I have no idea how many calories I'm burning.

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Geocitiesuser
Geocitiesuser Posts: 1,429 Member
in Health and Weight Loss
I typically don't log my weight lifting sessions that last 30-45 minutes.

My cardio sessions are usually low intensity (stationary bike, elliptical, walking, once in a while running slow), and the figures I get are all over. The MFP database says an hour of elliptical is like 600 calories, the Elliptical its self tells me about 350 calories. I usually log it with "cycling very light effort", which comes out to about 250 cals.

I do lots of tkd classes. I log them at about 150 cals per 45 min session.

I guess the point I'm getting at is, I have no idea how many calories I'm burning. I average around 1800 cals a day mon-fri but sometimes I feel so run down I'm wondering if I'm not eating enough because I'm underestimating my needs. MFP has me at 1500 cals BMR + Exercise to lose 1.5 lbs a week. I'm 6' and around 180lbs

Am I in denial about how much I'm actually burning? Is it possible that I'm REALLY burning close to 400 calories just casually striding on an elliptical for 60 minutes? It just all seems so high to me.

Replies

  • jessiferrrb
    jessiferrrb Posts: 1,758 Member
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    are you losing at the rate expected? if you are, then you're probably being pretty accurate most of the time, if you're losing slower you could be over estimating burn and if you're losing faster you could be under-estimating burn. there's really no way to tell except for tracking of your actual results.
  • ChristinePearlFNP
    ChristinePearlFNP Posts: 72 Member
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    Do you have a HRM? If no, that's your best bet. You can grab one on Amazon for about $50...I can burn 400 cals in 30 min on my elliptical and I burn 600 doing my HIIT workout for 35 min. Im 5'10, female, 198 lbs. and I have an Apple Watch series 2 that calculates based on my HR. BEAT THING EVER! Before that, I had a polar and loved it for only exercising.
  • janejellyroll
    janejellyroll Posts: 25,763 Member
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    How much are you averaging in loss per week?
  • jemhh
    jemhh Posts: 14,261 Member
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    Yes, you could be burning that much in an hour of elliptical use.

    You're pretty active and don't eat much. It's no wonder why you'd be run down. People seem to get off on seeing how little they can eat and rest and still function. I'm not sure why that is or why anybody would want to live that way but, hey, different strokes for different folks.
  • AnnPT77
    AnnPT77 Posts: 32,178 Member
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    janejellyroll wrote: »
    How much are you averaging in loss per week?

    Yup, that's the most important part.

    Estimate your exercise consistently ( even it's wrong ;) ), log food, hit your calorie goal. Monitor for 3-4 weeks (maybe 5-6 for premenopausal women), ignore the first couple of weeks ( because weird water weight and such usually happen), look at the average loss per week for the latter weeks.

    If you're losing > 1% if body weight per week (or feeling weak, fatigued or unusually moody), eat more. (If you're within 50 pounds of goal, aim for less than 1%). If you're losing too slowly, eat less.

    How much more or less to eat? Calculate based on roughly 3500 calories per pound. So, if you're losing half a pound too much per week, eat 250 more calories daily (3500 calories per pound, times 1/2 pound = 1750 calories too much per week; 1750 divided by 7 days = 250 calories per day. )

    It's usually close enough.
  • BusyRaeNOTBusty
    BusyRaeNOTBusty Posts: 7,166 Member
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    If you are 6' and 180, your probably shouldn't be aiming for 1.5lbs of weight loss per week. 1500 + exercise sounds REALLY low for a man your size. I'd guess you are underestimating exercise calories AND not eating enough as a baseline, which is why you are feeling run down. I'd change your goal to a half pound a week.
  • Geocitiesuser
    Geocitiesuser Posts: 1,429 Member
    edited June 2017
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    Thank you for all the advice everyone. I do actually read everything people say and really do take it into consideration in all my decisions, and it is helpful, thank you.
    How much are you averaging in loss per week?

    Yup, that's the most important part.

