TDEE Question....

micksangel
micksangel Posts: 6
in Health and Weight Loss
Hello!

I've been reading some if the posts here regarding finding your ideal intake for weight loss. Currently my fitness pal recommends 1460 calories daily for 1.5 lb weight loss per week, however my TDEE is 2624, so less 20% would be around 2100 cals per day. Does this seem right or am I misunderstanding something? I also (and didn't include this in my TDEE calculations) work out and burn around 400 calories 4 times per week. Should these be eaten?

Any help would be greatly appreciated!

Replies

  • lvtruu1
    lvtruu1 Posts: 211 Member
    Please post your stats. Height weight activity level. I will start by verifying your TDEE then go from there. Its hard without starting from the beginning.
  • Silly_Sara
    Silly_Sara Posts: 127 Member
    Great questions! I recently wondered about this too. There's a lot about this on the forums if you don't get the answers you need.

    Good job on finding your TDEE. Your TDEE already takes into account calories burned during exercise since you have input how active you are to calculate it, so there's no reason to eat back your exercise calories. If you didn't do this to calculate your TDEE, I would run the numbers again.

    With that said, you should eat back some of the calories if you exercise and burn calories to the point that your net calories are below your BMR. If you have not calculated your BMR, then do so. Your BMR is the minimum amount of calories your body needs to sustain itself each day. You should not eat below this. You may lose weight to start, but it won't last long as your metabolism will slow down. This may not happen to those with more than 50 or so pounds to lose, but it's not a good idea for your body in the long run.

    So, if your 20% cut is over your BMR, then that sounds like where you should be to me.

    Hope this helps!
  • micksangel
    micksangel Posts: 6
    I'm currently 244, 5'4". I work in an office - on a daily basis I'm fairly sedentary due to my job. I work out four days a week - 40-45 mins intervals on the elliptical machine.
  • micksangel
    micksangel Posts: 6
    Thanks silly_sara. I just went back to the site that has the calculators I was using and according to that the BMR is around 2100. So I guess I need to consume more than that. I didn't include my working Putin the TDEE calculation as I only work out 4 times per week. I wonder if I need a separate calculation for my work out days? So complicated!!
  • lvtruu1
    lvtruu1 Posts: 211 Member
    I'm currently 244, 5'4". I work in an office - on a daily basis I'm fairly sedentary due to my job. I work out four days a week - 40-45 mins intervals on the elliptical machine.

    2168 to 2243 is roughly your TDEE.

    To lose a pound a week you need to cut 500 calories a day. 1668 to 1743. That is at sedentary. You may be able to add a few hundred calories for your activity, but I'm not sure that you'd quality for the next bump up in activity as I don't know how hard you are working out and how many calories you are burning. Next level up is 2485 to 2570.

    I never count my exercise and never did but I did it a lot different then anyone would ever recommend.

    I'd go with 1700 calories to start with and raise it or lower it depending on your results.

    1g protein per pound of LBM
    .5g fats per pound of body weight
    remainder in carbs.

    I'm not great with LBM for women but I'd suspect that you are around 50% bf. So LBM (lean body mass) of 122

    122g protein x 4 = 488 calories
    61g fats x 9 = 549 calories
    165g carbs x 4 = 620 calories

    That is 1757 calories

    You need protein and more is good. You need the fats. Carbs not so much.

    Hope that helps.
  • lvtruu1
    lvtruu1 Posts: 211 Member
    It isn't necessary to eat more then your BMR. Yes you don't want your calories to low for to long but it is a myth that it creates problems. RMR is actually more accurate then BMR. I've had few issues eating less then my RMR for 9 straight months. Your body can easily survive on 1500 calories. At your height probably less. Fat doesn't need to be fed and all the fat that you have will run your body very well for quite a while. You body will turn your fat into everything your body needs to operate. That is why carbs are not necessary (yes very lean people probably need some) You body will turn fat into glucose (sugar) for your brain. Its called ketogenesis.
  • lindoussa
    lindoussa Posts: 66
    Snip

    This may not happen to those with more than 50 or so pounds to lose, but it's not a good idea for your body in the long run.

