Before changing dietary and exercise habits, do this.

geekyjock76

Each day, there is a lot of great advice given here by many knowledgeable people. Nearly all of it, however, is advice on how to correct an aspect to ones program that has been misapplied or absent.

When one goes to buy a house, what should they do? Get the house appraised, of course, so you know exactly how much it's worth. Thus, before assigning weight loss goals, cutting caloric intake and upping exercise, the very first thing people should do is establish what their true TDEE, or maintenance range, actually is. One can accomplish this by simply logging foods eaten and typical exercise done for a few weeks to see how much than can eat to maintain present weight. So many members here, who rush into losing weight, do not know this number yet they naively set goals and attempt to create a game plan without that key piece of information. By not knowing this number, you are making the process of fat loss far more difficult and complicated than it has to be which is also a sure fire way to increase anxiety levels. Now, if you're a masochist who enjoys seeing yourself swimming in a pool of despair and anguish, by all means go for it.

The magical 1200 net - and please recognize it's net calories and not gross calories eaten - is not tailored to the individual's unique variables such as Resting Metabolic Rate or activity level. This is like handing someone a one size fits all pair of pants expecting it to be the perfect fit for everyone.

So please, before drastically cutting calories and hopping on that elliptical to burn 600 calories, figure out what your actual TDEE is. The RMR and TDEE equations out there can be reasonably accurate if ones metabolic and hormonal health as well as appetite hasn't been adjusted due to various insults such as disease, medicine use or chronically assuming a large deficit well below maintenance for lengthy periods of time. Be patient by finding this number and you'll more accurately be able to apply the right deficit for your goals. Lastly, educate yourself on how nutrition and exercise influence your potential to reach those goals by perusing articles from experts such as Lyle McDonald, Alan Aragon, and Tom Venuto (there are others but these three are fantastic sources of information) as well as peer-reviewed studies available, free, at clinical online journals.

Reaching your goals to become stronger, healthier and able to lead a more independent quality of life is worth taking the time to do it right.

heidiberr

Bump because it's important and true :-D

blonde71

I always wondered why 1200 calories seemed to be the end-all be-all for everyone. You're right, it doesn't take into account a person's RMR and/or activity level. Everyone's different so it follows that their dietary habits and exercise routine would be as well.

geekyjock76

bump!

jabberwockgee

bump!

Don't bump your own thread, if it's good other people will respond or bump it themselves.

checof

if you're a masochist who enjoys seeing yourself swimming in a pool of despair and anguish, by all means go for it.

The magical 1200 net - and please recognize it's net calories and not gross calories eaten - is not tailored to the individual's unique variables such as Resting Metabolic Rate or activity level. This is like handing someone a one size fits all pair of pants expecting it to be the perfect fit for everyone.

So please, before drastically cutting calories and hopping on that elliptical to burn 600 calories, figure out what your actual TDEE is.

Gah, I know these paragraphs apply to a bunch of users on here, but they resonate deeply with me because that is exactly what I've been doing. Right down to the burning loads of calories on the elliptical and then wallowing in a pool of misery and despair -- beautiful metaphor, by the way.

What you're saying makes perfect sense on paper, but I've been finding it so hard to apply to my every day existence -- the instinct is to net the calories you're allotted by MFP and then work your butt off on the elliptical or whatever else, but in my case it's just not working as well I'd hoped; cue anguish, because I've been working so, so hard.:sad:

I realize I should have done my own math ages ago, and fear of numbers be damned. It takes reading threads like this one to help one develop insight. Reading these kinds of things is how I realized I needed to eat back my burned calories in the first place. It's baby steps, lol. Thanks for taking the time to write this! :flowerforyou:

arcticfox04

Never figured it out. I guess its oh someone lost weight with 1200 I can also. Its like people going the gym in makeup doing the elliptical for 20 minutes and walking right back out thinking they got a good workout.

Sometimes I wish MFP would have a separate section on the forums just for 1200 calorie diet users so I have try to give advice to people serious about losing weight.

