Oh so many numbers!! Why am I so confused???

Jess830409

Ok not to beat a dead horse...LOL...but the more topics I search the more confused I get!

My BMR is 1350. That is what I have set my calorie goal to. I have categorized my self as sedetary.
I have been using a FitBit to see what my actual calorie burn is everyday...as I have days where I do nothing and days I am up on my feet and exercise. For example...I burned 2100 calories yesterday but other lazy days only 1575...and one day it was 2700...it changes everyday (as expected)

My question is should I just eat my BMR calories everyday no matter what (so my deficit changes daily) OR eat back a certain amount depending on actual TDEE??

Like yesterday at a 2100 calorie burn should I have eaten more or less?? How do I know what number to eat at??

Overall looking to go down by 1-2 lbs a week.

Thank u!!

2BeHealthy4Life

MFP pal Anewlucia started the group EAT MORE TO WEIGH LESS ....I copied and pasted this information below from one of her threads that may helpful.

You can get your bmr and tdee number from here :http://www.scoobyworkshop.com/calculators

What is BMR? Your basal metabolic rate, or BMR, is the minimum calorific requirement needed to sustain life in a resting individual. It can be looked at as being the amount of energy (measured in calories) expended by the body to remain in bed all day!

What is TDEE? TDEE is the common abbreviation for Total Daily Energy Expenditure which is a metric to calculate the amount of calories your body needs to function in a day. This is quite similar to BMR; in fact, you need your BMR to calculate your TDEE; but your TDEE accounts for your average daily activity as well to give a figure truer to your specific situation. Basically, the TDEE calculation relies on categorizing your daily activity into one of the metrics' predetermined groupings:

Sedentary - desk job and little to no exercise Lightly Active - light exercise/sports 1-3 days/wk Moderately Active - moderate exercise/sports 3-5 days/wk (****SIDE NOTE - even if you have a desk job most people fit right here when you workout 3-5 days a week) Very Active - hard exercise/sports 6-7 days/wk Extremely Active - hard daily exercise/sports & physical job or training Once you have determined where you fit in on the TDEE activity rate scale, this activity rate is used to weight your BMR giving you a more accurate assessment of how many calories you really need throughout the course of the day.

Here is a link to a site that you plug in your information and it will provide your BMR and TDEE along with your Cut value (again, if you workout 3-5 times a week select "Moderate" and the "Select Your Goal" option you will select is "Lose Fat - 15% caloric reduction.



So now, you should have your BMR, TDEE, and Cut Value (TDEE - 15%)

Here is a video that talks about this in great detail that hopefully will clear up any questions you may have: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eYi9xjIRvbY&feature=g-all-u

If TDEE is figured out correctly, then exercise cals don't *have* to be eaten back because, technically, TDEE figures them in. The underlying factor here, is that most people underestimate their activity levels, (for fear of being told to eat "too much") and then proceed to under eat. If a person is burning 1000 cals/day in exercise, then that should be figured into their TDEE, meaning their TDEE should be AT LEAST 1000 cals more than their BMR. If this is not the case then they are undercutting themselves on the cals. So a person w/a BMR of 1300, that puts up 1000 cal burns should have come up w/a TDEE calculation of 2400 or more. So any situation where a person is not getting those calculations, they should be eating back some of those exercise cals.

So if you come up w/BMR=1300, TDEE=1800, you need to either A)eat back some cals, or recalculate your TDEE to include the *actual* burns that you're getting.

So to cut using *true* TDEE figures, you'd just eat a flat TDEE (-15%), as long as TDEE is correct. It should be fine. But if you are using MFP's calculations, or are not getting a TDEE that includes the amount you burn each day *plus* BMR, you need to eat back some exercise cals.

ladyraven68

Ok not to beat a dead horse...LOL...but the more topics I search the more confused I get!

My BMR is 1350. That is what I have set my calorie goal to. I have categorized my self as sedetary.
I have been using a FitBit to see what my actual calorie burn is everyday...as I have days where I do nothing and days I am up on my feet and exercise. For example...I burned 2100 calories yesterday but other lazy days only 1575...and one day it was 2700...it changes everyday (as expected)

My question is should I just eat my BMR calories everyday no matter what (so my deficit changes daily) OR eat back a certain amount depending on actual TDEE??

Like yesterday at a 2100 calorie burn should I have eaten more or less?? How do I know what number to eat at??

Overall looking to go down by 1-2 lbs a week.

Thank u!!

You are on a better position than most to know your TDEE.

Take the average from your fit bit for the last 2 weeks, deduct 20%, and eat that every day.

There is no need to make it any more complicated.

Jess830409

That's a great idea ladyraven68...I didnt even think to do that.

Thank you

Trying to do this the right way

mcarter99

If your average TDEE is 2100 and you take off 20% you will lose about 3.5 lbs/month. If you want to lose 1-2 lbs/week like you said, take your TDEE and subtract 500-1000. 500 for 1 lb/week, 1000 for 2.

ladyraven68

If your average TDEE is 2100 and you take off 20% you will lose about 3.5 lbs/month. If you want to lose 1-2 lbs/week like you said, take your TDEE and subtract 500-1000. 500 for 1 lb/week, 1000 for 2.

If her TDEE is 2100, a drop of 1000 is a 50% defict - way too large to carry on working out, and very bad for fat loss.

Need to fuel the workout and have enough nutrition to allow the body to recover - 1100 calories is not going to do that. That's a great way to lose lean mass.

rose313

Eat at least your BMR, a good number is 20% less than TDEE. MFP should have calculated around there anyway when you entered your info in.