    So, if your 20% cut is over your BMR, then that sounds like where you should be to me.

    Hope this helps!

    Can you help me? I am 212.3 lbs and need to get to 140 to be within the high end of the healthy range for my height. That is a more than 50 lb loss. I have been eating around 1300/day?
    My TDEE right now is: 2370
    BMR right now is: 1729

    Eating more than 1300 seems like ALOT to me. What if I workout and burn 500 calories, do I need to eat ALL of those back?

    Thank you so much!
  • lindoussa
    lindoussa Posts: 66
    Sorry I didn't include my height: 5'3" and had little to no activity until today. I plan on burning around 500 calories 3-4 times a week.
  • lvtruu1
    lvtruu1 Posts: 211 Member
    Snip

    This may not happen to those with more than 50 or so pounds to lose, but it's not a good idea for your body in the long run.

    So, if your 20% cut is over your BMR, then that sounds like where you should be to me.

    Hope this helps!

    Can you help me? I am 212.3 lbs and need to get to 140 to be within the high end of the healthy range for my height. That is a more than 50 lb loss. I have been eating around 1300/day?
    My TDEE right now is: 2370
    BMR right now is: 1729

    Eating more than 1300 seems like ALOT to me. What if I workout and burn 500 calories, do I need to eat ALL of those back?

    Thank you so much!

    I'm not sure where you are getting those numbers from.

    RMR is 1647 I ignore BMR.

    I have my doubts about how many calories you are planning on burning while exercising, and I personally never add my exercise in. I'd recommend using 1.2 as your factor to start with. Giving you 1976 as your TDEE. Cutting 500 from that is 1476.

    If you can handle eating that I'd start there.

    BF%? Lets call it 40% so your LBM is about 127 (total guess)

    127g protein minimum
    64g fats minimum
    remainder in carbs.
  • salsagal36
    salsagal36 Posts: 91 Member
    Sorry to barge in but can you help me with mine please.

    I'm 5ft 4, weigh 234lbs, currently at 46% body fat.

    I'm fairly active at work, pretty much constantly on my feet. Average around 8000 steps in a 7 hour shift.

    I work out 3 days solo (treadmill, weights, bike, 30 day shred)

    2 days with a personal trainer

    2 hours of wheelchair basketball a week.

    MFP says I need 1600 a day but I'm struggling to lose at the moment. I try and eat some if my exercise calories back but some days I'm struggling to even reach the basic 1600.
  • lvtruu1
    lvtruu1 Posts: 211 Member
    Sorry to barge in but can you help me with mine please.

    I'm 5ft 4, weigh 234lbs, currently at 46% body fat.

    I'm fairly active at work, pretty much constantly on my feet. Average around 8000 steps in a 7 hour shift.

    I work out 3 days solo (treadmill, weights, bike, 30 day shred)

    2 days with a personal trainer


    2 hours of wheelchair basketball a week.

    MFP says I need 1600 a day but I'm struggling to lose at the moment. I try and eat some if my exercise calories back but some days I'm struggling to even reach the basic 1600.


    Based on the last two. You are somewhere around them. At 1600 you should be losing weight. You really need to verify that what you are eating and drinking is exactly right. No matter how hard everyone argues that they are entering their calories correctly they usually aren't and it accounts for their issues. Or they fail to remember adding some food or drink that adds greatly to their calories. Losing weight is great, but you really need to make a lifestyle change. I've seen a few to many people's eating habits and I was flabbergasted.

    Your LBM is about 126 pounds.
    I'd recommend at least 126p 504 cal. I usually say 1g protein per pound of body weight but that would be a ton of protein in your case.
    63g fats 567 calories
    and fill the rest of your calories with carbs. about 140g carbs.

