Please tell me if my math is right
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ponycyndi
Posts: 858 Member
So I've lost 6.4 lbs in 5 weeks. That means I'm losing 1.28lbs/week.
1.28lbs x 3,500cals = 4,480
4,480 ÷ 7 days a week = 640
So I add 640 to my average calories I've been eating the last 5 weeks and that is my tdee?
1.28lbs x 3,500cals = 4,480
4,480 ÷ 7 days a week = 640
So I add 640 to my average calories I've been eating the last 5 weeks and that is my tdee?
6
Replies
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Yep. You nailed it. That is your TDEE. Now, separately, if you've been tracking your exercise calories, you can take an average of those for the week and subtract that number from your TDEE. That will give you your NEAT. This number is important, because it's what MFP uses to calculate the recommended daily calories for you to achieve your goal.
For instance, let's say your TDEE is 2500. And you've been working out 300 calories per day on average. Your NEAT would therefore be 2,200. Now if you go into the MFP goals tool and tell it you want to lose a lb a week, it will give you some number like, say, 1800. That would be based on a calculation that your NEAT is 2300 and you need a 500 cal/day deficit to lose 1 lb. Then you'd be able to see that MFP's recommended calories are 100 too high, since to lose a lb a week, and with your actual NEAT being 2200, you should be eating 1700, not 1800.
In this way - and only by calculating your NEAT, not your TDEE - you can see how accurate MFP's recommended calories are and adjust accordingly.5 -
The math is good, but a 5 week sample size can still have some water weight fluctuations that could be influencing the results13
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So I've lost 6.4 lbs in 5 weeks. That means I'm losing 1.28lbs/week.
1.28lbs x 3,500cals = 4,480
4,480 ÷ 7 days a week = 640
So I add 640 to my average calories I've been eating the last 5 weeks and that is my tdee?
When I go to work, there are always donuts in the break room, and the company but a lot of high calorie drinks. A lot of my coworkers complain about wanting to lose weight, but say being heavy is just in their genes and there's nothing they can do about it.
Just wanted to give you some perspective on how much you're rocking it. 😎6 -
The math is good, but a 5 week sample size can still have some water weight fluctuations that could be influencing the results
This is true. Just wanted to add my 2 cents that my data set did not become truly accurate until I had three complete months of data. Better still, from an accuracy perspective, is to omit the first month from the calculation, start counting in week 5, and accumulate 2 full months of data.
There is a lot going on in the first 3-4 weeks of a diet with water loss/retention that can never be fully ironed out of the data set, if the goal is true TDEE accuracy. In time, the impact of those early fluctuations will diminish as the data set grows, but it's best to just start the clock ticking around week 4 or 5.2 -
The math is good, but a 5 week sample size can still have some water weight fluctuations that could be influencing the results
This is true. Just wanted to add my 2 cents that my data set did not become truly accurate until I had three complete months of data. Better still, from an accuracy perspective, is to omit the first month from the calculation, start counting in week 5, and accumulate 2 full months of data.
There is a lot going on in the first 3-4 weeks of a diet with water loss/retention that can never be fully ironed out of the data set, if the goal is true TDEE accuracy. In time, the impact of those early fluctuations will diminish as the data set grows, but it's best to just start the clock ticking around week 4 or 5.
Thank you. I thought the numbers were right, but wasn't sure about my method. This is very helpful.0 -
NorthCascades wrote: »So I've lost 6.4 lbs in 5 weeks. That means I'm losing 1.28lbs/week.
1.28lbs x 3,500cals = 4,480
4,480 ÷ 7 days a week = 640
So I add 640 to my average calories I've been eating the last 5 weeks and that is my tdee?
When I go to work, there are always donuts in the break room, and the company but a lot of high calorie drinks. A lot of my coworkers complain about wanting to lose weight, but say being heavy is just in their genes and there's nothing they can do about it.
Just wanted to give you some perspective on how much you're rocking it. 😎
This is the first time I've been able to see how tracking every crumb can actually be helpful.
This has made me more determined than ever to keep measuring and logging everything!8 -
The math is good, but a 5 week sample size can still have some water weight fluctuations that could be influencing the results
This is true. Just wanted to add my 2 cents that my data set did not become truly accurate until I had three complete months of data. Better still, from an accuracy perspective, is to omit the first month from the calculation, start counting in week 5, and accumulate 2 full months of data.
