**READ THIS** Figuring out your calorie goals

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  • sezhep
    sezhep Posts: 57
    So apparently I'm obese as my Military Body Fat Percentage comes out as 31.3%.
    Okay so I know I aint thin or anything but I am FAR off being obese :S
    Also how come it goes from acceptable to obese.. that's a bit extreme.
  • em9371
    em9371 Posts: 1,047 Member
    I'm confused as well...

    Female
    31 years old
    65 inches tall
    161 pounds

    BMR: 1371
    Military BF: 36.8%

    Based on the chart it says I should eat 1656.

    So I should eat 1656 calories? Right now I am sedentary but am going to start working out. Once I start working I will use the more active numbers for calories, correct?

    Yes, 1656 is right while you're not exercising, then increase to a higher level when you add exercise.
  • mrs_teiger
    mrs_teiger Posts: 7
    bump
  • em9371
    em9371 Posts: 1,047 Member
    So apparently I'm obese as my Military Body Fat Percentage comes out as 31.3%.
    Okay so I know I aint thin or anything but I am FAR off being obese :S
    Also how come it goes from acceptable to obese.. that's a bit extreme.

    If you do a lot of cardio and no heavy weight training you can have a high body fat percentage in relation to your size,, which is why it will class you as obese even if you are quite small!!

    Don't worry too much about the labels just carry on what you are doing and the % will go down. Apparently a lot of athletes are classes as obese on bmi charts which is ridiculous, but the increased muscle makes them heavier!!
  • snc0225
    snc0225 Posts: 15 Member
    Bump to read later!! Great info
  • whoreheyR1
    whoreheyR1 Posts: 135 Member
    good stuff... bump
  • Gwoman2012
    Gwoman2012 Posts: 163 Member
    It's useful to know your tdee as that is the maximum you can eat without gaining.
    Also if you want to deficits more specific deficit you can take 500 cals per lb from tdee.

    Makes sense...thank you!
  • MoreThanMommie
    MoreThanMommie Posts: 597 Member
    Bump. Very helpful. Thanks!
  • astroub
    astroub Posts: 289 Member
    Great info!

    Thanks!
  • Imawonder
    Imawonder Posts: 65
    WOW...great information! Thank you for sharing!!
  • kateflourishes
    kateflourishes Posts: 246 Member
    Thanks for the info.
  • StarletteS
    StarletteS Posts: 28 Member
    I'm confused as well...

    Female
    31 years old
    65 inches tall
    161 pounds

    BMR: 1371
    Military BF: 36.8%

    Based on the chart it says I should eat 1656.

    So I should eat 1656 calories? Right now I am sedentary but am going to start working out. Once I start working I will use the more active numbers for calories, correct?

    Yes, 1656 is right while you're not exercising, then increase to a higher level when you add exercise.


    Awesome! Thank you soooo much!
  • nursemickey
    nursemickey Posts: 52 Member
    Here are my stats for the formula to get what you should set goal cals.

    MBF- 43.5% (yup got a lot of fat on me)
    BMR- 1440
    TDEE- 1728

    Using the link on here and the chart it gives at the end, it says I should eat 2415 cals/day. What I find confusing is, if I want to lose wt why eat all those cals?

    I exercise 4-5 x's a week and burn anywhere from 150-350 cals each time. It's not a lot of cals but it all adds up right?!

    I have trouble eating 1700 cals/today.
  • Angybabefitzg
    Angybabefitzg Posts: 30 Member
    bump
  • Reni421
    Reni421 Posts: 35 Member
    Water girl, Em, and Stephie -- Thanks!!! I started today with the switch and feel much better about it after seeing your responses
  • 32nissy
    32nissy Posts: 67
    bump
  • em9371
    em9371 Posts: 1,047 Member
    Here are my stats for the formula to get what you should set goal cals.

    MBF- 43.5% (yup got a lot of fat on me)
    BMR- 1440
    TDEE- 1728

    Using the link on here and the chart it gives at the end, it says I should eat 2415 cals/day. What I find confusing is, if I want to lose wt why eat all those cals?

    I exercise 4-5 x's a week and burn anywhere from 150-350 cals each time. It's not a lot of cals but it all adds up right?!

    I have trouble eating 1700 cals/today.

    First of all your tdee won't be 1748, where did you get that number from?
    I'd go with lightly active, even though you exercise 4-5 which is moderate, your burns are only low.
    The number is the chart is the tdee for your goal weight. To get tdee for your current weight times this by 1.2, or enter your goal weight same as current weight.
    If you read the info above the chart, it says you can reduce by another 2-300 as you get near goal of needed, just make sure your net doesn't drop below bmr. I guess that would put you not far off your current 1700.
    With the exercise you do that will net you around 1500 which seems to be a good level. Are you having trouble losing at this level?

