Fitday and my transition to maintainance calories...

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Michael Plumridge - 27 Jun 2004 00:30 GMT

Is it just me, or does Fitday's daily calorie expenditure calculation seem a
bit off? I'm 25 years old and I weigh 161 pounds, and my BMR is listed at
1835. I can believe that, but when I add that I do 9 hours of standing/light
work as a cashier, it tells me that I'm burning an additional 1000 calories
a day. Does that seem like too much credit to anyone else? I guess the
obvious answer is to eat a controlled calorie diet for a week and see if I
stay at this weight, but I was just wondering if anyone else has come to the
same conclusion. If I am supposed to eat around 3000 calories to maintain
weight on days that I work, I'm really wondering how I'm going to make sure
that I can still eat healthy and not go broke.

I'm working out quite a bit these days so I'm trying to get one gram of
protein per pound of body weight. So with 640 calories from protein and
trying not to encourage too much fat storage, where should my other
macronutrients lie? More complex carbs, less good fats or more good fats,
less complex carbs? Or somewhere in between. Luckily I'm not picky when it
comes to what I eat and I'm open to suggestions. If it takes eating tons of
whole grain bread or tons of nuts, I'll jump at the chance but I just don't
know what would be best.

Thanks

Mike
196/160/150-160 and 15 percent body fat

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Ignoramus13867 - 27 Jun 2004 01:13 GMT

> Is it just me, or does Fitday's daily calorie expenditure calculation seem a
> bit off? I'm 25 years old and I weigh 161 pounds, and my BMR is listed at
> 1835. I can believe that, but when I add that I do 9 hours of standing/light
> work as a cashier, it tells me that I'm burning an additional 1000 calories
> a day. Does that seem like too much credit to anyone else?

you are right, it is a bogus number. Did you enter
sedentary/bedridden as your lifestyle?

> I guess the
> obvious answer is to eat a controlled calorie diet for a week and see if I
> stay at this weight, but I was just wondering if anyone else has come to the
> same conclusion. If I am supposed to eat around 3000 calories to maintain
> weight on days that I work, I'm really wondering how I'm going to make sure
> that I can still eat healthy and not go broke.

most likely the number is way off.

> I'm working out quite a bit these days so I'm trying to get one gram of
> protein per pound of body weight. So with 640 calories from protein and
[quoted text clipped - 4 lines]
> whole grain bread or tons of nuts, I'll jump at the chance but I just don't
> know what would be best.

I would not base my decisions on the fitday number. Try maintaining
your weight on 15 calories per pound, and see where it goes. Congrats
with being so thoughtful.

i

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Michael Plumridge - 27 Jun 2004 01:40 GMT

Thanks for your reply. I figured you might be interested to see what I have
to say.

> I would not base my decisions on the fitday number. Try maintaining
> your weight on 15 calories per pound, and see where it goes. Congrats
> with being so thoughtful.

Alright, that is what I had planned. I'm going to shoot for 2400 calories a
day, but I'm still not sure about carbs and proteins. I know that you're big
on fats for keeping yourself satiated - what types of fats do you usually
take in? As I said, I love nuts and I'm also a big fan of all types of fish.
I just switched to natural peanut butter, too... So it's all at my disposal,
but I guess I'm just looking for someone to point me in a good direction. It
does seem to me that eating more carbs in the form of fruits , while tasty,
who provide me with way too many sugars and that's probably not the way I'd
want to go. I'm still pretty clueless though.

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Ignoramus29633 - 27 Jun 2004 14:29 GMT

> Thanks for your reply. I figured you might be interested to see what I have
> to say.
[quoted text clipped - 10 lines]
> but I guess I'm just looking for someone to point me in a good
> direction.

I think that you don;t need anyone to point you in the right direction
because you are going in the right direction.

> It does seem to me that eating more carbs in the form of fruits ,
> while tasty, who provide me with way too many sugars and that's
> probably not the way I'd want to go. I'm still pretty clueless
> though.

This issue (carbs vs. fats) seems to be blown out of proportion. All
I wanted to point out, before, was that lowfatting is not well rooted
in evidence. Other than that, I do not have a huge opinion on carbs
vs. fats issue. Perhaps you can work it out individually, see if
eating fruits derails you from your diet? I am sorry that I do not
have a meaningful suggestion. There are many fruits that are low in
calories.