    How you fill those calories is for the most part unimportant. You can use protein powders or drinks for some or chicken/fish/red meat. Animal sources are better but you do what you have to.

    it was not clear if you actually consume 1600 calories or if you do more.

    The clearest way to figure out what is going on is to forget the exercise at the beginning. Well don't add it to your numbers. Take the base number assume you are sedentary and go from there. If you are losing to much weight add calories. It is impossible for me to know how many calories you are burning by work or exercise, but if you aren't losing at 1600 calories something is amiss. I would think that between your job and exercise you'd have a much higher TDEE. So something is wrong with the calculations or you are grossly underestimating what you actual eat/drink.
  • salsagal36
    salsagal36 Posts: 91 Member
    Thank you. I had thought I was being precise about what I was logging but I must be missing something somewhere. I'll make extra effort on that front.

    The main thing I struggle with is drinking water. I have to force myself to get through a litre and a half a day. Must try harder.

    14 hour shift today so got up early to do 30 day shred before I went in.
  • Danni3ll3
    Danni3ll3 Posts: 365 Member
    Can you do one more?

    Height - 5'5"
    Weight - 148.4 as of this morning (Scale seems to go up and down 2 lbs)
    Goal weight - 135 or so. Looking for about 22% body fat.
    Waist - 31.5
    Wrist - 6.375
    Hips - 40
    Forearm - 9.5
    Neck - 13.5
    Calf - 14.5
    Thigh - 22
    Activity - Sedentary (Retired so I sit on my butt and spend a lot of time on the computer)
    Exercise - Daily brisk walk for 90 minutes weekdays and 150 minutes on weekends.

    I have lost over 40 lbs but seem to be stuck. I lost the weight over 2 to 3 years without counting calories and doing the walking but then again, I was in a very active job (Elementary Principal). I returned to MFP, and it set my calories at 1200. I was eating part of my exercise calories back but then I read about TDEE and decided to try that route. I am eating 1500 calories right now but I am not sure this is the right number since I seem to be going up and down 2 lbs.

    Thanks for the help. =)
  • _whatsherface
    _whatsherface Posts: 1,235 Member
    What is this whole TDEE thing and where do I find it? How does it work?
  • ingeh
    ingeh Posts: 513 Member
    Can you help me please? Im 5"5, 170lbs. Im a stay at home mum (have a walking/running toddler so am moving around quite a bit after him, and also have a 5 week old) Im trying to work exercise in 3 days a week but right now Im just walking an hour a day 2-3 days a week with a pushchair and baby carrier. Thanks for any help x
  • khager32
    khager32 Posts: 3
    I could really use some help as well. I'm 5'5 and 205lbs. I'm a stay at home mom with a 12 year old, a 9 year old and a 10 month old. I am currently keeping my calories under 1000 a day and doing cleaning everyday, and light exercise 3-4 times a week for 30-40 minutes and I haven't lost any weight yet. I don't know what I'm not doing or doing wrong. Can someone please help me?
  • tryclyn
    tryclyn Posts: 2,414 Member
    Dan explains it better.

    http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/654536-in-place-of-a-road-map-2-0-revised-7-2-12

    http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/717858-spreadsheet-bmr-tdee-and-deficit-calcs-macros-hrm
  • micksangel
    micksangel Posts: 6
    I'm currently 244, 5'4". I work in an office - on a daily basis I'm fairly sedentary due to my job. I work out four days a week - 40-45 mins intervals on the elliptical machine.

    2168 to 2243 is roughly your TDEE.

    To lose a pound a week you need to cut 500 calories a day. 1668 to 1743. That is at sedentary. You may be able to add a few hundred calories for your activity, but I'm not sure that you'd quality for the next bump up in activity as I don't know how hard you are working out and how many calories you are burning. Next level up is 2485 to 2570.



    I never count my exercise and never did but I did it a lot different then anyone would ever recommend.

    I'd go with 1700 calories to start with and raise it or lower it depending on your results.

