5’2, 175lbs, history of binge eating, so confused!

[jwishum]

Hello everyone,

Thanks so much in advance! But I’d like some advice and clarification. I’m very confused about how many calories I’m supposed to be consuming a day to lose weight/fat. I gained 30+lbs after losing my grandma to COVID at the beginning of this year and have just started to really pay attention to my health and wanting to lose that weight. I keep going back and forth between only eating about 1200-1300 calories a day and thinking I’m not eating enough for my body’s needs.

I reached out to my friend’s personal trainer and she helped me with calories and macros and she has me at 1600 calories a day (just macros adjusted for more carbs on the two training days I have right now while in nursing school). Naturally, that terrifies me! That I’ll just balloon even bigger! Using the BMR calculator, it says my maintenance calories are 1,699. Is the only way to truly lose weight effectively subtracting 400-500 calories from that?

https://imgur.com/a/NFpJlhN

Sincerely,
A very confused but eager to learn shortie

 

[sashi]

@jwishum Same height, started at 180lbs (am 111~113lbs now). I started at 1,400cal at 180lbs and lost weight, however Im pretty sedentary so that's why my amount is lower than yours. Seeing as you're in nursing school it's likely you're on your feet most of the day and so would be burning more calories than me. in that case I think 1600cal is a reasonable starting point, in fact I encourage you to start with enough wiggle room to experiment with meals and see what works for you in this stage. As someone said, eventually you will have to lower that amount so it's good to get meals you like and that keeps you full.

I will warn you though that as short people our weight loss will NOT be fast I think my goal was -0.5lbs a week when I was 180lbs (at the beginning I lost more than that, like 1.2-0.8lbs a week) but as you get smaller you will see a rapid slow in weight loss. Keep adjusting as necessary but never go too low that it becomes uncomfortable for you.

It took me 2 years to get to where I am from 180lbs and currently I'm still doing 1250-1300cal to lose some vanity pounds. You got this

 

[robert8]

@jwishum Hi! I also started around that weight and am 5’1”. I started my calories at 1600 in the beginning (though only with the goal of losing 0.6lb/week). I weighed myself every day to keep track of weekly trends and ensure I was losing at the rate I wanted. When it began to slow (as it will naturally as you get smaller due to requiring less energy), I would drop the calories by 50. So I’d say start at the 1600. Track for at least two weeks. If the rate is slower than expected, double check you are counting accurately and if you are, lower it by 50-100 and wait another two to four weeks. You got this.

 

[stormii]

@jwishum Please just listen to the trainer who is professionally qualified instead of coming here for advice. 1600kals plus exercise 2x per week will put you in a deficit so you will lose weight. Your trainer will track progress and adjust accordingly if you are not seeing the expected results.

 

[crosswalk1991]

@stormii I agree with this!

OP, Please consider weightlifting and doing light cardio. That really helped me when I was 175 lbs and at the beginning of my journey. I only weightlifted 2-3x a week (30 minutes at most) and I walked 10k steps a day (only takes an hour). Weightlifting helps build muscles, which in turns helps increase metabolism and lose fat. You can still eat at 1600 cals and be at a slight deficit (about 250 cal deficit is already a big difference! Losing 0.5 lb a week is SUSTAINABLE.)

Trust me. I was in your position once. I ate at 1200 cals but my metabolism was destroyed. I was easily tired and I didn’t have energy to lift. Once I bumped my calories to 1700, I had enough energy to lift and run, plus I was still losing FAT.

Now I’m 145 lbs and I went from 27% bodyfat to 22%. I’m still working on shredding fat and gaining muscles, but the number on the scale matters less and less. I work out 6x a week (mix of HIIT and powerlifting), I count my macros (1700-1900 calories and 120g+ protein.)

 

[betelo995]

@crosswalk1991 175 lbs is 79.45 kg

 

[migdalin]

@jwishum Hi, started around your current stats - 5'2, 171. I think the calories you're at seem like a good starting point! I tried to do 1200 starting out and it led to lots of burnout + binge eating at night because it just wasn't enough! I'm at 145-150 now and eating at about 1500, though I'd day I go into 1600 every now and again. You've got this friend! Glad to hear you have some support.

 

[dawn16]

@jwishum This is a tricky question! Honestly, just trying the most amount of calories you can consume while losing weight is key. Everyone’s body is different. I would just pick an educated amount and give it three weeks, if it is not working, tweak it. It’s key to keep your body nourished and also helps maintain metabolism to eat more. I would try 1500 first and go from there? Obviously if you don’t have a lot of muscle your metabolism will be slower as well, which is when you can adjust accordingly. Good luck to you on your journey.
Side note: trainers are trained in exercise and have limited training in nutrition. Please take what your trainer says with a grain of salt and listen to your body.

