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Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

How many calories do you eat?

218 replies

blaisealex · 08/06/2021 19:56

How many calories a day do you eat?

How old are you and what is your height and weight?

I'm 25 with a BMI of 37 at 15st 7. I was consuming at a guess 3000+ a day.
Currently dieting with calorie counting and reducing intake.

I'm having around 1000 calories a day now but really, I'm wondering, once I get to a weight I'm happy with, how many calories I should then be having to maintain.

So it would be interesting to hear how many calories people have daily.

OP posts:
Shannith · 09/06/2021 08:24

I'm 46, 5.6 and 58kg (about 9 stone)

I don't count calories - I just low carb but probably 1800 in winter and 1,400 in summer.

You will lose weight in 1,000 canaries a day but you'll put it back on.

Low carb means I eat more green veg and protein than I would and I never feel hungry.

But portion control is a great thing to learn. That's easy to make into a habit which just becomes your norm. Strict calorie counting less so. Not a fun way to love and eat.

I love bread and pasta but post menopause if I eat it everyday I put weight on. Boooo. Same with cakes though I still eat them way more than true low carb era would.

I don't count chocolate in my low carb but do eat proper dark chocolate as well to balance it out.

Shannith · 09/06/2021 08:26

Clearly my lack of calories has transmitted to my phone with so many mistakes I can't be bothered to correct them.

So, in short eat don't eat 1,000 canaries a day and love them.

Shannith · 09/06/2021 08:28

@BasinHaircut

The problem with going to low on calories OP, is that you just won’t stick to it long term.

The reason very low calorie diets don’t work (in the sense that you will not keep the weight off) either is that IF you reach your goal, you will just return to old eating habits after and therefore old calorie intakes.

You need to find out at which calorie intake you will lose, but can also stick to long term. As PPs say, find out your TDEE and then reduce by 10-20%. It will be a lot more than 1,000 per day.

Then you need to try and find ways to fill that number of calories with as much VOLUME of food as possible. So choosing lean protein sources and veggies over most other things. Something like a stir fry with a chicken breast diced up and thrown in is a good example. You can add some noodles too, but instead of using a sweet pre-prepared sauce, use a teaspoon of miso paste, some minced garlic and soy sauce for flavour. Things such as this will fill your plate but be low on calories.

Another example is my dinner from a couple of days ago, pic attached. 2 egg, 45g cheese omelette, ham, homemade coleslaw with light Mayo and mustard, rocket lettuce dressed in balsamic. Just under 500kcals but a huge plate full.

If you do it this way, you will naturally work out your maintenance calories along the way. You might need to re-do your TDEE as you lose weight as it will change, but you will have learnt to eat in a way that is satisfying and maintainable along the way, so you don’t return to old habits once you are done.

It has to be a lifestyle change, not a diet.

Good luck OP.

Also this is excellent advice - 100% this
OrangeRug · 09/06/2021 08:36

Between 1000 and 1500. I am 30, height 4'11 and my weight hovers around 7st 2lbs. I have issues with my digestive system and can't eat proper meals so I mostly just graze. I'm very active too.

CantEnjoySummer · 09/06/2021 08:36

800 a day is maintainable but those 800 need to be GOOD calories

I lost 3.5 this year with 12 weeks on Fast800

12 weeks is the longest you can stay at 800 - now I no longer count calories but eat 2 healthy meals a day and continue to lose weight.

PurpleDaisies · 09/06/2021 08:37

About 1600-2000. I don’t count any more. I’m 5ft7, slim and very active.

frumpety · 09/06/2021 08:44

Age 49
Height 5'6
BMI 45.1
Calorie intake - this is a guesstimate as I never count calories, so probably about 3,000 if I drink wine, slightly less if I don't. What I ate and drank yesterday to give you an idea :
4 slices of wholemeal thick sliced bread toasted with butter
2 slices of sourdough bread with butter , cut by hand so super thick slices
Packet of ready salted seabrook crisps
a small croissant
pint and a half of semi-skimmed milk
bottle of wine
large portion of pasta with courgette , peas, feta and a drizzle of oil and lemon juice, although I didn't eat all the pasta as was full up with wine !
Blush

frumpety · 09/06/2021 08:51

Just weighed myself as havent for a week or so , BMI is now 44.8, but I always lose a few pounds on holiday !

sunnypeaches · 09/06/2021 10:04

Im mid 30s, BMI of 20, 1200 calories on average per day.
It really depends at what weight you want to maintain as well.
Before i hd kids my bmi was always 23ish. I ate 1500-1800 calories then.
Gained a lot of weight in pregnancy and then lost it all and more over a 2 year period. Ive been maintaining it now for 3 years or so, but if i eat more for a while (holidays) my weight goes up again quickly.

paddingtonbearsmarmalade · 09/06/2021 11:44

I’m 5’7 and now weigh ~190lbs, which is down from ~215lbs this time last year. I aim for about 1700-1800 calories a day and one “no count” day a week - this doesn’t mean eating whatever I like with no consideration at all but saves me from going insane tediously weighing butter 🙄 I’m very much going for a slow, steady and sustainable approach to weight loss. I’m down a size in jeans, my BMI is now hovering at 29.9(!) so finally “overweight” rather than “obese”.