    1g protein per pound of LBM
    .5g fats per pound of body weight
    remainder in carbs.

    I'm not great with LBM for women but I'd suspect that you are around 50% bf. So LBM (lean body mass) of 122

    122g protein x 4 = 488 calories
    61g fats x 9 = 549 calories
    165g carbs x 4 = 620 calories

    That is 1757 calories

    You need protein and more is good. You need the fats. Carbs not so much.

    Hope that helps.

    Thank you do much for taking the time to explain this to me. I'm going to start on 1700 this week, ignore my exercise cals and see where we go from here!
  • ingeh
    ingeh Posts: 513 Member
    I could really use some help as well. I'm 5'5 and 205lbs. I'm a stay at home mom with a 12 year old, a 9 year old and a 10 month old. I am currently keeping my calories under 1000 a day and doing cleaning everyday, and light exercise 3-4 times a week for 30-40 minutes and I haven't lost any weight yet. I don't know what I'm not doing or doing wrong. Can someone please help me?
    Im not an expert but you might not be eating enough. I used to (at the start of using MFP nealry 2 years ago) eat about 800 calories after exercise calories being taken away and didnt lose wieght for weeks. I upped my calories a few hundred and started to lose again. Looking after kids is hard work so you are active anyway! x
  • Danni3ll3
    Danni3ll3 Posts: 365 Member
    Bump in case truushot finds the time and the inclination to respond to us. =)
  • cmriverside
    cmriverside Posts: 34,409 Member
    Bump in case truushot finds the time and the inclination to respond to us. =)

    truushot sort of hijacked someone else's thread. . .

    You can do your own math, just read these: It's always better to educate yourself than to try to rely on others, right?

    (they were posted earlier)

    http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/654536-in-place-of-a-road-map-2-0-revised-7-2-12

    http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/717858-spreadsheet-bmr-tdee-and-deficit-calcs-macros-hrm

    All this information is readily available. Here's another good place to visit.

    http://www.myfitnesspal.com/groups/home/3817-eat-more-to-weigh-less
  • greenpointmoni
    greenpointmoni Posts: 69
    I could really use some help as well. I'm 5'5 and 205lbs. I'm a stay at home mom with a 12 year old, a 9 year old and a 10 month old. I am currently keeping my calories under 1000 a day and doing cleaning everyday, and light exercise 3-4 times a week for 30-40 minutes and I haven't lost any weight yet. I don't know what I'm not doing or doing wrong. Can someone please help me?

    It sounds like you are eating too little.You need to figure our your BMR, there are calculators online, you can goolge BRM calculator.
    The BMR shows how much you need to eat to keep your organs and body functioning. It is the very lowest level needed and doesn't take into account daily habits such as cleaning, walking, etc. For a 35 year old woman, her BMR is about 1600 calories. I personally wouldn't eat that few of calories, only because I don't think I could sustain the hunger. So I eat at my BMR of about 1600 calories. And all of the exercise and walking and cooking and cleaning counts as extra calories burned. You TDEE shows the number of calories you burn per day, it takes into account your BMR and your daily activities. You can find a TDEE calculator online. MY TDEE is 2200. That's how much I burn a day, so if I only eat 1600, I should see weight loss that is steady.
  • Danni3ll3
    Danni3ll3 Posts: 365 Member
    Bump in case truushot finds the time and the inclination to respond to us. =)

    truushot sort of hijacked someone else's thread. . .

    You can do your own math, just read these: It's always better to educate yourself than to try to rely on others, right?

    (they were posted earlier)

    http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/654536-in-place-of-a-road-map-2-0-revised-7-2-12

    http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/717858-spreadsheet-bmr-tdee-and-deficit-calcs-macros-hrm

    All this information is readily available. Here's another good place to visit.

    http://www.myfitnesspal.com/groups/home/3817-eat-more-to-weigh-less

    Thanks. I have read those and done my own calculations. I was hoping that someone would calculate and I would see if what I am doing is right.

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