BMR!!! Eating To your BMR... No Matter What!

[Zer]

Started out without my WPP today, so thought maybe I'd be having one tonight, but I think I'm at BMR:2423cals already - or will be when I finish my day's food:

Calories Eaten Today
........grams . cals ...............%total
Total: 2330cals
Fat: 163 1467 ...................66% (missed my 4Tbs of VCO in WPP)
Sat: 54 486 22%
Poly: 0 0 0%
Mono: 0 0 0%
Carbs: 56 136 .....................6%
Fiber: 22 0 0%
Protein: 155 620 ...........28%
- - - - -
Today's Foods
Food Name (Serving Size) . Cals . Fat . Carb . Prot
Carl's LC $6 cheeseburger
.....(less condiment carbs) 490 37 6 33
AltaDena Cottage Cheese (16oz) 480 20 16 56
Pumpkin seeds (spicy) (2oz) 280 22 10 12
P'kin Seed, organic (2oz) 360 28 8 18
P'kin Seeds/Pepitas, salt, roast (4oz) 720 56 16 36
Totals 2330 163 56 ........155gProtein
-----
Target BMR:2423cals / 182gProtein / 128ozWater

Been working on the cottage cheese all day, taking 1/2C at a time, trying to get in a habit of waking up my digestive process more often. Burger was 10am. P'kin seeds are a Tbs at a time, when I am aware of hunger. Might do a Tbs or so of VCO before bed, just to up the fat grams. Not sure how to do it.

[lowcarblulu]

A bit high on both calories and carbs today. I know what I did and how to fix it. Still lower than my H-B BMR, though.

grams cals %total
Total: 2274
Fat: 154 1384 62%
Sat: 72 650 29%
Poly: 14 125 6%
Mono: 51 456 20%
Carbs: 84 264 12%
Fiber: 18 0 0%
Protein: 146 583 26%

[JerseyGirl1969]

Oh Gosh, Zer, you're so close to 399....

[LoraJR72]

Wow, I'm eating to my BMR finally!!

[dointhis4me]

Here are my numbers for yesterday....I went over calories quite a bit

Total: 2156
Fat: 170 1529 72%
Carbs: 20 69 3%
Fiber: 3 0 0%
Protein: 130 520 25%

[ragtopwife]

OK Day 1 of eating to my BMR under my belt.

BMR: 1608
Goal: 1800-1900
Carbs: <20

Yesterday:
Cal: 1793
Carb 15.8


Even after reading thread couldn't believe how hard this was to do. I have done Lo Carb so long I don't count anymore, It was eye opening (and time consuming ) to start counting every little thing again but a total shock to realize I was only eating 900 - 1100 cal per day. Onward to day 2!

ragtopwife

[Serene1]

Good Morning!

I did well yesterday: Calories 1706, 11 net carbs. (19 total)

It's amazing how much food 1700 calories adds up to when you cut out the carbs. I've also given up cheese & nuts for the time being because I believe I was overindulging in them.

[Cyard]

Hi all! Back on track for me yesterday:
Total: 1996
Fat: 162 1454 74%
Sat: 49 439 22%
Poly: 52 464 24%
Mono: 50 452 23%
Carbs: 50 131 7%
Fiber: 17 0 0%
Protein: 97 389 20%
Alcohol: 0 0 0%


Zer: way to go about getting out of the house!!! Also, wanted to thank you for your cole slaw post, I made some yesterday and it was yummy!!!

[Zer]

Up and slurping at 6am, getting my WPP and VCO into me for a good start and 40gProtein - as well as a third of my BMR:2423cals - in hopes it will get me moving, to do a few of the things I've been procrastinating on. Might weigh today. Might not. I expect weight is bOunCing a bit and it might benefit me to wait for 6/8 (4months of owning a scale) to get aboard and watch the numbers flicker and flee before settling on a final weight.

[gungadinn1997]

I have a request please. Could anyone come over to my challenge thread and clear up the BMR/HB info. My group is not quite sure about it, and I know very little.

Team #7 Disappearing Divas Week 1

Thanks a million!!

Kim

[Zer]

Anyone asks ME for info on BMR, I refer them to this thread, where I am busy learning what I can absorb about eating more food than I really want to eat.

