Is my calorie math right?

strive2behealthy

After finding my BMR, TDEE, and watching a 10 minute video, I attempted the numbers. I'm very terrible at math and this whole concept was really hard for me to grasp for some reason, but here's what I got so far!

I'm 5'7" female, weighing in at 152 pounds.

BMR: 1526 and TDEE is 2365

To cut 15% off of TDEE (3-5x week, moderate exercise), would put me at 2011 calories. So I want to eat ATLEAST 1526 calories each day, but it doesn't matter if I end up eating 2011, as long as I do not go over that number? However, if I burn more than 500 calories, I am going to start eating back exercise calories. ex: 2011 - 520 calories burned = 1491... which doesn't meet my minimal requirement of 1526 calories, therefore I would eat back alteast 100 more.

For some reason I feel like I completely got it spot on or just messed everything up. lol. I'm not even sure if fully understand it yet.

Thanks for your guys's help in advance.

lyninit2winit

i am a little confused with BMR and TDEE. I have started exercising much more. Talked with a trainer Friday. And she believes that I am not eating enough. I think she is right bc I am not really losing weight like that. I was eating 1200 cal per day. went back in changed it then goal was 1310 but as I figured my BMR is 1662. SO does this mean i don't eat enough ... HELP!!!
I'm 5'4" female, weighing in at 209 pounds.

I think this is right? BMR: 1662 and TDEE is 2576

To cut 15% off of TDEE (3-5x week, moderate exercise), would put me at 2190 calories. So I want to eat more that 1662 is that right eat btw 1662 and 2100 calories each day.

pyrowill

i am a little confused with BMR and TDEE.

I haven't the time to answer the maths questions ATM. However to clear things up, BMR is your Basal Metabolic Rate, this is how much you burn just being alive, breathing, digestion, everything, so if you were essentially lying in bed all day without moving this is what you would burn. TDEE (Total Daily Energy Expenditure) takes your activity for the day and adds it to your BMR number, so its just being alive figures and general activity (excluding exercise) like walking around, day job, etc.

Often the choices are BMR plus custom activity level, or just go for a TDEE figure.

taso42

I think you're making it unnecessarily complicated. Take 20% off your TDEE and eat that number of calories. Chances are some days you'll be a little under and some days a little over. It's fine.

pyrowill

I think you're making it unnecessarily complicated. Take 20% off your TDEE and eat that number of calories. Chances are some days you'll be a little under and some days a little over. It's fine.

This

RunDoozer

I think you're making it unnecessarily complicated. Take 20% off your TDEE and eat that number of calories. Chances are some days you'll be a little under and some days a little over. It's fine.

Agreed

mich000

Hi.
Sorry, but my English is so poor tht I can understande the half I read :-)
If your NET TDEE (your goal) is 2011, then you must take in 2011 kcals or less every day.

If you burn 600 kcals working out, you can take in 2611 kcal. this day.

So easy!

Sarauk2sf

Hi.
Sorry, but my English is so poor tht I can understande the half I read :-)
If your NET TDEE (your goal) is 2011, then you must take in 2011 kcals or less every day.

If you burn 600 kcals working out, you can take in 2611 kcal. this day.

So easy!

No, as the TDEE includes exercise. If you ate 2611 you would be double counting the exercise calories.

OP: just do as the others have said and take 15 - 20% off your TDEE and eat to that number. It's about the deficit for the week. If you find you are losing faster/slower than expected (give it at least a month though), adjust your calories up or down as appropriate.

MissKriss3

Agree with all the others that agreed

MissKriss3

Hi.
Sorry, but my English is so poor tht I can understande the half I read :-)
If your NET TDEE (your goal) is 2011, then you must take in 2011 kcals or less every day.

If you burn 600 kcals working out, you can take in 2611 kcal. this day.

So easy!

No, as the TDEE includes exercise. If you ate 2611 you would be double counting the exercise calories.

OP: just do as the others have said and take 15 - 20% off your TDEE and eat to that number. It's about the deficit for the week. If you find you are losing faster/slower than expected (give it at least a month though), adjust your calories up or down as appropriate.

