Calorie CONFUSION! HELP!

fpuckett2383

Okay, please let me know if this sounds about right. I am 22 years old. CW- 192 H- 5'6. My BMR says I should have 1600 calories a day, my MFP settings say 1400 as active, 12600 as lightly active
First Question- Do I follow BMR or MFP?
Second- I work out with a personal trainer 3 days a week, walk to school 5 days a week (about a ten minute walk there) and I don't work. Should my activity level be at lightly active or active?

As it stands now I lost about 6 pounds in feb. and I've changed my settings multiple times, not sure which is one is right. I really want to start losing more and faster. I want an extra push but opinions all tell me different information. Some people say eat more to lose weight and others say less. I want to be healthy. HELP!

HealthWoke0ish

I'm not too knowledgeable, but I'm going to venture a guess that you're at least an "active". I seem to have read a number of posts on MFP that suggests many people underestimate their activity level. I'm eager to see what other posters say because it may affect the way I set my calorie budget as well.

Mokey41

MFP's settings are based on what you do for work and not your exercise routine. It wants you to pick an activity level based on your daily activity if you didn't exercise. Exercise is counted separately and MFP expects you would eat those calories back.

For instance: I work a desk job where I sit at my desk most of the day, I do my housework, personal care, general daily life. I'm sedentary. If I go running I log that as exercise and it gives me a calorie count that I can eat back if I want to.

I'd say if you're in school all day then you are also sedentary and your can add your exercise days back in. The only time you use your exercise level is to determine your TDEE in which case you set all your info and then you don't track your exercise because it's already included.

ell0324

I am 5'6" and 189, so very similar to you, but I am ten years older, so I am not sure if/how that factors in. My goal weight is 150, since I look sickly if I weigh less than that. I would be very happy reaching my pre-pregnancy weight of 155 though.

I am home on maternity leave, and while I am chasing a two year old and taking care of an infant, I am still sitting for a great deal of the day; therefore, I have myself set as sedentary. When I am working, I have it set at lightly active because I am a teacher, so I rarely sit down and my classroom is on the third floor, so I'm up and down the stairs at least ten times per day. I take this activity level as your "normal day," not counting working out, which I think is above and beyond normal activity.

I try to net about 1350 calories per day, but in essence, I am eating quite a bit more because I am doing the Les Mills Combat program and I run ~3 miles two times per week.

karenhray7

Okay, please let me know if this sounds about right. I am 22 years old. CW- 192 H- 5'6. My BMR says I should have 1600 calories a day, my MFP settings say 1400 as active, 12600 as lightly active
First Question- Do I follow BMR or MFP?
Second- I work out with a personal trainer 3 days a week, walk to school 5 days a week (about a ten minute walk there) and I don't work. Should my activity level be at lightly active or active?

As it stands now I lost about 6 pounds in feb. and I've changed my settings multiple times, not sure which is one is right. I really want to start losing more and faster. I want an extra push but opinions all tell me different information. Some people say eat more to lose weight and others say less. I want to be healthy. HELP!

Actually, you are moderately active if you habitually train 3x/week (see Harris-Benedict below). Your BMR calculates to 1697 using the quick and dirty method, but it may actually be much different depending on your body composition. Are you more muscular than soft? Muscle cells are more metabolically efficient so if you're more muscle than soft, your actual BMR may well be lower. But given your activity level, even if your BMR is 1600 you still need around 1500 calories/day. That's calculating as sedentary - 20%, which is what my bariatric doc recommends (she's not surgical, just medical). So try increasing your calories for two weeks and see what happens. If you haven't lost in those 2 weeks and you're consistently working out, increase your calories again.

Harris Benedict Formula
To determine your total daily calorie needs, multiply your BMR by the appropriate activity factor, as follows:

If you are sedentary (little or no exercise) : Calorie-Calculation = BMR x 1.2
If you are lightly active (light exercise/sports 1-3 days/week) : Calorie-Calculation = BMR x 1.375
If you are moderatetely active (moderate exercise/sports 3-5 days/week) : Calorie-Calculation = BMR x 1.55
If you are very active (hard exercise/sports 6-7 days a week) : Calorie-Calculation = BMR x 1.725
If you are extra active (very hard exercise/sports & physical job or 2x training) : Calorie-Calculation = BMR x 1.9

Griffin220x

http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/911089-calculating-calorie-macronutrient-needs

savithny

MFP's settings are based on what you do for work and not your exercise routine. It wants you to pick an activity level based on your daily activity if you didn't exercise. Exercise is counted separately and MFP expects you would eat those calories back.

For instance: I work a desk job where I sit at my desk most of the day, I do my housework, personal care, general daily life. I'm sedentary. If I go running I log that as exercise and it gives me a calorie count that I can eat back if I want to.

This.

I actually think a lot of people on MFP are OVERSTATING their activity level. The BMR/TDEE calculations use definitions that mean that even people who do purposeful exercise daily might not be even "lightly active" if they are otherwise sedentary. Most studies define "Sedentary" as a level of activity equivalent to less than 5000 pedometer steps a day; you could walk for 30 minutes at a "moderate" pace, and if you sit on your butt the rest of the day, you're still officially sedentary.

What I'd probably do? Set your activity to "sedentary." That level covers your daily tasks, housework, walking to school, walking around school etc. Then I'd track just the workouts with the personal trainer and eat back some portion of those.

Though honestly? If the trainer sessions 2x a week are less than 50 minutes? If you're otherwise inactive, they may not be enough to raise your average TDEE to that of someone who is "active."