MoreBean13

Good post. I just want to jump in on where the 1200 cal number comes from- basically it comes from almost everyone starting MFP going through the same thought process- it asks you two very important questions but doesn't give much explanation of their importance or consequences-first it asks you what your activity level is without exercise, and most people choose sedentary. Then it asks you how fast you would like to lose weight, and most everyone chooses as fast as possible, which is 2lbs per week which correlates to a 1000 calorie deficit. So with the sedentary choice, MFP multiplies your BMR by 1.2, and the the 2lb/wk choice subtracts 1000 from that number leaving many users with something in the 900-1200 range, but because the program won't recommend anything less than 1200, it defaults to 1200 for a huge group of users, most people that choose those two settings.

arcticfox04

Then MFP needs to do a better job explaining to people on how to choose there goals in the creating their profile process.

brendabelieve

Thanks for this. I am new to MFP, day two! I have been on my weight loss journey since April 2012. Started with just diet changes, had some loss. Then finally realized that I wasn't eating ENOUGH or often enough! I was in starvation mode at 159 lbs! Took my brain awhile to get around that one. Lol. Then I also realized that whining and wallowing was not working and to get my @ss moving! The 1200 calories 'recommended' by MFP seemed like enough, and I would have to remember to eat, so shouldn't be difficult. I just finished reading and calculating the Fit2Fat info. I have to admit I was scared to consume 1588 calories! What if I gain back the 10 lbs I have managed to lose?! But after reading your post as well as the previous info on Fit2Fat, I have the confidence to give it a go!
Thanks again! Sorry for the novel! Lol!

MoreBean13

Thanks for this. I am new to MFP, day two! I have been on my weight loss journey since April 2012. Started with just diet changes, had some loss. Then finally realized that I wasn't eating ENOUGH or often enough! I was in starvation mode at 159 lbs! Took my brain awhile to get around that one. Lol. Then I also realized that whining and wallowing was not working and to get my @ss moving! The 1200 calories 'recommended' by MFP seemed like enough, and I would have to remember to eat, so shouldn't be difficult. I just finished reading and calculating the Fit2Fat info. I have to admit I was scared to consume 1588 calories! What if I gain back the 10 lbs I have managed to lose?! But after reading your post as well as the previous info on Fit2Fat, I have the confidence to give it a go!
Thanks again! Sorry for the novel! Lol!

If you're still in a deficit from your TDEE, there's no way you can gain back FAT. If the scale goes up initially when you increase your calories- don't stress about it too much. It's mostly water weight from extra food, and likely some extra water that comes from increased glycogen storage- it will go away on its own eventually. It's always a good idea to avoid the scale for a while after increasing your calories, as the initial weight can mess with your head!

Smuterella

Then MFP needs to do a better job explaining to people on how to choose there goals in the creating their profile process.

Well, almost a fair point, but it is a free service - we are getting A LOT from this free service. Also, the service is not offered by medical / nutritional experts so really, with so many differing theories around andt he increased risk of litigation with the increased level of detail, they are safer just giving us the basic and most readily accepted (by the medical prfession) advice.

It is up to us, as people with enquiring minds, to do our research and work out what is best for us as an individual and not just follow instructions blindly like sheep.

sherisse69

bump

onyxgirl17

And this, is why you are one of my favorite posters!

TheRealParisLove

I always wondered why 1200 calories seemed to be the end-all be-all for everyone. You're right, it doesn't take into account a person's RMR and/or activity level. Everyone's different so it follows that their dietary habits and exercise routine would be as well.

Science has determined that 1200 calories per day is the absolute minimum a person can consume without causing major deficiencies in nutrients. It does not take into account supplementation such as the VLCD used on the morbidly obese.

But that is where the 1200 calorie minimum comes from.

brenbrenm

I just started on here, and it is telling me to use 1320 for my max calories. I'm looking to lose about 1/2 lb a week until I hit my goal loss of 13 lbs. This is WAY less than I've been eating, and I'm very hungry. Are you saying before I cut my calories that much, I should continue eating and exercising as I was before, logging all of it on here to determine how many calories I was eating and burning in order to maintain? I've actually been gaining....about a lb every 2 months....so I'm not sure how I would do that.

yarwy

bump

oOMusicBabii

Excellent post.

