Calorie deficits don't work for me
 

I know in the past when I worked at weight loss, if I stayed in a range of about 2000 calories a day, while working out about an hour a day, I lost weight at the rate of about 2 lbs a week. Whenever I lowered the calorie count I would struggle with weight loss.

I have never found calorie deficit to work for me. It is more about healthier choices and eating foods that prevent me from craving more.

Fitday gives you the tools
 

What you described as your typical meal plan is fine - and there is no such thing as 'too many carbs' unless you are a diagnosed type 1 diabetic and under the care of a doctor, who advises you about the number of carbs per meal. Even then, there are plenty of type 1 diabetics who are vegetarian and do just fine, without ever suffering weight gain problems eating healthy carbs!

So what you HAVE left out is the number of calories you are eating in a day and how many you are expending. Fitday gives you the tools to get some caloric limits. Then you can put the measured food quantities you eat in your food log and see how many calories you are eating each day. If you are gaining weight, and you are accurately (important) reporting your food in your log, you'll see why. You just have to shave off some calories or seriously increase physical activity.

That's the whole story, pretty much, right there!

The Food Pyramid
 

The food pyramid is meant to ensure that people who use it as a guide will get the right amounts of vitamins and minerals, fiber, protein, etc. and not gain weight in the process.

In the end, calories for the day can be apportioned any way you want them. And whatever works for you, works for you. I have heard the 'I lost weight and then I gained, doing the same thing' applied to every diet (including low-carb diets). You just adjust, adjust, adjust. For one thing, your body is not stuck in time. You're getting older, and your hormonal profile (for a woman, that's an entirely different thing...) is changing with every bit of aging, too.

Not understanding "Calorie Restriction"
 

Hi taylornewton

What was the weight loss goal you entered? If you are trying to loose more that 1 or 2 pounds per week, the calculator will give you an unreasonable low amount of calories that you can eat in a day.

If I read your post correctly, it looks like you are trying to lose about 5 lbs in a week. Thus the 964 calorie restriction. 1 pound is about 3500 calories. If that is the case and your daily requirement is about 2700 calories, then the calculator is saying, yes, you get to only eat about 758 calories a day, which is really not enough to keep you going.

You might want to do back and redo the calcs, exploring different weight loss options.

Cutting back gradually is definitely the way to go
 

Do you know how many calories you're burning a day? Cutting 500 a day assumes you will lose a pound a week only if you're eating at a level that's maintaining your current weight. 3500 calories a day sounds like a lot to be maintaining a weight of 160, with three times a week exercise.

Said differently, if you cut back to, say 3000 or 2500 calories a day, and you're only burning 2200 a day, you are still going to be gaining weight, not losing it. High fiber foods will fill you up, and protein and healthy fat will keep you satisfied longer.

Cutting back gradually is definitely the way to go if you're worried about giving up and trashing your diet, but run the numbers first. FitDay does it, but I also like this calories burned in a day calculator for a "second opinion." Calorie Calculator - Daily Caloric Needs

Warning about going too low
 

I would find out what the calories are you need to maintain your weight at your goal weight using one of the online calculators (or more, you can compare a few of them). And then eat that.

Always stay above 1200 unless you are very short.

Type 2 diabetes
 

I will admit that I am new to this weight loss business. With that said, I have had to change my eating habits due to being diagnosed with Type 2 diabetes. What I did is let FitDay calculate what my calorie count should be and made sure that I logged everything that went into my mouth. I am 5'7" so a bit taller than you and it calculated 1610 calories a day for me. I do not allow myself the extra calories calculated due to exercise. I am loosing 1-2 pounds a week which I feel is a decent amount.

Just my 2 cents worth

Linda

Recommended calories seem high? Try adding sleep as an activity
 

A lot of the weight loss process is trial and error. I too am short, muscular and overweight, and one thing I've found is that the composition of the calories is as important for weight loss as the actual number of calories. I can actually eat a few more calories if I keep my protein intake above 25%, especially if I consume a good amount of protein after a workout when my body can use it effectively.

Another thing I would suggest is that you add cardio to your workout schedule. Lifting weights is all fine, well and good, but it flat out doesn't burn calories like a good cardio workout. There are some really good workout videos that bring up the heart rate doing calisthenics, so if running or swimming isn't your thing you might try that.

Also given your height and weight I agree that 1,600 calories might be on the high side for weight loss, but it won't hurt to try it. If not you might add "sleeping" to your activities and see where that lands your intake. Many of us find that it corrects the deficit equation and makes the calculations more accurate.

"Big Picture" explanation of how FitDay works for 'How many calories should I eat?"
 

Fitday will calculate how many calories you burn each day. This is also known as your Base Metabolic Rate (BMR). Make sure you fill out the Height, Weight, Age part of your profile. You can also customize the number if you find (like me) that it is inaccurate, but I will explain how to customize after I explain where to see your BMR.

The easiest place to see you BMR is on your ACTIVITY tab. On the last line of your Activities list (even if you haven't added any) is and entry for 'Lifestyle', the next column shows your selected activity level and here is an option to customize your entry. The 4th column under Calories Burned is your BMR.

If you use the WEIGHT GOAL tab and set a Weight Goal FITDAY will calculate the Calorie Deficit needed and show you the amount of calories you can eat to achieve that deficit. (Look at the Calorie Restriction and Calorie Balance tabs under your Weight Goal).

The Weight Goal tool also makes it easy to see if your goal is reasonable. If your time frame is too short the calorie deficit will be too high and the amount of calories to consume unreasonably low.

Customizing your BMR number:

Go to your ACTIVITIES tab, on the last line click the 'Customize' link. This take you to a screen where you can choose between the Mifflin or Harris-Benedict calculations or a Custom BMR Number (this is helpful if you have a BMR from another web-site or trainer you would like to use). Be aware that if you choose the custom number FITDAY will add a varying amount to it based on your activity level selection. So you may need to play with the custom number a little.

Most people find that if they use the Mifflin equation and enter their sleep as an activity it is very close to reality. (Some don't add sleep and are fine).

Hope this helps with the 'How much should I eat' questions.

UPDATED, so...

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