I've been reading alot of different posts and some say to take in anywhere from 1200 to 1600 calories a day. Others say to take in a little more than your basil body otherwise you could stall your weight loss. According to the calculators my body uses about 1730 for basic functions. I was wondering which one I should go with. I was trying 1400 to 1500 calories a day before I got sick (which now I have to start all over). Should I be going with a higher caloric intake? Any advice is appreciated.
I've never heard of a recommendation to take in more than your basal (BMR) for weight loss. If you saw that it was probably a typo - unless it was referring to someone doing some serious athletic training, i.e. expending more than 1000-2000 calories/day exercising. Depending on your starting weight, 1400-1500 is probably about right. I try to stick to 1200-1400 but you generally have to take in less the closer you get to your goal.
Regardless of your starting weight, conventional wisdom says never to go below 1200 and most people will recommend that you go for an average # of calories/day as opposed to religiously sticking to a number in order to keep your body guessing as to how much fuel it's going to get in particular day. Theoretically, you should lose one lb/wk (which is a good sustainable goal) by eating 250 calories less than your BMR & exercising away 250 calories/day.
You are right, your BMR is what your body uses just to live -- that's the number of calories it would burn if you were to do nothing but lie completely still for 24 hours. There is another rate, your AMR, or active metabolic rate -- this is how many calories it takes for your body to do what it normally does every day. The idea behind safe weight loss is that you should eat LESS than your AMR but never less than your BMR.
I would just make sure that the number you have is truly your BMR and not your AMR. Some online calculators give you a number which is how much you should eat to lose weight (usually your AMR minus 250 calories), some give you your BMR and leave it up to you to figure out how much you should eat. Some (many) give you your AMR and CALL IT your BMR.
Did you use the 3FC calculator? If not, it is here: http://www.3fatchicks.com/diets/dcn.php. This number would be an AMR. You can take that number and cut 500 calories from it, OR you can cut 250 calories and ADD 250 calories worth of activity every day. That would be a very safe, effective way to start, then after a few weeks and the initial adjustment period is over, you might tweak it one way or another.
Always keep in mind that these numbers are just estimates -- of course it can't know your body's precise metabolism, nor measure exactly how much activity you do and how many calories that burns. They are just averages which assumes that your body has an average composition, no medical issues that affect metabolism, etc. etc. etc. They're good numbers to start with, but you may find you have to adjust up or down to get the right combo for you.
Hmmm.. the least amount of calories it said I was supposed to have was 2526... but that was with no activity.. with activities (I work out heavily) it was 2736.
I guess that's bad since I try to just eat 1200.
The absolute most I'd allow myself to eat right now would be 2000 calories.
Although the entire thread is worth reading, the link above starts at page 3 with responses from Meg and myself, based on our own personal experiences.
Thanks for the link.. now I won't have an "Excuse" to eat more (I could just see myself later tonight going "But the calculator said I could have more calories!" [munchmunchmunch])
I noticed that (for my weight), even leisurely swimming burns 800ish calories per hour. That's pretty awesome if its correct, because I swim almost every day
Your body needs approximately 4669 calories during a typical day, to maintain your current weight. To lose weight, reduce calorie intake and increase exercise.
Well that's frightening. Maybe I should give it a try.
All those calculators - whether metabolic or calories burned during exercise - are guesses, based on averages that might have nothing at all to do with YOUR body. Honestly, you'll drive yourself if you try to reduce weight loss to crunching numbers, especially because every calculator out there is going to give you DIFFERENT numbers to crunch.
Your body is going to lose weight at its own pace, taking its own good time. You might do everything exactly the same and lose five pounds one week and none the next. That's just the way it goes! Instead of worrying about the numbers, maybe try just picking a reasonable level of calories (maybe 10 or 11 times your goal weight?) and exercise for 60 to 90 minutes every day, per the latest government recommendations. Do a combination of cardio to burn calories and weight lifting to build muscle. Weigh yourself once a week and adjust your calories and exercise as necessary. This way you'll learn how YOUR unique body reacts to diet and exercise.
The pay-off for tuning into your body and its caloric needs is learning exactly what you'll be required to do to maintain your weight loss once you reach goal. You'll discover the magic combination of calorie input and exercise expenditure that lets you maintain your ideal weight. And that's the whole point of what we're all doing, right? Learning how to keep the weight off for life!!