Don't eat the calories back, like she said, exercise is factored into the equation already

cwolfman13

I think you're making it unnecessarily complicated. Take 20% off your TDEE and eat that number of calories. Chances are some days you'll be a little under and some days a little over. It's fine.

This is a great approach. The only thing I'd add is when you calculate your TDEE you can either include or exclude your exercise. Some people find it easier to include exercise and don't bother logging or eating exercise calories and you don't run the risk of overstating calorie burns. Others like to exclude exercise from their TDEE and log those and eat them. Either one works so long as you are being honest. If you're logging and eating exercise calories as separate from your TDEE, I recommend a HRM...also find a good VO2 calculator.

MissKriss3

Here's an easy calculator. Eat 20% below, morbidly obese can go 30% below



http://www.fitnessfrog.com/calculators/tdee-calculator.html

acogg

In my opinion, the only math that matters is that 3500 cals = one pound. If you consume 3500 cals less than you burn in a week. you will lose a pound a week. If you burn 2500 cals through living and exercise everyday, you can eat 2000 cals per day and lose a pound a week. Double it for two pounds a week. The most important thing you can do is log food and exercise accurately so the math can work.

MountainMoverJosh

Theoretically, in any span of time you consume (and by consume, I mean process and digest) less than what your body puts out, it will lose weight. Since TDEE is your number (always variable, of course) of calories that your body used from 1200 am to 1159 pm, your ultimate goal is to stay under that number. This website automatically estimates that based on your weight, and life style (sedentary or lightly active, for example). Like mine is set to sedentary, because right now that is what it is. So it tells me I need to consume no more than 1900ish calories per day to create a deficit of 500 calories, or 1 lb a week (1lb lost is 3500 calories burned, water weight excluded).

I think my output is more than what this site says, so I am not as religious about sticking to that 1900ish number (notice how I say 1900ish). Reason being, is that I know I am a little more active than the sedentary person is. My body is always moving in some form or fashion. So, even though I should have only lost 1 lb or so on paper, I realistically may lose about 2 or 3, in some cases. Now, some of that could be water retention releasing. I do not know, but If we are going by straight numbers, I have lost about 8 lbs in the past 2 weeks.

Maybe it is the cold weather that is assisting me. My runs are in the single digits on the Fahrenheit scale, so maybe there is some health key that I just missed.

Oh, and TDEE does NOT include working out. It does not measure that. So it works with this system. If you exercise, you get to eat back those calories to keep in line. If your TDEE is 2000, por ejemple, and you work out for 500 calories, your new TDEE for that day is 2500. that is why you get to eat more. But that is just to keep the status quo. Also notice how all of your nutrients you need to intake also change proportionately, with exception to vitamins/minerals (recommended protein intake adjust by the same percentage as calories).

MountainMoverJosh

Hi.
Sorry, but my English is so poor tht I can understande the half I read :-)
If your NET TDEE (your goal) is 2011, then you must take in 2011 kcals or less every day.

If you burn 600 kcals working out, you can take in 2611 kcal. this day.

So easy!

No, as the TDEE includes exercise. If you ate 2611 you would be double counting the exercise calories.

OP: just do as the others have said and take 15 - 20% off your TDEE and eat to that number. It's about the deficit for the week. If you find you are losing faster/slower than expected (give it at least a month though), adjust your calories up or down as appropriate.

Don't eat the calories back, like she said, exercise is factored into the equation already

If that were true, then that big green (or red, in some cases) number on the homepage would not grow with exercise. This website does not take exercise into consideration when estimating TDEE.

Sarauk2sf

Hi.
Sorry, but my English is so poor tht I can understande the half I read :-)
If your NET TDEE (your goal) is 2011, then you must take in 2011 kcals or less every day.

If you burn 600 kcals working out, you can take in 2611 kcal. this day.

So easy!

No, as the TDEE includes exercise. If you ate 2611 you would be double counting the exercise calories.

OP: just do as the others have said and take 15 - 20% off your TDEE and eat to that number. It's about the deficit for the week. If you find you are losing faster/slower than expected (give it at least a month though), adjust your calories up or down as appropriate.

