TDEE-20, Discrepencies, and Fitness Trackers

ftsolk

So, a lot of people say to eat a 20% reduction of your TDEE (or the calories you burn though ALL activity including BMR a day).

But nutritional labels can be off by as much as 20%.

And if you have a Fitness tracker, it can be up to 40% inaccurate.

And the difference between different TDEE calculators can be off by several hundred calories of each other.

Overeating by 100 calories a day can equal 35 pounds weight loss in a year. Not that difficult to do.

So, with all of these aspects falling into place, how does this TDEE-20 thing really work?

clarebear230786

It's all estimates, just pick a TDEE calculator or take an average of a few and stick with it. Try not to worry about all the other little things. I've lost 27lbs up to now doing TDEE -20%. I just took the average of a few of the most popular sites (scooby, fat2fit,IIFYM).
It definitely works just try not to over think it

Jruzer

Exactly right. It's a guideline. You try it out out and see how well it works over long enough time scales, and adjust as needed. There are a lot of uncertainties involved, so any weight loss technique is just a tool, not a prescription.

majoki

If 4 weeks have passed and you're not losing weight, then you can always lower your calories by a bit and see if that helps.

TimothyFish

You use the calculator to give you a starting point. Then you watch the scale to see what your weight is doing and adjust your calorie intake accordingly.

vismal

ftsolk wrote: »

So, a lot of people say to eat a 20% reduction of your TDEE (or the calories you burn though ALL activity including BMR a day).

But nutritional labels can be off by as much as 20%.

And if you have a Fitness tracker, it can be up to 40% inaccurate.

And the difference between different TDEE calculators can be off by several hundred calories of each other.

Overeating by 100 calories a day can equal 35 pounds weight loss in a year. Not that difficult to do.

So, with all of these aspects falling into place, how does this TDEE-20 thing really work?

This is why no matter what a calculator says, no matter what a fitness gadget says, you must adjust calories based on your ACTUAL results. You can use any of the mentioned things to find a starting point, but after that, it's all trial and error. After a while you get so good at knowing what you need to eat in order to lose, the calculators become obsolete.

AmyRhubarb

majoki wrote: »

If 4 weeks have passed and you're not losing weight, then you can always lower your calories by a bit and see if that helps.

This.

Be as accurate as you can with your entries, set your numbers and go. Watch progress, adjust as needed.

Personally, the numbers I ran the first time were pretty much spot on and I never had to make any major adjustments. Lost the weight over three years ago and have kept it off. I guess the calculator I used and my HRM make pretty good estimates.

Best move I ever made was switching to the TDEE method.

cwolfman13

It's all an estimate...nobody has a TDEE of exactly XXXX calories. These calculators are just reasonably good starting points, but you need to make adjustments to your diet as per real world results.

I personally don't rely on fitness trackers and the like...I'm just as accurate as possible with my logging in that I weigh most things and I watch the trends and make adjustments as per those trends.

Wiseandcurious

TimothyFish wrote: »

You use the calculator to give you a starting point. Then you watch the scale to see what your weight is doing and adjust your calorie intake accordingly.

This. And that means that you don't really need an HRM for it - it's jus a nice extra if you like it.

Abby2205

ftsolk wrote: »

Overeating by 100 calories a day can equal 35 pounds weight loss in a year. Not that difficult to do.

I assume you mean weight gain, but it would equal about 10 pounds, not 35.