    You can always choose more calorie dense foods like nuts, nut butter, olive oil, whole milk/yogurt, regular cheese, salad dressings etc.

    Also if you don't do it already, the best way to reduce bf% is heavy weight training. The more muscle you have the more fat you burn :/)
  • chrissyhissey
    chrissyhissey Posts: 7 Member
    Last week went for a 6lb weight loss did cardio for at least 1 hour every day sweated buckets the sweat was pouring out of the sleeves of my sweat suit!!! stuck to below my carbs allocation each day.Calculated weight loss on My Fitness Pal was always around 160 lbs in 5 weeks!! Im currently 173lbs did normal weigh in on Friday & had lost ABSOLUTELY Nothing!!!
    Can anyone help????
  • em9371
    em9371 Posts: 1,047 Member
    Last week went for a 6lb weight loss did cardio for at least 1 hour every day sweated buckets the sweat was pouring out of the sleeves of my sweat suit!!! stuck to below my carbs allocation each day.Calculated weight loss on My Fitness Pal was always around 160 lbs in 5 weeks!! Im currently 173lbs did normal weigh in on Friday & had lost ABSOLUTELY Nothing!!!
    Can anyone help????

    Are you serious????
    With only 8lbs to lose you should only be aiming for 0.5 a week. I can't see your diary but with mfp saying you would lose that in 5 weeks you are under eating by a LOT.
    The best way to lose fat is weight training not endless hours of cardio. Sweating a lot loses water not fat.

    Eat at the level for 0.5 loss, ditch the sweat suit, do alternate days of cardio and weights then you should lose.
  • FoodieFranca
    FoodieFranca Posts: 3 Member
    :happy:
    BUMP
  • mizyvee
    mizyvee Posts: 74 Member
    bump
  • AutumnBreeze07
    AutumnBreeze07 Posts: 49 Member
    Bumping!

    :drinker:
  • PFJules
    PFJules Posts: 26 Member
    Bump
  • Allic1971
    Allic1971 Posts: 145 Member
    Bump
  • Takes2long
    Takes2long Posts: 367 Member
    BUMP!!!!! :-D
  • AdiposeRapture
    AdiposeRapture Posts: 61
    Oh my, I need help with all this!!
    If someone wouldn't mind sending me a message with offer to help me understand and find my proper numbers, I would be very very grateful!!!
  • misskerouac
    misskerouac Posts: 2,242 Member
    I just started listening to the fat2fit podcasts and am now truly understanding why it is so important to eat enough food. I don't want to lose muscle, I want to lose fat, even if it takes 4 times as long, because I will look slimmer even at a higher weight because my body fat % will be lower.

    I have bumped my calories up to 1600 (my BMR is 1550) and then in a week or so i'll bump it up to 1700, and so on until I get to my number.
  • renstwin
    renstwin Posts: 66 Member
    Bump
  • cafred
    cafred Posts: 27 Member
    Okay. I am epically confused.

    My stats:
    BMI 38.7
    168 cm tall
    103.8 kg atm
    goal weight is 55ks
    body fat = 56.3%

    I put all my stats in and got :

    BMR = 1352 (1552 if you add the recommended 200cal over)
    TDEE = 2270 (lightly active)

    I understand that these are the min and the max of what I should be eating to lose weight. I need to be in the middle somewhere.

    What I dont understand is MFP has put me on 1510 daily max. Any exercise I do I should eat back the calories of -according to this site-? Or should I only eat back only enough calories to bring me up to the 1500 ish total?

    Basically If I trust this site to know what I should eat, its not going to screw me up, is it?

    I've only been here a couple of days and while It's brilliant, its confusing at the same time.

    MFP doesnt include exercise cals, you have to log exercise and eat back the extra cals.
    F2F they are already included, you just eat the total cals, same every day.

    As an example:
    MFP is 1500. say you exercise an average of 300 a day. that would put you at 1800 eaten, which is pretty much in the middle of your range.

    your stats are pretty similar to mine, apart from your BF is a bit higher therefore BMR is lower. I eat 1950-2000 total (1650 net) and lose 1.5 most weeks, so around 1800/1500net should work for you x

    OKay, so the fitness website ASSUMES you excercise while MFP doesnt.
    Thats great, cause I like the additional flexibility, esp with a hectic lifestyle :)

    i still dont get what NET means, but i got the excecise bit. Thanks! :))

    Net = Calories in - Calories out.
  • FlittyGetsFit
    FlittyGetsFit Posts: 94
    Thank you for this helpful information. Just to clarify, I should never eat les than my BMR, net? And to lose 1lb per week, I should eat 500 less than my TDEE? if I exercise, I only eat the calories I've burned to get be back over BMR?

    My BMR is 1403, TDEE is 1970. I am female, 40 years old, 199lbs with 47% body fat.
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