BMR HELP????????

taekwonkenpo
taekwonkenpo Posts: 1,004
in Health and Weight Loss
I have calculated my BMR on thre different online calculators.

One said 2,183..........................(www.bmi-calculator.net/bmr-calculator).

Another said 2,620................... (http://www.muscleandstrength.com/tools/bmr-and-daily-calorie-calculator.html)

MFP says 2016......................... (www.myfitnesspal.com/tools/bmr-calculator)


I am confused as to why there would be such a significant difference in the calculation. Anyone know?


Also, i thought i was supposed to be eating my BMR+ but MFP has my calorie goal as 1580. (2 pounds a week, sedentary). I was just hoping i might have some help understanding this. I was under the impression that i should be eating at least my BMR? But according to the calculators i am eating very low below where i should be when i follow the MFP guidelines. Am i wrong to be thinking that eating at a deficient should not go below my BMR?

Sorry if this makes me seem uninformed but i am just confused.

Stats:
5' 11''
229
31 years
male
sedetary

Replies

  • lacroyx
    lacroyx Posts: 5,754 Member
    I only was able to look at 2 of the 3 you listed. Some websites don't load properly here @ work. I think the M&S one, the one that says 2620, factors in daily activity into the calculation while the other 2 don't.
  • honkytonks85
    honkytonks85 Posts: 669 Member
    I have calculated my BMR on thre different online calculators.

    One said 2,183..........................(www.bmi-calculator.net/bmr-calculator).

    Another said 2,620................... (http://www.muscleandstrength.com/tools/bmr-and-daily-calorie-calculator.html)

    MFP says 2016......................... (www.myfitnesspal.com/tools/bmr-calculator)


    I am confused as to why there would be such a significant difference in the calculation. Anyone know?


    Also, i thought i was supposed to be eating my BMR+ but MFP has my calorie goal as 1580. (2 pounds a week, sedentary). I was just hoping i might have some help understanding this. I was under the impression that i should be eating at least my BMR? But according to the calculators i am eating very low below where i should be when i follow the MFP guidelines. Am i wrong to be thinking that eating at a deficient should not go below my BMR?

    Sorry if this makes me seem uninformed but i am just confused.

    Stats:
    5' 11''
    229
    31 years
    male
    sedetary

    Firstly you are confusing BMR with TDEE. BMR is your basal metabolic rate(cals required for body to function) TDEE is the number of calories you would burn in a day which is your BMR multiplied by your activity level (sedentary). If the calculator doesn't ask to input activity level it's probably calculating BMR, if it does then it will be calculating TDEE.

    There re different types of calculations used for TDEE which is why you are getting different results on different sites, IMO the katch Mccardle formula is most accurate as it factors in body fat % (those with high lean body mass will have faster metabolism)
  • IbiH
    IbiH Posts: 250 Member
    I generally stick with http://www.bmi-calculator.net/bmr-calculator/, as MFP tends to underestimate even to the extent of eating under 1200 calories.

    I do alternate with TDEE too and switch up, your body needs it from time to time and expecially when I'm excersising more too.
  • Vailara
    Vailara Posts: 2,468 Member
    Yes, there's something wrong with the middle calculator. It says it's calculating BMR but then gives you a figure for "daily calorie allowance".

    I usually use the calculators at http://www.fat2fitradio.com/. Their calculation is similar to the first figure you give.

    Incidentally, MFP puts my calorie goal below my BMR too. I think it's simply because they don't use BMR in their own calculations. They use your usual calorie expenditure and substract an amount of calories based on how much weight you want to lose a week (unless that takes you below 1200 calories, in which case they'll give you a goal of 1200 calories regardless).
  • taekwonkenpo
    taekwonkenpo Posts: 1,004
    OK, so i have always been under the impression that in order to eat at a deficient i needed to eat whatever amount under my TDEE equal to what i want to loose per week. I thought that i should never eat under my BMR.
    If a BMR calculator says my BMR is between 2000-2200. Then i am still confused as to why MFP is having me eat at under my BMR.

    I guess i am still confused. According to what i understand MFP has me eating around 600 calories below my BMR. I always thought that that was the wrong thing to do.


    Valilara...........how, in the very beginning would MFP be able to use my normal calorie expenditures? How would they know that?
  • Vailara
    Vailara Posts: 2,468 Member
    You give MFP some basic information in your diet profile: height, weight, age, sex and normal level of activity (without added exercise). Those will be the figures MFP uses to calculate what your normal calorie expenditure is. (Then it will substract a certain amount to find your goal, and then you can add in your exercise to increase your goal if you want the deficit to stay the same).

    I don't know enough to know if it's always the wrong thing to eat below your BMR. Sometimes medically prescribed diets will have a calorie allowance below BMR, so presumably it's not considered to be very dangerous. But it seems that it should be easier to eat above it if you can. I think MFP doesn't take it into account because they only look at the deficit. So, for instance, to lose one pound a week, they would substract 500 calories from your usual daily expenditure. To lose 2 pounds a week, they'd substract 1000.

    Often, that's going to mean that you go below your BMR. For instance, there's only about 300 calories difference between my BMR and my normal daily expenditure (according to MFP), so any weight loss goal of more than 1/2 a pound a week would take me below my BMR. (These calculations may not be accurate, but that's what I'm working with!).

