Am I understanding this correctly?

RainbootsToBikinis

First off here are my stats
21 y/o F 5'5" starting weight is 184lbs current is 161lbs.

MFP recommends that I should eat 1200 calories a day to lose 1.5 pounds a week. The MFP BMR is 1459, so MFP is telling me to eat less calories than what I would burn by laying in bed all day.

So I calculated my TDEE with an online calculator with an average workout day, this gave me about 2400 calories.

Based on this information how many calories should I be eating? On average I've lost 2lbs a week but I don't think that eating below my BMR can be healthy.

AnninStPaul

The recommendations are usually good -- are you eating your exercise calories in addition to the 1200 recommended?

Rae6503

Tell MFP you only want to lose a pound or a half pound a week. Make sure your activity level is correct. Very few people are at the "sedentary" level.

BMR has little to do with what you should eat. Most websites will take the BMR, multiple it by something, then subtract the deficit you want to lose at, 1000 calories for 2lbs a week, 500 for a pound. MFP uses a lower multiplier so you can eat your exercise calories (therefore giving you motivation to exercise). Other sites use higher multipliers so you are NOT supposed to eat your exercise calories if you use that number.

BernieMBurke

MFP will not take you below 1200 calories. Anything lower than that could drive your body into "starvation mode" where the body starts conserving everything it can. It can/will lower your metabolism which is what you don't want if you're trying to lose weight. You want your metabolism burning hot.

The standard rule of thumb is 3500 calories = 1 pound. So if you reduce your caloric intake by 3500 calories a week (500 per day), you should lose 1 lb. To lose 1.5 pounds, it's 5,250 calories less during a week (750 per day).

The one thing you don't mention is exercise. You say you're losing about 2 lbs a week. That would add up to 1,000 less per day. You're either exercising like crazy or I don't understand how you're losing that much a week.

ElizabethRoad

So I calculated my TDEE with an online calculator with an average workout day, this gave me about 2400 calories.

MFP also gives you more calories on a workout day.

Also, the reason it's going below your BMR is because YOU said you wanted to lose that fast. It's simple math.

RainbootsToBikinis

I'm exercising 5-7 days per week, usually for at least an hour a day. I try to eat between 1200 and 1400 calories a day and not eat back my exercise calories. I feel like with my BMR at 1450 I should be eating more than 1400 a day I'm just not sure how much more.

KareninCanada

I'm exercising 5-7 days per week, usually for at least an hour a day. I try to eat between 1200 and 1400 calories a day and not eat back my exercise calories. I feel like with my BMR at 1450 I should be eating more than 1400 a day I'm just not sure how much more.

There are people who will argue both sides, but in my opinion, yes, you should.

I would adjust the settings on MFP until your net calorie goal is above 1450. I'm 5'2" with a BMR of about 1650, and my calorie goal is manually set at 1700 right now.

Where I got that number.... my trainer said pretty much no adult female with a moderate level of activity should be below 1800-2000 calories per day. MFP had me at about 1400, which with exercise calories added, came out to the same place. So I set the calorie goal at 1700 (more than BMR, and not much less than her recommendation), and I add on a couple hundred exercise calories on days I work hard and feel like I need it. But if I can't eat more, like if I worked out late and really just want to shower and go to bed, or if I'm really not hungry, then I know that I'm still at a reasonable calorie intake for the day anyway.

KareninCanada

BTW... your goal is awesome! I had a goal to lose 40lb in four months while DH was in basic training and I did it on less of a workout schedule than you're on right now - you can SO do it!

Feel free to friend me if you'd like.

deksgrl

I agree with you that you should not be eating less than BMR.
So, set your weight loss per week to 1 pound per week or less. MFP will adjust with more calories, and this is NET calories, i.e. if you exercise you also need more to fuel your workouts. If you still think this is not enough cals, you can adjust them manually.

