Different TDEE Calculations - Am i eating enough?

Tari_D

I need a bit of advice. I've been doing pretty well for about 6 months, losing 2lb a week on 1400 calories.
I've hit a plateau this last month though where i've not really been losing and reading through lots of information on MFP and the internet I do wonder if it is because I am not eating enough.

I am:
female
160lb
5ft 4

I do weekly calorie goals so I aim to eat 9800 (1400 x 7) calories a week with usually during the week being a bit less than 1400 a day and the weekend being a bit more.

Excersize wise I do about 5 hours cardio (jogging, football, treadmill etc) and about 2 hours strength a week and always eat back the calories from this. I prefer to set my TDEE exercise level at sedentary and add on what i do in exercise. it seems more accurate in case of weekly variations.

My main uncertainty on this front comes from the various TDEE and BMR calculators I've looked at. Using the same figures for weight and exercise I've been given BMRs from 1300 - 1580 and TDEEs from 1500 to 2100. The lower BMR and TDEE comes from calculators that include my BF%. MFP recommends to lose 1lb per week I should eat 1330.

The problem is that if my BMR is 1500 or so then at 1400 I'm eating under that and so my body isn't getting what it needs. But if it is more like 1300 and my TDEE is about 1500 then by uppling my calories past 1400 then then I won't actually lose anything, I'd just be maintaining.

I don't think finding somewhere to give me an accurate BMR measurement will be easy for me so can anyone give me any advice based on their own experience or articles they have read?

DanaDark

1. How much protein are you eating?

2. Have you been adjusting your calorie goals by recalculating TDEE and BMR every 5 to 10 pounds of weight loss?

3. Have you been reducing the expected amount of weight loss per week as you get closer to your goal?

Protein is vital for weight loss. Be sure to get enough. As well, you shouldn't try to sprint down to your goal weight. You must slow it down as you get closer and closer.

Tari_D

Thanks DanaDark. Just having a look at my nutrition reports on MFP it looks as though I get 30 - 60g of protein on average per day, i don't know if that is enough?

I check my calorie goals vs what MFP recommends every 10lb or so by MFP has always recommended eating less than I do now and has not yet quite increased to the 1400 i actually eat so i've not changed it.

I don't know which TDEE calculation to go with to know if I am in the right place now or if I should adjust up or down. I suppose if I need to slow down more now as I get nearer my goal I would need to increase my calories? But I am still a good 25lb away from my goal weight.

DanaDark

You should be getting 1 gram of protein per pound of lean body mass roughly. For me, that means about 110 grams a day.

Your body is made up of protein, fat, and water. As you go through daily activities, your cells get damaged. They need repairs EVERY day. So, they need supplies and energy. Protein is the supply and calories is the energy.

If they don't have the supplies, they won't spend the energy to do the repairs. This is the essence of why people say don't eat under your BMR. It's not really the number of calories at issue, its that they are VERY unlikely to get the protein they need if they eat too low. The less protein you eat, the fewer calories your body uses. And repairing EVERY CELL in the body is not exactly a calorie cheap job. Its expensive!

I upped my calories per day by 200, and QUADRUPLED my protein intake... doing this, the very first week I lose more weight than I EVER have in 10 years.

yarwell

The problem is that if my BMR is 1500 or so then at 1400 I'm eating under that and so my body isn't getting what it needs.

That's not a view supported by clinical studies, your nutrition can be complete on less than that or incomplete on more than that. Nutrition isn't just calories.

Around 60-80g of protein, maybe 100 should be fine - that's no more than 400 calories. Leaves plenty for the fats and some carbs.

Having lost 49lb your BMR might be 1200, with 20% for sedentary taking you to 1440 +/- 100 or so. So your only deficit at the moment may be your exercise.

If you have 25lb of excess fat that can fuel you with at least 750 cals a day in the short term.

erickirb

Go with MFP, as it is easier to follow, if it doesn't work after 4-6 weeks then change it up. That being said with MFP you eat 1330, plus eat back the calories you burn from exercise. So if you burn 300 cals one day you should eat 1630 (1330+300) on that day, and 1330 on days you don't workout.

Tari_D

@DanaDark so do you think maybe I should be upping my calories but using that extra to get a lot more protein in?

@yarwell I eat back my exercise calories though so were that the case I would not have lost any weight yet as I would have been at maintenance calories/no deficit all this time.

@erickirb I already eat back my exercise calories so going with MFP I'd be eating less than I am now. having been doing well on 1400calories up until now I'm not sure that it can be me eating too much that has caused the plateau can it?

I don't know i'm confused :ohwell:

yarwell

@yarwell I eat back my exercise calories though so were that the case I would not have lost any weight yet as I would have been at maintenance calories/no deficit all this time.

My numbers were for your current weight etc and after losing weight, the BMR reduction was not there when you started. You have to chase the rabbit down the hole calorie wise or you come to a plateau where expenditure drops to meet intake and loss stops.

Have a play with http://www.pbrc.edu/research-and-faculty/calculators/weight-loss-predictor/ it shows how plateaus arise.

DanaDark

I do suggest more protein yes! And BMR is not exactly the most sufficient tool. Basically it is a suggested amount of caloric income that would yield the proper nutrition for a person following a standard diet regime outlined by the FDA.

If you can get all of your nutritional needs while under BMR, you're still technically fine. But it is MUCH more difficult and requires immense fine tuning.

Tari_D

@yarwell thank you for the link. So it could well be that I need to ramp up the exercise or reduce the calories to continue losing weight now? So perhaps I should stick with the 1400 but stop eating back my exercise calories - or reduce my calories but eat exercise ones back (more motivation for exercise that way).

@DanaDark I am looking at protein sources at the moment. Do you have any good suggestions? I am vegetarian which limits things a little.