So...which is it? Questions on TDEE and calories

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stufie
stufie Posts: 142 Member
in Health and Weight Loss
I have been reading a number of very helpful posts on here lately, but I have to say, I'm now thoroughly confused.

One post I read said that you should set your calorie goal at 20% below TDEE and not eat back your exercise calories. But then other posts I've read say that MFP automatically adjusts itself based on your exercise and if you don't eat back your exercise calories then your body will go into starvation mode.

So now I ask...which is it?? Should I just leave the settings alone and let MFP do the work (and eat back my exercise cals)? Or should I manually change my goals and eat at 20% below TDEE without eating back my exercise cals? I am looking to lose another 20 pounds or so in the next 6 months.

Any insight would be appreciated. Thanks!

Replies

  • huckleberry0070
    huckleberry0070 Posts: 64 Member
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    It's really a matter of preference... you can do it either way. Try doing it the MFP way for a while and see if you get results then, if not, try the TDEE way. Everyone's body is different so you'll have to experiment a bit to see what works for you.
  • ElizabethRoad
    ElizabethRoad Posts: 5,138 Member
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    Your TDEE already includes exercise calories. If you ate them back you'd be eating them twice. These are two different methods to achieve the same thing.
  • stufie
    stufie Posts: 142 Member
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    Ahhhh...ok that makes perfect sense!! Thanks so much for clearing that up.
  • WendyTerry420
    WendyTerry420 Posts: 13,274 Member
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    I have been reading a number of very helpful posts on here lately, but I have to say, I'm now thoroughly confused.

    One post I read said that you should set your calorie goal at 20% below TDEE and not eat back your exercise calories. But then other posts I've read say that MFP automatically adjusts itself based on your exercise and if you don't eat back your exercise calories then your body will go into starvation mode.

    So now I ask...which is it?? Should I just leave the settings alone and let MFP do the work (and eat back my exercise cals)? Or should I manually change my goals and eat at 20% below TDEE without eating back my exercise cals? I am looking to lose another 20 pounds or so in the next 6 months.

    Any insight would be appreciated. Thanks!

    I manually changed mine to 30% cut from TDEE. Sometimes I eat back my exercise calories, but only if I feel hungry. It is working so far, but with 100+ pounds to go, I imagine I will have to change my goals several times before I am through. Also, my BMR is only 25% lower than my TDEE, so I am actually eating just under my BMR. But again, I am just getting started, so as I begin to lose more and have longer periods of exercise, I will increase the gap between BMR and TDEE.

    Just think of it this way:
    BMR = calories burned if you are in a hospital bed in a coma
    TDEE = Actual calories burned

    Once I got that in my head, it became much more clear to me. Hope that helps! :happy:

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