Roadmap 2.0 should be eating 3169 or 3631 calories?

chrisjathompson

6' 4", male, 29 years old with a bmi of 39.9. When I follow the directions of the roadmap 2.0, am I really suppose to eat 3631 light active, or 3169 sedentary calories to lose weight?

I know the suggestion of 20 or 30 % lower for obese, but that is still 2904/2541 or 2535/2218 calories a day.

Any suggestions? should I follow the road map? Is there anyone else who has that was in my situation that this worked?

Thanks.

sozisfitnow

I would eat the 3000 and experience the results. If the weight keeps coming off you can keep going or adjust! I started low and adjusted upwards!

fresh_start59

Did you download this spreadsheet and use it for your calculations?
https://docs.google.com/spreadsheet/ccc?key=0Amt7QBR9-c6MdGVTbGswLUUzUHNVVUlNSW9wZWloeUE

I don't know your current weight so I just plugged in a random number of 300. That, with your sex, age, height, and body fat percentage and NO additional exercise (other than the sitting, standing and slow walking already figured into the "sedentary" setting) comes up with a BMI of 2137, TDEE of 2,671 and TDEG (total daily eating goal) of 2137.

If you are heavier or do any workouts such as cardio and lifting, then your numbers will likely be quite a bit higher, so there is a good chance that your calculations are correct.

chrisjathompson

I didn't know bout the spreadsheet, thanks. Still pretty new to the site and am reading what's already here. I want to jump start the knowledge so I am on the right track as quickly as possible. Appreciate everyone's help.

ball858

Bump to have a look at spreadsheet later

Rage_Phish

P4L

chrisjathompson

What a great spreadsheet. This site should make this part of their system.

I have a value now of 2513 before entering the calories I burn at the gym.

Such a high number, once I add in the time at the gym, I am sure this number will go up, but this is close to the calories I was eating to gain this weight in the first place.

chrisjathompson

What a great spreadsheet. This site should make this part of their system.

I have a value now of 2513 before entering the calories I burn at the gym.

Such a high number, once I add in the time at the gym, I am sure this number will go up, but this is close to the calories I was eating to gain this weight in the first place.

I did this over because I had it all wrong

I entered the exercise, and put in the correct numbers. Now I have a value of...

"Set Net Calories Consumed to 2136, change Calories Burned goal to 0 if not logging them "

Sounds much more doable. I am going to start this tonight by eating the rest of my pizza, haha.

I like this idea better because I can plan for an exact amount of calories for the day, and it forces me to do exactly what I had planned on doing in the gym as well.

chrisjathompson

When I reset the goals on mfp, it suggests " 1,970 Calories / Day" which I thought too much in the start. With my time at the gym, mfp isn't that far off

neandermagnon

The activity factor should take into account all of what you do for the whole entire week.

If you have a desk job and don't do any exercise, you'd be sedentary.

If you have a job where you're on your feet a lot, e.g teacher (the kind that gets up and interacts with the kids, not the sit at the desk all lesson boring type), you could be lightly active even if you don't exercise.

If you have a desk job but go to the gym several times a week, that would probably average out at lightly active, it may be moderately active, depending on what you actually do at the gym.

very active would be a manual job (e.g. builder) plus going to the gym several times a week

It can be tricky getting the right activity factor, and sometimes you just have to try out the numbers and see, i.e. just pick an activity factor that seems to fit best, eat that number of calories, and adjust according to your results in the real world, i.e. if you're not losing, subtract 100-200 calories and try again....if you're suffering from undereating related problems like excessive hunger, mood swings, feeling tired/lacking energy, desire to binge, inability to stick to the number, then raise the number of calories until those problems go away. OR, in either case you can recalculate your calories with a different activity factor and see if that helps.

chrisjathompson

I have been okay hunger wise the last week with a 1666 calorie goal, and I am trying to plan tomorrow's food day and it's quite full. It's hard to figure out how to get all that protein into a day. Even with the supplements (they are causing problems by adding too much onto my carbs and sugars)

I feel with this new goal though, I should not be so drained by the end of the day when I can get to the gym. I feel positive about this now and I will give it a week or two and tweak if necessary.

neandermagnon

If you want to use protein supplements, try whey isolate (or a different protein isolate if you prefer) - that is near enough pure protein, so you can get more protein without adding extra fat or carbs.

If you're feeling drained, that could be a sign that you're eating too little. Not everyone feels hungry when they're eating too little. Lacking energy is another sign. How many calories is your new goal? (I'm confused because there's a few different numbers in your thread... not sure which one you're currently planning to go with)

chrisjathompson

New goal is 2077. I have muscle mlk, I plan on bringing into my routine this week.

neandermagnon

New goal is 2077. I have muscle mlk, I plan on bringing into my routine this week.

