Confused with calorie deficit calculation! :(

epedchenko

Hi Guys!!

I'm new to this and my goal is to get that hot body of mine back! (bad break up is a b&^tch)

So, my question is - how to work with this whole calories deficit thing. Let's say, I eat 1400 per day and work out 6 times per week burning 600 cal per session. Am I not eating enough? can anyone drop a link to a good calculator that will help to figure this out? Where you can actually type in your measurements for more accurate calculations.

I don't mind eating less, I am just afraid of going into starvation mode cause that's the worst thing that can happen when you are making a lifestyle change.

Anyway, thanks for your help!

dnharvey08

From what I understand, if 1400 calories is your target than that is the amount you need to consume when only doing normal daily activities. If you burn 600 calories at the gym than you've "earned" consuming another 600 calories. So you could eat 2000 calories each day that you work out.

Atlantique

From what I understand, if 1400 calories is your target than that is the amount you need to consume when only doing normal daily activities. If you burn 600 calories at the gym than you've "earned" consuming another 600 calories. So you could eat 2000 calories each day that you work out.

Right. MFP calculates a calorie deficit assuming no activity beyond your activities of daily life. Exercise should be logged as you perform it, and MFP adds those calories back to your daily goal. So even when you eat them, you still have the built-in deficit that MFP calculated for you.

If you want to see how MFP calculated your goals, go to the Goals section of your profile.

Atlantique

So, my question is - how to work with this whole calories deficit thing. Let's say, I eat 1400 per day and work out 6 times per week burning 600 cal per session. Am I not eating enough?

That would be a net of 800 calories a day, which is awfully restrictive for most people.

liamoneil1984

Yuo should calculate your BMR first. Thats your basil metabolic Rate. This is basically the amount of calories your body will burn at rest.....even if you lay in bed all day! You'll be able to find this type of calculator with a basic google search.

The BMR calculator will ask you what your daily activity level is ie.....Very active....moderately active.....inactive etc. This then gives a multiplication factor to your BMR which accounts for your Activity level.

Example....... Your BMR returns as (average) 1600 calories....you are training 6 days a week (very active) your calorie intake requirements to MAINTAIN your weight would be 1600 x 1.5 = 2400 calories per day. As an example. To lose weight each pound of FAT burned takes a deficit of 3500 calories per week. A maximum weight loss of fat (per week) is 2 pounds. Any more than that you are sure to be eating away at muscle etc. Thus a calorie deficit of 7000 calories a week, or 1000 calories a day will provide a 2lbs a week difference.

In relation to the above example, a Calorie intake of 1400 calories a day would be sufficient to achieve this weight loss goal. Hope this helps!!

Liam

Atlantique

Yuo should calculate your BMR first. Thats your basil metabolic Rate. This is basically the amount of calories your body will burn at rest.....even if you lay in bed all day! You'll be able to find this type of calculator with a basic google search.

The BMR calculator will ask you what your daily activity level is ie.....Very active....moderately active.....inactive etc. This then gives a multiplication factor to your BMR which accounts for your Activity level.

Example....... Your BMR returns as (average) 1600 calories....you are training 6 days a week (very active) your calorie intake requirements to MAINTAIN your weight would be 1600 x 1.5 = 2400 calories per day. As an example. To lose weight each pound of FAT burned takes a deficit of 3500 calories per week. A maximum weight loss of fat (per week) is 2 pounds. Any more than that you are sure to be eating away at muscle etc. Thus a calorie deficit of 7000 calories a week, or 1000 calories a day will provide a 2lbs a week difference.

In relation to the above example, a Calorie intake of 1400 calories a day would be sufficient to achieve this weight loss goal. Hope this helps!!

Liam

Not quite on MFP. A lot of sites do what you said in terms of calculations, but MFP is a little different.

Yes, MFP begins with your BMR.

HOWEVER, on MFP, your 'activity level' is meant to represent only your workday, NOT purposeful exercise. MFP calculates your calorie deficit from your BMR + calories burned in your job. 500 a day for 1lb/wk loss, 1000 a day for 2lb/wk loss.

You log purposeful exercise as you perfrom it on MFP. Calories burned through purposeful exercise are then added back into your calorie goal for that day. So if your goal was 1400 per day and then you worked out and burned 600, MFP would recalculate your calorie goal for the day to be 2000. This maintains the deficit that MFP calculated for you based on BMR+workday.

It's important to understand the way MFP calculates your calorie goal so that you don't count your purposeful exercise twice and then end up overeating.

epedchenko

This is all very helpful you guys, thank you!

Another question..if your body DOES end up going into starvation mode, how do you bounce back from it?
From what I know, whatever you eat from that point on will be stored as fat = all your efforts and all the weight you've lost will come back. I've been having this metal taste in my mouth (sorry for details) for a bit and read that it might be that my body is not getting enough food..?

How do I do this right and get back on track? Thanks again! :)

Atlantique

This is all very helpful you guys, thank you!

Another question..if your body DOES end up going into starvation mode, how do you bounce back from it?
From what I know, whatever you eat from that point on will be stored as fat = all your efforts and all the weight you've lost will come back. I've been having this metal taste in my mouth (sorry for details) for a bit and read that it might be that my body is not getting enough food..?

How do I do this right and get back on track? Thanks again! :)

The metallic taste in your mouth is a sign of ketosis. Ketosis is when your body stops using fuel from carbs and instead starts burning fat and muscle. You can get there a number of ways-some healthy and some not. If you starve your body, it will start using your muscles and organs for energy, which is definitely not healthy. If you have reduced your simple carbs (basically carbs that are not fiber) and upped your protein and fat, you will burn fat and some proteins circulating in your system (there is a lot of debate on how healthy this is). If your aerobic workouts are extended (more than 70 minutes) and you aren't refueling with carbs by 45 minutes in, you will start burning fat because all the glycogen in your system is gone (fairly healthy if you consistently train this way).

The only way to end starvation mode is to stop starving yourself--which means upping your calories.

tvboi88

so since they take into account your BMR by the weight you give them does that mean you can cut out that extra step and that the remaining number on your log each day is your daily deficit for that day?