HELP! How does the eating more to lose weight work?

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  • lostinureyes17
    lostinureyes17 Posts: 112 Member
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    Btw I made a post about my experience dieting below my BMR because I had some bad side effects. If you're interested... here it is: http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/572503-why-you-should-eat-more-a-lion-s-tale

    Always eat above your BMR!

    Thanks for that! Sorry you had so many struggles at first but I'm glad that it's all worked out now! :)
  • amculver1
    amculver1 Posts: 36 Member
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    bump
  • lostinureyes17
    lostinureyes17 Posts: 112 Member
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    Okay, BMR is what your body burns if it is in a coma. It doesn't even include digestion because your nutrition is provided via IV and feeding tube so not much digestion is needed. On top of BMR, you have to add calories for your normal daily activity. This is done by multiplying your BMR by an activity factor based on how much you are up and around throughout the day to get what I was taught is the RMR. Additional calories are also added for the thermic effect of food (cost of digestion), but we typically don't add additional calories to our consumption for that because the calories per gram is rounded down to account for it based on the type of macronutrient consumed. After you've added for your activity, then you add for exercise to get your Total Daily Energy Expenditure (TDEE). In order to lose body fat, one should eat no less then 80% of the TDEE and never (NEVER) under the BMR.

    There are several different formulas for determining BMR, but I use the simple one from ACSM which is 1 kcal x 24 hours x lean body mass in kg. Assuming a 25% body fat at your current weight I get a BMR of 1317 kcal/day. Then assuming sedentary and using a multiplication factor of 1.2, I get 1581 kcal/day for your RMR. You would then want to add Calories for exercise, so I'll again estimate and use 200 which is about the norm for a 2 mile walk. You then get a TDEE of 1781 kcal/day. 80% of that is 1425 kcal/day, which is what I would suggest is your minimum caloric intake per day that you exercise. Notice that the 1425 is more then your BMR of 1317. Never eat below the BMR, even on days when you are not exercising and 80% of RMR (which is TDEE on non-exercise days) is less then your BMR, don't eat below BMR.
    16 years Certified Personal Trainer and Group Exercise Instructor
    9 years Certified Sports Nutritionist
    Bachelors in Exercise Physiology with a Minor in Nutritional Science
    ACSM Certified Clinical Exercise Specialist
    NSCA Certified Strength and Conditioning Specialist

    Thanks...so I'll try to stick to 1317 and then up it on days i workout

    You said in your first post that your BMR is 1550 - you should be eating more than this but less than your TDEE. If 80% of TDEE is below BMR, eat more. Always, always, always above BMR.

    It does sound like your TDEE is for sedantry which makes it harder to eat 80% and still be above BMR. I'd suggest upping your exercise and including this in your TDEE calculation (ie light exercise so a higher daily calorie) and then doing 80%, or eat BMR +100 for three weeks plus all your exercise calories. Which, at a rough guestimate, should even out around 80% over a week or two, but ensure you're getting sufficient on a day-to-day basis.

    Make sense?

    Yes that makes sense. i was just using the 1317 calories that trainingwithtanya said is my actual bmr. It's hard becuase there are so many different calculators out there.
  • callmecaptain
    callmecaptain Posts: 61
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    The goal MFP gives you is probably under your BMR, and at a point, your body gets mad at not being fed enough and won't lose weight.

    The idea is to eat more than your BMR and what you're burning with exercise to make your body happy again to shed those pounds.
    1. Do I eat the 1550 everyday or not?
    2. Do I need to up the working out along with eating my bmr or will I lose weight just my staying on track with calories?

    1. Yes, eat 1550 every day. Plus the calories you burn working out. So if you walk and burn 200 calories, eat 1750 that day.
    2. No need to increase exercise, just make sure you NET your BMR no matter what your activity level is.

    I Concur
  • Dragonnade
    Dragonnade Posts: 218 Member
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    Okay, BMR is what your body burns if it is in a coma. It doesn't even include digestion because your nutrition is provided via IV and feeding tube so not much digestion is needed. On top of BMR, you have to add calories for your normal daily activity. This is done by multiplying your BMR by an activity factor based on how much you are up and around throughout the day to get what I was taught is the RMR. Additional calories are also added for the thermic effect of food (cost of digestion), but we typically don't add additional calories to our consumption for that because the calories per gram is rounded down to account for it based on the type of macronutrient consumed. After you've added for your activity, then you add for exercise to get your Total Daily Energy Expenditure (TDEE). In order to lose body fat, one should eat no less then 80% of the TDEE and never (NEVER) under the BMR.

