Is 1,500 too much for me?

[beverly3]

I (26F, 5’0 on a good day, SW: 178, CW: ~120, GW:112) am desperately trying to shed these last few lbs, but having trouble finding a caloric deficit that is reasonable for my activity level and physique goals. I’ll preface this that I am trying to be less focused on my scale weight, and moreso focused on reducing body fat. My current BF% is a bit high for my liking (~28%), and I’d really like to try to get around 23%. I have gone through periods of maintenance on this weight loss ~journey~, but honestly feel very motivated to just lock in and make some real progress.

Currently, my macro split is 40%C/30%F/30%P on ~1,500 calories. I shifted my macros to add some more fat after accepting that my focus on volume eating was resulting in a miserably low fat intake. I eat primarily whole foods and have found that several smaller meals throughout the day has helped me reduce some food noise and unnecessary snacking.

I WFH and use my walking pad pretty heavily, averaging ~30k steps a day (call me crazy but I find that my productivity is way higher when I’m moving versus sitting inactive). I’ve also recently started doing CrossFit ~4x/week.

I told myself I’m giving myself a month at this caloric intake and energy expenditure to see what happens, but thought I’d look to my trusty Reddit folk for thoughts. Thanks in advance :’)

 

[onmymotherearthilean]

@beverly3 My gut tells me that this is way too few calories for you given your high energy expenditure. For reference, I am 5'3", 126ish lbs, lift 5x a week (with one day as half lifting, half sprints / HIIT on the treadmill), get 15,000 steps a day, and estimate my TDEE to be 2000-ish (+ or - 100 -- it's hard to know for certain/with precision). I'm usually fairly satiated at 1700 cal a day, 100g protein, but struggle to drop below 1700. I realize you're 3 inches shorter than I am, but if you are truly getting 30k steps a day and do cross fit 4x a week, my guess is your TDEE has to be at least mine, if not far higher.

You should be able to tell whether you're able to sustain 1500 calories after about 2 weeks. During the first week, you might be able to get by just fine, but after 2, if you're starving / dropping weight very quickly, you'll know you need to increase calories.

 

[beverly3]

@onmymotherearthilean Thank you! I’ll give this a go for a while to just see what happens…I feel physically satiated by the end of the night, but mentally, I could always eat (lol). I wake up with minor hunger in the morning, which has actually been kind of nice. Will update you folks!

 

[onmymotherearthilean]

@beverly3 Yes, please do! Best of luck to you.

 

[tylerofcodex]

@beverly3 I actually started losing weight when I upped my calories...might work for you too

I was eating at 1350 and upped to 1600 (slowly), similar stats and activity level (10k steps tho) to you

 

[beverly3]

@tylerofcodex I think I may do something similar. Perhaps shift to 1700-1900.

 

[four_twenty_nine]

@beverly3 You’re starving your body. 30 k steps and 1,500 calories just doesn’t make sense. Add CrossFit to the mix and it makes even less sense. You’re putting a ton of stress on your body which can cause a plethora of issues down the line. Fewer calories isn’t better. 1,500 would be low even with half your activity level but now it’s just crazy low. I suggest doing reverse dieting. See if you have any deficiencies, hypothyroidism or gut imbalances. All that can affect the metabolism.

 

[beverly3]

@four_twenty_nine Thank you for your honesty! You’re probably right. I may shift to move closer to 1700-1900.

 

[merelychristian]

@four_twenty_nine This. Everyone’s all “calorie deficit this & calorie deficit that,” buuuuut according to licensed nutritionists that constantly see this issue:

“If you aren’t getting enough calories your body could actually be storing fat vs. burning it because it thinks it’s starving.”

 

[tobyp]

@beverly3 How's your sleep?

Lack of quality sleep will hinder your ability to lose weight, specifically fat loss.

Also are you gaining muscle? You might need to go by measurements and not by weight.

 

[beverly3]

@tobyp My sleep has consistently been good - i get 8 hours, at a minimum, but usually closer to 9-10.

I’ll get a measurement of my lean body mass in a month, so I’ll know then! Thats why i was considering trailing this calorie intake level for a month to see what happens.

 

[thinkgodly]

@beverly3 Hey I also do CrossFit about 4x a week and right now I’m cutting at about 1500 calories. I’m slowly losing weight at this amount. Like 1 pound a few weeks. I’m 4’10 and don’t walk as much as you. About 7,500 steps during the week. So I would say you should be able to at least go up to 1600 if not more

 

[beverly3]

@thinkgodly It’s soooo painfully slow. It almost makes it difficult to discern if you’re really making any progress in a time period that is less than 4-6 weeks…I’m probably going to bump to a range of 1600/1700-1800/1900 in the coming days to see what happens…

 

[thinkgodly]

@beverly3 I purposely wanted to take it slow to prevent losing the little muscle I do have I’m also pretty small already and really don’t need to necessarily lose weight but I’m uncomfortable after gaining 10 pounds

 

[bryanclendenning]

@beverly3 Hey similar activity levels here I also have been hitting 30k steps on my walking pad! I’m 5’3 and went from 123 to 115 by being in a 1500 deficit and giving myself more cals on Friday and Sat. I used ChatGPT recently to estimate my TDEE and it’s telling me I’m sitting at around 2300-2400 maintenance given my step count and I lift 3-4x a week, a few cardio sessions and hot yoga classes so I increased my cals to be 1650 Sun-Thurs and 2000 Friday and sat so I can still be in a deficit to lose a few more lbs before vacation. You can see my post history for progress pics and meal ideas! This all to say just stay consistent and don’t be afraid to shorten your deficit if needed. I’ve noticed since I did up my cals a bit I’m feeling a lot more satiated and not constantly hungry while still being in a deficit overall

 

[beverly3]

@bryanclendenning I’d die for my walking pad!!!! I’m so glad to hear you had success. I may try to implement some calorie cycling to give me flexibility on days with social events, etc. thank you!!

 

[bryanclendenning]

@beverly3 It honestly is my saving grace! Also with the calorie cycling - it helps A TON for me because I have to stay pretty strict to lose those last few lbs for a longer amount time but I didn't want to sacrifice the little social life I do have haha.

 

[manaaa]

@beverly3 I am of a similar build to you. 4’11 in height and I average about 10k steps a day. Without working out, I burn about 1800 calories and with a workout in, it goes up to about 2100-2300 cals per day.
1500 calories may be less than what you actually need, especially if you are walking about 30k steps a day.
I’d say up your calorie intake a few hundred calories. I have found that eating about 1800 calories a day has really helped me maintain a good physique as well as build some solid gains.
Best of luck!

 

[sploosh]

@beverly3 How are your energy levels with that much activity?

 

[beverly3]

@sploosh Surprisingly, I’ve never had more energy. I do get a decent amount of sleep (8-10 hours).