I've never paid the slightest bit of attention to any of the calculators, whether it's the theoretical calories burned on a cardio machine or how many calories I can supposedly eat and maintain my weight (let me tell you, that number is so far off it isn't even funny ) I just track my calories, log my exercise, and weigh myself regularly. And when the scale goes up, I cut back on the calories and/or increase my exercise. Simple but quite effective.
I noticed that (for my weight), even leisurely swimming burns 800ish calories per hour. That's pretty awesome if its correct, because I swim almost every day
That site sounds really off to me. It said I can burn 120 calories by rollerblading for 5 minutes! LOL! I wish!
The best site I've seen so far for calculating calories burned is fitday.com.
You may want to consult your doctor or dietitian about this.
I was having a hard time losing despite restricting calories and my doctor sat down with me and we talked about food choices and about upping my calories slightly (I was between 900 and 1100). I was getting very frustrated with all the conflicting opinions and with my lack of success and since this I've started a lowGI plan at my doctor's suggestion and upped my calories (reasonably, not massively) and have been much more successful since.
Basically the calculators don't really work because they don't take into account highly efficient obese metabolisms and individual body quirks. So, it's really a matter of trial and error till you find out what works for you.
Also remember, it should be a caloric intake you can live with. Otherwise you will gain all the weight when you go back to eating like a human again.
It's always good to include your dr or dietician in your support circle.
You are right, your BMR is what your body uses just to live -- that's the number of calories it would burn if you were to do nothing but lie completely still for 24 hours. There is another rate, your AMR, or active metabolic rate -- this is how many calories it takes for your body to do what it normally does every day. The idea behind safe weight loss is that you should eat LESS than your AMR but never less than your BMR.
I would just make sure that the number you have is truly your BMR and not your AMR. Some online calculators give you a number which is how much you should eat to lose weight (usually your AMR minus 250 calories), some give you your BMR and leave it up to you to figure out how much you should eat. Some (many) give you your AMR and CALL IT your BMR.
Did you use the 3FC calculator? If not, it is here: http://www.3fatchicks.com/diets/dcn.php. This number would be an AMR. You can take that number and cut 500 calories from it, OR you can cut 250 calories and ADD 250 calories worth of activity every day. That would be a very safe, effective way to start, then after a few weeks and the initial adjustment period is over, you might tweak it one way or another.
Always keep in mind that these numbers are just estimates -- of course it can't know your body's precise metabolism, nor measure exactly how much activity you do and how many calories that burns. They are just averages which assumes that your body has an average composition, no medical issues that affect metabolism, etc. etc. etc. They're good numbers to start with, but you may find you have to adjust up or down to get the right combo for you.
The 3FC calculator tells me: "Your body needs approximately 2091 calories during a typical day, to maintain your current weight." This is A LOT MORE than a similar calculator did when I weigthed 14 pounds less (it was a scale with a calculator, you added sex, age, activity level). All this is making me very confused.
If 2091 would be my BMR, what is my AMR?
My daily intake is about 1150-1550 calories, and I do get a lot of exercise, but I'm not losing any weight...
I noticed that (for my weight), even leisurely swimming burns 800ish calories per hour. That's pretty awesome if its correct, because I swim almost every day
I don't even pay attention to those calculators (for either fitness or calorie intake).
And at least two trainers at my gym don't pay any nevermind to them either. One of my favorite classes at my new gym is the Saturday morning Spinning class, because it's a LOT harder than ANY spinning class I've taken over the past 7 years. By the end of the hour-long class, even with the air conditioning at full blast, the Spinning studio windows are steamed up Anyway...at the end of one class recently where we were all DEAD or DYING she asked us to guess how many calories we burnt during the hour. People were guessing 700...800...900...1,000 (!) I suppose based on the readings they get on the cardio machines.
Her response? Around 300! quite a few folks in the class couldn't believe that the number was so low!
Question about caloric intake
(I could just see myself later tonight going "But the calculator said I could have more calories!" [munchmunchmunch])
if you try to reduce weight loss to crunching numbers, especially because every calculator out there is going to give you DIFFERENT numbers to crunch. 
) I just track my calories, log my exercise, and weigh myself regularly. And when the scale goes up, I cut back on the calories and/or increase my exercise. Simple but quite effective. 
Anyway...at the end of one class recently where we were all DEAD or DYING she asked us to guess how many calories we burnt during the hour. People were guessing 700...800...900...1,000 (!) I suppose based on the readings they get on the cardio machines.
quite a few folks in the class couldn't believe that the number was so low!