I work from home all the time now (thanks covid) so it’s hard to get in casual exercise from walking to work/around at lunch etc, but as much as possible try to get out for a walk in the evenings and quite often go for hikes at weekends which helps balance out the less active week! I track my daily deficit and it usually comes out between 400-600; after hikes it can be about 1,000!

Sometimes I eat up to 2,500 cals, sometimes I eat way less than the 1,750 I’m aiming for. I’ve found this approach of trying to keep everything in balance has worked really well thus far, and I’m more in tune with my body and listening to myself when I’m full/hungry. I will probably readjust my intake again soon to account for moving less of me around, but in all likelihood will endeavour to up my exercise rather than reduce my intake significantly 😂

soreenqueen21 · 09/06/2021 11:49

This reply has been deleted

Message withdrawn at poster's request.

TheSoapyFrog · 09/06/2021 12:11

I'm doing Noom, so essentially calorie counting. My BMI is mid 40s. I eat about 1850 calories a day, which is 500 less than my maintenance calories. I don't really exercise, but I do try and keep my steps up.
If your calories are too low, you'll struggle to lose weight.
I've lost 2 stone since March. With several episodes where I've gone astray.

randomkey123 · 09/06/2021 12:12

I'm watching what I eat as I'm several stone overweight. Currently eating 1450 in the week, and allow myself 1800 at the weekend.

Reliably losing 2 to 3 lbs a week on this and not feeling deprived.

ChangePart1 · 09/06/2021 12:47

I'm 5ft 9, 10st 2. BMI 21.

I've been eating 1300 calories while losing weight (lost 28lb since August last year), and probably eat about 1900 daily when I'm maintaining. Still would like to lose that last 2lb so I eat 1300 calories most days but I'm slacking off a little now I'm so close to my goal.

LilMidge01 · 09/06/2021 12:58

Hiw is anyone meant to answer this as it also depends on how much energy you're expending.... in versus out. So you're looking for comparisons of someone at the size you want to be and also who moves the exact same amount as you...?

ShonkyCat · 09/06/2021 13:08

@Shannith

Clearly my lack of calories has transmitted to my phone with so many mistakes I can't be bothered to correct them.

So, in short eat don't eat 1,000 canaries a day and love them.

1,000 canaries a day really cracked me up. Grin

I am mid 40s and short and I need to eat around 1,300 to lose anything unless I actually make an effort and do some proper exercise every day.

I don't enjoy calorie counting so try to do intermittent fasting (and sport) which seems to work well for me.

An0n0n0n · 09/06/2021 13:11

5ft 6
Size 12
1200-1500 cals
Walk 25k per week
Usually eat well with one junk food per day (crisps, chocolate bar)

An0n0n0n · 09/06/2021 13:13

Weight 10st 7lb

shouldistop · 09/06/2021 13:14

I honestly don't know how many I eat. I'm breastfeeding and feel hungry a lot. I am overweight though so need to start cutting back on food.

shouldistop · 09/06/2021 13:17

Does anyone know how to work out your maintenance calories when you're breastfeeding?

Cocomarine · 09/06/2021 13:24

@TheSoapyFrog

I'm doing Noom, so essentially calorie counting. My BMI is mid 40s. I eat about 1850 calories a day, which is 500 less than my maintenance calories. I don't really exercise, but I do try and keep my steps up. If your calories are too low, you'll struggle to lose weight. I've lost 2 stone since March. With several episodes where I've gone astray.
My stepdaughter at the height of her anorexia would disagree with that! Very low calories and sadly the weight was falling off her. She’s recovering now I’m pleased to say. There are so many myths around dieting.
Cocomarine · 09/06/2021 13:27

@Icancelledthecheque I’m BMI 21 and I would not lose weight on 1200 calories (yes, properly counted). It is shocking (and I must say, really really fucking annoying!) what age does to you in terms of BMR. In my 30s I’d have agreed with you. Late 40s, not so much!

blaisealex · 09/06/2021 13:35

@LilMidge01

Hiw is anyone meant to answer this as it also depends on how much energy you're expending.... in versus out. So you're looking for comparisons of someone at the size you want to be and also who moves the exact same amount as you...?
I know what someone else does won't apply to me. But it's very interesting to hear about other people. I'm actually shocked at some of the replies. Some people don't seem to eat many calories to maintain. I'm surprised at how low some of the answers are.
OP posts:
ThatWouldBeEnough · 09/06/2021 13:37

I’ve read lots of the responses but not all.

Most of them are bollocks. If people aren’t tracking everything (and I mean everything) then they don’t know what they are consuming. This includes milk in tea, condiments with meals, even medicine has calories (probably not many but not zero).

You have had some good advice on here about finding your own maintaining weight, but in the meantime you really do have to track everything (even if you’ve fallen off the wagon) to make sure you have the right data to work with!

Apocalyptichorsewoman · 09/06/2021 13:41

I'm 52 and 6 years post menopausal.

I'm 5ft 3 and 7 stone 5lb. I'm not entirely sure how many calories I eat each day, but I once did MFP out of interest, and I seem to eat about 1,600. Some days it's more, some days it's less. I am very active though...

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