Conflicting views on calorie consumption

redhead91

From what I have learned, a person's BMR is how many calories they need to lay in bed all day. Is this wrong? Also, MANY MANY posts I've read state that you should NEVER eat below your BMR.

Rworthy

The only way to lose weight is to consume less than your BMR. Simple answer. Research BMR and weight loss - there are zillions of sources out there.

baisleac

The only way to lose weight is to consume less than your BMR. Simple answer. Research BMR and weight loss - there are zillions of sources out there.

WRONG! Your BMR is the amount your body needs if you do nothing but lay in bed all day.

If you lay in bed all day, every day, then by all means use your BMR to calculate your deficit.

If, however, you are like most people and get out of bed every day you need to determine your average Total Daily Energy (calorie) Expenditure. There are a number of websites out there with calculators that will figure this out for you.

Lucky for us, MFP is one of them. THEN MFP calculates what our deficit needs to be to lose weight and all we have to do is try to reach our target.

Rworthy

This article may be helpful to you.

http://www.shapefit.com/basal-metabolic-rate.html

baisleac

This article may be helpful to you.

http://www.shapefit.com/basal-metabolic-rate.html

From that website:

Your basal metabolic rate, or BMR, is the minimum calorific requirement needed to sustain life in a resting individual. It can be looked at as being the amount of energy (measured in calories) expended by the body to remain in bed asleep all day!

That is NOT where you pull your calorie deficit from.

Rworthy

Calorie needs change from day to day and from person to person. A person who is obese can dip into their calorie needs without harm, unlike a person who is just trying to lose a pound or two. I did the calculations for my BMR and my TDEE (total daily energy expenditure), and found that my calorie needs are 100 calories LESS than my BMR and this is FINE> as long as you're not creating a deficit of more than 1000 calories of your TDEE (calculation based on activity level multiplied times your BMR), you won't go into starvation mode:

Example:
Female, 28, 199 pounds:
BMR = 1786
TDEE= 1786 x 1.46 (moderate activity level) = 2609

Method 1: Subtract 500-1000 calories from TDEE to get weight loss calories per day goal = 1609 - 2109 calories per day
Method 2: Decrease calories consumed according to TDEE by 15-20% =
15% decrease : Decrease calories by 391.35 = 2217.65 calories
20% decrease: Decrease calories by 521.8 = 2087.2 calories

Method 1 - recommended for heavier people, those with more fat to lose : Eat 1609 - 2109 calories per day
Method 2 - recommended for those trying to lose less fat: Eat 2087 - 2217 calories per day

Note: I will not lose ANY weight if I do method 2. I'm just too big. Method 1 is at leas 100 calories less than my BMR. Method 2 is 300 to 430 calories OVER my BMR. I have been eating according to Method 1 (around 1600 calories per day) and haven't gone into starvation mode. I am losing weight and feel just fine.

Finally - (pasted from article) : The American College of Sports Medicine (ACSM) recommends that calorie levels never drop below 1200 calories per day for women or 1800 per day for men. Even these calorie levels are extremely low. A more individualized way to determine the safe calorie deficit would be to account for one's bodyweight or TDEE. Reducing calories by 15-20% below TDEE is a good place to start. A larger deficit may be necessary in some cases, but the best approach would be to keep the calorie deficit through diet small while increasing activity level.

baisleac

Finally - (pasted from article) : The American College of Sports Medicine (ACSM) recommends that calorie levels never drop below 1200 calories per day for women or 1800 per day for men. Even these calorie levels are extremely low. A more individualized way to determine the safe calorie deficit would be to account for one's bodyweight or TDEE. Reducing calories by 15-20% below TDEE is a good place to start. A larger deficit may be necessary in some cases, but the best approach would be to keep the calorie deficit through diet small while increasing activity level.

EXACTLY! Your TDEE is where you subtract your deficit from.

Your BMR is only one factor in calculating your TDEE.

Rworthy

This article may be helpful to you.

http://www.shapefit.com/basal-metabolic-rate.html

From that website:

Your basal metabolic rate, or BMR, is the minimum calorific requirement needed to sustain life in a resting individual. It can be looked at as being the amount of energy (measured in calories) expended by the body to remain in bed asleep all day!

That is NOT where you pull your calorie deficit from.

KEEP READING!!! HAHAHAHAH. I have argued this point so many times, and will continue to do so until my lips turn blue. The initial question, that started this thread is from a girl who is considered obese - meaning a considerable amount of fat to lose. The bottom line is NO FEWER THAN 1200 CALORIES FOR A FEMALE AND 1800 CALORIES FOR A MALE. When you are obese, your BMR is MUCH HIGHER than a normal person, therefore they can EAT LESS to LOSE WEIGHT. It's pretty simple when you get down to it.

