calorie deficits

carolynmittens

i think i'm just a little confused about this phrase, is this the number of calories i haven't eaten? like if i have my calorie goal set to 1210, which i eat, then i burn 900 at the gym but i don't eat those exercise cals, would my deficit be 900?

NoAdditives

Yep.

pharmddani07

My understanding is that there is a set amount of calories your body needs to function, like mine is 2400 but my calorie goal is 1400 so my calorie deficit is 1000 if I only consume 1400 calories. If I exercise on top of that, and don't eat those calories like say 500 calories, then my deficit is 1500. The deficit is between calories your body needs for metabolism (and exercise) and the amount that you take in.

rileysowner

Your body burns a certain number of calories a day simply existing, that is generally called your BMR (Basal Metabolic Rate). If you were to spend your entire day in bed doing nothing and not moving that is how much you would burn. Once you start moving you burn more calories, so in a day, with no exercise you will burn you BMR plus the calories you burn getting up, sitting down, walking to the kitchen and all the rest. That would be the daily calories burned. The BMR is fairly consistent, the total each day is sort of consistent as most of us do the same sort of things every day.

A calorie deficit is when you eat less calories in a day than you burn. Those extra calories need to come from somewhere, and what your body does is take them from the reserves it has built up, namely, your fat. To lose weight you need to have a calorie deficit. MFP builds that in when you start with the number of calories it suggests, and exercise adds to it.

bizco

Go to "My Home" tab then Goals. Look at your diet profile. It will help you understand your deficit.

carolynmittens

gotcha, thanks everyone