Hey guys. I downloaded my fitness pal onto my phone just to double check my calorie intake and I'm hitting around 1500 a day. I've also been getting out for a walk each day. I've bought a size 12 dress for a wedding in August and I'm determined to lose a stone to fit into it. Do you think that I need to cut my calories back a bit more?
You should NEVER go below 1200 calories or your body goes into starvation mode (ie not ketosis) which is not good for you.
You can ask MFP to do the calculation for you based on how much you want to lose each week. Don't know if you can do it via the mobile app though.
MFP will not drop your cals below 1200 either.
So for my age (57) and height (5' 6½") and weight (76 kg) doing no exercise I need a 250 calorie deficit to lose ½ lb per week - this comes out at 1440 cals. But if I was only 35, to lose exactly the same amount with the same parameters it goes up to 1570 cals.
There is also a very rough and ready formula you can use. But it only works if you are over about 10 st - otherwise it throws up very silly numbers.
To maintain your current weight take your weight in lbs and multiply by 12. This is the number of calories you need to STS.
So at your current weight (11 st 8 = 162 lbs, taken from your stats) this is equal to 1944 cals.
To lose ½ lb per week reduce by 250 cals = 1694
To lose 1 lb per week reduce by 500 cals = 1444 .
To lose 1½ lbs per week reduce by 750 = 1194. . so UNDER the starvation zone.
So 1500 cals a day sshould mean about 1 lb a week loss. Nice gentle, and sustainable figure.