Official 2015 Fitness Challenge

If I Remember Correctly

Check out:
http://iifym.com/tdee-calculator/

I'm just switching up my diet and exercising hard. I eat 1600-2000cal/day, though I keep very loose track - calorie counting doesn't do well for me. Focusing on whole foods and using the 80/20 rule... 80% good, real, whole foods, 20% of snacking on not-the-best-for-me foods. I've been eating one or two small "treats" per day.

Haha no, I've been pretty much maintaining at 2200 for 7 months, but been eating a bit over this month... so I'll see the damage in a couple weeks (I just got my period and I typically get my lowest weight a week after, so I just compare that weight from month to month). But I've been working out a bit more too, so who knows. I do seem a bit fatter at the hips but again, I just got my period so it doesn't mean much.

I do pretty much 80/20 too.

Should I purchase a scale?

Or are scales not that great? In my mind, as I exercise and build more muscle (which will weigh more than fat) I shouldn't focus on weight as I probably won't lose weight that quickly, and when I do, I may gain some weight as well because of muscle?

What do you guys think about scales yay or nay?

Where did I get 1200 from? Weird...

I use a scale to keep an eye on things, but I focus heavily on "Non Scale Victories"/"NSVs". Noticing I'm not as out of breath as I was last time I worked out, working out longer and harder, noticing my muscles starting to show up again, clothes fitting differently... that is the stuff that matters more to me.

The scale was helpful because it helps to know your weight when you use MFP, pretty much. Mostly though, for me not weighing is a sign of denial, so I pretty much have to do it... I just know now not to get upset when I gain weight, either I know it's my fault for eating too much one day, or I know it's just water weight anyway (tracking with MFP helps for that because I know when I eat too much and when I don't).

But measuring is better. I just suck at it. I don't really trust the way clothes fit, but just because I know that some can stretch over time, and that they won't fit the same way when they've just been washed, for example. But for now as long as my jeans fit fine, I'm not too worried (but still weigh every month the week after my period).

Well I've used my FitBit Charge HR for about 24 hours now and I already think I am going to be returning it =/ It is clearly way over counting my steps giving me 1-2,000 extra steps than I am taking (I know because I get this many steps just sitting watching tv).

I am going to try and switch it to my less dominant arm. and give it up to a week of wearing it and if things don't get better, I will return it

I wanted it to work so bad! If it was slightly inaccurate giving me like 50-100 steps off of how many I actually took. Then that would be tolerable. Sigh.

I have the same Fitbit : ) Let me know if you want to be friends! It's fun to kind of challenge and cheer on others.

ETA: I just saw your other post About it. Is it on your non-dominant hand? Are the settings set to your non dominant hand? I wore my hip tracker for awhile while wearing the HR and the numbers were super close. I hope you get yours figured out. It's super motivating for me.

I am re-reading through this and I'm just going to recommend it to everybody again. I forgot how much awesome information is packed in here.
http://www.amazon.com/New-Rules-Lifting-Women-Goddess-ebook/dp/B004IE9RGC

Praise Jesus, I was really horrified at the idea of you eating only 1200 calories!




As far as a scale and losing fat/gaining muscle and what that means to the scale, as a woman you probably won't see the scale go up as a result of gaining muscle at the beginning. You'll more than likely see it as a plateau or a very small loss. Only once you are very lean (low body fat percentage) does the scale start to tip upward as you build muscle (which typically means you are also adding some fat back.)
I broke up with my scale for about two years and it was an excellent decision. I did buy a very good quality one about six months ago (and a good quality one is important if you're going to have one) so I could start keeping track of my body fat percentage more closely, and a scale measurement is part of the calculations. It's like Fran said, a scale is not a bad thing so long as you don't take the number on it so seriously. Weight in a human being (men AND women) fluctuates naturally based on your glycogen storage levels and a variety of other things, like how much food is still moving through your system. A difference of a pound can quite literally be the difference of a big poop. I think it's really, really important for people to keep this perspective and "relationship" with the scale. My scale is simply to provide another data point in a calculation... that's it.