Some people take their TDEE and then eat 20% less than that, an not eat back exercise cals, or eat back some of them if you work out very hard.

newlife888

Hey, this is my problem with MFP, I think the calories are set wayyy too low, and the exercise eating back calories are somewhat inaccurate. But I am here so

I use this to calculate my bmr

http://www.bmi-calculator.net/bmr-calculator/

and this to calculate how many calories I should eat for weight loss.

http://www.freedieting.com/tools/calorie_calculator.htm

I always eat between these two numbers and keep losing weight. I don't mess around with "eating back" any exercise calories.

Hope this helps.

Sidesteal

I'm exercising 5-7 days per week, usually for at least an hour a day. I try to eat between 1200 and 1400 calories a day and not eat back my exercise calories. I feel like with my BMR at 1450 I should be eating more than 1400 a day I'm just not sure how much more.

I would do one of the following and stick with it for a while:

1) Eat back a portion of your exercise calories. I think 75% is a reasonable multiplier.
or
2) Re-configure MFP to a custom setting and manually enter your intake goals. Set them the same each day and moving forward, don't bother inputting exercise calories, just eat to the same target each day. To use this method, which I find simpler in the long term, it requires a bit of up-front work to determine a TDEE estimate that incorporates an aggregate of rest and active days. You would then reduce the TDEE by about 20% and set that as your target intake.

You can see a few methods of this here, and I would use Katsch-McArdle as a starting point:
http://forum.bodybuilding.com/showthread.php?t=121703981

For you, it would likely end somewhere in the neighborhood of 1700 or so after reducing to account for deficit.

shanlynt

Would people consider a desk job as sendetary? I sit all day but once I get home I don't sit until it's time for bed.

Rae6503

Would people consider a desk job as sendetary? I sit all day but once I get home I don't sit until it's time for bed.

Probably not. I have a desk job but in order to get MFP to have the right maintenance for me, I have to set it to "highly-active". Always guess higher with this thing.

astroub

I'm exercising 5-7 days per week, usually for at least an hour a day. I try to eat between 1200 and 1400 calories a day and not eat back my exercise calories. I feel like with my BMR at 1450 I should be eating more than 1400 a day I'm just not sure how much more.

I would do one of the following and stick with it for a while:

1) Eat back a portion of your exercise calories. I think 75% is a reasonable multiplier.
or
2) Re-configure MFP to a custom setting and manually enter your intake goals. Set them the same each day and moving forward, don't bother inputting exercise calories, just eat to the same target each day. To use this method, which I find simpler in the long term, it requires a bit of up-front work to determine a TDEE estimate that incorporates an aggregate of rest and active days. You would then reduce the TDEE by about 20% and set that as your target intake.

You can see a few methods of this here, and I would use Katsch-McArdle as a starting point:
http://forum.bodybuilding.com/showthread.php?t=121703981

For you, it would likely end somewhere in the neighborhood of 1700 or so after reducing to account for deficit.

^ ^
Listen to this guy, he knows his stuff!!!

vguynes

I have struggled with this exact question. I'll keep checking back to read more responses.

heybales

MFP recommends that I should eat 1200 calories a day to lose 1.5 pounds a week. The MFP BMR is 1459, so MFP is telling me to eat less calories than what I would burn by laying in bed all day.

So I calculated my TDEE with an online calculator with an average workout day, this gave me about 2400 calories.

Based on this information how many calories should I be eating? On average I've lost 2lbs a week but I don't think that eating below my BMR can be healthy.

You are dead on, brilliant.

First off, the math starts with your total maintenance calories not including exercise (because their system has you log that separately), that is what they subtract the 500, 750, or 1000 from.

Are they correct?

They must have estimated 1750 something, you estimated 2400. I'd trust you more.

Now, you could cause the same thing to happen on MFP by setting your activity section under Settings Diet/Fitness Profile to something higher.

If you selected Moderately active there, keep your same wise 1.5 lbs /week goal, now your daily net goal is closer to your BMR, which you have gladly recognized as being something you want burning 1460 calories every day.

Now the only kicker is figuring out best accuracy of any exercise, and eating 80-90% of those calories back - because as you've probably noticed, the 1.5 lb loss is already there, and will STILL be there after you eat back most of your exercise.

ANeWcRe8N

Glad you asked this... I've been wondering the same and searching around for threads about this topic. Thanks! Will be back to read responses