Question:
How many calories shoud I eat to maintain?

I posted the other day about gaining 6 lbs, well Im gald to say it must have been water and I needed to poop. LOL. Well anyway Im down to 143 as of this morning. Down 4 lbs. But when I had said that i consumed a little over 1800 calories some of you thought that was too much. and I have to admit 570 of those were from chocolate, now this is not a every day thing, eating that much chocolate. But I do snack alot and do try to snack on good things, fruits for example sometimes junk but I still try to keep my calories under 2000. I read one profile and she was consuming this much out i think around 9 months??.Im 13 months out. Differnet web sites will tell you different amounts on how many calories to eat to maintain. At least now I do try and keep up with that. Any helpful comments?    — Carrie W. (posted on May 10, 2004)

May 10, 2004
The only 'formula' for calories that is right is what works for you. For one person to say that 1800 calories a day is too much, is very subjective. Perhaps that person does not expend as much energy, or perhaps they are a smaller person...who knows. It's a fine line to balance if you're still loosing regularly close to goal. You do what you think is right to you, just maintain your healthy eating habits and experiment with what you're doing calorie and contnet wise (like protein vs amount of carbs) Good luck to you!
   — LMCLILLY

May 10, 2004
Someone tried to tell me that to maintain my weight I had to multiply my weight by 100. That was a load of crock. I would gain weight on that many calories per day. For me, I'm in the 170s and if I go much over 1500 calories per day, I will gain weight. There's so many things that play into what makes you gain weight. Heredity, exercise, what you eat as well as calories and metabolism are all factors. If I veer into the dreaded carb zone too far, I will gain, but if I stick with protein and good carbs and keep my calories in check. Just so many variables to have one good cut and dried rule of how many calories are good. Just carefully experiment and find out what works for you.
   — Cathy S.

May 10, 2004
There is no definitive answer to this question - it's very individual. Daily calorie requirements are almost as impossibile to calculate as a reliable BMI. There are many professional athletes who have BMIs over 40 but they are solid muscle and, in no way, overweight. When you read nutrition labels on foods it generally gives percentages based on a daily caloric intake of 2000 to 2400 calories. I couldn't eat that much but I'm somewhat sedentary and chained to a desk all day. Others who are on the go, younger and have a higher metabolism could easily do that. I'd say this - if you can maintain your weight at 1800 calories then try to stay around that amount. If it makes you gain - eat less. Pretty boring and simple, huh? There's just no accurate answer to this question. You have to do what works for you. Sounds like you're doing o.k. so far. Best wishes to you!
   — ronascott

May 10, 2004
Oh, baby. Watch the chocolate. It's a killer. It added twelve real pounds to me in a little over three months. I don't touch it anymore.<P>That said, I consume about 2000 calories a day to maintain, including 2-3 protein shakes a day. But, that was maintenance, and only after I continued to lose on 1600 and 1800 calories a day. I'm not sure I'll be able to consume that much in the long run or not. Like Lisa said, it's an individual calculation. What works for one person, at one stage in their surgery, might not work for someone else, or even that same person, down the road.
   — Suzy C.

May 10, 2004
It really depends on what you do during the day. I have a sit down job, but I walk to and from work (60 mins total). I know I will lose on anything less than 1500.
   — mrsmyranow