Caloric intake to lose 1 lb a week seems low, thoughts? page 2

[magpieoz]

One thing to keep in mind is that a good percentage of body fat for a woman is 20, although some people can reach 15 no problem. You might be very close to your ideal weight, so losing will be harder.

Yes, when I got down to 20% body fat at 120 lbs I didn't get my period for 4 mos... so that's no good either.

[sakura_girl]

Yes, when I got down to 20% body fat at 120 lbs I didn't get my period for 4 mos... so that's no good either.

+1 I was like this too, but back in college when I was doing extreme exercising and calorie restriction. Right now I'm going for the slow approach and hoping my body adjusts slowly downward so that the next time I hit 20% body fat, I won't lose it again.

[cayla29s]

I just finished reading Primal Blueprint and I am really excited to embrace the primal life. I am currently on Ideal Protein, but do not think this is a sustainable way to live. I did it for 4 mos this winter and lost 20lbs (went from 140-120), but I put back on 10 lbs when I went off of it, mostly from drinking and not knowing what to eat and how to eat with normal non-packaged foods.

So I went back on Ideal Protein (Our Doctor Derived Weight Loss Program Provides You with a Diet that Really Works) for September and I am getting very lame results, basically none. I want to change to primal eating, but I the calorie intake is still really low and I feel like without the weekly check in I get at the center I may over do it.

My body fat % is around 23%, I calculated my caloric intake assuming it was 25% because I know the scale is not that accurate.

This is the breakdown:
BMR: 655 + (567.3) + (24.8) - (164.5) = 1082.3
BMR + Activity: 1082.3 x1.375 = 1488 calories/day for me.
Subtracting 500 a day for the 3500 calorie deficit equals a total of 988 calories a day to lose 1 lb a week
Protein: 68 grams 273 cals
Carbs: 50 grams 200 cals
Fat: 73.5 grams 515 cals

My question to you is does that seem really low? Do you think I could get away with more calories in fat or protein and keep the carbs low. Maybe I just need to play with it, but I thought you may have some thoughts. I am lifting 1-2 times a week and walking about 25-40 mins a day (to and from work). I am sprinting about every 10 days. Tending towards the lower side of those ranges as I am eating so little right now.

I'd be really excited to hear any insight you might have. Or maybe there is a person who is similar to me that you can point me to. I am 35, 5'3", big skier, desk job, 130 lbs, Body fat % about 23%.

Feel free to share this out with a reply, I just couldn't figure out how to post a new thread!

THANKS!!

yes that seems rather low in my opinion but since you plugged in a moderate type of activity it will automatically give you an estimated daily caloric intake. When I was 130 lbs at 5'2 I ate about 1600 + calories on a daily basis but with the BMR + 1.55 activity level. This is on a calorie deficit. I was losing bodyfat for a while then I stalled and moved over to paleo and since then I dropped 11 lbs. I still eat about 1500 calories daily if not more and I'm currently 119 lbs.

[magpieoz]

yes that seems rather low in my opinion but since you plugged in a moderate type of activity it will automatically give you an estimated daily caloric intake. When I was 130 lbs at 5'2 I ate about 1600 + calories on a daily basis but with the BMR + 1.55 activity level. This is on a calorie deficit. I was losing bodyfat for a while then I stalled and moved over to paleo and since then I dropped 11 lbs. I still eat about 1500 calories daily if not more and I'm currently 119 lbs.

What are you doing for exercise? Are you following the primal plan? I'd be curious to see how much you move and if you lose just eating paleo or is the exercise the thing that help get you down not just the paleo.

[cayla29s]

What are you doing for exercise? Are you following the primal plan? I'd be curious to see how much you move and if you lose just eating paleo or is the exercise the thing that help get you down not just the paleo.

I lift weights 2 or 3 a week, sprint once or steady state depending oh how I feel. Lately I have been just working out randomly when ever I feel rested enough to exercise. Honestly, I don't follow the primal plan. I work out the way I have always done it but I just change my routine every 4 weeks or so. I don't have an active job either but I do walk to wherever I need to go most of the time.