As for calorie trackers, I do it religiously and have for ages. But I also do mainly performance based, macro focused eating, meaning I eat for a protein goal first and foremost, have days where I am intentionally higher carb, and I also keep a very close eye on my calories to ensure I'm hitting where I need to be. It's incredibly easy for me to not eat enough. Tracking makes sure I get what I need to perform how I want. I absolutely cannot lift big or run long while eating tiny. Eating with the specific goal in mind of fueling my body has shifted the perspective a whole hell of a lot. I also have a maintenance day once per week, and when my workouts start stalling and I hit major glycogen depletion (IE when I am literally starving ALL THE TIME, like thinking I might eat my own arm kind of starving) I do a maintenance week or two depending on how I am feeling - knowing my calories is just so bloody important. Going without it is a recipe for poor workout success and that is not what I want.

People are also notoriously horrible at estimating and calculating and calorie tracking at least challenges you to be a little more accountable. True, you can still tell it you ate a cup of something when you really just kind of eyeballed it and probably ate way more than a cup, but it does present an additional roadblock to just winging it and making it all up, which is how so many people have gotten where they are.

Hrrrm, well, now I'm concerned. I'm probably eating between 1,400-1,500cal a day (my calorie tracker says closer to 1,300, but I under estimate things when I put them in).

I feel great. I'm eating much more balanced meals, I'm eating breakfast now, when I snack on foods it's healthy foods. My energy level has been normal, I've lost some weight, I feel satisfied after meals and if I'm hungry between meals I grab a snack. I'm hitting my nutrition goals (protien, etc.) daily.

But I don't want to be eating not enough...? I don't *feel* like I'm not eating enough, but is that okay? On days I exercise I eat more. I also have my "binge" days once or twice a week where I tend to, er, drink my calories.

I'm lightly active (my days off I sit around all day, days on I stand/move around a lot and wrestle with animals all day, gym days are maybe a half hour walk/jog and mild weights), 5'6, 24 years old, currently 145 pounds (130-135 ideal).

When I was keeping track of my calories before I started eating "healthy" I probably averaged 1,700-2,000 calories a day, with my "binge" days upwards of 2500cal. This caused me to gain about 10 unwanted pounds and when I gained two more and hit 150 I knew I needed to change something.

I don't think I'm starving myself. But would I know if I was?

I punched in your numbers:

Your BMR is:
1483cal/day
Your TDEE is:
2040cal/day

So 1500/day should be fine for you if you're eating good, whole foods.

Thanks! I was attempting to do that, but couldn't figure out how that equated to what I should be eating. That makes me feel better. I want to loose weight, not starve myself! I don't feel starved (quite the opposite, I feel good), so I was worried.

1500 a day with a TDE of 1483 means you're eating just above the bare minimum to fuel your body to stay alive. 1400 is below that so WAY too low.

I personally wouldn't go any lower than 1700.

1500 can be fine depending on how precise you are with your tracking. Most people underestimate their calorie intake, honestly. Personally though I don't trust my hunger signals one bit, they're all over the place depending on when I am in my hormonal cycle.

I use a food scale... I know that some people find it obsessive but I like knowing exactly how much I'm eating.

I'm day 4 into my period and will know this month's damage when I weigh myself in a few days... I don't think my body has changed one bit in 8 months though, or at least I'm not seeing it... but at least I've managed to stick to my small deficit the last 5 days.

Burpees kicking my ass today.

So excited to get my gym routine started up. My torn muscles in my chest are healed and I am SO READY TO GET STRONGER.

My fitbit is much more accurate! I changed the settings to dominant hand in order to decrease sensitivity and then I started wearing it on my non dominant hand in order to not have it on a hand that moves as much as well.

I also did my first work out today in at least 6 months! I was able to do about 40 minutes of the P90X Plyometrics (of course not jumping as high or squatting as low...) but it is still is an intense workout!

So I know they're not really all that accurate, but my dad came home with one of those scales that analyzes body fat the other day.
Apparently, according to it's measurements I've got
14% BF
60% BW
44% MM

Inaccurate as it may be, it does make me feel a little better for being so over any "ideal weight" based on my height.
And I'm not going to use that as an excuse to be lazy and stop working toward my goal

Yeah those scales are not accurate at all.

I was thinking of maybe getting the FitBit Scale, since it syncs right to the app. But it is expensive, and I don't want to buy that expensive of a scale if these cool functions like body fat percentage and such would be really inaccurate.

It has really good reviews.. hmm.

I've used one and it was incredibly close to the measurement I had at the doctors office. I haven't bought one because it's expensive, but when I get closer to the weight/shape I want to be in I will probably buy one.

Save your money. Seriously.

http://www.nerdfitness.com/blog/2012/07/02/body-fat-percentage/