TDEE is everything

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joejccva71
joejccva71 Posts: 2,985 Member
in Health and Weight Loss
When dieting and either trying to lose weight or even gain weight if you are bulking, the most important aspect of your plan is knowing your TDEE. You cannot proceed forward and make progress for the long term without knowing what this is, how to obtain it, and what to do with it.

TDEE = Total Daily Energy Expedenture

TDEE is basically how many calories you burn in a 24 hour period. This is all of your activity including exercises, eating, sleeping, driving a car and yelling at stupid drivers on the highway...whatever it is. If you're doing something, you're burning calories. In all actuality even if you're just sitting down at a desk you're still burning, just not as much.

In order to avoid making this thread a TL;DR thread, I'll be quick and simple. (no snide comments please and you know who you are)

Example to lose weight:

Take a weekly average of your TDEE. Let's pretend you use a Bodymedia FIT and you burn 3000 calories on your workout days (5 days a week), and 2500 calories on your rest days (2 days a week). This would be a weekly average of 20,000 calories for the week.

For the mathematically challenged that's: 3000x5 = 15,000 and 2500x2 = 5000 which equals 20,000. (Yes I really had to break this down for some people)

Moving on....

You are burning 20,000 calories per week. This is your WEEKLY TDEE. Let's pretend you want to lose 1lb a week. Since 1lb is 3,500 calories then you do the math (again):

20,000 - 3,500 = 16,500

This means that you need to eat 16,500 calories PER WEEK in order to lose 1lb for that week. If you are really bored and just don't care, you could technically eat 16,500 calories in ONE DAY and not eat anything the rest of the week and still lose 1lb although you will be completely miserable and you'd probably end up extremely sick if not comatose...but anyways.

Normal people will break this down to eating roughly 2350 calories per day and they will still lose 1lb a week. In order to minimize muscle loss you will need to eat approximately 1g of protein per lb of lean body mass, or if you don't know what that is, you can just use bodyweight. Also, you need to do some sort of resistance weight training and lift heavy to minimize muscle loss as well.

As I typed this, I realized it's not as "short" as I wanted it to be, but I figured I'm making a comeback on the forums so ..... =)

Anyways, take this explanation for what it's worth and above all, you don't need any "diet pills" to lose weight.

Stay disciplined, stick to your plan, make sure you document your food and the weight will come off.

Peace.
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Replies

  • SergeantSunshine_reused
    SergeantSunshine_reused Posts: 5,382 Member
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    I'm glad you are back joe! :D

    This is exactly what I follow. No special diet, no crazy pills, no strict plan. I eat candy, carbs, fat, salt, and live :D
  • tabinmaine
    tabinmaine Posts: 965 Member
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    Excellent post !! Thanks !
  • Rae6503
    Rae6503 Posts: 6,294 Member
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    I should know this, but I don't remember. What are some of the best equations for estimating TDEE w/ a body fit media?
  • gp79
    gp79 Posts: 1,799 Member
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    Thank you. Now if only this were a sticky and FORCED reading before being allowed to post on the forums.
  • jacksonpt
    jacksonpt Posts: 10,413 Member
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    Great post.

    Just for the sake of terminology/clarity... is there a term for TDEE - workout/exercise cals? BMR is basic functions only, TDEE is everything you do throughout the day. Is there an in between that is basically BMR + lifestyle, not including exercise?

    .
  • psuLemon
    psuLemon Posts: 38,404 MFP Moderator
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    Good post!
  • LittleElephant
    LittleElephant Posts: 106 Member
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    Nice post but how to figure TDEE if youre without a body fit media etc?
  • joejccva71
    joejccva71 Posts: 2,985 Member
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    I should know this, but I don't remember. What are some of the best equations for estimating TDEE w/ a body fit media?

    Nothing is 100% but these formulas are some of the more popular ones used:

    Miffin-St.Jeor:
    MEN: BMR = [9.99 x weight (kg)] + [6.25 x height (cm)] - [4.92 x age (years)] + 5
    WOMEN: BMR = [9.99 x weight (kg)] + [6.25 x height (cm)] - [4.92 x age (years)] -161


    Katch-McArdle: (requires you to know your bodyfat%)
    BMR = 370 + (21.6 x LBM)Where LBM = [total weight (kg) x (100 - bodyfat %)]/100
  • Phrak
    Phrak Posts: 353 Member
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    Great post.

    Just for the sake of terminology/clarity... is there a term for TDEE - workout/exercise cals? BMR is basic functions only, TDEE is everything you do throughout the day. Is there an in between that is basically BMR + lifestyle?

    Your TDEE would just be the sum of your BMR and your NEAT.

    NEAT standing for Non Exercise Activity Thermogenesis

    a definition: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/12468415

    Also see joe's post below for a more indepth answer.
  • Beastette
    Beastette Posts: 1,497 Member
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    Joe with the facts, Sunshine in her skivvies, and Rae positively glowing with good health.

    This thread delivers. *bump*
  • MrsCon40
    MrsCon40 Posts: 2,351 Member
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    Oh, Sensei, so glad you're back!