Rworthy

Saying you pull your calories from TDEE and not your BMR, is preposterous! You only have 1 (ONE) Calorie bank. Do you think your body can tell what is BMR and what is TDEE? That's just silly. BURN MORE THAN YOU EAT. EAT LESS THAN YOU BURN. Done.

redhead91

Finally - (pasted from article) : The American College of Sports Medicine (ACSM) recommends that calorie levels never drop below 1200 calories per day for women or 1800 per day for men. Even these calorie levels are extremely low. A more individualized way to determine the safe calorie deficit would be to account for one's bodyweight or TDEE. Reducing calories by 15-20% below TDEE is a good place to start. A larger deficit may be necessary in some cases, but the best approach would be to keep the calorie deficit through diet small while increasing activity level.

EXACTLY! Your TDEE is where you subtract your deficit from.

Your BMR is only one factor in calculating your TDEE.

That's what I thought. Thank you

baisleac

Saying you pull your calories from TDEE and not your BMR, is preposterous! You only have 1 (ONE) Calorie bank. Do you think your body can tell what is BMR and what is TDEE? That's just silly. BURN MORE THAN YOU EAT. EAT LESS THAN YOU BURN. Done.

BMR and TDEE are two different things..

BMR is what your body needs to function in a coma.

TDEE is what you actually burn each day by living your life.

Eating less than your TDEE will give you a calorie deficit and you will lose weight.

Eating less than your BMR and you risk slowing your metabolism down; making it that much harder to continue to lose weight and that much more likely that you will regain that weight when you get to maintenance.

And yes... your body can tell the difference between BMR (what it needs to survive) and TDEE (how much energy it is actually using)

redhead91

Saying you pull your calories from TDEE and not your BMR, is preposterous! You only have 1 (ONE) Calorie bank. Do you think your body can tell what is BMR and what is TDEE? That's just silly. BURN MORE THAN YOU EAT. EAT LESS THAN YOU BURN. Done.

BMR and TDEE are two different things..

BMR is what your body needs to function in a coma.

TDEE is what you actually burn each day by living your life.

Eating less than your TDEE will give you a calorie deficit and you will lose weight.

Eating less than your BMR and you risk slowing your metabolism down; making it that much harder to continue to lose weight and that much more likely that you will regain that weight when you get to maintenance.

And yes... your body can tell the difference between BMR (what it needs to survive) and TDEE (how much energy it is actually using)

The lightbulb has turned on! again, thank you!

Rworthy

Oh this might help, I started from the beginning, and found this to be confusing.

When you set your goals in MFP, it asks you your activity level, and gives you your TDEE, not your BMR!

In goals, under Calories burned with normal daily activity is your TDEE, not your BMR. It is PERFECTLY FINE, even encouraged, to go below this. So, if your TDEE is 1500, MFP wants you to eat 1200.

If you want a more accurate BMR, go to the article I posted, or look it up online. There are three ways of calculating BMR. I encourage the one that takes into account your lean body mass (you need to know your fat percentages).

Rworthy

From another site:

1. People should aim to eat 400-500 below their BMR when losing weight.
2. Since BMR accounts for 80% of calories burned, use that as your baseline.
3. Consider calories burned from activity as a bonus.
4. Very few men need to eat over 2,000 calories per day even maintaining (will shock many people and he explains why).
5. He is 217 pounds, is eating 1,200-1,500 calories per day to lose 2 pounds per week.
6. Bottom line…people have been mislead when it comes to how many calories to eat per day.

redhead91

I understand that MPF calculates the TDEE. I have calculated my BMR on other websites, including the one you mentioned and my BMR (NOT TDEE) is around 1500.

Oh this might help, I started from the beginning, and found this to be confusing.

When you set your goals in MFP, it asks you your activity level, and gives you your TDEE, not your BMR!

In goals, under Calories burned with normal daily activity is your TDEE, not your BMR. It is PERFECTLY FINE, even encouraged, to go below this. So, if your TDEE is 1500, MFP wants you to eat 1200.

If you want a more accurate BMR, go to the article I posted, or look it up online. There are three ways of calculating BMR. I encourage the one that takes into account your lean body mass (you need to know your fat percentages).

Rworthy

And yes... your body can tell the difference between BMR (what it needs to survive) and TDEE (how much energy it is actually using)

How does it know to store an apple or to burn an apple? Lol You fairy lady. You silly. Your body doesn't give a crap if its eating BMR food or TDEE food! That is scientifically impossible. Giving up. You can't reason with crazy.

baisleac

From another site:

1. People should aim to eat 400-500 below their BMR when losing weight.
2. Since BMR accounts for 80% of calories burned, use that as your baseline.
3. Consider calories burned from activity as a bonus.
4. Very few men need to eat over 2,000 calories per day even maintaining (will shock many people and he explains why).
5. He is 217 pounds, is eating 1,200-1,500 calories per day to lose 2 pounds per week.
6. Bottom line…people have been mislead when it comes to how many calories to eat per day.

Who is this person? What is the site?

Sounds like a quack.

laddyboy

The only way to lose weight is to consume less than your BMR. Simple answer. Research BMR and weight loss - there are zillions of sources out there.

What? You lose weight by consuming less calories then your burn.