Calculation on base metabolic rate WAY off

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  • DemoraFairy
    DemoraFairy Posts: 1,806 Member
    edited September 2015
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    michaeljosephmoreau wrote: »
    and sorry, but MFP gives me 2073 for my specs no matter how many times I plug it in, so does the other online calculators, and that seems mighty low.

    Really?? Are you sure? Because this:

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    Always gives me:

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    Other websites also give higher results than 2079:

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  • senecarr
    senecarr Posts: 5,377 Member
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    3bambi3 wrote: »
    michaeljosephmoreau wrote: »
    ok, let me clarify. I'm not whatsoever suggesting a change to my allotted calories.

    I'm just trying to get a more accurate read on how many calories I am actually burning during the course of a day just so that I'll know for my own edification :)

    and sorry, but MFP gives me 2073 for my specs no matter how many times I plug it in, so does the other online calculators, and that seems mighty low.

    If you want accuracy, go and get a DEXA scan. Heart rate monitors are not meant to be used in the fashion you used yours, and the results are not at all accurate.
    Do you maybe mean an indirect calorimetry test? DEXA tells body fat percentage.
  • MarziPanda95
    MarziPanda95 Posts: 1,326 Member
    edited September 2015
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    michaeljosephmoreau wrote: »
    ok, let me clarify. I'm not whatsoever suggesting a change to my allotted calories.

    I'm just trying to get a more accurate read on how many calories I am actually burning during the course of a day just so that I'll know for my own edification :)

    and sorry, but MFP gives me 2073 for my specs no matter how many times I plug it in, so does the other online calculators, and that seems mighty low.

    You're not listening. You are confusing BMR with TDEE. I went on my usual calculator, which put your BMR at 2299. The same calculator put your TDEE at 2758, even with no exercise. BMR is what you would burn if you were in bed all day. TDEE is total daily energy expenditure, which is what you burn with normal daily activities like walking, cooking, showering - anything, added onto your BMR.
  • 3bambi3
    3bambi3 Posts: 1,650 Member
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    senecarr wrote: »
    3bambi3 wrote: »
    michaeljosephmoreau wrote: »
    ok, let me clarify. I'm not whatsoever suggesting a change to my allotted calories.

    I'm just trying to get a more accurate read on how many calories I am actually burning during the course of a day just so that I'll know for my own edification :)

    and sorry, but MFP gives me 2073 for my specs no matter how many times I plug it in, so does the other online calculators, and that seems mighty low.

    If you want accuracy, go and get a DEXA scan. Heart rate monitors are not meant to be used in the fashion you used yours, and the results are not at all accurate.
    Do you maybe mean an indirect calorimetry test? DEXA tells body fat percentage.

    I did. Quick typing, muti-tasking error. But it would at least give him an idea of his body comp since he thinks he's very muscular for being very sedentary.
  • auddii
    auddii Posts: 15,357 Member
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    michaeljosephmoreau wrote: »
    ok, let me clarify. I'm not whatsoever suggesting a change to my allotted calories.

    I'm just trying to get a more accurate read on how many calories I am actually burning during the course of a day just so that I'll know for my own edification :)

    and sorry, but MFP gives me 2073 for my specs no matter how many times I plug it in, so does the other online calculators, and that seems mighty low.

    A simple explanation for you since you seem to be getting your terms confused.

    BMR (Basal Metabolic rate) - This is how many calories needed for the amount of tissue you have as part of your body to sustain life.
    NEAT (non-exercise activity thermogenesis) - the amount of calories you burn doing things that are not deliberate exercise such as brushing your teeth, walking to your car, etc.
    EAT (exercise activity thermogenesis) - the amount of calories you burn during deliberate exercise
    TEF (thermogenic effect of food) - the amount of calories you burn digesting the foods you eat
    TDEE (total daily energy expenditure) - BMR + NEAT + EAT + TEF

    Under "apps" MFP will calculate your BMR, but it has nothing to do with your activity level. As you noticed, that number is far less than what you actually burn throughout the day.

    I think it's not far off from what you're thinking, it's more a misunderstanding of what the terms are.

    And agreed, the heartrate monitor is not that useful for all day. An overall activity tracker (like a fitbit) would be more accurate for that. If you don't want to spend the money, they do have apps for smart phones that act as step counters and can give a rough estimate of total calorie burn.
  • ninerbuff
    ninerbuff Posts: 48,714 Member
    edited September 2015
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    Your BMR is estimated to be around 2300 calories. Add in "regular" walking around, getting up and down, etc. It's likely to be 2800-3000 if you're sedentary.

    HRM's aren't used to measure your daily activity that's not directly cardio endurance.

    As mentioned, if you're disbelieving the numbers, eat 5000 calories a day and see how that goes. I'm more than sure you'd put on weight.

    A.C.E. Certified Personal and Group Fitness Trainer
    IDEA Fitness member
    Kickboxing Certified Instructor
    Been in fitness for 30 years and have studied kinesiology and nutrition
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  • Florida_Superstar
    Florida_Superstar Posts: 194 Member
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    Hey there, as others have said, the heart rate monitor isn't really accurate for your daily caloric burn. So use your TDEE. With that said, it won't be perfect -- it's just a generic number to get you in the ballpark. For me I had to tweak the numbers for awhile and watch the scale before I figured out what I can really eat. But the TDEE helped me get started. Also, my TDEE is around 2100 and I'm 5'2" and 114 pounds, so there is no way that could be right for you. 2750-3250 sounds more like it.
  • SLLRunner
    SLLRunner Posts: 12,942 Member
    edited September 2015
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    michaeljosephmoreau wrote: »
    Hi there. I'm a 34 year old male, 259lbs, 5'7", and am mostly sedentary. Going off of that info MyFitnessPal says that I burn like 2073 calories a day. I just wore a heartrate monitor for the last 24 hours to check that calculation and with only about 30-40 minutes of moderate exercise yesterday I am right at the 5000 calorie mark for the 24 hour period.

    I am not overly muscular, though I would say that I probably have more muscle than most guys of the same height and weight. My heart rate isn't super high either, it hovers at about 80-85 most of the time. I'm just astonished that I burn that many calories with little/no activity. Have any of you checked your BMR with a heartrate monitor and found it to be so far off?

    Your numbers are way off, by about 1500-2000 probably. Besides this, heart rate monitors are to be worn for steady state cardio only where you keep your heart rate elevated for certain period of time, not to measure how many calories you burn in the day, unless it was a fitbit or the like meant for that purpose.
  • SLLRunner
    SLLRunner Posts: 12,942 Member
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    senecarr wrote: »
    If your resting heart rate is 80 to 85, there's a chance that the HRM's calculations are assuming you're in a fat burning zone when you're just resting.

    This is an excellent point as well. That would mean the heart rate monitor is incorrectly calibrated.
  • msf74
    msf74 Posts: 3,498 Member
    edited September 2015
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    michaeljosephmoreau wrote: »
    doing the "2 pounds a week" on MFP usually results in more like 3 pounds a week for me.

    Then your TDEE (the amount of calories you burn per day in total) should be around 3,500 calories.

    Next question.

  • SLLRunner
    SLLRunner Posts: 12,942 Member
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    michaeljosephmoreau wrote: »

    it's a Polar FT4

    A Polar heart rate monitor is meant for steady state cardio only.

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