*****Calorie Consumption... ???? Clueless!

Personally, I don't think that the 'calorie counters' are very effective for those of us who have gained/lost weight over the years.

Our metabolism is generally not normal --- just like the 'calorie burn' indicated on heart rate monitors and cardio equipment can be off by 40% or more, so can the calorie counters (in my opinion).

I would not put much stock in that.

It was recommended to me that I eat about 1,000 - 1,200 calories a day to lose weight (with 30 minutes of aerobic activity a day).
On days that I exercise more, I calculate the calories burned by my Heart Rate Monitor, and I deduct 50% --- then, I add in some of those calories.

Now that I am maintaining my weight loss, I eat 1,200 - 1,500 calories a day and average 60 minutes or more of exercise a day.

The 'calorie calculators' say that I should be able to eat 2,000 - 2.200 a day to maintain, but I absolutely GAIN on that amount.

The calorie calculators are just plain wrong for those of us who have a hard time losing.  I can gain on what they say I should eat to lose 2 lbs a week.  My surgeon says 600-800 calories a day.  This is based on his 10 years experience with the lap band.  Who am  I to argue?

I have a hard time getting that low but when I do, I lose!

Katie

Calorie calculators are not ideal when you are still obese/overweight. When I first started I ate a high protein/low carb diet with 600-800 calories a day, simply because I was not hungry and could afford such a high caloric deficit because I had so much to lose. However, eating so little for so long isn't the healthiest and when I hit a plateau I added 100 calories a week. Nowadays I'm eating 1700-1750 calories and exercising almost 2 hours a day.

My advice is to pick a calorie range, stick with it for 1-2 weeks and adjust accordingly. It's all about testing the waters, from my experience. I too thought that eating 1700 calories was a lot, but when you have a more active lifestyle, your body needs more.