TDEE vs. MFP

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kandell
kandell Posts: 473 Member
in Food and Nutrition
I know there have been other threads for this, but I haven't quite found the answers I'm looking for, so I'm making my own.

MFP says my daily calories should net at 1200. Okay. But my TDEE is apparently between 1990-2005. I'm not sure which to follow here.

I work a desk job, but I'm trying to exercise as regularly as possible. As of late I've been doing poorly on my dieting, but right now the biggest thing is to make sure I log everything I eat, just to get in the habit of that.

I don't really want to count my exercise into my lifestyle (i.e.: Sedentary, active, etc.), because so far it's not become habit yet so I feel it doesn't yet count.

My question is which of the two calorie limits should I follow? I've read that you should never eat below your TDEE but 2000 sounds awfully high for my goals.

Stats:
5'9.5"
185 lbs
23
Sedentary lifestyle

Replies

  • Ready2Rock206
    Ready2Rock206 Posts: 9,488 Member
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    You need to eat below your TDEE to lose weight. Never eat below your BMR.

    MFP says to eat 1200 plus exercise calories.

    TDEE minus 20% is 1592.

    If you do just a reasonable amount of exercise those numbers will match.

    Personally I prefer TDEE because I don't like to bother with calculating exercise calories - but its really usually pretty much the same either way.
  • richardheath
    richardheath Posts: 1,276 Member
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    If you use TDEE, it includes exercise. Then you subtract a certain % to give you a deficit. -20% if you have a lot to lose, -10% for a medium amount, and -5% if you are close to your goal.

    MFP number has the deficit already built in (based on how much you told it you want to lose per week), but then you "earn" extra calories when you exercise/workout.

    If you don't to pre-count exercise, then stick with the MFP way. Make sure your weight loss is set at a reasonable rate (don't set it for 2 lb per week if you only have 10 to go). 1200 does seem a bit on the low side to me though, given your stats.

    Note TDEE and MFP are both based on estimates, so try one number for a while and then adjust as necessary.

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