That seems quite low, is that with eating back exercise calories?

chrisjathompson

That is with 2 hrs of slow cardio a week. I go to the gym and walk up hill on a treadmill for 12 minutes and 12 minutes on the bike. 5 days a week after work.

donna_glasgow

the average male needs 2500 cals per day to maintain his weight (according to cereal pkts) so why not start there as you are much taller than the average male that should put you in a small deficit ...

neandermagnon

Going back to your original post:

6' 4", male, 29 years old with a bmi of 39.9. When I follow the directions of the roadmap 2.0, am I really suppose to eat 3631 light active, or 3169 sedentary calories to lose weight?

I know the suggestion of 20 or 30 % lower for obese, but that is still 2904/2541 or 2535/2218 calories a day.

the above numbers are much more reasonable than 2077 calories/day.

you're a man, you're 6'4", you need a LOT more calories than me (I'm female and 15 inches shorter than you) and my calorie goal is currently set at 1850 cals/day.

plus 2 hrs slow cardio in a gym 5x a week, that adds up to a fair bit of exercise. My advice is yes, go for the numbers that the road map gives you. As for what activity factor:

sedentary (desk) job + sedentary at home + 5x a week in the gym slow cardio ---> lightly active

active job (on your feet all day) + 5x a week in the gym slow cardio ---> moderately active

physical job (e.g. builder, anything with a lot of lifting and carrying) + 5x a week in the gym slow cardio ----> very active.

also, do some weight lifting in the gym, this will help protect your lean body mass.

Calculate your TDEE with the right activity factor, then subtract 20%. If your body fat percentage is very high, you can subtract 30% if you prefer. However BMI is not a good indicator of body fat percentage, if you have a large frame and/or are naturally very strong, you may be carrying less fat than you think, and 20% deficit would be better. (and trust me if you have a lot of muscle already, you don't want to risk losing it along with the fat because when the fat comes off, you'll be left with the muscles you have underneath it)

Don't cut your calories too low. I've seen big men make significant fat losses eating over 3000 calories a day. You're bigger, your body needs a lot more calories just to keep all your organs functioning than us small women do....

chrisjathompson

I am a taxi driver, I drive 14 hrs a day, walk at the gym, sleep and repeat. The number actually came from the spreadsheet

Basal Metabolic Rate (BMR) 2,077 from Katch-McArdle formula based on weight and body fat 39.90696547076713%

Total Daily Energy Expenditure (TDEE) 2,702 based on your weekly activity averaged to a daily level with a BMR multiplier of 1.3

Total Daily Eating Goal (TDEG) 2,077 23.1% deficit is based on 68 lbs left to lose and max available to deficit

Average Daily Deficit Calories 624 1.2 lbs expected weekly fat loss (not always weight loss)

chrisjathompson

fresh start's calculation with a good guess of my weight, mfp's suggestion, and the spreadsheet's calculations after entering exercise, all my measurements and other details. These numbers all come pretty close together, so I am confident that this should work.

According to the spreadsheet, I am only at a 624 deficit, giving me a loss of 1.2 a week.

The other numbers I had, I was entering things incorrectly. I can make adjustments if this is all wrong, but everything is pointing at this number. I only feel worn out by the end of my 14 hour shift on the 1666 calories I started with. I think this is normal for most people to be tired after a long day at work. These extra calories should be what I need to stop walking and start running.

neandermagnon

your BMI is not the same as your body fat percentage. You need a body fat percentage calculation for Katch McArdle. In your OP you said your BMI was 39, you didn't mention your body fat percentage.

Taxi driver + gym would be lightly active. What numbers does the Harris Benedict formula give you?

chrisjathompson

The spreadsheet did these calculations, I just filled in the blanks

neandermagnon

I'm not familiar with the spreadsheet, but if it included a way to calculate your body fat percentage then maybe that's where the Katch McArdle number comes from.

You can try this number and see how it goes, but be on the alert for signs of undereating, because like I said, the number seems low, even for a big man who's sitting down all day. Don't be afraid to adjust the calories upwards. Also, anytime you do more exercise than what you've described, eat back the calories for that exercise.

You could also add some weight lifting in as well, to protect your lean body mass.

chrisjathompson

I like the weight lifting idea, and I can do that. The gym I go to is setup for kick boxing, weights and kettle bells.

They only have the one bike, treadmill, and a row machine, so far the only time someone has been there at 3am, she had no interested in cardio equipment.

ILiftHeavyAcrylics

I'm not familiar with the spreadsheet, but if it included a way to calculate your body fat percentage then maybe that's where the Katch McArdle number comes from.

You can try this number and see how it goes, but be on the alert for signs of undereating, because like I said, the number seems low, even for a big man who's sitting down all day. Don't be afraid to adjust the calories upwards. Also, anytime you do more exercise than what you've described, eat back the calories for that exercise.

You could also add some weight lifting in as well, to protect your lean body mass.

If it's the RoadMap spreadsheet it does figure your body fat.

OP your calorie goal is close to what my husband started off with. He's done very well with it. Although his is lower now. I'd try it for awhile and see how it goes. If you find that you're losing faster than expected you can bump it up a bit if you choose. Just make sure you are weighing your food and logging accurately.