Not all people respond badly to sugars and starches, also. And one
could find it out with the use of a blood glucose meter from walmart!

i

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Heywood Mogroot - 27 Jun 2004 20:10 GMT

> Thanks for your reply. I figured you might be interested to see what I have
> to say.
[quoted text clipped - 7 lines]
> on fats for keeping yourself satiated - what types of fats do you usually
> take in? As I said, I love nuts and I'm also a big fan of all types of fish.

Sounds good. I swear by almonds, and my favorite now is Blue Diamond's
Chili Picante almonds. They're so spicy 1 serving is enough!

> I just switched to natural peanut butter, too... So it's all at my disposal,
> but I guess I'm just looking for someone to point me in a good direction. It
> does seem to me that eating more carbs in the form of fruits , while tasty,
> who provide me with way too many sugars and that's probably not the way I'd
> want to go.

fruits have sugar, but in such a low dose (with all the water and
fiber) that it's not a big deal. To avoid high-sugar stuff just don't
drink fruit juices.

> I'm still pretty clueless though.

Try a protein powder, hopefully one without aspartame. I got a 1lb
canister from Walmart of EAS Vanilla and *really* liked the taste (it
has the natural sweetener 'stevia') -- it really goes great on
cheerios and oatmeal.

I've ordered a 5lb canister of EAS MyoPro Whey from netrition.com, and
hopefully it has the same taste. 5lbs should last me a month, or about
$1/day.

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Michael Plumridge - 27 Jun 2004 22:06 GMT

Thanks for your reply. I was starting to wonder if anyone but Ig had
anything to say.

> Sounds good. I swear by almonds, and my favorite now is Blue Diamond's
> Chili Picante almonds. They're so spicy 1 serving is enough!

Hmm... I've never seen them. I love almonds though. Are there are any nuts
that should be avoided, though? I like walnuts, peanuts, pistachios,
almonds, sunflower seeds, pumpkin seeds, cashews, brazils, hazels...

> fruits have sugar, but in such a low dose (with all the water and
> fiber) that it's not a big deal. To avoid high-sugar stuff just don't
> drink fruit juices.

Alright, that's what I've been doing thus far and that's what I've been
telling my wife, who is hypoglycemic and pre-diabetic. I cannot get enough
Granny Smith apples or Bananas, for that matter. I need to check on other
fruit to see what has the highest fiber and the lowest glycemic index for my
needs.

> Try a protein powder, hopefully one without aspartame. I got a 1lb
> canister from Walmart of EAS Vanilla and *really* liked the taste (it
> has the natural sweetener 'stevia') -- it really goes great on
> cheerios and oatmeal.

Actually I'm on Optimal Nutrition 100% Whey and that's where I get about
40-55 of my daily protein grams. It's pretty low fat and low carb and I
don't know how I'd get my daily protein without it. The five pound bucket
came in at right around 35 dollars after shipping , and I got mine from
bodybuilding.com.

Thanks again for the interest and help.

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Heywood Mogroot - 28 Jun 2004 05:58 GMT

> Thanks for your reply. I was starting to wonder if anyone but Ig had
> anything to say.
[quoted text clipped - 3 lines]
>
> Hmm... I've never seen them.

http://www.bluediamond.com/shop/nuts/12ozChiliPicante.cfm

$5/can is pretty steep, but they're certainly big cans -- works out to
~50c/serving.

>I love almonds though. Are there are any nuts
> that should be avoided, though? I like walnuts, peanuts, pistachios,
> almonds, sunflower seeds, pumpkin seeds, cashews, brazils, hazels...

the seeds are good. I could never eat just 1 serving of cashews
though, so I guess I won't be able to buy them. 1oz of cashews would
be like 1 spoon of Ben & Jerries...

> > fruits have sugar, but in such a low dose (with all the water and
> > fiber) that it's not a big deal. To avoid high-sugar stuff just don't
[quoted text clipped - 5 lines]
> fruit to see what has the highest fiber and the lowest glycemic index for my
> needs.

I've read that bananas get higher-GI as they get ripe, so be careful
there.

> > Try a protein powder, hopefully one without aspartame. I got a 1lb
> > canister from Walmart of EAS Vanilla and *really* liked the taste (it
[quoted text clipped - 6 lines]
> came in at right around 35 dollars after shipping , and I got mine from
> bodybuilding.com.

Sounds good. Wish I would have started the protein sooner in my diet.
I had some Met-RX, but his is more of a meal-replacement than protein
shake, plus it's over-priced.

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