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04-30-2009, 03:21 PM
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#1
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Senior Member
Thread Starter
Join Date: Mar 2007
Posts: 575
Height: 5'3"
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Calorie counting
It seems that a lot of people on this board are calorie counting. Due to an athletic injury, I'm unable to work out at my previous activity level. So, I (obviously) can't eat as much, and was thinking about calorie counting.
How did you determine your daily caloric intake goals?
What are the best (prefereably free!) online tracking tools?
-FitDay is a bit of a pain in the butt.
Thanks!
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04-30-2009, 03:37 PM
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#2
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Senior Member
Join Date: Jan 2009
Location: Pacific Northwest
Posts: 2,088
Height: 5'11"
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I used to use FitDay, but now I use The Daily Plate. It's on the livestrong.com website. I find that TDP has more foods in it's database. You can also enter in your weight, age and activity level and it will tell you how many calories you can/should eat. Be aware that this is just a good estimated starting point; some people find they have to adjust their calories up or down to lose. But it has been pretty accurate for me.
Best of luck!
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04-30-2009, 04:15 PM
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#3
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Heidi
Join Date: Feb 2009
Location: Pittsburgh
Posts: 2,963
S/C/G: 204.5/149/153
Height: 5'7"
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I determined my intake goals by trial and error. I learned that I wasn't eating enough and have slowly increased to between 1300 - 1500 calories per day, depending on whether I exercise. I may try to bump the range up even 100 cal more (1400 - 1600) to see what happens.
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04-30-2009, 04:27 PM
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#4
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Senior Member
Join Date: May 2007
Posts: 2,158
S/C/G: 175-180/ 120-125
Height: 5'7
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I use FitDay. I set my activity level to sedentary and use the Miffin equation as opposed to the Harris-Benedict (you can edit these on the "home" tab) because it is a little less forgiving.
Then, I just enter in whatever activities I've done throughout the day and for how long.
I find this is pretty accurate, as I did successfully lose fifty pounds. I gained ten back, but that was my own fault
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04-30-2009, 04:28 PM
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#5
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Senior Member
Join Date: Jan 2006
Location: Ohio, USA
Posts: 4,508
S/C/G: 188/185/164
Height: 5'8"
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Whatever you do, do not go below 1200 calories. Your body needs at least that much to function well.
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05-01-2009, 09:29 AM
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#6
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Sunshinez28
Join Date: Apr 2009
Location: Fort Pierce
Posts: 27
S/C/G: 155/148/140
Height: 5'5
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I am also a big fan of The Daily Plate.. I tried the other Fitday.. and it was complicated and alot of my foods weren't there.. and TDP has most of them.. I also consume between 1400-1500 calories a day... But I have stopped losing weight.. very discouraging with all the exercise that I do... uuummm
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05-01-2009, 10:19 AM
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#7
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Senior Member
Join Date: Feb 2009
Posts: 633
Height: 5'6"
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I use myfitnesspal (dot) com
If there isn't a food listed then there is an option to enter it in. It also have a diary for exercise, and general notes that some of the other sites don't have.
I actually print it out and take my entries to my dietician every month. It tracks calories, carbs, proteins, etc. and she really likes the lay out.
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05-01-2009, 10:30 AM
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#8
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Member
Join Date: Apr 2009
Location: Not in my old body....
Posts: 79
S/C/G: 201 / 188 / 160
Height: 5'9"
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When I did count calories, I used caloriecount.com....there is a place to determine your amount needed a day.
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05-01-2009, 01:36 PM
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#9
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Senior Member
Thread Starter
Join Date: Mar 2007
Posts: 575
Height: 5'3"
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Thanks, everyone!
I started using The Daily Plate yesterday and really like it.
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05-02-2009, 02:39 PM
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#10
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Junior Member
Join Date: Apr 2009
Posts: 9
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Just eat 6 times a day, 3 meals and 3 snacks, and drink plenty of water....and you'll be fine..just make sure it healthy meals and snacks..
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05-02-2009, 02:56 PM
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#11
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Senior Member
Join Date: Mar 2008
Location: Wisconsin
Posts: 188
S/C/G: 205/185/135
Height: 5ft5
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I like Fitday but think you should use whatever works. I am just starting to track my calories again. Hope we are all successful!
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05-02-2009, 04:34 PM
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#12
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Member
Join Date: Apr 2009
Location: on an island.
Posts: 51
S/C/G: 205/159/140
Height: 5'7"
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I started using the DailyPlate too, I love it
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05-02-2009, 05:00 PM
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#13
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Senior Member
Join Date: Oct 2008
Posts: 5,629
S/C/G: HW/232 SW 215/ CW 133/GW 120's
Height: 5.7 and 1/2
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rachin,
I see you don't have very much to lose. I would recommend probably 1400 to begin in addition to getting more movement. See where that gets you two weeks down the road. I did not go by any online calculators. I try for nutrient dense, low-cal foods and just judge by how my measurements and scale are going.
Calorie counting has been a GOD send for me. I love it. The thing I love about it most--well there are several:
1. Flexibility---you can eat as you like as long as you build it in to your day
2. Cheap---fits any budget
3. No Special Foods---eat like the rest of your family
4. Educational---retrains your brain to see what a portion looks like/feels like, helps you make decisions when at restaurants or dining at a friends
5. Long-term completely DOABLE---doesn't depend on mail delivery, doesn't depend on a physician or nutritionist, doesn't depend on a meeting...etc.----completely INTERNAL---it's all about YOU!
Last edited by Thighs Be Gone; 05-02-2009 at 05:05 PM.
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05-03-2009, 06:39 PM
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#14
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Senior Member
Join Date: Sep 1999
Posts: 521
S/C/G: 297/256/not sure
Height: 5' 2"
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Tracking on Spark People dot com is quite easy too.
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05-03-2009, 08:06 PM
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#15
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Senior Member
Thread Starter
Join Date: Mar 2007
Posts: 575
Height: 5'3"
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dwizzlex: Just eating 3 meals and 3 snacks never works for me. I'm very numbers-oriented and naturally obsess about nutrional info.
TBG: Unfortunately, upping my exercise is a problem right now. I'm weight training, but my cardio has been nil for the past 6-8 weeks due to a pretty serious calf injury. I went from exercising 6-8 hours a week to almost zero and put on 5lbs, seemingly overnight.
Until I get get my activity level back to what I consider an acceptable and maintainable level, I'm trying to be very careful about what I put in my mouth.
Thanks!
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