Eat your BMR?!

sheils8

I am wondering how many of you guys eat your BMR in attempting to lose weight? I have heard this before from Jillian Michaels, and it seems a few people are doing that and having success.....so I just wanted to take a poll and see if you are, and if not...how much higher or lower are you going?

That_Girl

I am! Well, I am trying to. I am under by about 150 calories today--- and I've eaten a ton! So...maybe I underestimated somewhere and that makes up for it.

chevy88grl

I eat far more than my BMR. According to most BMR calculators mine is around 1340. I eat between 2200-2500 calories a day. I upped my calories to this amount back in May, lost 5lbs and am now maintaining it. Decided I am officially in maintenance. Weight has been consistent eating this amount of calories - which is A LOT of food!

sheils8

@ That_Girl - sorry, are you BMR calories your net calories, after workout?

tameko2

I eat far more than my BMR. According to most BMR calculators mine is around 1340. I eat between 2200-2500 calories a day. I upped my calories to this amount back in May, lost 5lbs and am now maintaining it. Decided I am officially in maintenance. Weight has been consistent eating this amount of calories - which is A LOT of food!

what do you do that lets you eat so much? Do you work out like crazy?

TinaS88

I think I eat less then mine.. my "estimate" was like 1400 something... I try to stick around 1200 and my goal for the day (with no exercise at all) is about 1310... but if I am under my limit and hungry I eat, if not.. I don't.

chevy88grl

I eat far more than my BMR. According to most BMR calculators mine is around 1340. I eat between 2200-2500 calories a day. I upped my calories to this amount back in May, lost 5lbs and am now maintaining it. Decided I am officially in maintenance. Weight has been consistent eating this amount of calories - which is A LOT of food!

what do you do that lets you eat so much? Do you work out like crazy?

Honestly?

I think it is because I work on my feet 4-5 days a week for 5-9 hours a day. I can't really tell you WHY. I just know that in the last 18 months I've learned that my body refuses to lose weight (and will actually gain weight) when I drop my calories any lower. It's a very odd thing.

I workout 2-3 days a week for 60 mins.

sleepytexan

Yes, you must eat your BMR as NET. Meaning eat back those exercise calories so that you can fuel your metabolism even more.

IT'S TRUE IT'S TRUE IT'S TRUE.

This does not mean eat 1800 calories of chocolate cake though, make good choices and have 250 in cake

I am 133 lbs. with 19% body fat (maybe bit less). I eat about 1800-2000 cals. a day; shooting to net about 1310.

Believe Jillian and the nutrition experts, exercise is a beautiful thing!

Feel free to check my diary for ideas. I went to BUNKO tonight and went over just a smidge, but still expect my scale to be down tomorrow. The beauty of exercise is that YOU CAN eat more and YOU NEED to eat more and YOU WILL LOVE IT!!

blessings.

That_Girl

@ That_Girl - sorry, are you BMR calories your net calories, after workout?

Yes. I am trying to make it so I net at LEAST my BMR daily. This is new for me but seems to be working. I broke through my almost 3 month plateau today after eating like this for a week.

kleavitt1992

so i should be eating more? mine is 1200 net but my bmr is like 1304 or something

sleepytexan

I find it to be a super motivator to exercise. Generally I work out 6 days a week, but I tell ya I am bummed on my day off when I only get 1310 cals.

I will typically shoot for that day as a "maintenance day" and eat an extra 500 anyway

sheils8

@ katiellen7 from what I have read.....and from all of these responses, YES you should be eating more. at the very least, your net calories should be the same as your BMR!

sleepytexan

so i should be eating more? mine is 1200 net but my bmr is like 1304 or something

They probably put you at 1200 because you said you wanted to lose 2 lb./week right?

Reset for 1 lb./week and depending on the activity level you enter, you will be right around your BMR (how many calories you would burn if you lay in bed all day).

You burn 500 just by getting up and living, so your maintenance is appx. BMR + 500. That's why they say "eat your BMR" to lose a pound a week. Add exercise and eat the exercise calories back (you still have that 500 deficit to lose the 1 lb/week) and now the exercise will spike your metabolism, burn fat, and build muscle!

Once you start exercising, and fueling your body properly, you will have wonderful progress. If you don't eat enough calories, you can actually GAIN weight. YES GAIN. It's horrible don't do it.

sheils8

You burn 500 just by getting up and living, so your maintenance is appx. BMR + 500. That's why they say "eat your BMR" to lose a pound a week. Add exercise and eat the exercise calories back (you still have that 500 deficit to lose the 1 lb/week) and now the exercise will spike your metabolism, burn fat, and build muscle!

@sleepytexan - thanks for making it so clear. hard to ignore this!

sheils8

oops! how do you delete a post?

xraychick77

i dont eat my BMR when trying to lose...my BMR is 1800 cals. When i am losing I go down to 1300 cals and work out like a fiend..i dont eat back (unless i'm hungry).

sleepytexan

i dont eat my BMR when trying to lose...my BMR is 1800 cals. When i am losing I go down to 1300 cals and work out like a fiend..i dont eat back (unless i'm hungry).

This approach may work over a short period of time for some people, however, for long-term maintenance at staying fit and healthy, the average person will experience much more success by eating according to BMR.

I don't know any athletes who skimp on calories . . . and I know a lot of athletes

blessings.

