Am I figuring my BMR and target calories right?

WhatMeRunning

Please forgive the question some are probably tired of seeing. Hopefully one of you experts are in a mood to answer this for me.

I've bookmarked a couple threads and links in my couple months here about this, and wondering if I have this right.

To date, I have been doing fine with MFP at a target weight loss of 2 pounds per week, using the MFP recommended settings. Every few weeks I would re-adjust based on my current weight, each time giving a lower number of target calories for the day, of course.

I am a 6ft 2in male currently at 235 pounds (just two pounds over the overweight category now) and my target calories right now using MFP are 1570/day. I have been feeling hungry each day for a while, but have not wavered and have eaten filling foods to prevent a case of bursting over with some quick tempting meal or snack.

So I thought I would recalculate to a 1.5 pounds per week target, which would put me at 1790 calories/day. At the back of my mind I remembered the BMR/TDEE stuff and thought I would check that I am not too low on my calories and sabotaging myself.

If I have done this right, my BMR at 42 years old, 235 pounds and 74 inches tall is 2187 (using Harris-Benedict).

So, based on this, if I truly am understanding this correctly, whatever weight loss target I set, I should NOT eat below the 2187 calories/day determined by my current BMR, provided I am correct.

The main reason I am asking is because when I adjust my MFP goals, a 1/2 pound per week weight loss goal puts me at 2290 cals/day, while 1 pound/week gives 2040 cals/day. So it is looking like I need to switch to perhaps a 1/2 pound per week goal, which is a big change from the 2 pounds per week I have been able to lose so far.

I have expected to have to modify things, and figured it might happen once I got out of Obese territory and into Overweight, I just wasn't thinking it would require that BIG of a change, so quickly.

Did I do something wrong in my calculations? Or am I simply overthinking this and need to wait until I actually DO stop losing weight? Because I was under the impression that it is best to avoid the metabolism change ahead of time as opposed to overcoming it afterwards.

Thanks for any input.

Chrisparadise579

Dont apologize for asking its great that you are trying to do this the right way! And great job on your progress so far! So now that you are closer to your goal weight you are going to have to eat more to lose more especially if you are working out. My first suggestion would be to change your overall goals to about 1lb a week. That is a healthier more achievable goal when you are closer to your target weight. My second suggestion would be to very slowly increase your calories, only about 100 per day every 2 weeks. That should absolutely do the trick!

Liftng4Lis

http://scoobysworkshop.com/calorie-calculator/

WhatMeRunning

I found something that helped. I can't recall what thread from today ultimately led me to this link, but here is where I got the answer I was looking for.
http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/819055-setting-your-calorie-and-macro-targets

I took the method described in there to calculate what my actual TDEE had been over the last few weeks based on the calorie logging I had been doing here on MFP, adding in calories to account for the weight I lost, and getting my actual TDEE over that time (in my case 2491/day). So taking 20% off that would put me at 1992 calories/day, which is pretty much in line with what MFP recommends to me at a 1 pound/week weight loss goal. That is not such a big change, so I'm good with that.

WhatMeRunning

Thank you both for the great advice!

http://scoobysworkshop.com/calorie-calculator/

WOW! That is very reassuring. The recommnedations there were right in line with what I was figuring from that other thread I mentioned.

That link is definitely bookmarked. Thanks for sharing that one!

cwolfman13

If you are using the Harris Benedict formula, keep in mind that it does not take into account lean mass...it only takes into account total mass. Essentially, you are using your fat in the formula...and thus getting an inflated BMR based on fat mass that doesn't need to be fed. The only mass that needs to be fed is lean mass. In other words, your actual BMR is going to be lower than what is stated by the Harris Benedict formula.

Really, I wouldn't put a whole lot of worry into this. Where this tends to be more of an issue is when relatively lean people who maybe have a few cosmetic Lbs to lose go out and work their *kitten* off in the gym and then on top of that they substantially under-eat and under-nourish their bodies.

WalkingAlong

So, based on this, if I truly am understanding this correctly, whatever weight loss target I set, I should NOT eat below the 2187 calories/day determined by my current BMR, provided I am correct.

The main reason I am asking is because when I adjust my MFP goals, a 1/2 pound per week weight loss goal puts me at 2290 cals/day, while 1 pound/week gives 2040 cals/day. So it is looking like I need to switch to perhaps a 1/2 pound per week goal, which is a big change from the 2 pounds per week I have been able to lose so far.

You don't have to worry about eating under your BMR and you can lose .5 to 2 lbs/week safely, by virtually all accounts. Any metabolic down-regulation reverses when you stop deficit eating, studies have found.