My Daily Plate says that I shoul eat 1601 calories per day to lose 2 lbs. per week. Very doable. What it doesn't ask is how long do I stay on 1601 calories per day because the calculator doesn't state for how long will that 2 lbs. per week weight loss last. My goal which is my high goal is 150 lbs. Would I be recalculating how many calories I need to eat at some point to get down to 150 lbs. or is this it where eating 1601 calories a day and losing 2 lbs. a week just drifts you down to an acceptable range? Kind of confused on this one.
You really have to play this stuff by ear. The Daily Plate recommendation is just a generalized recommendation--it may or may not work perfectly for you and it may or may not be enough for ever. Some people can lose all their weight on a consistent calorie intake, others have to adjust. The thing to keep in mind is that the reason TDP is recommending 1600 is because the calories you need to maintain your current weight is probably around 2600 a day. As you lose weight, your maintenance calories will drop also and so you will probably find that you need to adjust your calories downward to maintain the same rate of loss. It's very much trial and error though. You might find yourself losing too quickly or too slowly with 1600, but there's only one way to find out.
The basic principle of calorie counting is that 3500 calories = 1lb of fat. So you start by taking your current weight and figuring out the calories you need to maintain your current weight. Then you subtract 3500 calories per week per pound. So for a 2lb loss a week, you want a 7000 calorie deficit, which means a 1000 daily deficit (the deficit can come from extra exercise as well as food restriction). As you lose weight, your maintenance calories will also drop and so you'd either have to eat fewer calories or settle for a slower rate of loss.
But, it is important to keep in mind that all bodies are different and all this calorie stuff is fairly relative in the end. A faster metabolism, more activity, more muscle mass will all contribute to a higher basal metabolic rate (ie, number of calories your body needs each day to breathe, run your brain, let you wash dishes and sort laundry). So there is a scientific element to all of this and also a highly individual, trial-and-error element. It might take a little while for you to figure out what works best for you.
I guess nothing is clear cut lol. It's very baffling as to know what the calorie range should be. I figured there might be something I could follow other than points counts. Just to do something a bit different. To calculate points is a little bit of work but it's very complicated getting a lot of data to make those calcs. I know that Weight Watchers is coming out with new books so maybe I should just stick with that for a time.
I want to drop these last 80 or so pounds by next January , 2009. A little over a year and hopefully I'll just be on Maintenance and know what to do from there.
Calorie-counting is a great, sustainable way of approaching weight loss and a life of maintenance. It's flexible and, once you become accustomed to it, very easy. Start with 1600 a day, log your food, track your weight loss and see how you go. There's no need to have it all figured out from the get-go. Your body will let you know what it needs.
Just because Daily Plate, or whatever website, tells you that you need 1600 calories a day, doesn't mean that it is true. It is a "guestimate".
You might eat 1600 a day, and find that you are losing too quickly (over 3 pounds per week...) and that you need to up it a tad, or you could find out that eating 1600 doesn't give you a loss.
Basically, it is trial and error. Start at 1600 for a week, and see if you have a loss. 1-2 pounds a week is good. If you lose that, then 1600 is right for you. If not-adjust it up or down by 100 calories a day for the next week, and see what happens.
Once you have found the calorie level that works for you in the beginning, you only need to adjust it down when you stop losing weight. It might be 10 pounds down the line, or 15 or 20. Every body is different.
Also-remember that a calorie deficit is caused by not just eating less, but by moving more. If your weight loss slows, upping your exercise, or at least the intensity of it, is good to do as well, sometimes in place of dropping the calorie level every time you plateau.
I know I should ask this...
