Newbie needing help with total calories

[JAM13]

I am new to fitbit and tracking everything. Fitbit is telling me that in order for me to lose the desired weight in the desired time frame i should only eat 1049 calories a day. That seems extremely low and maybe not very healthy. Only had FB for one week and just one day tracking food so maybe it needs more info. However, based on daily calorie needs the number seems low to me. Any insight would be appreciated.

[Dominique]

This probably means your weight goal and the time frame you’ve set up for it are not realistic. Make your weight goal less aggressive, give yourself more time to achieve it, or both. This will result in a smaller deficit and will allow you to eat more  than the paltry 1049 calories currently suggested by Fitbit.

You may want to wear your Fitbit for a couple of weeks, eating and moving normally. This will give you a baseline for your average calorie expenditure based on your current activity level. From there, you can decide whether you’ll need to increase your activity level in order to be able to have the deficit required by your goal while still being able to eat a decent amount of food.

[JohnRi]

Hello, I'm going to assume you are female, but even for men, 1049 is low.  Most would say 1300 for women, and 1800 for men is the minimum calories one should eat.  I'm guessing you pick a 1000 or 750 calorie deficit.  You are only going to only be able to meet those deficits if you exercise daily.   You should either pick the 250 or 500 if you do not plan to do daily exercise.  IE walking for an hour a day, or biking, or a cardio class.

I've been running a 1800 calorie diet for almost two months.  I've almost hit 50 lbs lost, and today I just past the halfway goal to 183 lbs.  But even for me, the days of 1000 calorie deficits are about to end.  Once I get to 40 lbs to go, I'll decrease my deficit to 750.  Then once I'm down to 20 lbs to go, I'll go to 500.  And when I hit 10 lbs it will be a 250 deficit.

They reason for the increase in daily calories is mainly so that my body gets used to higher calories without weight gain, and two I can change my diet slowly, learning how to eat more without weight gain.

Bottom line, you need to get more active.  I have to walk every day to meet my 1000 deficit.  I walk 3 to 6 miles, 1 to 2 hours every day.  Out of the last 28 days, I've taken about 4 days off. 

It's a lot of work, takes lots of disapline, and determination.  But if you keep at it, you can do it! 

[Donna_K]

I too am new to Fitbit, having had mine for about 2 weeks now.  I set up a 500 calorie deficit as I set a realistic goal of walking every day.  I can NOT do any high impact ANYTHING for life due to a joint replacement.  The target calorie intake is about 1300 calories but varies a bit based on activity levels.  I find it pretty easy to hit it and some days actually am low on the total, but just figured out that the total that is recommended by fitbit already takes the  500 calorie deficit in comparison.  I started on my journey to a healthier lifestyle August 15, 2015 and do not consider it a diet, but a lifestyle change.  To date I am 1/3 of the way to my goal of a normal BMI for life.  I am very proud of the progress I have made and having my Fitbit just has solidified that my planning is appropriate.  Yes, I have gone over just the other day, so to compensate, I added another 30 minute walk and corrected the calorie burn.  I am following a very simple plan, I eat what I want, when I want but within reason.  The other things that I follow are increasing protein to 0.8 gm/kg of desired body weight (for me this is 50 gm/day).  I have eliminated diet soda (that was easy-I don't drink soda) or anything with aspartame.  No commercially made bread or things containing artificial preservatives.  No OJ (contains preservatives).  No margarine-its a molecule away from being plastic and does not digest.  And my biggest concession to a healthier lifestyle is NO FAST FOOD.  Following these simple guidelines, I average a weight loss between 3.5 to 4 lbs a month.  It's sensible, slow, but safe and more likely to keep the weight off for life.  Most people that choose a ciet, lose weight and once they reach their goal, they revert back to their normal eating habits and the weight goes right back on.  

Eating healthy for life is a choice that I have made.  I am well aware it is going take yet another year to get to where I need to be.  But after already investing 7 months in myself, it's so rewarding to be able to wear smaller clothing already!  I will never have the body of a teenager again, that's not realistic-I'm 62 (going on 40 in my mind).  I just don't ever want to weigh what I started at ever again.  Yes, I have hit plateaus, but that has only made me more determined to stick with it.  My most recent plateau lasted about 2 weeks, but I refused to give up and now the scale is again going in the direction I want.  

My suggestion is like some of the others, wear the Fitbit for a week or so, as non-stop as you can.  Keep uploading the information into the computer to see what you learn from it.  THEN reset your goals.  You can do it!  You have a whole lot of us out here in the same position-wanting to lose, yet be healthy in the process.

[Tave]

Is this what Fitbit is telling you given a daily deficit of 1000 calories?  If so, then it does not take into account any exercise and activity you will be doing throughout the day.  So that number will actually increase.

For example: with my daily deficit of 1000 calories, Fitbit says I can consume 1400 something calories.  However, after I walk to work in the morning, that number jumps to 1800.  Add on the movement at work and the walk back home and it goes even higher.  You see what I mean?  So as long as you are getting in more activity throughout the day, the amount of calories you can consume will go up.  

Of course, you know your body better than anyone else, so be mindful of the signals it gives you.

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@JAM13 wrote:

I am new to fitbit and tracking everything. Fitbit is telling me that in order for me to lose the desired weight in the desired time frame i should only eat 1049 calories a day. That seems extremely low and maybe not very healthy. Only had FB for one week and just one day tracking food so maybe it needs more info. However, based on daily calorie needs the number seems low to me. Any insight would be appreciated.

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[Donna_K]

The 1400 calories it currently suggests your intake should be, is a baseline amount meaning at rest calorie burn to meet basic metabolic needs.  It is positively affected by activity which will give you a larger permitted caloric intake for the day.  If you remove the 1000 cal deficit in your settings, you will find that you will NOT lose weight, merely maintain at what you are right now.  I think it best to look at what you log for food intake/steps/other activities at the end of the day and loosely base tomorrow's calorie allotment on the amount that your intake was for today, given that most of us do the same level of activites on a daily basis.  I think a 1K calorie deficit although promoting rapid weight loss, does not leave you enough calories for a moderate and healthy weight loss.  Being too stringent with your goals could set you up for ongoing disappointment in yourself and then might result in your failure to succeed.   Consider going in and setting the parameters to maintenance, follow it for a few days, then set the deficit at 500 calories.  Follow those guidelines for 1 to 2 weeks and then re-assess.  If you cut out too much too quickly your body will tell itself it is starving and it's natural instincts for self preservation, will slow your metabolism and offset your intent.