    There are several different formulas for determining BMR, but I use the simple one from ACSM which is 1 kcal x 24 hours x lean body mass in kg. Assuming a 25% body fat at your current weight I get a BMR of 1317 kcal/day. Then assuming sedentary and using a multiplication factor of 1.2, I get 1581 kcal/day for your RMR. You would then want to add Calories for exercise, so I'll again estimate and use 200 which is about the norm for a 2 mile walk. You then get a TDEE of 1781 kcal/day. 80% of that is 1425 kcal/day, which is what I would suggest is your minimum caloric intake per day that you exercise. Notice that the 1425 is more then your BMR of 1317. Never eat below the BMR, even on days when you are not exercising and 80% of RMR (which is TDEE on non-exercise days) is less then your BMR, don't eat below BMR.
    16 years Certified Personal Trainer and Group Exercise Instructor
    9 years Certified Sports Nutritionist
    Bachelors in Exercise Physiology with a Minor in Nutritional Science
    ACSM Certified Clinical Exercise Specialist
    NSCA Certified Strength and Conditioning Specialist

    Thanks...so I'll try to stick to 1317 and then up it on days i workout

    You said in your first post that your BMR is 1550 - you should be eating more than this but less than your TDEE. If 80% of TDEE is below BMR, eat more. Always, always, always above BMR.

    It does sound like your TDEE is for sedantry which makes it harder to eat 80% and still be above BMR. I'd suggest upping your exercise and including this in your TDEE calculation (ie light exercise so a higher daily calorie) and then doing 80%, or eat BMR +100 for three weeks plus all your exercise calories. Which, at a rough guestimate, should even out around 80% over a week or two, but ensure you're getting sufficient on a day-to-day basis.

    Make sense?

    Yes that makes sense. i was just using the 1317 calories that trainingwithtanya said is my actual bmr. It's hard becuase there are so many different calculators out there.

    OK, cool. The lower one is relevant to your actual fat % and /should/ be more accurate. So long as you net over that, you're good :)
  • Joeyje3
    Joeyje3 Posts: 58 Member
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    Great topic. Love the read on this. :smile:
  • jessie1480
    jessie1480 Posts: 132 Member
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    I don't really know the since of it like others on here do, but I can tell you that it works! I plagued for a while, upped my calories a little and started dropping again( untill my vacation to michigan) as soon as I platoue for a week, I upp my cals a little more. Slow and steady.
  • skinnylion
    skinnylion Posts: 213
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    Btw I made a post about my experience dieting below my BMR because I had some bad side effects. If you're interested... here it is: http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/572503-why-you-should-eat-more-a-lion-s-tale

    Always eat above your BMR!

    Thanks for that! Sorry you had so many struggles at first but I'm glad that it's all worked out now! :)

    Thanks! It was all just a result of not having the knowledge of how calories worked. I hope we've all been able to help you to avoid being in the same predicament.
  • PrfctGdess
    PrfctGdess Posts: 257
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    ... as soon as I platoue for a week, I upp my cals a little more.

    Whenever your numbers change, you should recalculate. So every 5lbs or so loss, recalculate your TDEE so you know where you're at. Each birthday, recalculate. :) That's why upping your cals a little each time you hit a plateau is working ;)
  • cdragon_88
    cdragon_88 Posts: 7
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    The only reason you would want to eat more is IF and only IF you have been in a deficit for a "long" time. Sometimes the body plateaus and tries to accommodate for all that low intake of food. This is the only time you need to eat more. More often than not plateaus are caused by over eating and not a problem with eating a deficit for too long. So before you decide to eat more you need to find out if you really are eating correctly in a deficit and factor in how long you have been in a deficit. You shouldn't plateaus after a 10lb loss so if you have lost less than ten lbs you might want to consider eating less rather than more. At 2 lbs a week that would only equate to 5 weeks--not enough for a plateaus that screws up your body that requires you to eat more.
  • TrainingWithTonya
    TrainingWithTonya Posts: 1,741 Member
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    Okay, BMR is what your body burns if it is in a coma. It doesn't even include digestion because your nutrition is provided via IV and feeding tube so not much digestion is needed. On top of BMR, you have to add calories for your normal daily activity. This is done by multiplying your BMR by an activity factor based on how much you are up and around throughout the day to get what I was taught is the RMR. Additional calories are also added for the thermic effect of food (cost of digestion), but we typically don't add additional calories to our consumption for that because the calories per gram is rounded down to account for it based on the type of macronutrient consumed. After you've added for your activity, then you add for exercise to get your Total Daily Energy Expenditure (TDEE). In order to lose body fat, one should eat no less then 80% of the TDEE and never (NEVER) under the BMR.