    To address this in specific... I DON'T KNOW ANYMORE. After I got under 25 bmi it's like my body is revolting. I have been feeling a raw hunger like I have never felt before in my life. I was making consistent progress on 1800ish calories a day for months when suddenly hunger spiked, energy levels plummeted, and self control becomes iffy.

    "Just have some will power" is pretty ironic advice that doesn't make sense after losing 130+. If it was so easy everyone would have already done it. I went a full year without going off my diet or having cheat days. It's only recently that I'm struggling to figure out what I'm doing wrong that it's every day is a constant battle of repeating to myself, "don't eat don't eat don't eat don't eat".

    I've read that the negative effects of under eating can take a while to manifest, and that it can take weeks to recover. The thing is.... all of my weight lifting numbers are still stable if not slightly improving. But my general mental clarity and my food cravings are all over the place recently.

    So how much am I losing per week? I don't know. I've been fighting to get past my current weight for a month and a half, because I keep having breaks in will power. I'm small enough now that just one "cheat" per week is enough to undo a week's worth of diet.

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    Even with all the data, it's hard to figure out wtf I'm doing anymore.

    I try to log the "cheats" or binge eating best I can (junk food adds up crazy fast). Best I can explain though is that they aren't binge sessions like I used to have when I was heavy. They're typically fueled by raw hunger now, and I actually feel.... "good" after. But obviously not good for weight loss.

    "so just don't binge" is not an answer. If that was the answer I would already be doing that.

    "So up your calories". Well, I'm trying. Slowly. I hit 1880 yesterday. Unfortunately there is a lot of mental guilt surrounding eating that much now because losing the last 15lbs is so important to me. It's a trial of attrition that not many people can relate to. I don't really see 1880 as too low. But maybe it is. I can't really figure it out. If I'm under estimating my exercise than it's probably definitely too low. If I'm not under estimating my exercising than 1880 should theoretically be an okay level.
  • quiksylver296
    quiksylver296 Posts: 28,442 Member
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    Maybe take a diet break and eat at maintenance for a month or two, then go back to it?
  • Geocitiesuser
    Geocitiesuser Posts: 1,429 Member
    edited June 2017
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    quiksylver296 wrote: »
    Maybe take a diet break and eat at maintenance for a month or two, then go back to it?

    I mentally can not do that. It might be the wrong answer, but it's not an option for me right now. I'm too close now. I also have tournaments coming up that I need to make weight for.

    I do understand though that this is probably a "sane" route to take. But... I just can't. Technically I've been at maintenance for a month and a half already, it just hasn't been by choice, rather lapse in will power.
  • jemhh
    jemhh Posts: 14,261 Member
    edited June 2017
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    You sound like a person sorely in need of a diet break and possibly in need of an extended maintenance break. Losing 130 pounds is a big deal and something to be applauded. Part of losing the weight, though, should be learning how to eat normally for the long term. Feeling guilty about eating is extremely unhealthy. 1880 is too low. I'm shorter, lighter, and a woman and eat more than that most days while I am dieting.

    Seriously, take a break and eat a bit more. It's not that hard to figure out how much you are losing. Take your weight on 4/13 (192?) and today (183?) and figure the difference--9 lbs in about 9 weeks. That's around a 3500 calorie deficit. Start eating 2300-2500 per day. Stick to it for a few weeks (At least one full week but consider longer) and then after that go back to cutting calories.
  • lemurcat12
    lemurcat12 Posts: 30,886 Member
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    quiksylver296 wrote: »
    Maybe take a diet break and eat at maintenance for a month or two, then go back to it?

    That's what I'd suggest. Increase calories, figure out TDEE, and then reduce with a moderate, non aggressive deficit.
  • BusyRaeNOTBusty
    BusyRaeNOTBusty Posts: 7,166 Member
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    quiksylver296 wrote: »
    Maybe take a diet break and eat at maintenance for a month or two, then go back to it?

