TDEE, BMR, and others...

MexisMom

Just wondering if any of you are customizing your own diet plans or just going off of what MFP says (usually around 1200 cals/day).

Now, I just started researching this today so I am by no means an expert. But this thread (http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/538381-in-place-of-a-road-map) has been super helpful.

Helloitsdan suggests this site be used (http://www.fat2fitradio.com/tools/) to determine your body fat, BMR, and TDEE. It will also outline very clearly how many calories you need to eat in a day.

I think I will give it a shot for the month of March. It's a little intimidating as I'm now going to be eating 2385 cals/day, but what I'm reading (there and elsewhere) indicates that low calorie diets = bad and hard to maintain, so I'm very open to giving it a shot.

Curious to see others' thoughts on the matter!

LaylaSparkles

Wow, that was really interesting....apparently if I follow this right I should be eating close to 1600 calories a day.

Thanks for posting that, gives a lot to think about!!

jingoace

o.k. I just pondered some of this myself in my recent blog.......

Info about TDEE & how much I SHOULD be eating

This Info is from a post by sniperzzzz:

"An easy way that i use is go to the site bellow. Get an estimate of your bodyfat,make a note of it .
http://www.freedieting.com/tools/body_fat_calculator.htm

Then go to this link here
http://www.freedieting.com/tools/calorie_calculator.htm

1 Enter your stats
2 Select the advanced option
3 select the katch-MCcardle method, enter your bodyfat percentage that you noted previously, once done hit the calculate button.

Your maintenance calories are your TDEE same thing. Under maintenance will be a box called fat loss, that amount is what you will need to eat daily. Its a 20% deficit below your maintenance/TDEE. Also remember as your weight decreases you will need to re-enter your stats to compensate for your weight loss. by sniperzzzz

***********

o.k. here's my deets ( at 178.4# today)
bodyfat % estimate = 34.94
FAT weight = 62.2 pounds
Lean weight = 115.8 pounds


when using sedentary exercise level
TDEE = Maintenace = 1828 cal per day
20% defecit = for FAT LOSS = 1463 cal per day


when using 3x a week exercise level
TDEE = Maintenace = 2095 cal per day
20% defecit = for FAT LOSS = 1676 cal per day

**********

Very Interesting. More things to ponder here..

J

slightlycrunchy

I've been going over this for awhile. 1200 calories seems so low, especially since I want to start lifting. It just doesn't seen sufficient. But then some days I struggle to even hit the 1200 mark so I'm not sure how I would be able to hit higher calorie goals consistently. As it is I rely in protein powder to fit more calories in.

kayglo

I've been on MFP for 2 weeks at 1200 calories and only discovered the BMR / TDEE 2 days ago on here. Yesterday was my first day eating more towards 2000 cals a day and I had to force myself to get to 1600 cals by the end of the day! (and I'd exercised yesterday too).

Struggling to get to the 2000 mark today too, I'd suggest that if people are going to do it to maybe introduce the extra calories gradually and to choose more calorie dense foods. I got some almond nuts and things like that which are calorie dense

MexisMom

Good point kayglo. I think it's also worth mentioning that you should expect a bit of a gain immediately after you start upping your calories, but do not fret - it's water weight and you'll be seeing losses in no time.

What I'm really liking about these theories is that it's not about deprivation. It's about making healthier choices, and not starving yourself. As such, it's going to be much easier to maintain. It also reiterates, for me at least, that moderation is key. Yes, you can have that cookie - just don't have the whole bag (I am totally guilty with portion control!).

I'm also reading that losing weight this way and focusing on body fat lost and not necessarily body "weight" lost can help with avoiding loose skin, as well. When you're on a low calorie diet that encourages rapid weight loss, most of the time you're also losing a lot of muscle mass with that "weight loss."

brittlynn07

I found that my BMR is actually lower than what I thought so I am actually eating where I need to be when I don't meet my calorie goals on here. :happy:

tammyandzach

Wow this was really interesting. I like it. It means I can see something else and not just the scale numbers. More encouragement.

cressievargo

I also do higher #'s...debating on upping my calories again now that I'm exercising consistently.
One piece of advice I have is ignore the scale for a bit and do your measurements. I lost NOTHING in the last 2 weeks - scale shows up 2 lbs but I'm going with water weight from the new workouts...but I lost 7+ inches in the same timeframe.

(My scale can SUCK IT!).

I admit there is a part of me that is terrified I'm on some long plateau...but at the same time, reasonable thinking tells me that losing weight more slowly and losing inches means in the end I should be less "floppy".