Would like a confirmation.

SarahLou2990

Hi,

I've been here before but it was such a long time ago I just want to make sure I got this right.

I've been away from counting calories for a whole year, and in that time have defo gained some weight. A lot of the time especially the last few months I've been eating a lot of junk food, especially take-aways. I did work out, about 3-4 times a week, and this last week I've come back to counting calories and have worked out every day.

I used Scooby at the start of the week, my stats are 5'6 and 210lbs. But seeing as a week ago I wasn't working out I left it at desk job/little or no exercise. I selected 10% reduction and it gave me a BMR of 1762, a TDEE of 2115, and -10% of 1903. I've eaten this all week and making sure that when I did some exercise I made sure to get my NET cals over 1762.

But I just re-did the Scooby Calculator with 3-5 hours of mod exercise, with a 15% reduction it gave me TDEE of 2731 and -15% of 2322.

This seems a lot too eat, as I think I'm worried of eating too much but at the same time worried about not eating enough. Shall I eat the 2322 from the new results? That way I shouldn't have to eat back exercise cals right? It's all worked into it?

Hope someone can just confirm this.

Sarah =]

heybales

Did you ever log how many calories you were eating when the choices were bad?

Unless you have something to compare to, you would likely have no idea if 2700 or 3000 or 2000 sounds high or low.
I'm betting the only number you've seen for calories has been the bare minimum of 1200 if you did MFP standard setup, which would have been ONLY for non-exercise days, every exercise day would have been decently more.

Yes, you would make your way up to 2322, and that includes 3-5 hrs of exercise.

If you do more than that (besides walking which counts as 1/2 time) like an extra workout or such, then you need to eat those back with same 15% deficit to them, as if they were included in the TDEE.

If you constantly do more than 5 hrs, likely need higher level.

SarahLou2990

Nope I went a whole year without counting cals. But junk food generally has a lot of cals from fat which has 9 cals per gram of fat. And most of the crap I was eating was pizza, and burgers with loads of add ons. But then again I have no idea on the whole how much I was consuming in terms of calories.

It just seemed to me that 2700 for someone who doesn't workout (with my stats) was a lot of calories.

However I've moved up to 2322 from 1903 as I do do that amount of exercise and I don't want to eat too little.

I didn't do MFP standard set-up I learned long ago that that is no where near enough calories to fuel a body let alone any exercise.. When I joined here 2 years ago I was between 1800-2100.

I got it so basically.. 2322 is my TDEE -15%, my BRM is 1762. If I burn more than 560 cals a day then I eat up at least until I net my BMR. Which would be like today =D

sodakat

I'd like to understand this a bit more please.

If a person selects lightly active because they WALK three hours/days a week as an example, should that person only add exercise calories above and beyond those 3 hours of walking? In other words, the exercise that initiates the activity level should NOT be counted, correct?

And, any exercise in addition to that included in the activity level, if walking, should be counted at half the calorie value? Is this because you are burning some calories just by living and in those minutes when you are walking you are really not going too much above the basic level of existing? Am I close on this?

heybales

I'd like to understand this a bit more please.

If a person selects lightly active because they WALK three hours/days a week as an example, should that person only add exercise calories above and beyond those 3 hours of walking? In other words, the exercise that initiates the activity level should NOT be counted, correct?

And, any exercise in addition to that included in the activity level, if walking, should be counted at half the calorie value? Is this because you are burning some calories just by living and in those minutes when you are walking you are really not going too much above the basic level of existing? Am I close on this?

You are dead on correct on everything.

Sometimes people indeed have some base exercise that is always done, but a couple of iffy workouts. So you base the TDEE level on what is going to get done every week. Walking the dog, a couple of classes, ect.
Then you eat back the iffy stuff when it is actually done - minus the same deficit that you are taking to TDEE too.
Because if it was in the TDEE estimate, it would have received the % deficit there too.

And right about walking calorie burn. While it's better than nothing, unless very large mass being moved, it's not a big calorie burner.
And as you mentioned, not only do you have base resting calorie burn to remove from whatever you think you burned, but when in a diet, you already have an accounted for amount of calories burned per hr. Your TDEE / 24 is how much you are expected to burn every hour, on which your eating level is based and lower than.
So what you burned extra and over what was already expected - really isn't much now.