Confused

slimkay1

My BMR is 1388 and my recommended caloric intake is 1370. I generally burn about 1000 calories 5 day aweek. I got to get my weekends undercontrol. Question, Im I eating enought calories to lose weght? Should I look at the 'net' to determine my caloric deficiency and should that number be 500 or greater in order to achieve the 3500 weekly calories burned in order to lose one pound? If I eat the recommended daily calories without exercise will I still lost weight? I started one week ago today. Please advise...Thanks

TateFTW

My BMR is 1388 and my recommended caloric intake is 1370. I generally burn about 1000 calories 5 day aweek. I got to get my weekends undercontrol. Question, Im I eating enought calories to lose weght? Should I look at the 'net' to determine my caloric deficiency and should that number be 500 or greater in order to achieve the 3500 weekly calories burned in order to lose one pound? If I eat the recommended daily calories without exercise will I still lost weight? I started one week ago today. Please advise...Thanks

I'm not understanding what your asking. Are you burning 1000 calories a day from exercising? How did you set your activity level? Did you set your goals to lose 1lb/week?

Your activity level dictates how many calories are added to your BMR in order to figure out your maintenance calories, which is then used to determine your daily goal by subtracting your daily deficit.

erickirb

BMR is how many calories you burn at rest (sleeping) MFP calculates your calorie allotment by using maintenance calories - your goal loss calories. Maintenance is BMR plus an activity amount 400 plus. MFP gives you 1370 to lose you goal amount of weight before adding in exercise, the days you exercise you should be eating more than the 1370. I will repeat 1370 already has your goal caloric deficit included.

nicolepope11

When you input all your info MFP already creates a deficit for you. If you are at 1370 calories, you can probably eat around 1800 without gaining any weight. In order to lose a pound week, you need to eat 1370. You can lose that without working out if you stay under the 1370. Now, if you are burning 100 calories 5 times a week, you should be eating those calories again on those days. Your calories should never be below 1200 per day. I'll admit there are days when I am below, but never more than one day. Your body can go into starvation mode if you continuously are below 1200 calories per day. So let me see if this makes it easier. If MFP says you should eat 1370 and then you burn 1000 calories exercising, you should actually be eating 2370 calories those days and no less than 2200.

SHBoss1673

First things first. Forget your BMR, it's not something that should enter into the equation right now. BMR is what your body burns to keep it's basic functions alive, it doesn't include either activity calories (I mean basic things like walking, turning your head, getting out of bed...etc.) nor does it include the thermic effect of food (your body generates heat when it burns calories). Basically you want to take your maintenance calories, figure out where you need to be, and subtract an appropriate amount of calories for a deficit.

I gave a quick and dirty walk through here on how to do this.

http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/61706-guide-to-calorie-deficits

give it a read through and see what you come up with.

slimkay1

Thanks to all for your help.

OK. I have read the linked below and have a better understanding. MFP have already calculated the deficiency needed inorder to lose one pound weekly. I have rechecked my numbers and decided that 15 lbs lost should be doable. It is going to take a little time to rap my mind around eating my exercise calories. So therefore the additional calories from exercising (1000 burned) would be a total of 2370 calories that I need to consumed on the days that I exercise. Question, If I only ate my suggested caloric intake (1370) would my body go into the starvation mode, thus preventing weight loss?

SHBoss1673

Thanks to all for your help.

OK. I have read the linked below and have a better understanding. MFP have already calculated the deficiency needed inorder to lose one pound weekly. I have rechecked my numbers and decided that 15 lbs lost should be doable. It is going to take a little time to rap my mind around eating my exercise calories. So therefore the additional calories from exercising (1000 burned) would be a total of 2370 calories that I need to consumed on the days that I exercise. Question, If I only ate my suggested caloric intake (1370) would my body go into the starvation mode, thus preventing weight loss?

well, I don't know, everyone is different. But consider how big of a deficit you're talking about. If you realistically only need to lose a couple of percentage points in body fat or say 15 to 25 lbs, you really don't have a giant amount of fat to draw from for closing the deficit gap. If exercise creates a deficit of 1000 calories or more, do you REALLY think your body can make up the difference? That's a serious question, I'm not being snarky about it, it's something you have to ask yourself and answer in honesty. The name of the game is permanent weight loss, I.E. lifestyle change, you don't do that by dropping weight wholesale, you do that by slowly changing how you think about food. Giving your body time to adjust. Creating a bigger deficit just forces your body to change the way it works, instead of you asking your body to make minor adjustments, now you're asking it so completely switch up the whole way your body works. That's a big change and generally leads to failure. That's why we say create a moderate deficit you can live with, and eat your exercise calories. I know it sounds counter intuitive, but it works.

TateFTW

Thanks to all for your help.

OK. I have read the linked below and have a better understanding. MFP have already calculated the deficiency needed inorder to lose one pound weekly. I have rechecked my numbers and decided that 15 lbs lost should be doable. It is going to take a little time to rap my mind around eating my exercise calories. So therefore the additional calories from exercising (1000 burned) would be a total of 2370 calories that I need to consumed on the days that I exercise. Question, If I only ate my suggested caloric intake (1370) would my body go into the starvation mode, thus preventing weight loss?

My question would be, off what are you basing your 1000 calories burned estimate? Is it based on the estimator on this site? I ask because the calories burned estimate on this site is usually very generous. You may only be burning half that.

SHBoss1673

Thanks to all for your help.

OK. I have read the linked below and have a better understanding. MFP have already calculated the deficiency needed inorder to lose one pound weekly. I have rechecked my numbers and decided that 15 lbs lost should be doable. It is going to take a little time to rap my mind around eating my exercise calories. So therefore the additional calories from exercising (1000 burned) would be a total of 2370 calories that I need to consumed on the days that I exercise. Question, If I only ate my suggested caloric intake (1370) would my body go into the starvation mode, thus preventing weight loss?

My question would be, off what are you basing your 1000 calories burned estimate? Is it based on the estimator on this site? I ask because the calories burned estimate on this site is usually very generous. You may only be burning half that.

good point. Make sure you're really burning 1000 calories. I've found that it's EXTREMELY hard for me to burn 1000 calories, the better in shape you get, the more efficient your body is at calorie consumption (it can draw more energy out of each oxygen molecule, thus requiring less ATP breakdown and consequently, less calories), this is especially true if you do the same thing week in and week out.

slimkay1

I've based the calories burned using this site. So if this site is extremely generous when determining calories burned, then would it be to my benefit to eat all the burned calories or just 1/2 or 3/4 of the burned calories?

TateFTW

1/2 would be fine. Remember, it doesn't have to be right on. If you go over on some days and stay under on others you'll be fine.