[LoraJR72]

I believe a couple of my team members are already part of this thread.

[Ilpirata]

Andrea,
I think your macros look great. Personally I eat even MORE fat than that, but at 70/5/20 you're definately in the right area. Great work!

[Ilpirata]

Welcome Leanne & Ragtopwife!
Glad you decided to give this a try.

Leanne, the main purpose of this challenge for you would be to make sure you never ever eat below 1830 calso per day - NO MATTER WHAT. Don't worry so much about the top end of the number. You've got the metabolic advantage of eating low carb. We are mostly concerned with the base number that we will never eat below.

[duece49424]

Okay - help - my bmr after doing the other calculation is 1657, so, does that mean I east 300-500 calories less or more? What plan should I be doing? I am so sorry that i am so confused. have no idea what I'm doing....I am 59 years old, 223, not much exercise - just working and no time for anything else - yet. the weather in Michigan is getting better now, so I'll start walking and gardening if I can.

[Shonmarie]

Hi everyone. I have read this thread with much enthusiasm and have learned a great deal.

Any way we can make this a sticky?

[piedrafina]

ok, i think i managed to do it yesterday. here are my totals:

Total: 1950
Fat: 139 1254 65%
Sat: 73 659 34%
Poly: 7 62 3%
Mono: 39 355 18%
Carbs: 49 159 8%
Fiber: 9 0 0%
Protein: 128 511 27%
Alcohol: 0 0 0%

[Mommie22boys]

Originally Posted by duece49424

Okay - help - my bmr after doing the other calculation is 1657, so, does that mean I east 300-500 calories less or more? What plan should I be doing? I am so sorry that i am so confused. have no idea what I'm doing....I am 59 years old, 223, not much exercise - just working and no time for anything else - yet. the weather in Michigan is getting better now, so I'll start walking and gardening if I can.

You need to figure in the HB factor, as well. What you've found is just your resting BMR (that's you, doing nothing but breathing, for 12-16 hours). If you're sedentary, multiply by 1.2. If your BMR is 1657, the calculation with activity rate figured in comes to 1989.4. Take THAT number and subtract 300-500 calories. THAT'S the number you should not eat under.

HTH!

[Mommie22boys]

Originally Posted by Ilpirata

Andrea,
I think your macros look great. Personally I eat even MORE fat than that, but at 70/5/20 you're definately in the right area. Great work!

Kisha: Thanks for the input. I'm going to try to keep the carbs lower today. I ended up with 27 (minus fiber) yesterday. Right now I'm at 17 for the day, so I should be good to go. I'll post the day's numbers later.

KUTGW, everyone!!

[duece49424]

thanks for the help, andrea. now I will try and post in fitday and figure out the rest. What diet are you following?

[Mommie22boys]

Originally Posted by duece49424

thanks for the help, andrea. now I will try and post in fitday and figure out the rest. What diet are you following?

You're welcome. As far as what diet I'm following. . .I really am not *following* anything. Here's what I eat or try to aim for everyday, though: low carb, whole foods, lots of eggs, meat, butter, low carb veggies, yocheese, lots of water. I try to keep my half & half and cheese intake reigned in right now, at least until I can get the scale moving again. No HFCS, hydrogenated/partially hydrogenated oils, carrageenan, artificial colors. . .I try my best with this. No less than 64oz water each day, at least 32oz of water after 7pm.

Right now, I'm eating to my BMR of no less than 1730 calories each day, aiming for 1800, with percentages in the area of 70-75% fat, 20ish% protein and <10% carbs (preferrably 5%).

I'm also reading Good Calories, Bad, Calories by Gary Taubes right now. It's a great book, and one that I think should be required reading for anyone following/thinking of following/questioning the validity of following a low carb way of eating. It's an excellent book, and it's been very helpful in opening my eyes to the way things work regarding carbs and weight/weight loss. It has also helped convince me that I should be able to eat MORE calories and still lose weight, provided I keep my carbs to an absolute minimum.

This is probably more than you wanted to know. . .heh heh. But there it is.

I'll check in with you guys later. . .gotta go serve up my cheeseburger frittata for dinner!