Lyadeia

It seems like a lot of people must have mistaken BMR for TDEE. You should always no matter what eat AT LEAST your BMR because that it simply what your body needs to function even if you don't move at all all day long. TDEE is BMR + daily activities (in a nutshell) which means it is taking into account what you need to survive as well as all the movement you do all day. TDEE is what you should eat when you are maintaining your weight. Eat less than TDEE to lose weight. But, never go below BMR or you could adversely affect your health.

My BMR was calculated around 1300 calories. My TDEE is 2050 (approximately). To lose weight, I eat less than 2050, but never less than 1300. I typically eat around 1500 or so with a couple of days closer to 1800 (because I am calorie and carb cycling). This is actually a 500 calorie deficit on average per day, but 200 above my BMR.

cutmd

I am trying to eat my BMR + exercise calories, which puts me around 1350 net. This is a change from my previous 1200. I still havent started losing, I will give it some time before deciding whether to go up or down (scared to go up!). I agree we should al be eating at least our BMR...

chevy88grl

I am trying to eat my BMR + exercise calories, which puts me around 1350 net. This is a change from my previous 1200. I still havent started losing, I will give it some time before deciding whether to go up or down (scared to go up!). I agree we should al be eating at least our BMR...

Don't be afraid to eat more. In my journey, I've raised my calories multiple times and I ALWAYS lose when I up them again. I recently went from 2000 to 2200-2500 and lost 5lbs!

Takiera

Hey everyone,

I was reading this thread and wondering if I could get some advice from you lovely ladies.

I recently lost about 50 lbs on a low-calorie, low-carb medical diet. About six months ago transitioned off of that diet with about 10 lbs still to lose, and since that time my weight has fluctuated up and down give or take 5 lbs, and otherwise has stayed pretty much the same. I really want to lose the last 8-12 lbs, but I'm having trouble figuring out how much I should be eating. My BMR is about 1400, and I burn about 400-600 calories from cardio and strength-training exercise about 3-4 day per week, on average. However, other than my workouts I am extremely sedentary, as I work in a job which requires sitting and commuting for the majority of my day.

Currently I have been aiming to eat about 1400 calories per day, but haven't been increasing my allowance on workout days. The trouble is I find myself getting insanely hungry when I work out, and sometimes will end up eating way over my planned daily allowance - usually to about 1800 to 2200 calories, at least once or twice per week. When I keep my calories to 1400 consistently I slowly lose weight, but when I start eating 1800 to 2200 the loss stops immediately and I start to gain. I eat very healthy - high protein, no meat, no sugar, no wheat, and very little processed food. So am I eating too little? Too much? I can't seem to figure it out! Based on the ideas discussed in this thread, I am thinking that maybe I should try eating 1400 most days, but add 400-600 calories on my workout days. But is this okay when I'm not active at all outside of my workouts? And if I try it, how long should give myself on the new plan to assess it, before deciding that it is or isn't working? I'm afraid of increasing my calories too much and gaining weight! Any thoughts would be much appreciated.

Thank you!
Takiera

sheils8

I am definitely not an expert....but from what I have read and learned, you do need to increase your calorie intake when you work out. It is often referred to on here as eating back your exercise calories.
If you eat 1400 a day, and then workout and burn 500 calories....then you really are only consuming 900 a day....and that is way too low (so no wonder you are starving)!
Does that make sense?!

xraychick77

i only ate my bmr because it was what i needed to eat to lose a lb a week. it just so happened to be my bmr. my t.e.e. was 1800, and my bmr is 1300..so minus 500..

sugarbone

Eating your BMR is definitely not a bad idea, some people cut a bit under for faster weight loss. But since your BMR is a number that assumes you do nothing once you wake up, literally don't move at all, every single movement throughout the day turns into a calorie deficit!

Des92

I'm a little confused about this!! I had my activity level set to lightly active for the summer because I lifeguard and spend a lot of time in the water/on my feet. MFP recommended my calories to be 1370 (which is my BMR) to lose 1 lb a week. Just today, I switched to sedentary, as I am going back to school and will spend my days sitting. Now MFP recommends I eat 1230 cals/day (still for a loss of 1 lb/wk). That is less than my BMR! Should I change it to lose less per week, or go back to lightly active, or leave it as is?

By the way, I'm 5'4" and 138 lbs (started at 158). My goal is to be about 123 lbs, and I have a medium, maybe slightly larger, build. BUT I still do have quite a bit of visible fat around my middle to lose.

lynn9

@Sleepy Texan - THANK YOU!! for making the BMR +/- exercise calories easy to understand. My BMR is 1483. MFP set my base calories at 1246. I've been gaining weight ever since I started with this website. I had my health screening (required for work health ins.) today and talked to a dietician after who told me about BMR. Googled BMR and came across this post to find out that I've been eating way TOO FEW calories every day! My body thinks its been starving this whole time My BMR + exercise multiplier = 2,298 calories a day! I've been in the 1200-1500 range. I'm overwhelmed by the possible damage I've done to my metobalism - UGGH!!

I hope I can get it reset and RESTORED!

Thank you for your clear explanation )

GreenLifeGirl

Wow, you look great. Your food diary was very helpful...encourages me to make sure I am eating my goal for the day. = )

kimmyj74

bump

fitgrl124

I am interested in this topic. I just found out my RMR or BMR (same thing) is 1436 calories a day. So, does that mean that I should net 1436 calories or that I should eat more and burn enough to meet 1436?

I really want to lose 17 more pounds!!!! I would love to do by August but I don't want to put pressure on myself to lose that in that amount of time if it isn't feasible.

I'm excited to become part of this discussion!!