I am currently 270 lbs. How would I determine the amount of calories I should have each day in order to lose 1 1/2 - 2 pounds per week without going into the starvation mode?

:help:

It takes a reduction of 3,500 calories to lose one pound of fat. If you reduce your calorie intake and increase your excercise levels enough to burn at least 3,500 calories a week, you should be able to lose a pound a week. But, take the time to evaluate the number of calories you are eating, and go from there.

Hi Angel, welcome to DT!
What I did to calculate the calories needed is to start with this site that tells you how many you need to maintain your current weight: http://www.am-i-fat.com/
For example, I entered (in the website form) your height and current weight and put in 30 for age(sorry, just a guess) and sedentary lifestyle. The form says you would need to eat 2471 calroies/day in order to maintain your current weight.
But WAIT! There's more... LOL
Sooo, If you want to loose 2 lbs/week you need to subtract 1,000 calories from the maintainence amt.(2 x 3,500[calories to burn 1lb] divide by 7[days in week])
So, you could eat 1400-1500 calories/day and still loose weight.
AND... that's if your not excercising. If you burn 200 calories through excercise you can add that back to your calories(or loose more)
BUT, as your weight drops, so should your calories. You can experiment with different weights on the form to see how many calories you would eat if you weighed (for example) 200lbs or 150lbs.
I'm just giving you a rough idea, with out knowing many details about you.
Also, alot depends on what kind of calories you eat(BIG difference from my expirence)
I hope this helps, let me know if this info is useful.
Good luck in your journey! You CAN do it.
Lucky %%-

Hi...its not always easy to figure out that number of calories you need to eat...to lose weight, as we are all different. Everyone here will have a different calculation method and a different number. I lost most of my weight in the 2000 range. My exercise was and still is walking. I also do some weight training.

I am a stickler for quality calories too. It does make a difference. I eat alot of veggies, lean protein, some whole grains, some fruit...etc..and have cut out most all refined products.

Do you keep a food journal. I think its a great tool. Put down every bite you eat and drink in that journal and see where you are at now in your calorie level and what foods you can improve on. Work on making healthier choices and in time the weight will come off.

I wish you the best..and if you need anything..just give a yell. :)

I have a quick question for luckyloser. I went to the site you suggested above and calculated how many calories I need to maintain my weight and it was 1981. So does that mean that I can only have 981 calories in order to lose 2lb a week??

Its not very many calories; but it would explain why I have not been losing any weight (I take in around 1,200 - 1,400 a day).
TIA

Thanks. By the way, Lucky Loser, age 30 was a complement. I am actually 48.

:)

Angel, Glad it helps. Whew:sweat: I'm glad I didn't offend you. LOL

Diane74, don't go below 1200 calories, If you want to lose 2lbs/week, just makeup the difference in calories (219) with excercise. It's just a guideline to go by. There are lots of variables, like type of calories you eat(unhealthy vs healthy foods), water loss, water gain, muscle gain (in the begining).
I eat/excercise to loose 2lbs/week, but only plan on losing 1lb/week. That way any extra loss is good. It's less frustrating for me.
I hope this helps.
Lucky %%-

Yes: Below 1200 calories per day it is very difficult for a lay-person to ensure that they're getting full nutrition. Though medically-supervised plans can safely and effectively go down to even as low as 500 calories per day, without medical supervision, 1200 is the absolute lowest a dieter should go.

Food, exercise and weight journaling is a great tool to get a firm handle on "what that number is" referring to how many calories you can eat each day and still lose weight. Take any reasonable rule-of-thumb and see if it works for you, and if it doesn't then monitor how decreasing calories and increasing exercise affects weight. (When using weight as a gauge, always use four week rolling averages, since any shorter time-frame will have gross inaccuracies due to the nature of the human body.)