Don't eat the calories back, like she said, exercise is factored into the equation already

If that were true, then that big green (or red, in some cases) number on the homepage would not grow with exercise. This website does not take exercise into consideration when estimating TDEE.

They are over-riding the site's calories and getting their TDEE from another which includes exercise. Read the OP again.

MountainMoverJosh

Fair enough. That is where she got the exact number. But if she is working out regularly everyday, then she can probably adjust the sites estimation to reflect that in her settings. And then, she should just not log calories burned. This would give her a more accurate readout of calories in/out, and would not give her false numbers.

any cardio exercises she puts in will automatically tell her that she can eat more, which is how it should be. So if she is going to follow this site accurately, she should account for her day not based on exercise. But what I am getting at is that if she includes exercise in her TDEE on the other site, and wants to lose 1 lb a week, she needs to reflect that here. If she does not, then she will probably not see weight loss.

lyninit2winit

i am a little confused with BMR and TDEE. I have started exercising much more. Talked with a trainer Friday. And she believes that I am not eating enough. I think she is right bc I am not really losing weight like that. I was eating 1200 cal per day. went back in changed it then goal was 1310 but as I figured my BMR is 1662. SO does this mean i don't eat enough ... HELP!!!
I'm 5'4" female, weighing in at 209 pounds.

I think this is right? BMR: 1662 and TDEE is 2576

To cut 15% off of TDEE (3-5x week, moderate exercise), would put me at 2190 calories. So I want to eat more that 1662 is that right eat btw 1662 and 2100 calories each day.

Well I upped to 2000 cal per day
Yesterday Totals 2,095 Your Daily Goal 2,564 Remaining 469 Calories
Mon Totals 2,249 Your Daily Goal 3,176 Remaining 927 Calories

was eating 1200 before
Sun Totals 1,050 Your Daily Goal 2,036 Remaining 986 Calories

Does this seem right?

ClairBears84

Here's an easy calculator. Eat 20% below, morbidly obese can go 30% below



http://www.fitnessfrog.com/calculators/tdee-calculator.html

Thanks

Sarauk2sf

Fair enough. That is where she got the exact number. But if she is working out regularly everyday, then she can probably adjust the sites estimation to reflect that in her settings. And then, she should just not log calories burned. This would give her a more accurate readout of calories in/out, and would not give her false numbers.

any cardio exercises she puts in will automatically tell her that she can eat more, which is how it should be. So if she is going to follow this site accurately, she should account for her day not based on exercise. But what I am getting at is that if she includes exercise in her TDEE on the other site, and wants to lose 1 lb a week, she needs to reflect that here. If she does not, then she will probably not see weight loss.

That is what is being suggested. Although I do not think it was clear to either not log or log exercise as 1 with this method. A lot of people like to log exercise, but just override with 1 calorie burnt (for some reason you cannot put zero). That was, the numbers are not skewed.

Sarauk2sf

i am a little confused with BMR and TDEE. I have started exercising much more. Talked with a trainer Friday. And she believes that I am not eating enough. I think she is right bc I am not really losing weight like that. I was eating 1200 cal per day. went back in changed it then goal was 1310 but as I figured my BMR is 1662. SO does this mean i don't eat enough ... HELP!!!
I'm 5'4" female, weighing in at 209 pounds.

I think this is right? BMR: 1662 and TDEE is 2576

To cut 15% off of TDEE (3-5x week, moderate exercise), would put me at 2190 calories. So I want to eat more that 1662 is that right eat btw 1662 and 2100 calories each day.

Well I upped to 2000 cal per day
Yesterday Totals 2,095 Your Daily Goal 2,564 Remaining 469 Calories
Mon Totals 2,249 Your Daily Goal 3,176 Remaining 927 Calories

was eating 1200 before
Sun Totals 1,050 Your Daily Goal 2,036 Remaining 986 Calories

Does this seem right?

Yes, it does. If you have too many days like Monday though you may want to up the cals a little more so you don't have a big deficit. However, if you are going to have some lighter or rest days, then it should even itself out over the course of a week.