    I think this is the way to go. You've lost 130lbs. You are current at a normal healthy BMI. You are having motivation, guilt and hunger problems. I think you need to step back. Recognize how amazingly far you've come, give yourself some major credit and cut yourself some slack. Set your goal to maintenance. Look at a weekly average calories to allow yourself room for the "cheat" meals (which aren't even cheating if you still hit your weekly goals). Do this for 2 months. THEN reevaluate and decide if you really need to go for that extra 15lbs.
  • try2again
    try2again Posts: 3,562 Member
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    Geocitiesuser wrote: »
    quiksylver296 wrote: »
    Maybe take a diet break and eat at maintenance for a month or two, then go back to it?

    I mentally can not do that. It might be the wrong answer, but it's not an option for me right now. I'm too close now. I also have tournaments coming up that I need to make weight for.

    I do understand though that this is probably a "sane" route to take. But... I just can't. Technically I've been at maintenance for a month and a half already, it just hasn't been by choice, rather lapse in will power.

    Speaking from experience, eating at maintenance because of poor choices and a true diet break are not the same. You aren't getting the mental break- you are still trying and thus perceiving maintenance as a failure, not a break that you've chosen. The friends on my list who are still making progress, despite being very close to their goal, are the ones taking planned breaks every few weeks.

    A good thread & info, in case you haven't seen it: http://community.myfitnesspal.com/en/discussion/10481830/the-diet-break/p1
  • DebLaBounty
    DebLaBounty Posts: 1,172 Member
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    Why aren't you logging your weight lifting sessions? If you're burning some calories then, wouldn't you have earned the right to eat some calories back? When I plug that in to MFP, it says that 45 minutes of strength training is worth about 175 calories. The protein bars in my cupboard are 190 calories. A boiled egg is around 74 calories. I guess I'd consider eating one of those after a workout to keep my energy level stable. Anyways, that helps me keep from going into an energy deficit and helps me with the Jedi mind tricks I do to keep me on track.
  • Geocitiesuser
    Geocitiesuser Posts: 1,429 Member
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    try2again wrote: »
    Geocitiesuser wrote: »
    quiksylver296 wrote: »
    Maybe take a diet break and eat at maintenance for a month or two, then go back to it?

    I mentally can not do that. It might be the wrong answer, but it's not an option for me right now. I'm too close now. I also have tournaments coming up that I need to make weight for.

    I do understand though that this is probably a "sane" route to take. But... I just can't. Technically I've been at maintenance for a month and a half already, it just hasn't been by choice, rather lapse in will power.

    Speaking from experience, eating at maintenance because of poor choices and a true diet break are not the same. You aren't getting the mental break- you are still trying and thus perceiving maintenance as a failure, not a break that you've chosen. The friends on my list who are still making progress, despite being very close to their goal, are the ones taking planned breaks every few weeks.

    A good thread & info, in case you haven't seen it: http://community.myfitnesspal.com/en/discussion/10481830/the-diet-break/p1

    That is a great post and article! I will seriously be mulling over a 14 day break at maintenance. I'm sure there are plenty of people here that understand why that's so "hard" to do after so much weight loss and getting so close.
    THEN reevaluate and decide if you really need to go for that extra 15lbs.

    Oh, don't worry, it needs to go lol. Maybe more. It's an aesthetic goal less tied to the weight and more to the mirror, and the mirror is not there yet.
  • try2again
    try2again Posts: 3,562 Member
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    Oh, and as to your original question, as others have said, you can only gauge the accuracy of your calorie burns based on results, but your results aren't reliable right now because you aren't consistently hitting your calories. I also suspect you are under eating and it's interfering with your ability to adhere to your calorie allowance.
  • tabletop_joe
    tabletop_joe Posts: 455 Member
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    Do you think it's possible that by doing everything "right" for so long (and to, quite frankly, fabulous results), that you've repressed yourself? Your will power may be too good. You might now be seeing months and months of denied and tamped-down wants bubbling to the surface.

    My advice: Keep doing what you're doing for both diet and excerecise and allow yourself to do the counter-intuitive thing occasionally--eff up. :D

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