Resetting and Activity Level, help!

nmb0717
nmb0717 Posts: 130 Member
I started MFP in Nov 2011. I ate at 1200 + exercise cals until August 2012 when I began feeling really lightheaded. I upped my cals to 1500 + exercise cals. I continued losing until right around Thanksgiving 2012 and completely plateaued. I went through the holidays just maintaining my weight but at the end of January, still not seeing any changes, I started researching and found EM2WL and upped my cals to about 2100 (I didn't do the reset).

I do high intensity Zumba for 3 hours a week (burn about 750 cals per class), a bootcamp one day a week (burn about 600+ cals per class) and then two weight training sessions a week. There are also dog walks and such in there too and I am about to start training for a 5K I'm doing in June (Run For Your Lives, yeah!). I also have my activity level set at moderate but I was wondering if I needed to up it to strenuous activity.

Right now at the moderate level, my BMR is at 1615, TDEE is at 2503 and TDEE -15% at 2127. So I'm eating the 2127 each day. I've never done the reset before since I thought that maybe by just upping it to 2127 it would solve the problem.

I lost two pounds about 2 weeks ago after eating at 2127 for about a month but it hasn't changed much since then. I started weight training in mid Feb and took measurements. Will take more measurements in the next two weeks.

So my question is:
(1) Should I up my activity level to strenuous? This would put my TDEE at 2786 and my -15% at 2368.
(2) Before I change anything, should I do the reset at eat at TDEE for a few weeks?
(3) Should I wait to do the reset until after I get my measurements done in a few weeks?

Thank you!!!!!

Replies

  • nmb0717
    nmb0717 Posts: 130 Member
    bump, please!
  • heybales
    heybales Posts: 18,842 Member
    recalc now based on best estimates. Get measurements now if not known (as long as valid time, don't be puffy with water retention from lifting), and you might eat at that TDEE for a bit since you never did.

    http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/813720-spreadsheet-bmr-tdee-deficit-macro-calcs-hrm-zones
  • nmb0717
    nmb0717 Posts: 130 Member
    Thanks :) Anyone else?
  • wmoomoo
    wmoomoo Posts: 159 Member
    How much more do you need to lose? The least amount you lose, the cut should be smaller too. You can do a reset and see if you can break the plateau or do a 10% cut but keep the same amount of exercise. But I would personally do a full reset.
  • nmb0717
    nmb0717 Posts: 130 Member
    Thank you! I've got about 20-30 lbs more to lose. Appreciate your help!
  • natini
    natini Posts: 347 Member
    Use the spreadsheet that Heybales gave you the link to. This really helped me break down my activity level. I found out that I was between light and moderate. They key is knowing your body fat % as that is the main ingrediant to knowing your TDEE. Once you know your TDEE then you can cut 15%.
  • amanda_gent
    amanda_gent Posts: 174 Member
    As you've been at this for a while, and were on VLCD for some time, it would be beneficial to you to do the complete reset. As everyone else says, though, get your numbers and activity level straight before you dive in!
  • nmb0717
    nmb0717 Posts: 130 Member
    Thanks everyone!