 

[jimmyh214]

@jwishum 5'1 and 191 now, lost from 201 on 1600 to 1800 calories plus 10k steps a day and once a week workout. It's doable. You're a nurse, you need food to fuel all that moving around! You're no good to anyone if you faint.

You've all the time in the world, take your time and learn what works. If it's not working in a month, try something else. Grieving is a long process, how is your stress? Try to find time to relax and give yourself grace. Being a ball of stress just holds onto weight. Good luck, and you can do this, just try to be safe and smart about it.

 

[jim2323]

@jwishum I’m 5’2” and started at 165, I’m now ~139. I lost the majority of that on 1600 calories. I started at 1500 for a couple weeks but I was getting really fatigued and I knew I wouldn’t be able to keep up with it so I bumped to 1600 for the next few months. I just bumped up again to 1700 last week and the scale plateaued for a few days but is now moving down again. I plan to bump up to 1800 for the coming week. I’m enjoying the increased energy and finding I’m able to exercise even more with more fuel.

I burn 2100-2200 daily according to my Apple Watch. Once a week or so I take a heavy day and get that up to 2500-2800, but I try to keep most days at a moderate activity level and take light days when I need them.

I have no idea how anyone manages to get by on 1200 calories on a daily basis for any length of time. I would have absolutely no energy, no focus, be unable to exercise, and I would definitely end up binging and just throwing in the towel.

It really does come down to CICO. This requires accurate and honest numbers on both ends of the equation. You have to burn more than you take in. If you burn 2100 calories and you eat 2000, you will lose weight - slowly, but if those numbers are accurate and you’re consistent, the laws of thermodynamics say you will lose weight. If you’re taking in 1200, you might only burn 1600 because you don’t have the energy to keep up with exercise. You‘ll also lose weight in this scenario, but the chances of you falling off the wagon are much much higher and the trade offs are really shitty. For me it’s a pretty simple answer: eat more, move more, maintain a calorie deficit but also be able to reap the benefits of exercise because I have the energy to do it.

Fitness tracker for a better idea of your calories burned, food scale if you want to get your calorie counting really accurate. I’m just a rando on the internet but I would not suggest a 1200 calorie diet to any adult on the planet.

 

[abubu1]

@jim2323 I just bought a Fitbit. It's telling me to eat 1800 calories to maintain my weight. I'm 5'2" and 105 pounds. I told the Fitbit that I wanted to weigh 106 since my weight when I bought it was 105.8 pounds. This morning weight was 105.0 on my scale. Since I bought the Fitbit, I've ranged between 104.8 and 105.8. Then, I rarely get up to the 1800 calories started to suggest this week.

You're much heavier than my current weight so you probably burn 2200 to 2400 calories a day with your moderately active lifestyle.

When I was actively trying to lose weight, I had a goal of 1500 calories which caused me to lose between a pound a week going from 144 to 128 in four months.

 

[lochnessa]

@jwishum Also in terms of exercise keep at it! I sucked for years at exercising and couldn’t figure out why. I was trying to go to a gym to lift weights consistently but it didn’t click with me.

So I tried OrangeTheory. It was okay for a couple months. Then I tried Cycling. Meh. Then I tried CorePower Yoga. And that is when everything clicked!!!! It made me realize I didn’t hate exercise I just needed to find the right thing that I enjoyed doing!

I’m someone who needed the “emotional” support and psychology of group fitness that corepower provided for my workouts. Someone to say, “you showed up today and im so proud of you.” I tried one of those extreme fitness places but I couldn’t handle the verbal intensity if that makes sense. I’m a softy at heart and I need my instructor to be uplifting - not like balls to the walls yelling lol. But hey - people need different things for exercise to click for them!!

Don’t be afraid to experiment with different fitness exercises if somethings not clicking. Many group fitness places offer free trials up to a month long

Best wishes on your road ahead!

 

[dawn16]

@jwishum I’m not an expert at all but I feel like those calculators are pretty inaccurate. It says that my maintenance is 1,550 calories. (I’m 5’3 and 125 LBs for reference) I know for a fact that I lose weight at that amount. Because I’ve experimented, and I do feel like I’m very accurate with my counting. My mantiene is like 2,000 calories according to my experiments. If I eat 1,200 calories a day I sleep all day and feel very unwell.

So basically, I’m saying you should trust a professional’s advice (the personal trainer) over a generalized calculator.

 

[cdjeffery]

@dawn16 125 lbs is 138.89 Doge plushies.