[Mommie22boys]

Well, I find I'm adding another small protein shake this evening just to make my BMR (1730 minimum. . .shooting for 1800). I even attended a wedding shower after school today (I was so good. . .no cake or anything I wouldn't be able to enter into fitday). I'll try again tomorrow to eat more throughout the day so I'm not needing to add things on at the end of the day (again).

Here's my numbers:

Total: 1801
Fat: 136 1222 69%
Sat: 41 365 21%
Poly: 26 238 13%
Mono: 24 220 12%
Carbs: 27 98 6%
Fiber: 2 0 0%
Protein: 111 446 25%
Alcohol: 0 0 0%

It's funny. . .I thought when I started, "1730 calories? That will be easy!" Wrong!! I'm finding that now that I'm paying attention to ALL of my macro %age's, I'm more careful about what I eat. Thus, making it tougher than I thought it would be to get there every day.

I'll figure this out, yet.

Have a great one!!

[duece49424]

andrea - sounds like you are on a roll...I tried fitday for a little while - whew! I will be 60 years old in a few months, and maybe my metabolism needs a really good boost! Went through menopause, my husband died, my dad died, and my dog just died on my birthday. When I looked at my journal, I thought, maybe I'm stress eating, etc. Comfort food - but the wrong kind. back to fitday for awhile.....

[duece49424]

Okay, I just did fitday for today and I am in shock!!! Calories 1562; fat 96; carb 106; 79 protein. Something is wrong with me! Should I post my food so you can check it out? I had a banana and 1 c strawberries in my protein shake, does anyone here eat fruit? Did that put me over?

[Zer]

Getting pretty close to my BMR:2423cals - not sure how I'll finish it off. Need about 300cals of protein, so might do another tin of sardines.

Calories Eaten Today
.......grams . cals ............%total
Total: 2131cals
Fat: 164 1474 ...................71%
Sat: 72 645 31%
Poly: 3 30 1%
Mono: 23 208 10%
Carbs: 63 162 ...................8%
Fiber: 23 0 0%
Protein: 110 439 ..........21%
- - - - -
Today's Foods
Food Name (Serving Size) . Cals . Fat . Carb . Prot
Pumpkin seeds (spicy) (2oz) 280 22 10 12
P'kin Seed, organic (2oz) 360 28 8 18
P'kin Seeds/Pepitas, salt, roast (1oz) 180 14 4 9
TJ Sardines in olive oil 220 12 0 26
Olive oil (2Tbs) 239 27 0 0
ALG's vanilla WPP (30g/scoop x2) 238 3 13 40
Cacao, raw (1Tbs) 60 1 9 3
Espresso (1 Tbs crystals) 21 0 4 0
Oil, coconut (4Tbs) 480 56 0 0
Bran-a-Crisp (2; wheat bran, rye flour) 40 0 12 2
Cranberries (1oz) 13 0 3 0
Totals 2131 164 63 .........110gProtein
-----
Target BMR:2423cals / 182gProtein / 128ozWater

[Ilpirata]

What diet are you following?

Most of us are doing Atkins I think. I know I am and Zer is and I think Laura...

No Fruit on Atkins except maybe some berries way up the rungs closer to maintenence. I think South Beach Diet allows some fruit? Not really sure...

[Mommie22boys]

Originally Posted by duece49424

Okay, I just did fitday for today and I am in shock!!! Calories 1562; fat 96; carb 106; 79 protein. Something is wrong with me! Should I post my food so you can check it out? I had a banana and 1 c strawberries in my protein shake, does anyone here eat fruit? Did that put me over?

Yeah, that fruit will definately up your carbs in a hurry. . .especially the banana. I don't do too much in the way of fruit, at least not while I'm actively trying to lose. If I do have some, it's usually only a few berries. Yesterday I chopped up a strawberry and added it to my yocheese (thick, strained plain yogurt).

My suggestion: Try to stick to meat, eggs, low carb veggies (like cauliflower, broccoli, small amounts of salad veggies), cheeses, butter (this is a better choice than margarine), cream, mayo, tuna, chicken, fish. The simpler you keep it, the easier it will be to keep your carb #'s down. Avoid low-fat products, as these generally have extra carbs (in the form of sugar) that they're using in place of the fat they're taking out. It's when your carbs are low that you will start to see your weight move down.

If you post a typical menu, maybe we can help you figure things out.

