Confused about daily calorie limit?

12 week plan says 1400 cals a day but bmi calculator says 1800 a day. Which one should I follow?

[ScoobaSteve]

I go middle ground at 1600

[Hidden]

My dietician said 1400 plus 1 litre of milk 1500. If that helps

[shogg]

i tryed 1400 then stop,d losing and was told i was,nt having enough and my body went into shut down so i up,d it about 400 cals and put weight on its a right pain lol plus how can they say 1400 when some ppl like me have to lose over half there body weight so how can it be the same as someone who only needs to lose 3 stone say??? if they say you need to lose 1 to 2lb a week to give you the best chance to keep it off for good i,m sure i would be losing it faster than someone half my weight so if thats right it would,nt be good for me??? now i,m so lost lol

[Hidden in reply to shogg]

So what is your BMI calculation of calories and you weight? I am over 16st and BMI calories is 1800-1947

[shogg in reply to Hidden]

my bmi is 51 calories says 2418-3109 24 stone

[Hidden in reply to shogg]

Have you been to dietician?

[shogg in reply to Hidden]

no doctor just tell me to see the nurse not much help

[Hidden in reply to shogg]

Is it worth asking the dr to refer you to a dietician who can give you the right advice for you? I can assure I had more than 3 stone to loose.( I am going to write a post about all of this in the new year). I really think that you should ask your go to refer you.

[Elissy 3kg]

I think that plan goes by averages. As we are all different size, age, etc the amounts will vary.

I would go by the bmi, as under eating it isn't healthy and in the long run creates cravings.

It confused me at the beginning as to me, the plan should state very clearly to work out personal allowances.

As your weight goes down, so will your calorie allowance, so going too low too early will not be beneficial. I use the middle of the bmi value, and I don't feel too bad if I go a little higher as I have that little"buffer".

Hope that makes sense 😊

[Hidden in reply to Elissy]

Have you been losing weight by keeping to the BMI calories?

[Hidden]

Thanks for everyone's advice and sharing what you do. I will go with the bottom of the BMI calories - 1700. I have 5 stones to lose. Starting today!

[Elissy 3kg in reply to Hidden]

Hi Lizzy, I wouldn't quite go to the bottom. As your weight goes, so will your allowance. I looked at various bmi and bmr calculators. To me personally, I will not eat below my bmr anymore. I have tried it, and it backfired by making me feel awful. It works in the short term, and then your metabolism slows down drastically.

I use the middle of my allowance, and then move more, and don't eat all my calories from the exercise.

I weigh 97 kg, am about 5 foot 7, and am 45 years old. I eat 1700-1800 calories (depending on my exercise).

Some days I do go over and others under, but that is my general goal. I have lost about 20 lb so far.

It took me a long time to really understand this. Reading up about my basic metabolic rate (bmr) and understanding how eating way below it effects me (I can only go by my own experience) has made a huge difference.

I now don't feel like I'm dieting, I have increased my exercise, and most of all, I feel good. No headaches, no lack of energy, no mega cravings (at least not much 😉).

Sorry to go on a bit, but I have spent a long time trying to understand this 😊

[Hidden in reply to Elissy]

Hi Elissy

I am 44, 5ft 11ins, 16st 5lbs and BMI calories range of 1700-2200.

Thanks for your advice - good to hear your experience. Although I find it very alien to me, I will eat middle of my allowance ie 2000 cals. It just seems strange to eat that many cals in the weight loss quest.

Thanks again for taking the time to reply 😄😄

[Elissy 3kg in reply to Hidden]

Play it by ear (or scales 😉)

If you are very active ear 2000, if you are not eat 1800.

[JadeLyndsey in reply to Hidden]

Me too!

[roseabi]

If you're talking about BMR (basal metabolic rate), this is the energy intake (approximated as "calories") your body requires daily to function at rest - i.e. keep you ticking over. Your BMI (body mass index) affects this number, and the quantity will also increase depending upon your activity level. If you want to lose weight you need to reduce your energy intake, so if your total energy needs are 1800 kcal then 1400 kcal is probably reasonable.

[Elissy 3kg in reply to roseabi]

Hi roseabi, the nhs bmi calculator also takes your activity level into account.

It's not the most intricate one, but it works well.

It will give you your bmi - and also asks you your activity level ( sedentary, low active, etc).

It then gives you your allowance e.g

1750-2050 calories.

Many people here have said not to go with the lower one as when you lose weight, your allowance goes goes down anyway, so every now and then I re-check the calculator.

I stop losing weight if I don't eat enough, followed by other symptoms.

I eat my allowance and still lose weight.

My allowance will get low as my weight goes.

[ElsieW 2 stone]

I've gone with 1400 cals! I'm 16st 9.5lbs at the moment and lost 11.5lbs in 5 weeks. This week though I've maintained so not sure if I'm eating enough! Going to see how it goes this week and then rethink if it's not going downwards!!!!!

Good luck with it!

E xxx

[Hidden]

BMI calculator says 1400 and MFP says 1200. I'm currently wavering about 11 st 10 (probably a bit more now after xmas) - my feeling is I probably miss about 200 or so calories a day. I have been losing weight. I think there's something in the protein, fat breakdown.

[Hidden]

The lower figure of my recommended calories was about 1500 (I was 35yo, 5'4", 12st4 at start) - but I only spotted this part of the way through, after I'd been sticking to 1400cals for a couple of weeks. As the figures were quite close I decided that if I ate up to 1500 cals that was okay, but to still aim for 1400cals per day if I could. I had my off days like everyone does, but I noticed if 3 or more days I hit 1700cals or over I would maintain or gain, so I soon learned what my boundaries were. I also learned that occasionally going up to 1700cals wasn't the end of the world which is an important lesson too! I think everyone's different and you have to learn what works for you. But when you start sticking to a similar set of foods and calories, and having an exercise routine, it becomes easier to start tweaking and understanding it all. I would suggest starting at 2000, then reducing gradually if no results, aiming for 1600 at the lowest end as Scooba Steve says - halfway between the two? But be careful not to go too low too quickly, esp as I believe you're planning to be pretty active (for approx 80 days ) Good luck