    You can avoid going below your BMR by setting your own calorie goal (I'm trying the method in http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/654536-in-place-of-a-road-map-2-0-revised-7-2-12 at the moment), or reducing the amount of weight you want to lose per week. I've done this because I think that slower weight loss will be more sustainable for me.

    I think the confusion is caused because MFP doesn't consider your BMR when setting your goal, only the deficit.
  • taekwonkenpo
    taekwonkenpo Posts: 1,004
    .
  • Ziadawn
    Ziadawn Posts: 1
    I don't go by these calculations. as mine differ also. My doctor informs me that for me, 1200 calories is recommended to lose weight. I was not taking in enough calories in order to lose weight. For men, I think the caloric intake is 1800 or 2000 calories. Maybe check with your doctor to see what is recommended for you. Good luck!
  • taekwonkenpo
    taekwonkenpo Posts: 1,004
    i trusted this site when i set up my profile!

    Ater learning and looking into my BMR i have found that MFP had me set at eating 500 calories below my BMR. I set my weight loss to 1 pound per week and moved my activity level from Sedatary to lighly active. That pretty much fixed things as i understand them. I should be eating a little bit more since MFP now has me set basiclly right at my BMR but i am going to go 1-2 weeks like this and then change my activity level to active. I want to give my body a slower adjustment period as i have been eating so little for almost 3 months.

    Now i just need to prove to myself that i can hold myself to the standerds i know is best and get my butt to the gym often. This is not a game to me. I will be succesful. I am learning how to do this right and i am going to continue to do so.

    Thank you people for your help.
  • honkytonks85
    honkytonks85 Posts: 669 Member
    i trusted this site when i set up my profile!

    Ater learning and looking into my BMR i have found that MFP had me set at eating 500 calories below my BMR. I set my weight loss to 1 pound per week and moved my activity level from Sedatary to lighly active. That pretty much fixed things as i understand them. I should be eating a little bit more since MFP now has me set basiclly right at my BMR but i am going to go 1-2 weeks like this and then change my activity level to active. I want to give my body a slower adjustment period as i have been eating so little for almost 3 months.

    Now i just need to prove to myself that i can hold myself to the standerds i know is best and get my butt to the gym often. This is not a game to me. I will be succesful. I am learning how to do this right and i am going to continue to do so.

    Thank you people for your help.

    Are you 'active'?
  • jzammetti
    jzammetti Posts: 1,956 Member
    I put your stats into fat2fitradio.com and this is what I got using your current weight as your goal weight:

    Entered information: 31 year old male, 71 inches tall, weighing 229 pounds.

    From the information that you entered, you'd like to weigh 229 lbs.


    Harris-Benedict Formula


    There are a few different methods to calculating yourbasal metabolic rate (BMR). One of the most popular, developed in the early 1900's is called the Harris-Benedict formula. Based on this formula, your current BMR is 2184 calories.


    How Many Calories Should I Eat?


    Based on your goal weight, the following chart was generated. The chart shows the number of calories that you should eat on a daily basis to reach your goal weight. At Fat 2 Fit Radio we advocate eating like the thin, healthy person that you want to become. The calorie levels you see in the chart are not extreme, but they do create that all important caloric deficit that is required to get you to your goal weight in a safe manner. Once you reach your goal weight, you will continue eating the same number of calories for the rest of your life to maintain that weight. You'll never be on a diet again.

    Based on how much activity you do on an average day, the calories in the right column will be the number of calories that you will be able to eat at your goal weight. If you start eating those calories right now (eating like the thinner you), you will eventually become that thinner person. As you get closer to your goal weight, your weight loss will start to slow down. It is OK to eat a few hundred calories less per day (200-300) to speed up your weight loss at this point.



    Activity Level

    Daily Calories



    Sedentary (little or no exercise, desk job)

    2621



    Lightly Active (light exercise/sports 1-3 days/wk)

    3003



    Moderately Active (moderate exercise/sports 3-5 days/wk)

    3385



    Very Active (hard exercise/sports 6-7 days/wk)

    3767



    Extremely Active (hard daily exercise/sports & physical job or 2X day training, i.e marathon, contest etc.)

    4150


    NOTE: Please remember that this calculation is just a guideline. Your metabolism may be higher or lower based on the amount of lean muscle you have. Use these numbers a a starting point and tweak them up or down based on your weight loss or gain. It may take a couple weeks to get your exact calorie level.

    REMEMBER: these numbers are estimates, and the BMR number would be more accurate if I was able to know your body fat percentage...but they definitely sound close to me. According to what I got, you should not eat below about 2185 calories each day (your estimated BMR) and you should eat at a deficit from the sedentary level (if you truly are sedentary). Since a 20% deficit puts you below your BMR, I would start with setting your calories at 2200 a day, try it out for a month and see what happens. Then you can adjust as you go and recalculate for every 10 pounds lost.
  • lindajones2000
    lindajones2000 Posts: 2
    have you tried this one http://toast99.com/Calculator/BMR it uses a more upto date formula and may give you better idea.

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