MFP suggested dailyc calorie limit and BMR

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param1985
param1985 Posts: 4 Member
in Health and Weight Loss
I am 28 yrs old, 191 lbs and 5.10 ft. Planning to lose at least 27 lbs in next 3 months. I have started off with few diet changes like cutting down sugar, cutting down rice and planning to stick to Indian bread (roti/chappathi made of wheat flour), regular jogging (at least 30 mins), walking after lunch and dinner for 15 mins.

Recently I read about BMR and TDEE. For me BMR is 1952 and TDEE 2861 (light activity). Although BMR is 1952 cals, MFP's suggestion is to take 1200 cals per day to reach the goal. When I started marking down all my food items in food diary, its only summing up to 1200 cals at max. I am confused now. In lot of other posts, many folks recommended to eat up to at least BMR level which is 1952 cals, otherwise body is going to get into starvation mode and one may not lose weight or end up losing muscle weight.

What should I do now? Should I stick to taking 1200 cals every days and continue doing jogging, walking? Or should I eat more to reach up to BMR level (say 2000 cals) along with above mentioned basic exercises? Any help will be highly appreciated. Thanks.

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  • MzManiak
    MzManiak Posts: 1,361 Member
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    The problem is that you want to lose 10 pounds/ month. May or may not be achievable for you, but MFP is giving you their lowest possible calorie goal to help you get there. They do not take into account your BMR.

    Everyone should eat at least their BMR.

    According to Fat2FitRadio, you should eat 2456 calories per day if you are lightly active... (meaning you do not add in your exercise calories, they are already included in your TDEE). If you are not losing weight as quickly as you would like after a week or 2 of this, you can lower your calorie goal by a couple hundred and try it there.
  • param1985
    param1985 Posts: 4 Member
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    Thanks for your response. So should I eat 2000 cals (slightly higher than BMR and 450 cals less than TDEE)? If I do so, I can imagine I would lose at least 450 cals every day with light activities (jogging, walking). Also, if I am hitting a gym to do more serious exercises, I should compensate the calories burnt in gym by eating those calories. In simple terms, I should always make sure that deficit is always approximately 500 calories (total calories burnt including all activities or TDEE - intake calories) and not above this to lose weight. Please correct me if my understanding is wrong.

    Thanks.

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