There is a lot going on in the first 3-4 weeks of a diet with water loss/retention that can never be fully ironed out of the data set, if the goal is true TDEE accuracy. In time, the impact of those early fluctuations will diminish as the data set grows, but it's best to just start the clock ticking around week 4 or 5.
Fluctuations are even more probable for someone who's a premenopausal female (I'm not sure whether OP is or not). A couple of full menstrual cycles would be a good plan, with that idea of yours about dropping the first one making 3 cycles even more useful. (Cycles might correlate with months, but not for everyone.)2 -
NorthCascades wrote: »So I've lost 6.4 lbs in 5 weeks. That means I'm losing 1.28lbs/week.
1.28lbs x 3,500cals = 4,480
4,480 ÷ 7 days a week = 640
So I add 640 to my average calories I've been eating the last 5 weeks and that is my tdee?
When I go to work, there are always donuts in the break room, and the company but a lot of high calorie drinks. A lot of my coworkers complain about wanting to lose weight, but say being heavy is just in their genes and there's nothing they can do about it.
Just wanted to give you some perspective on how much you're rocking it. 😎
This is the first time I've been able to see how tracking every crumb can actually be helpful.
This has made me more determined than ever to keep measuring and logging everything!
This is so Awesome. This is when weight management truly becomes manageable.
Well done on all of it.
3 -
The math is good, but a 5 week sample size can still have some water weight fluctuations that could be influencing the results
This is true. Just wanted to add my 2 cents that my data set did not become truly accurate until I had three complete months of data. Better still, from an accuracy perspective, is to omit the first month from the calculation, start counting in week 5, and accumulate 2 full months of data.
There is a lot going on in the first 3-4 weeks of a diet with water loss/retention that can never be fully ironed out of the data set, if the goal is true TDEE accuracy. In time, the impact of those early fluctuations will diminish as the data set grows, but it's best to just start the clock ticking around week 4 or 5.
Fluctuations are even more probable for someone who's a premenopausal female (I'm not sure whether OP is or not). A couple of full menstrual cycles would be a good plan, with that idea of yours about dropping the first one making 3 cycles even more useful. (Cycles might correlate with months, but not for everyone.)
That is a great point. I do have several more months to go, so I'll have plenty of data going into maintenance.
I really never used my data for anything besides tracking daily calories before, so I really just wanted to see if I was using the right method for calculating.2 -
The math is good, but a 5 week sample size can still have some water weight fluctuations that could be influencing the results
This is true. Just wanted to add my 2 cents that my data set did not become truly accurate until I had three complete months of data. Better still, from an accuracy perspective, is to omit the first month from the calculation, start counting in week 5, and accumulate 2 full months of data.
There is a lot going on in the first 3-4 weeks of a diet with water loss/retention that can never be fully ironed out of the data set, if the goal is true TDEE accuracy. In time, the impact of those early fluctuations will diminish as the data set grows, but it's best to just start the clock ticking around week 4 or 5.
Fluctuations are even more probable for someone who's a premenopausal female (I'm not sure whether OP is or not). A couple of full menstrual cycles would be a good plan, with that idea of yours about dropping the first one making 3 cycles even more useful. (Cycles might correlate with months, but not for everyone.)
That is a great point. I do have several more months to go, so I'll have plenty of data going into maintenance.
I really never used my data for anything besides tracking daily calories before, so I really just wanted to see if I was using the right method for calculating.
You got it!2 -
cmriverside wrote: »NorthCascades wrote: »So I've lost 6.4 lbs in 5 weeks. That means I'm losing 1.28lbs/week.
1.28lbs x 3,500cals = 4,480
4,480 ÷ 7 days a week = 640
So I add 640 to my average calories I've been eating the last 5 weeks and that is my tdee?
When I go to work, there are always donuts in the break room, and the company but a lot of high calorie drinks. A lot of my coworkers complain about wanting to lose weight, but say being heavy is just in their genes and there's nothing they can do about it.
Just wanted to give you some perspective on how much you're rocking it. 😎
This is the first time I've been able to see how tracking every crumb can actually be helpful.
This has made me more determined than ever to keep measuring and logging everything!
This is so Awesome. This is when weight management truly becomes manageable.
Well done on all of it.
QFT.2
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