make my target but it's never because I'm hungry- only because I'm weak ;). I snack when I'm hungry between meals and never deny myself a snack...though sometimes I have to eat carrots or pickles instead of bread and honey.

1 lb of fat is equal to approximately 3500 calories. A person your age, height, and weight with a similar exercise schedule needs about 2300 calories a day http://www.nutritiondata.com/tools/calories-b urned). This means that you must eat less calories than that to lose weight. If you shoot for an 1800 calorie diet, you should lose weight at the average rate of 1 lb/wk. This is normal and healthy; the process just takes time.

Well, Congrats on your hard work! I'm sure you must have at least improved your fitness even if there isn't a loss recently. It does sound like you could be at a plateau. It is pretty hard sometimes to figure out exactly how many cals to eat and trial and error seems to be helpful but I suppose it also matters about how much how fast your trying to lose. I am 5'5' also (155 now) but I was about 185 in Feb this year. I have been trying to follow a 1750-1800 cals for me but it really is so subjective to the person about how much works for weight loss. I am wanting to lose 15 more lbs and working out 4-5x a week mostly running on the treadmill....and the loss is pretty slow..like ccassidy81 said I can go 2-3 weeks and stay the same and then suddenly be 3lbs lighter. If you have a deficit, even small then I would just try to hang in there and eventually somethings gotta give. I stayed in the 160s a long time this summer and then was finally able to break it. I think the most helpful thing for me has been the digital scale. As for how much cals you should eat I think what is helpful is to try a level that is a deficit but not too high because it has to be a manageable amount so you don't feel really hungry...If you were slowly losing before on the 1600-1900 range and if it was manageable maybe you could just try to go back to that again...also when i have had trouble with hunger sometimes i just try to eat foods with more volume (vegetables/soup/oatmeal/drink plenty water) Hope this advice isn't too repetitive....what is your goal weight? ....That is something I am unclear about for me...at first i was going for 145 now 140 and who knows, maybe i will change it again?

sorry if I have missed it somewhere but how old are you?  The tol I use to work out calories asks for age.

Original Post by louisehoward79:

sorry if I have missed it somewhere but how old are you?  The tol I use to work out calories asks for age.

Its in my post, im 18.

Sorry, so it does

Use this link I find it pretty accurate for my calorie allowance

http://www.phord.com/cc/

When ever I found someone on calorie count who gave their age, height, weight, calories they eat and how much they exercise, I have been keeping a copy.  Here is what I have so far:

44 YEARS OLD I am 5'3" I weigh 123 (never did) - I would love to get back to 110.  I eat 950 calories a day.  I walk 5 times a week...approx 4 miles - 45 min. (3.75 HOURS A WEEK)

At 67 years old, 5'2" and 110 pounds...I've found that 1100 calories per day keeps me where I need to be.  I've always been "active", but HATE structured exercise.  I do a lot of walking. 

I'm 66, 5'3", weigh 138, walk or go to gym most every day. 1250

69 YEARS OLD  calories of 1300 a day I  I use a recumbent bicycle.  I'm 5'7" now and weigh 171

I am eating between 1350 calories a day. 5 HOURS WEEK EXERCISE

Almost 42 years old, 5'3  133  1500/day, exercise hard 3x/week

5'5 28 years old 164 and find that 1600 works for me since the only exercise I do is walking

Me-48 YEARS OLD -I am 5'3".  I'm stuck at 135 pounds, eating 1600 calories average a day and exercizing average 70 minutes a day 7 days a week. (8 HOURS A WEEK)

I am 39 years old, am slightly overweight at 152 lbs, walk 4-5 x/week for about 45 minutes, and I maintain my weight on 1800 calories. (I'm 5' 4", which is the average height.) 3.3 HOURS A WEEK

I saw Dr. Oz on TV covering the plateau issue.  I loved his advice.  First to figure out how many calories you need to eat to MAINTAIN your present weight...take your weight times 8 and then add 200 and that is how many calories you need to maintain your weight...now for me...eat 300-400 calories less than that.  I lost 30 lbs...still want to lose alittle more so I have to eat LESS than what it took for me to lose that 30 lbs.  What I mean is you need less calories the less you weight.  You must change the number of calories you eat as you lose weight.   You must get a digital scale..I picked mine up at Target for about $20....and use the "tare" button, put the empty plate on it, press TARE and it will zero out the scale....I still use it constantly to keep myself honest.  Good luck!

For female, 5'5" 185 lbs your BMI is 31 your RMR is 1768, you should be consuming 1600 cal./week to loose 1 lb a week.  Your lean protien you should be consuming is 128 gms.  Eat 3 meals a day, breakfast is very important and 2 snacks.  Eat low fat dairy, high fiber grains and bread, plenty of water.  1/2 your body weight in ounces a day.

I did your numbers on my Herbalife site.  I am a distributor and user of the products.  We do weight loss challenges with people using all types of weight loss programs.  We teach good nutrition classes and have changed lives with just the education alone, not to mention the products some of our people use.

Just keep with it you'll reach your goals.

Original Post by mrb128:

For female, 5'5" 185 lbs your BMI is 31 your RMR is 1768, you should be consuming 1600 cal./week to loose 1 lb a week.  Your lean protien you should be consuming is 128 gms.  Eat 3 meals a day, breakfast is very important and 2 snacks.  Eat low fat dairy, high fiber grains and bread, plenty of water.  1/2 your body weight in ounces a day.

 

I did your numbers on my Herbalife site.  I am a distributor and user of the products.  We do weight loss challenges with people using all types of weight loss programs.  We teach good nutrition classes and have changed lives with just the education alone, not to mention the products some of our people use.

 

Just keep with it you'll reach your goals.

 

 

I have to consume 1600 calories a day even with all the exercise i do?