STOP COUNTING CALORIES Please you are fine for your height and weight. Just increase your mileage to like two miles a week, and stop weighing yourself. You are driving yourself insane.

http://This message has been edited by paulmitch (edited Aug-02-2006).

I am headed to where you are and I think I get to eat gobs of food. I am 5'5" and weigh 175 and want to weigh anything under 140. I would kill to weigh 135. Granted I am also 47 yrs old and have 5 kids too.

I plan on eating 1800 calories a day and excercise for a minimum of 600 calories burned. I get anywhere between a 500 and 800 deficit depending on how much I actually excercise.

What are you eating exactly or how much are you excercising?

Tracy

A 250 calorie deficit is probably more sustainable than a 500 calorie deficit, meaning your weight loss will be more successful (over the long run, but it will take longer of course). Also, since you're so close to your goal weight anyway, you should expect weight loss to be pretty slow. Dieting generally = hunger. But out of control hunger might mean you're restricting too much and/or that your food choices aren't great. Switching to bulkier foods (higher fiber, more fruits and veggies) for the same caloric content might help. As an aside, I'm not dieting, but I always wake up hungry - I'd think that's normal since you've probably been fasting for over 8 hours at that point!

I read an interesting theory the other day, but I can't find the article. The jist follows:

Rather than a flat rate of 500 calories cut per day from any given diet, we should look at percentages, this person theorized. I think he said to cut no more than 15%-20% of calories off of what would be maintenance.

So, a very obese person needing 2800 calories per day for maintenance could cut 560 calories from his diet, and lose weight quickly by eating 2240 calories per day.

On the other hand, a woman who needs 1600 calories per day for maintenance shouldn't cut more than 320 calories per day, so shouldn't eat less than 1280.

Your 250 calorie deficit idea is probably pretty right on, and right in line with his ideas.

Other than that, I second Paulmitch's sentiment: you're at a healthy weight - don't diet. If you're unhappy with your body, consider weight training to build muscle and reshape your body a little. But.... that's not what you asked, is it?

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