TDEE and heart monitor do not match

mickey2168
mickey2168 Posts: 20 Member
in Health and Weight Loss
I am beginning to understand the whole TDEE and BMR idea. I do want to make sure I am doing this whole deficit right. (I have been on several 1200 calorie day diets - losing weight and STARVING!)

According to the Scooby calculator, my TDEE is 1777 per day. My BMR is 1292. I am 129.6 pounds, age 45 Height 5'2" My activity level - since I hurt myself doing Insanity- is only 1-3 hours per week since the doctor said no high impact for two weeks.

I wore a heart monitor all day, added in calories for sleeping and showering (off a website based on my weight) and burned only 1611, including exercise! This was from the moment I got up until the moment I went to bed. What the heck!?

Checked Fat to fit and it said I should be eating 1777 calories a day for 1-3 hours of being active.

I really want to make sure that I do this right, but now what do I do? The calculator says eat 1421 cals for 20% or 1570 for 15% (I could lose 20 pounds but I know that is not sustainable. . .) Suggestions? Thanks for the help.

Replies

  • SteelySunshine
    SteelySunshine Posts: 1,092 Member
    Yikes too many numbers.

    I would go with what ever you think the heart monitor is telling you. The online stuff is good for ball parking it, but it is just a generalization and YMMV.
  • jessgetshealthy
    jessgetshealthy Posts: 50
    I would go with the HRM, too, but that's me.
  • michellekicks
    michellekicks Posts: 3,624 Member
    A HRM worn all day does not give you an accurate picture of your burn. It's meant for exercise only... where your HR is actually elevated. So all that time you're doing normal stuff, it's not calculating the burn properly.

    If you want a more clear picture, wear a Fitbit or a Body Media Fit or something.
  • HMVOL7409
    HMVOL7409 Posts: 1,588 Member
    What type of device were you using? Actual HRM are NOT intended for the use in which you used it. If you did this your numbers are not going to be correct. Did you use a body bugg or fit bit instead?
  • SJ46
    SJ46 Posts: 407 Member
    What type of device were you using? Actual HRM are NOT intended for the use in which you used it. If you did this your numbers are not going to be correct. Did you use a body bugg or fit bit instead?
    ^This.^

    A standard heart monitor measures your calorie burn during cardio exercise, and that is just an estimate. Any other activities are inaccurate. I would go with the numbers from the website.
  • AmyRhubarb
    AmyRhubarb Posts: 6,890 Member
    Agree with those who said the HRM isn't accurate for all day wear.

    I have used the tools at Fat2Fit for calculating my numbers, and have eaten according to them for over a year with fabulous results. Although I did use them in accordance with the info in the In Place Of A Roadmap thread - and the difference is rather than entering your goal weight when calculating TDEE, you enter your current weight, and that gives you your current TDEE rather than what it would be at your goal weight. (sorry if I'm being confusing :tongue: ).

    Trust the calculators - if you entered everything correctly, it should work for ya. Give it 4-6 weeks, and if you're not seeing results, then you adjust up or down 100 cals or so as needed.

    Best success I've had has been since I started eating according to the Road Map, basically my TDEE minus 20%.

    http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/937709-in-place-of-a-road-map-ver-3-0

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