    There are several different formulas for determining BMR, but I use the simple one from ACSM which is 1 kcal x 24 hours x lean body mass in kg. Assuming a 25% body fat at your current weight I get a BMR of 1317 kcal/day. Then assuming sedentary and using a multiplication factor of 1.2, I get 1581 kcal/day for your RMR. You would then want to add Calories for exercise, so I'll again estimate and use 200 which is about the norm for a 2 mile walk. You then get a TDEE of 1781 kcal/day. 80% of that is 1425 kcal/day, which is what I would suggest is your minimum caloric intake per day that you exercise. Notice that the 1425 is more then your BMR of 1317. Never eat below the BMR, even on days when you are not exercising and 80% of RMR (which is TDEE on non-exercise days) is less then your BMR, don't eat below BMR.
    16 years Certified Personal Trainer and Group Exercise Instructor
    9 years Certified Sports Nutritionist
    Bachelors in Exercise Physiology with a Minor in Nutritional Science
    ACSM Certified Clinical Exercise Specialist
    NSCA Certified Strength and Conditioning Specialist

    Thanks...so I'll try to stick to 1317 and then up it on days i workout

    The numbers I used are an estimate IF you are 25% body fat and IF you are sedentary and IF you are burning 200 calories per workout. You need to check your body fat and look at your activity level and calorie burns from exercise to determine your actual numbers.
    16 years Certified Personal Trainer and Group Exercise Instructor
    9 years Certified Sports Nutritionist
    Bachelors in Exercise Physiology with a Minor in Nutritional Science
    ACSM Certified Clinical Exercise Specialist
    NSCA Certified Strength and Conditioning Specialist
  • TrainingWithTonya
    TrainingWithTonya Posts: 1,741 Member
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    Yes that makes sense. i was just using the 1317 calories that trainingwithtanya said is my actual bmr. It's hard becuase there are so many different calculators out there.

    I made some assumptions to refigure your BMR because there are so many formulas out there. Too many of them are figuring RMR instead of BMR and a lot of people get the two mixed up because numerous places use them interchangably when they aren't interchangable. I can't say for sure that the number I gave you is a more accurate BMR, because I used a body fat percentage I pulled from thin air to get it. But when I did that, I got an RMR that is similar to what you were saying is your BMR, so I again assumed that it was an RMR calculation instead of a a true BMR. So, before you decide how many calories to eat, find out your actual body fat percentage and PM me. A body fat % higher then 25% will decrease your BMR and a body fat % lower then 25% will increase your BMR, so you have to know an accurate body fat % to get an accurate BMR.
    16 years Certified Personal Trainer and Group Exercise Instructor
    9 years Certified Sports Nutritionist
    Bachelors in Exercise Physiology with a Minor in Nutritional Science
    ACSM Certified Clinical Exercise Specialist
    NSCA Certified Strength and Conditioning Specialist
  • lostinureyes17
    lostinureyes17 Posts: 112 Member
    Options

    Yes that makes sense. i was just using the 1317 calories that trainingwithtanya said is my actual bmr. It's hard becuase there are so many different calculators out there.

