It seems all the diet formulas out there are for people 20-40 lbs overweight. I'm sure these formulas can't work for me. I use fitday.com So how many calories should I eat? I know a lot of you don't eat much.. like 1400 or1600 calories. I really think, for me, that's not enough.
I think some days I ate as much as 3000 calories.... but I was gaining then.
It's so hard to come up with a number. What success have all you big time losers had?
Well I am one that ate a very low amount of calories.
1000 calories a day.. I did not start out at 1000 calories a day.
The only thing I can say is just play with it.. Listen to your body.
I eat when I am hungry. In fact I am eating all the time at 1000 calories a day.
But I eat things that is very low in calories.
I always eat a good meal at night... During the day I eat steamed veggies.. canned veggies..boiled egg.. Can of tuna packed in water.
I will say I love these foods so it is easy for me.
Very low calories is not for everybody..
I did talk with my Dr. about my diet. He did not like my 1000 calories plan but after I told him what all I was eating he was a little more relaxed with it.
We go to church with my Dr. so he was always keeping a watch on me..
Just keep playing with your diet and you will figure out what works for you.
I've had success with 1600-1800 (but I'm also heavier than you). It really depends on your own metabolism and how much your exercising. If 1400-1600 is not enough for you, just try a higher amount (like 1800-2000) and see what happens. You can always make adjustments until you find what works for you.
I do well with 1800 calories. I'm glad that you are not wanting to go low. I agree with starting at 1800 and take it from there. You might need to go more like 1600 to lose. But every body is different. It also depends alot on how much you are exercising.
I am always looking for ways to cut back calories. I'll skip a snack here, eat 1/2 of something there. My Max is 1800, but if I come in under, I just consider it bonus! My only thing is that I am never hungry.
Charbar - I love your blog! So sweet! I used to write letters to my "future children" when I was a little kid. I wish now (that I have 2 kids) that I would have kept them. Oh well. I guess it's never too late to start.
As for your question about calories, there is a website you can go to and put in your age, height, and weight and it will calculate how many calories you should eat for weight maintenance, fat loss, and extreme fat loss.
I don't think I'm allowed to post a link here, but if you'll private message me, I'll send it to you.
Depending on your exercise each day youour current weight and the amount of muscleyou have, you probably can get away with a higher level of calorie intake and still drop pounds. Most people do have to lower this daily intake as they lose weight so the scales won't stop. Currently, I consume approximately 2000 calories a day and I walk for 45-60 minutes a day. I'm not hungry at all and I lost 5 lbs last week. I havent been on my plan long enough to really know if this amount of calories will work for long, but I'm happy now. You might have to experiment a bit to find your range. Most diets have ranges anywhere from 1200 to 2400 a day.
Thanks ladies! I don't really do any exerice right now at all. I'm thinking of starting at 2000 (which for me is still a dramatic change).. maybe do that for a month (which would still be amazing in it's self) and maybe adjust then.
It seems like I want all the answers right now. I think the answer for the next month should be good enough. (I'm a bit of a control freak!) Baby steps, Dana, baby steps!! :baby:
I eat 1800 a day. I'm usually not hungry with that amount. If you find yourself really hungry on that amount then you may want to take a closer look at what you are eating. I try and get a least 5 fruits or vegetables a day. I eat around 300 calories for breakfast, 200 for a mid morning snack, 400 for lunch 200 for afternoon snack 500 for dinner and 200 for a nighttime snack. Sometimes I break that up different but you get the idea. I'm never far from eating. I eat about every 2 to 3 hours.
I am just like you.. I want all the answers ( YESTERDAY would not be soon enough for me) HAHA
I think you have the right idea.. Baby steps..One day at a time...
I also love the letters to your son..
They are gone before you know it.
ENJOY THIS TIME...
My oldest is 18 and will be going to college next year. He wants to go 7 hours away.. I am stressing over this..
He was one of the reasons I wanted to take the weight off..
Feb 2006. I knew his senior year was coming up and we would be taking lots of pictures and I wanted to look good for them..
If I had not lost the weight I would have probably not let anyone take a picture of me.
Now I can wear all his clothes.. It is WONDERFUL..!!!
I really try not to go above 1800 calories but some days I do. I eat around 1400-1500 calories most days. Some days I go to less than that. When I was over 300 lbs, I could eat 2000 lbs and lose but that is no longer the case for me.
Trial and error! If I eat more than, I don't know, 1600 or so, I don't lose... even doing an hour of cardio per day. For a long time I was frustrated because I'd eat so well and exercise and NOTHING would happen. Turns out I was just eating tooo much and sneaking in bites here and there. Now I write everything down and I try to stay below 1500. Listen to your body and see what works for you.. I'm sure it will change over time.
Hi, I see that we are the same height. Not too many 5 footers around, kind of just one more obstacle to overcome. We can't eat as much as a taller person , there's less room to store it. Oh well, nothing we could do about genetics.
I know you probably don't want to hear this but I usually stick to around 1200, although I have had plenty of 1400 days as well. And I do exercise. But like somebody said, it is trial and error.
I try to make those calories really count. Fiber, veggies and protein are quite filling. I eat my 3 meals a day and 2 snacks, eating every 2 -3 hours, like Howie, and drink lots and lots of water, so I'm never hungry. The first 2 -3 weeks were the most difficult and then the hunger pangs stopped as did the cravings. You really would be surprised to see just how satisfied you could be on this amount of food. I had a bottomless pit of an appetite. Not anymore.
That is a great way to do it, Howie. Would you (or anyone else!) mind giving a few ideas of some filling snacks and/or foods? It seems I'm always running out of calories before I feel satisfied, so I know I'm not eating "quality calories." Any tips or hints? I'm getting rather frustrated with spending all my calories and still feeling like I could eat a horse! Thanks!!
Ritzyfritz, hang in there and give it some time. I needed about three weeks to get used to the lower calorie intatke. Who even knows how much I was eating before this? I don't even want to try and figure it out. We're talking big numbers, BIG.
Some low cal, filling snacks:
-2 skinny 17 calorie multi grain rice cakes w/1 tsp peanut butter
-Danon fit and free 60 calorie fat free, sugar free yogurt - very good
-jello fat free, sugar free 60 calorie puddings. Yummy. Sometimes I slice up some strawberries in it and add some fat free cool whiip
-a huge bowl of veggies, steamed
-cucumber slices with a 3 oz can of tuna in water
-not my favorite, but some people like a slice of fat free or low fat cheese
-also something I'll never eat - cottage cheese and berries
-sugar free hot cocoa
-15 pistachio nuts
-1 cup low calorie cereal, dry
-a 3 egg white omlette with veggies if you like, like spinach
First off I find starting with protien in the morning really helps me to stay full. So I have and egg sandwich with cheese and canadian bacon for breakfast. I fry it in cooking spray and only use one slice of bread for the toast. I get a good whole grain bread so they are larger slices and I just cut it in half. That makes a 300 calorie sandwich. My snack in the morning is usually a serving of walnuts and a banana. Then for lunch I have something like a turkey sandwich on whole grain bread and another piece of fruit. My afternoon snack is usually fruit. Dinner is a number of things and then my night time snack is a serving of ice cream, yogurt and fruit or popcorn. Hope this helps. I try to eat protien and whole grains. It feels me up better. I don't try to eat good carbs but that is what my eating habits have ended up doing for me. I also stay away from all the diet foods. I use real cheese just less of it. About the only thing I do buy low fat is milk and yogurt because I like them.
how many calories should an obese person eat?
, there's less room to store it. Oh well, nothing we could do about genetics.
