In need of your wise knowledge.

So recently my lifestyle has changed quite a lot. I'm back in a routine and I am going to work and back in the diet, big time!

Problem is, I have no idea how to calculate my calories any more. My BMR -500 calories is 1200, which is what I used to follow since I didn't do much exercise on most days so I would lose a pound a week. But now, I am biking 3 miles back and forth to work, and at work I am on my feet for 6-8 hours making food and drinks, and I carry about 20 rather heavy loads of dishes from the back to the front, which has given me muscles in my arms I have never even dreamt of having!

But yes, I calculate that the biking alone burns approximately 400 calories, but I'm not sure about the rest. I come home and I am literally starving since I'm sure I've burnt my 1200 calories a while ago but then I feel like I'm destroying my efforts. How many calories am I burning being stood and going back and forth to the kitchen for that long? Is it dangerous to be below your BMR -500? Am I better off eating the difference so I can have some energy? What do you reckon?

Thankies

morning peachy
i'm not sure about the maths of bmr less your exercise ect,but it sounds like you were doing really well at losing weight before you began keeping regularily active,and seeing as you have lost so much already,you must be doing something right!
i think the main thing is that it is perfectly normal to be starving hungry after a lot of activity,and as long as you are keeping away from the junk foods(which i know you are,esp those cakes at work!)you are not only going to continue losing the pounds,but are now getting your body healthy and toned,and a healthy body knows better how to regulate itself.
more power to you girl!

I would suggest if you're using 400 cals per day extra in cycling and you're on your feet all day, that you could eat the extra 400 and still burn off your 500 deficit plus whatever extra you'll be burning off from being on your feet. So you would lose maybe 1.5lbs per week. Or if you feel you could cope, maybe start with 200 calories extra in slow releasing energy snacks throughout the day? Then you would perhaps lose 2lbs per week. Obviously it will be a bit of trial and error too. Well done in being so active!

i was told its about 40 calories to cycle a mile so you wouldn't be far off and of course it depends on your bike, terrain etc. as far as being dangerous i'm not sure like you haven't been getting lightheaded or dizzy have you?? how about headaches? you really do need to eat enough for the work you do because before long you might find yourself tired, grumpy, irritable and life won't be fun anymore. well done for the new lifestyle though

meant to say too that by weighing yourself regularly you can tell if you are losing too much. you don't need to lose weight indefinitely so set yourself an ideal weight and try and stick to it like glue you sound as if you're nearly there if not already

Thanks guys, that sounds quite reasonable, I like the idea of eating those 400 calories and the rest is extra! I'm excited to see what will happen tomorrow for my weigh in. Right now I am being good, using between 200-400 calories to make up for it like Dreamer suggested so hopefully that's right.

Breadbin-I used this website that calculates how many calories you burn depending on the activity, intensity and your weight and that's what a few websites gave me. The route back home is all up hill and takes about 25 mins of rather intense biking so I'm sure I'm burning quite a bit cos I am sweating like a pig by the time I get home haha. I do get dizzy but that's cos of low blood pressure but sometimes it seems to get better when I eat/drink/sit down. I am irritable when I get home but I just figure that's from being at work for ages haha. I figure 1-2 pounds loss a week is good but if it's more than I'm fine with it. I still have quite a bit to lose so it's not the end of the world. I also have all this muscle forming all of a sudden but I've heard contradictory stuff about whether or not it weighs more than fat, etc.

Miss Bee- yeah I think I'll see how it goes this week and take it from there. Thanks tho, definitely feeling the toning!

Otherwise, is there a science behind it all? I read on a thread on here somewhere that if you don't eat enough, your body will stop losing and I really don't wanna do that!

There is no hunger strike going on, don't you worry. This is the way I have used and that I have found that works well for me. I don't find it complicated, rather I find it makes things clearer for me. I just wanna make sure I'm doing it right, that's all

Yeah it seems to be working, I did lose 2 pounds this week so I guess I'm doing it right. It's just cos I am a lot more active than I used to be and not eating much more.. but I might start losing more too! We'll see, I'm just scared of not eating enough for what I'm spending but if I stop losing then that'll be a sign that something has to change.

Hey Peachy, I was just going to suggest upping your calories by a hundred or two a week at a time and just see how your losses are (which I think they're bound to still be good seeing as your doing so much!) but every one else has beaten me to it!

Just Peachy said:

Yeah it seems to be working, I did lose 2 pounds this week so I guess I'm doing it right. It's just cos I am a lot more active than I used to be and not eating much more.. but I might start losing more too! We'll see, I'm just scared of not eating enough for what I'm spending but if I stop losing then that'll be a sign that something has to change.

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2lbs is excellent, it's about right for longterm weight loss Well done!!

yeah but how can you keep up 2lbs a week loss? you're only 25lbs off your ideal weight so have you thought about what you're gonna do when you reach it cos its not far off

usually people lose alot of weight to start but it slows down but you've already lost 35lbs and i think you're losing too much but hey thats just me - put it down to jealousy

To be honest, I am working really hard and being rather strict about what I eat and I work out a lot so maybe that's what my 1-2lb a week is due to but it might not last. I've only restarted losing weight and it's my first five pounds so it might get slower. The sooner I get to goal, the better! After that I plan to just count my calories (about) so I can maintain my weight while still being active but not as zealous about it as now. I have been having about 200 calories more this week cos I feel really hungry so we'll see what happens on Friday.