    I made some assumptions to refigure your BMR because there are so many formulas out there. Too many of them are figuring RMR instead of BMR and a lot of people get the two mixed up because numerous places use them interchangably when they aren't interchangable. I can't say for sure that the number I gave you is a more accurate BMR, because I used a body fat percentage I pulled from thin air to get it. But when I did that, I got an RMR that is similar to what you were saying is your BMR, so I again assumed that it was an RMR calculation instead of a a true BMR. So, before you decide how many calories to eat, find out your actual body fat percentage and PM me. A body fat % higher then 25% will decrease your BMR and a body fat % lower then 25% will increase your BMR, so you have to know an accurate body fat % to get an accurate BMR.
    16 years Certified Personal Trainer and Group Exercise Instructor
    9 years Certified Sports Nutritionist
    Bachelors in Exercise Physiology with a Minor in Nutritional Science
    ACSM Certified Clinical Exercise Specialist
    NSCA Certified Strength and Conditioning Specialist

    I go to school m-f from 7-3 and when I get home I spend most of my time studying, writing flashcards, or doing homework so I would say I am def. sedentary. The only exercise I really get is trying to take a walk around my block so I am sure i am not burning 200 calories doing that... I also have my body fat percentage as 30% according to my scale. I know its not 100% accurate but I have very little muscle so I'm sure it is close. Would this make the number lower?

    I really do appreciate all your help! Thank you for taking the time to help:smile:
  • lostinureyes17
    lostinureyes17 Posts: 112 Member
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    Bump
  • Mishka84
    Mishka84 Posts: 17
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    Okay, BMR is what your body burns if it is in a coma. It doesn't even include digestion because your nutrition is provided via IV and feeding tube so not much digestion is needed. On top of BMR, you have to add calories for your normal daily activity. This is done by multiplying your BMR by an activity factor based on how much you are up and around throughout the day to get what I was taught is the RMR. Additional calories are also added for the thermic effect of food (cost of digestion), but we typically don't add additional calories to our consumption for that because the calories per gram is rounded down to account for it based on the type of macronutrient consumed. After you've added for your activity, then you add for exercise to get your Total Daily Energy Expenditure (TDEE). In order to lose body fat, one should eat no less then 80% of the TDEE and never (NEVER) under the BMR.

    There are several different formulas for determining BMR, but I use the simple one from ACSM which is 1 kcal x 24 hours x lean body mass in kg. Assuming a 25% body fat at your current weight I get a BMR of 1317 kcal/day. Then assuming sedentary and using a multiplication factor of 1.2, I get 1581 kcal/day for your RMR. You would then want to add Calories for exercise, so I'll again estimate and use 200 which is about the norm for a 2 mile walk. You then get a TDEE of 1781 kcal/day. 80% of that is 1425 kcal/day, which is what I would suggest is your minimum caloric intake per day that you exercise. Notice that the 1425 is more then your BMR of 1317. Never eat below the BMR, even on days when you are not exercising and 80% of RMR (which is TDEE on non-exercise days) is less then your BMR, don't eat below BMR.
    16 years Certified Personal Trainer and Group Exercise Instructor
    9 years Certified Sports Nutritionist
    Bachelors in Exercise Physiology with a Minor in Nutritional Science
    ACSM Certified Clinical Exercise Specialist
    NSCA Certified Strength and Conditioning Specialist
    [/quote


    Thanks for this information, finding it difficult to up my calories at the moment. It's easy to do physically, difficult to accept mentally!
  • BeautyFromPain
    BeautyFromPain Posts: 4,952 Member
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    metabolism.
  • fififox
    fififox Posts: 394 Member
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    This is good reading! I have a question. I am definitely on a plateau - as a result I am sure of eating too little (1200 calories for 9 mths generally give or take a few bad days). I have been stuck for at least 3 mths and recently upped my calories to about 1500 a day average - I am trying zig-zagging as well. I think I need to go back and calculate and really up more. I was afraid to....I guess that's normal. So far I have gained 4lbs in 3 weeks despite a lot of exercising, but I am guessing that is probably because I am still eating too little? If my metabolism is messed up from such a long spell of eating too little will 3 or 4 weeks eating high really be able to fix this? I am so afraid of ballooning - I have worked so hard to get to where I am. I just need a little reassurance - it has been very frustrating and demoralising to work so hard and then start to go wrong.

    If I exercise between 200cal burn and 600cal burn every day (probably an average of 350-400) what activity level do you think I should put into the calculators? Thanks for any help :smile:

    Good luck lostinureyes. I feel your frustration!!!

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