Bumping for all to read.

mattsdad1961

bump

Mischievous_Rascal

Good post.

MdmAcolyte

Bump! A lot of great perspective here folks!

brandi22479

bump!

Don't bump your own thread, if it's good other people will respond or bump it themselves.

Hater!

WendyTerry420

bump!

Don't bump your own thread, if it's good other people will respond or bump it themselves.

Unless, of course, other people didn't see this because they were busy on other threads, then they went to lunch and came back, and are now glad that it got bumped. :laugh:

zyxst

My main problem with figuring out TDEE is what my activity level is. Lightly active and I was usually hungry. Moderately active and I felt like I ate too much. I bought a Fitbit and found out my activity level is between those two.

genshep

I just started on here, and it is telling me to use 1320 for my max calories. I'm looking to lose about 1/2 lb a week until I hit my goal loss of 13 lbs. This is WAY less than I've been eating, and I'm very hungry. Are you saying before I cut my calories that much, I should continue eating and exercising as I was before to determine how many calories I was eating and maintaining? I've actually been gaining....about a lb every 2 months....so I'm not sure how I would do that.

There are also ways to calculate your bmr though it won't exact. With that in mind as you loose weight your bmr will drop. A simply way to do this is to calculate your bmr and work from there to decide on your calories goals. Once you hit your goal weight you slowly increase the amount of calories consumed each week until you no longer gain or loose.

BMR Formula Converted to English Units:


Men: BMR = 66 + (6.23 X wt in lbs) + (12.7 X ht in in.) - (6.8 X age in years)

Women: BMR = 655 + (4.35 X wt in lbs) + (4.7 X ht in in.) - (4.7 X age in years)

This figure is the amount of calories your body burns just keeping you alive. After this you apply the Harris-Benedict Equation.

Harris Benedict Equation:


Little to no exercise Daily kilocalories needed = BMR x 1.2
Light exercise (1–3 days per week) Daily kilocalories needed = BMR x 1.375
Moderate exercise (3–5 days per week) Daily kilocalories needed = BMR x 1.55
Heavy exercise (6–7 days per week) Daily kilocalories needed = BMR x 1.725
Very heavy exercise (twice per day, extra heavy workouts) Daily kilocalories needed = BMR x 1.9

This number is roughly the amount of calories you burn a day. From here experts disagree on how much you should limit your calorie intake. Most doctors will tell you not to go under 1200 consumed a day unless you are taking special supplements to ensure proper vitamin intake. In general a pound of fat is 3500 calories. There are many other variable but this will get you in the ballpark. Also if you have a metabolic disorder then these equations are pretty much useless to you. If you have put on a lot of weight in a short time or lost a lot of weight in a short time inexplicably you should see your doctor. Sometimes it really is a medical problem.

jabberwockgee

bump!

Don't bump your own thread, if it's good other people will respond or bump it themselves.

Unless, of course, other people didn't see this because they were busy on other threads, then they went to lunch and came back, and are now glad that it got bumped. :laugh:

Irrelevant, quite a few other people posted since then.

sarahcuddle

When I originally joined MFP I set my goals to sedentary and a 1lb week loss since the amount of exercise I do varies a lot from day to day and some days I do no exercise, or didn't then. I was allocated 1390 cals per day. I followed this and ate exercise calories back and was losing about 1lb a week until I hit a plateau about 6 weeks ago. I went a month and lost nothing so did some research, got some advice and I have adjusted my calories to TDEE - 20% which for me comes out at 1600cals per day. I have been trying this for about 10 days now and lost 2lb the first week, although my weight seems to have increased a bit this week which is a bit worrying. My TDEE is based on lightly active assuming 3 x 1 hour workouts a week. If I do more exercise than that should I eat more? or if I do less should I eat less? A bit confused

fairyT83

bumpy bump bump

nicolemarie1978

My TDEE (2173) minus 20% is 1773 calories. So this is what I should NET at the end of the day to lose weight, right?

MoreBean13

My TDEE (2173) minus 20% is 1773 calories. So this is what I should NET at the end of the day to lose weight, right?

Yep, definitely NET.

nicolemarie1978

thank you thank you!

Now to eat all of those calories! :-/