[gymrat05]

Hey everyone,

I lost a big chunk of weight (about 65lbs) calorie counting a few years ago and since then I have gained a lot back. I've got some medical issues I'm dealing with right now, which isn't helping, but I'm back to trying to count calories strictly and I just can't seem to find the sweet spot...

I'm 27, 5'7 (ish) and 185lbs right now. My lowest weight was 155lbs. I set my calories around 1500-1600 and workout with high intensity circuit training 3 days a week and moderate-high intensity cardio 2 days a week. I'm thinking of increasing my cardio.

My problems are two fold:

1) I never feel hungry and I definitely felt hungry when I lost the first time. Not starving, but that nagging little "I could eat more" feeling. And I was always ready for my next meal which would be within about 4 hours of the last one. I have no idea if my calories are too high or what, but I can't seem to make myself feel hungry.
2) Compliancy is an issue. I usually end up going over my calories a little and I don't know why. I used to undereat when I lost weight the first time (aim for around 1200 calories) but always "spilled over" a little. Now I can't seem to get myself back to eating below 1600-1700 calories. So there's obviously a psychological piece there...

Any thoughts on where I should set my calories? I always thought your BMR (without eating back any activity or exercise) was a good starting place, but I still don't feel hungry even when I'm compliant. Also, any tips on getting over this psychological hurdle and increasing compliance?

[faiora]

Your BMR is a good starting place, yes... but only if you find out your real BMR. The online calculators aren't accurate for everyone. If you find out your body fat percent, you can get a more accurate BMR reading from there based on your approximate lean mass.

As for not feeling hungry, could your medical issues have anything to do with it?

I think it's good you're counting calories even while you're going over. Keep recording your weight as well, and maybe chart it so you can get an idea of what the trend is. If you chart your average calorie intake and average approximate exercise calories alongside your weight, you might be able to tell what's going on.

Personally I like to eat the extra calories after exercise because it will even out my weight loss. But I'm trying to go slowly, and not everyone is.

Anyway, if you chart everything you should be able to tell whether your weight is still going up or down, but it will take at least two months in my experience to get a real picture of that. Some days I get on the scale and my weight is the same as it was 30 days ago... other days the scale says I'm down 6 pounds. So it's the trend that really matters, not the number compared to last month/week/whatever.

Tip: if you chart it in google sheets you can easily add a "Trend" line that will help analyze the chart.

I mean, you can find out your BMR accurately, but it might be better to figure out the trend because then you really know what your body's doing, not just what it SHOULD do. If you have medical stuff going on your body might not follow "the rules."

[gymrat05]

Thanks for the reply! I do know my BMR accurately as I had it tested with a metabolic cart. That being said, I've decided to take a break from calorie counting for the time being . I was just sick of playing around with it.

[faiora]

Originally Posted by gymrat05

I do know my BMR accurately as I had it tested with a metabolic cart.

Coooooooool. Where why and how?
I've had similar tests done with exercise for my heart and lung function, but I'm not sure they're the same thing...

Although I think it's important to note that this can change dramatically when you gain/lose weight, so unless your test was recent it might not apply anymore.

I don't think you're going to get a more accurate number than that to tell you how many calories you should eat. If you're sedentary you multiply the number by 1.2, Lightly active 1.375, Moderately active 1.55, very active 1.725, extreme 1.9. That gives you the number of calories to maintain your current weight.

To lose weight I think you subtract a total of 3500 calories per week for every pound you want to lose, so 500 calories a day to lose a pound in a week.