I'll post what I had today, if that's helpful. Keep in mind that I attended a wedding shower for a co-worker today, too. And, of course, I'm not perfect.

B: coffee w/ 3T h&h, 1/4 cup yocheese w/ 2T h&h and 1 tsp lemon jello
L: 1 can tuna mixed w/ 2 chopped eggs and 3T mayo (full-fat)
Shower: 2 slices cucumber, 1/2 stalk celery w/ sour cream dip, 10 peanuts, approx 1/4 cup taco salad dip
S: pork rinds (I can't resist these sometimes)
D: 1/16th cheeseburger frittata, 1/4 red pepper w/ sour cream dip
S: small protein shake w/ almond milk, cream cheese, ice, J Robb protein powder

Keep posting. . .we're here to support each other!

[lowcarblulu]

Did much better today, goal range is 1886-2086 cals. Did better on carbs too.

Total: 1884
Fat: 127 1143 62%
Sat: 49 438 24%
Poly: 17 157 8%
Mono: 44 400 22%
Carbs: 59 159 9%
Fiber: 20 0 0%
Protein: 137 547 30%
Alcohol: 0 0 0%

[thealything]

I am so psyched for this! unlike many of you, I usually eat far ABOVE what I should... cheese really puts my total up high. but lately I've been making an effort to cut out cheese, and then I have to struggle for calories.

my BMR is 1693, and my HB total is 2200 (assuming I'm doing all my walking and strenght training)... so the calorie total I'm aiming for is 1900.
I just fitday'd my projected daily total, and found it's almost perfect:
grams cals %total
Total: 1859
Fat: 140 1258 68%
Sat: 74 666 36%
Poly: 5 44 2%
Mono: 26 233 13%
Carbs: 13 32 2%
Fiber: 5 0 0%
Protein: 139 557 30%

I might add a cup or two of romaine lettuce to my fish dinner tonight, with a very small amount of EVOO and vinegar, just to give myself a bit more fibre and carbs. that should round everything out nicely.

this info is so good for motivating you to really get your exercise in so you can justify eating more butter!
it also makes me really think about what I'm eating and endeavour to make good choices, fitting everything together like pieces of a puzzle. for example, I was at 1700 cals for the whole day, then decided to add 1 tbsp coconut oil to my tea. I had been meaning to try it and even got a new bottle, but today's fitday and the info from this post made me think of it and add it in!

I think it will be a good tool to use in monitoring weight losses. like every month one can re-evaluate one's caloric needs based on the past month's gains and/or losses, and then use that in planning changes to be made to one's diet. I know I'm always tweaking my strategy and trying to figure out what I could be doing. thanks for posting this!

[Zer]

At 1am Friday morn I opted to slurp 40gProtein in a WPP hot slosh instead of cruising the kitchen to see What's Available. That's quite a change for any carbaholic. I'm impressed with myself, for knowing that heading to the kitchen with Evil Intent is just no part of my life today. Sure, there are eggs, but I do not think that cooking eggs was part of my agenda. I'll boil or scramble some eggs up later today. Probably do both, eating the scrambles while a slew of eggs boil for wknd snax. Got plans to push HARD for my 6/8 weigh day, hoping to be well under 399# by then. Still hovering just above 400# - got 401# on the scale Thurs midday - and believe that I can do two diligent LC days (Fri/Sat) to get to Sunday's 4month scale weigh day on 6/8 - to see THREEdom coming true on my scale! Not just flickering by me, but steady and official: 399# or better! Yay, I'm stoked!

Cannot think when last I weighed under 400#. No idea at all. I'll have to prowl some ancient journals to see if any weights are noted. I think I was in my 30s or early 40s the last time I weighed under 400#. What a wasted life!

But that's past. What's ahead of me is a year pushing to reach 299#, right?

Okay, I'd like to see 299# by Feb.2009, but that's 8mos away and I'm not losing weight at a rate that will bring me to drop an average of 13#/mo.

Maybe if I went more Meat&Egg? Maybe I could see 3#/wk on average loss? More protein, fewer carbs. Yeah. That could do the trick, that and eating up to my BMR:2423cals, no matter what! Maybe 299# by Feb.2009 is do-able.

What do you think? Can I do this? Dare I set my sights on that goal?