Eating bmr?

kooshajan

How many of you eat your bmr? I've read that it's best too stick in between your bmr and maintenance cals. My bmr is 1550. My net cals are 1330. On days I exercise I eat between 1600-1700 on days I don't I stick to the 1330. Is this fine? I'm set at lightly active 1.5lb loss per week.

peacestar84

I eat more than my BMR. My BMR is 1470 and I eat around 1550. Some days more and then I exercise as well. I lose between 0.5-1.5 lbs. a week. It has worked well for me. I originally ate 1200 cal as "recommended" and found it was not sustainable in the long run.

Shannonigans84

I ate below my BMR and had very little weight loss. I started eating at my BMR and started losing almost a lb a week. Which is great considering I'm so close to goal. I'm so glad I widened up before I killed my metabolism!

ETA: I eat my exercise calories back as well, some days I gross upwards of 1900 calories.I just upped my calories by 100 to prepare for maintenance.

shanlynt

Pardon my ignorance, but what is BMR. Would that be the number of calories you burn just in normal activity?

starrlight23

I am so not getting this whole thing. Why is it better to eat more than our bmr? If it is really better to do so then why is mfp putting most of on a 1200 or 1500 calorie diet

kooshajan

Shandun your bmr is the amount of calories your body would burn if you layed around on a couch all say with no movement. Or a coma.

shanlynt

Bahahaha, in that case I would get just shy of 2000, I don't think that will work for me but I do think I need to up my daily intake. I'm at 1210 which seems so low to me. When I was on WW, I would get the equivalent of about 1500.

Shannonigans84

I am so not getting this whole thing. Why is it better to eat more than our bmr? If it is really better to do so then why is mfp putting most of on a 1200 or 1500 calorie diet

You don't have to eat more than your BMR, but you should at least net it! If you eat a bit above your BMR you're still at a deficit. My opinion is that it's more obtainable to eat a deficit closer to your TDEE for lasting success.

Shannonigans84

Here is MFP's link to find your BMR:

http://www.myfitnesspal.com/tools/bmr-calculator

kooshajan

Hmm. My bmr is 1550. Do I than multiply my daily activity to this and create a deficit from that or do I multiply it by my activity level and than add on any workout calories?

neanderthin

BMR should be stricken from dieting vocabulary.

robin52077

this is a copy/paste of a post I wrote yesterday to someone who was asking for a good calculator...
this explains BMR, TDEE and deficits...


http://www.cordianet.com/calculator.htm
that's a good one.
I say 1200 is WAY WAY too low.
The heavier you are the more you require just to LIVE.
Your BMR is the amount of calories you need to survive even if you were in a COMA. Go to the BMR calculator and figure it out, then eat about that daily. You should not normally go below that.
Your TDEE (or "maintenance" calories) is what you would need to stay the SAME weight. That number is your BMR TIMES your activity level (1.2 for sedentary, up to 1.9 for very active...most people are about 1.4-1.5) multiply that by your BMR from the calculator and you get your TDEE (approximate).
Then subtract 1000 from this. This new number is your calorie GOAL. Not your goal to "stay under"...but your goal to REACH.
So for example someone who weighs 250 and is 5'6" has a BMR of about 1850...and she either works outside the home or has a child to take care of, cleans her house, etc, something other than sitting on the couch ALL day...she multiplies it by 1.5 and gets 2775...this is her MAINTENANCE, what she needs to eat to stay the SAME. She subtracts 1000 from that and gets 1775. She must EAT 1775 a DAY to LOSE 2 lbs per week. LESS than this is UNHEALTHY and starving her body of vital nutrients.
Now plug your OWN numbers into the BMR calculator (in the tools section), determine your activity level (keeping in mind most people are not "sedentary" unless you literally sit on the couch all day). Multiply it out, find your TDEE, and subtract 1000 for a 2 lb per week loss.



^^^
this was to someone heavy enough to be able to lose 2 lbs a week safely. If you are within 50 pounds of goal, change "subtract 1000" to "subtract 500" as you should be aiming for 1 lb. And if you are within the last 10 pounds, only do a deficit of 250.

And EAT MORE if you work out heavy. No need to enter and eat back a leisurely stroll, that can cause overeating and negate your deficit. But if you are purposefully exercising, like running, doing a video, lifting heavy weights, etc, then you NEED to fuel those workouts.

kooshajan

So despite the fact I have 50lbs to lose (185 to 135) I cannot create a 1000 deficit because it will be going below my bmr which from what I understand I should not be eating under....

Shannonigans84

I ate below my BMR and had very little weight loss. I started eating at my BMR and started losing almost a lb a week. Which is great considering I'm so close to goal. I'm so glad I widened up before I killed my metabolism!

ETA: I eat my exercise calories back as well, some days I gross upwards of 1900 calories.I just upped my calories by 100 to prepare for maintenance.

Haha I just realized my predictive text snuck one past me, I meant wisened obviously.

I guess my advice is to put your BMR amount into your goals as a minimum since 1000 less than your TDEE is below that. See how that goes! Just make sure to update it as you lose weight.

fteale

My BMR is 1360, and I eat 1500.

twilight_princess

My BMR is about 1800. My net goal is 1450 but I intend to burn at least 350kcal so I can eat at least 1800 per day but anything under 2000 is fine for me, as that is normal recommendations.

I'm all about not trying to kill myself to get to my goal by eating 1200kcal a day as it doesn't teach sensible/realistic eating (in my opinion) and I want weight loss to be fun esp. as I still have a long way to go.