    ETA: Dons bikini to prove Joe knows what he's talking about! :wink:
  • joejccva71
    joejccva71 Posts: 2,985 Member
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    1. BMR (Basal Metabolic Rate): This is the amount of calories you need to consume to maintain your body if you were comatose (base level).
    2. NEAT (Non-Exercise Associated Thermogenesis): The calorie of daily activity that is NOT exercise (eg: washing, walking, talking, shopping, working). ie: INCIDENTAL EXERCISE! It is something that everyone has a good amount of control over & it is the MOST important factor in your energy expenditure. It is what helps keep 'constitutionally lean' people LEAN (they fidget)!
    3. EAT (Exercise Associated Thermogenesis): The calorie requirements associated with planned exercise. Unless someone is doing a whole heap of exercise (eg: two or more hrs training a day) it usually doesn't add a stack of calories to your requirements (30 minutes of 'elliptical training isn't going to do it')
    4. TEF (Thermic effect of feeding): The calorie expenditure associated with eating. REGARDLESS of what myths you have been told - this is NOT dependent on MEAL FREQUENCY. It is a % of TOTAL CALORIES CONSUMED (and 15% of 3 x 600 cal meals is the same as 15% of 6 x 300 cal meals). It varies according to MACRONUTRIENT content and FIBER content. For most mixed diets, it is something around 15%. Protein is higher (up to 25%), carbs are variable (between 5-25%), and fats are low (usually less than 5%). So -> More protein and more carbs and more fiber = HIGHER TEF. More FAT = LOWER TEF.

    5. TDEE (Total Daily Energy Expedenture): Total calories burned. BMR + NEAT + EAT + TEF = TDEE

    Technically speaking. =)
  • gp79
    gp79 Posts: 1,799 Member
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    http://www.1percentedge.com/ifcalc/

    Or what I suggest is everyone out there educate themselves on how to calculate your TDEE and Macronutrients the manual way. This is the best write up I've seen on how to do it.

    http://forum.bodybuilding.com/showthread.php?t=121703981
  • carrie_eggo
    carrie_eggo Posts: 1,396 Member
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    This is great! :smile: Bumping for some on my friends list.
  • carrie_eggo
    carrie_eggo Posts: 1,396 Member
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    http://www.1percentedge.com/ifcalc/

    Or what I suggest is everyone out there educate themselves on how to calculate your TDEE and Macronutrients the manual way. This is the best write up I've seen on how to do it.

    http://forum.bodybuilding.com/showthread.php?t=121703981

    Yep, yep!!

    Emma-Leigh has it on her website: http://www.emma-leigh.com/basics_calorie_needs.html
  • Lance_K
    Lance_K Posts: 104 Member
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    Great post!
  • IronmanPanda
    IronmanPanda Posts: 2,083 Member
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    good stuff
  • Phrak
    Phrak Posts: 353 Member
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    i think the way MFP sets up weight loss for the beginner is atrocious. Eating back poorly estimated exercise calories and setting most peoples daily calorie goal below BMR is terrible. No wonder 1/3 posts on this site is about stalling out. People leave themselves no where to go. Most of them exercise 5 times a week so its tough to add another day of exercise, and you sure as hell can reduce their calories anymore.
  • jacksonpt
    jacksonpt Posts: 10,413 Member
    Options
    1. BMR (Basal Metabolic Rate): This is the amount of calories you need to consume to maintain your body if you were comatose (base level).
    2. NEAT (Non-Exercise Associated Thermogenesis): The calorie of daily activity that is NOT exercise (eg: washing, walking, talking, shopping, working). ie: INCIDENTAL EXERCISE! It is something that everyone has a good amount of control over & it is the MOST important factor in your energy expenditure. It is what helps keep 'constitutionally lean' people LEAN (they fidget)!
    3. EAT (Exercise Associated Thermogenesis): The calorie requirements associated with planned exercise. Unless someone is doing a whole heap of exercise (eg: two or more hrs training a day) it usually doesn't add a stack of calories to your requirements (30 minutes of 'elliptical training isn't going to do it')
    4. TEF (Thermic effect of feeding): The calorie expenditure associated with eating. REGARDLESS of what myths you have been told - this is NOT dependent on MEAL FREQUENCY. It is a % of TOTAL CALORIES CONSUMED (and 15% of 3 x 600 cal meals is the same as 15% of 6 x 300 cal meals). It varies according to MACRONUTRIENT content and FIBER content. For most mixed diets, it is something around 15%. Protein is higher (up to 25%), carbs are variable (between 5-25%), and fats are low (usually less than 5%). So -> More protein and more carbs and more fiber = HIGHER TEF. More FAT = LOWER TEF.

    5. TDEE (Total Daily Energy Expedenture): Total calories burned. BMR + NEAT + EAT + TEF = TDEE

    Technically speaking. =)

    Awesome, thanks. Might have to bookmark this for quick/easy reference in the future.
  • MinnesotaManimal
    MinnesotaManimal Posts: 642 Member
    Options
    http://www.1percentedge.com/ifcalc/

    Or what I suggest is everyone out there educate themselves on how to calculate your TDEE and Macronutrients the manual way. This is the best write up I've seen on how to do it.

    http://forum.bodybuilding.com/showthread.php?t=121703981

    I love that tool - http://www.1percentedge.com/ifcalc/

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