I watch what I eat. If I want to drop fat I count calories but some days I don't. Regardless whether I count calories or not I try to eat as paleo as possible. The thing that made me drop weight faster without stalling for weeks is switching to paleo. I would not even say I eat low carb as I eat above 100 g of carbs most days. Before paleo I always felt hungry for some reason but now I could go on for 6 hrs without having to snack.

[magpieoz]

I lift weights 2 or 3 a week, sprint once or steady state depending oh how I feel. Lately I have been just working out randomly when ever I feel rested enough to exercise. Honestly, I don't follow the primal plan. I work out the way I have always done it but I just change my routine every 4 weeks or so. I don't have an active job either but I do walk to wherever I need to go most of the time.

I watch what I eat. If I want to drop fat I count calories but some days I don't. Regardless whether I count calories or not I try to eat as paleo as possible. The thing that made me drop weight faster without stalling for weeks is switching to paleo. I would not even say I eat low carb as I eat above 100 g of carbs most days. Before paleo I always felt hungry for some reason but now I could go on for 6 hrs without having to snack.

This is really helpful, thanks. I feel like we're on similar programs except I haven't gone fully paleo. I am still on ideal protein, but plan to commit next week. Do you drink at all? I think that is a biggie for me, I have to cut out wine when I want to lose, or booze in general. Also do you allow any fruit or yogurt? I am obsessed with plain greek yogurt, but if I have it in the house I eat it so thinking I can't have it in the house. Same with nuts and nut butter and dark chocolate and fruit for that matter. hahaha. will power is a little tough.

[john_e_turner_ii]

Based on my calculating method, and factoring in an estimate for your activity, your maintenance calories would be around 1750 per day. My suggestion for people that are cutting would be to try alternate caloric intakes based on your training days. If you are doing heavy weight training three days per week, then make those your higher calorie and carb days. For example, you could eat about 1900 calories on those days, with higher carbs and lower fat. The other four days keep it lower carb, higher fat and around 1100-1200.

There is no need to cut out fruit. However, nut butters and dairy are very calorie dense. You don't have to cut them out, but you need to limit them quite a bit. If you want to feel full while cutting, then eat a lot of vegetables and fruits with meats. You would surprised to find that you can eat a huge meal with about 8 ounces of beef, lofs of vegetables and some fruit for dessert. Give it 3-4 weeks to see if you have any progress. If not, then adjust it a bit until you see some changes with the measuring tape.

I losing fat right now with this:

On my workout days I eat almost two pounds of sweet potatoes, couple pieces of fruit and 24 ounces of leaner meat and/or chicken, along with over a pound of various vegetables in the mix.

My rest days I have much lower carbs, but I still eat almost two pounds of meat/chicken/fish, tons of veggies and a few pieces of fruit.

As you can see, I eat fruit on a daily basis. No need to fear carbs or fructose, unless you are particularly sensitive. However, I do not do dairy anymore, mainly because I feel better without it. I just use butter when I cook, but that's it.

[magpieoz]

Based on my calculating method, and factoring in an estimate for your activity, your maintenance calories would be around 1750 per day.

Thank you so much! I can put away the meat, but I was concerned I was over doing it and it does add to my calorie count.

Can I ask how you got the 1750/day for maintenance? Did you do a different calculation or use a higher activity level?

[john_e_turner_ii]

Thank you so much! I can put away the meat, but I was concerned I was over doing it and it does add to my calorie count.

Can I ask how you got the 1750/day for maintenance? Did you do a different calculation or use a higher activity level?

I found a Leangains calculator online that was made for intermittent fasting. It's definitely not 100% accurate, but it it's a starting point.

[john_e_turner_ii]

If you remove activity level, your BMR would probably be around 1450, which it would put your average daily calorie reduction to around 950, which is about what you got. However, if you do as much activity as you say you do, then you probably should eat more than 950. I think 950 would be purely for a sedentary person that just sits around all day.