What is TDEE? BMR? How do these relate to my weight loss?

karaleigh322

Hi everyone. I have been using MFP to log all my food and exercise and I have lost 17lbs so far. I am currently 5'8 and weigh 143lbs. I'm a 26 year old female. I work a desk job but I work out at least 4 times a week mainly cardio and some weight training. My goal weight is 130lbs, and my MFP recommendation is 1,200 calories a day. I usually eat back half of my exercise calories I burned because I'm hungry! lol.

I have done a little research because people keep mentioning TDEE. I'm still confused, how do I figure out my TDEE? and my BMR? And how do these numbers directly relate to my weight loss?

If someone can explain this to me in simple terms and math I would really appreciate it! Thanks!

ManiacalLaugh

Here's a good calculator for figuring out your TDEE http://scoobysworkshop.com/accurate-calorie-calculator/

Your TDEE is important because it tells you what your body is actually burning. This will help you establish a healthy, sustainable deficit. If your body burns 1950 calories, for instance, eating at 1450 will still get you a good deficit that will result in weight loss.

Please note: 1200 calories might be too low (it's the absolute minimum recommended for females), even though you're eating back 1/2 of your workout burn.

DemoraFairy

TDEE = Total Daily Energy Expenditure, how many calories you burn in an average day (including exercise, walking, talking, eating, digesting, etc).
BMR = Basal Metabolic Rate, how many calories you burn just by being alive, not including an average day's activities (so how many calories you'd burn if you stayed in bed and slept all day).

Using the TDEE method, you would eat an amount of calories less than your TDEE depending on how much weight you want to lose. If you want to lose 2lbs/week, you'd eat 1000 calories less, 1lbs a week would be 500 less and 0.5lbs/week would be 250 less. Using the TDEE method you don't eat back calories gained from exercise because you include exercise in your TDEE.

The fact that MFP has recommended you 1200 a day sounds like you've given it a weight loss goal of 2lbs/week, which is only realistic and healthy if you're very overweight, which you aren't. With only 13lbs to lose, you should be aiming for 0.5-1lb/week. I'd suggest adjusting your goals, you'll have an easier time and won't be so hungry!

cathipa

BMR = basal metabolic rate = coma calories (the amount of calories your body requires to function in a comatose state)

TDEE = total daily energy expenditure = the amount of calories you need to maintain your weight taking into account your activity

Agree with the above Scooby Calculator. I would recommend figuring out your TDEE -20% and not eating back your exercise calories.

PAV8888

Base Metabolic Rate + Non Exercise Activity Thermogenesis + Thermic Effect of Food + Exercise Activities = Total Daily Energy Expenditure

Calories in the Food you eat + Calories used or released to generate an increase or reduction in body fat deposits + Calories used or released due to the creation or loss of muscle tissue = TDEE

PAV8888

You, my friend are already at a normal weight and aiming pretty down low for the bottom of your normal weight range.

You should probably be losing no faster than 0.5lbs a week in order to preserve lean mass. Eating as close as you can to 0.8g of protein per lb of bodyweight (over 100g anyway) for the same reason. 0.45g of fat per lb of bodyweight to make sure you have happy vitamin absorption and hormones and goodies like that. And probably some carbs and more fats (and 21+ g of fiber) to help you workout and be unhungry and regular. Above assumes you have no kidney problems or other undiagnosed or undisclosed conditions.

You may want to check sidesteel's and Sarah's eat, train, progress group and talk to them about helping you evaluate your current body fat level, goals, and best way to achieve them as I've not heard you say anything about strength training which would help preserve or in the beginning possibly even build muscle.

Seeing how relatively few lbs of free fat you currently probably have available, you may really really really want to look into maintenance, reverse dieting out of your current 1200 (which will still have you losing some extra weight during the process) and looking into body recomposition to achieve the look you want.

There comes a point where dieting is not the answer even if you're good at it and it is what you know best.

Are you at that point?

There is the maintenance forum to look at. The exercise forum to look at, and Sidesteel and Sarah's eat, train, progress group to look at...

Good luck.

mantium999

Agree with others that 1200 is likely too low, based on your stats. MFP bottoms out at that number, which often happens when a member sets a too aggressive weight loss goal.

Mr_Knight

All this TDEE stuff is unnecessarily confusing. Pick a number - any number - to eat at. Log carefully for four weeks. If you aren't losing at the expected rate, eat a couple of hundred calories less. If you are losing too fast, eat a couple of hundred calories more.

Repeat as necessary.

ManiacalLaugh

Mr_Knight wrote: »

All this TDEE stuff is unnecessarily confusing. Pick a number - any number - to eat at. Log carefully for four weeks. If you aren't losing at the expected rate, eat a couple of hundred calories less. If you are losing too fast, eat a couple of hundred calories more.

Repeat as necessary.

I'm all for trial and error, but that is a lot of time wasted trying to figure out what number to eat at when a calculator can give you, at the very least, a ballpark figure. Add to the fact that weight loss is not a steady game (especially with females who are young enough to have TOMs) and you end up going all over the place to figure out what the webtool could've helped you learn in the beginning.

sunnyazgirl

Thank you for the link to the calculator. I just found out I am eating way too many carbs, even though they are in my calories with the macro chart on the bottom [code]f the page. I had suspected that. Now I know what else to tweek.

santanethy

How many calories would you recommend I eat per day? Mpf also sets me 1200 calories per day. I'm 30, female, 5ft6 and currently weigh 140lbs. First goal is 133lbs, then next goal 129lbs. Thanks