Confused about recommended net calorie intake

Would you mind posting your height, weight and age? The reason I ask is because 2 lbs per week is generally listed as the max you should lose in a healthy manner, but not every body type should be hitting that max. If you don't have a lot to lose, then 2lbs per week might be too much to expect.

You will definitely get a lot of different opinions on this question. I aim for 1,200 calories a day, but if I do cardio, I tend to only eat back about half.... therefore I am under 1,200 calorie NET. If I'm hungry, I eat, if I'm not, I don't. If my energy levels are down I make sure to re-evaluate my calorie intake. I try to look more at the quality of my foods. If you want you can check out my food diary.

I think you should listen to your body. I don't lose if I eat 1,500+, but I do between 1,200-1,400. That's only through experimentation.

Hi there, So as I understand it:1 lb of fat = 3500 calories so if I want to lose 2lbs a week I need to cut 7000 calories from my BMR which is around 1896 a day. So by my calculation I need to be having 896 NET calories a day.

No, no, no, no. You do not eat below BMR, you eat below TDEE (Total Daily Energy Expenditure) which is BMR plus your normal activity level.....

I know that you are asking an honest question, but please, take time to read the 100s of posts and information MFP has about BMR, TDEE and net calories. It's all here, and doesn't need to be retyped. All you need to do is look and read!

Okay - I must be really stupid, please humour a confused old lady :smooched:

So, my BMR is what I need to stay alive - what my body needs to be completly sedentary. So I have that figure as 1896. Then I've taken away 1000 calories a day (to equal the 7000 a week I need to cut back 2lbs of fat - although as Brent says maybe this should be halfed) But then every time I excercise or do anything I add those calories to the 896 and eat them. So surely that is right, no?

I'll try to find a TDEE calculator.

TDEE is what your body expends in a day - these are your maintenance calories. You would eat this amount to stay the same weight. Some people figure out this number and then cut 10-20% to lose weight (depending on how much you have to lose).

BMR is what your body needs if you're in a coma, just to keep you alive. If you ate this amount you should lose weight because it is below your TDEE. A lot of people think you shouldn't ever eat below BMR because your body needs that amount of nutrition just to keep organs and things functioning. You can read more about that and decide for yourself.

So if you eat between BMR and TDEE you should lose weight.


Or you could just try MFP's numbers for a bit and see how it works for you.

Also, are you using MyFitnessPal's weight loss plan? If so, they have already taken into consideration your exercise.
Definitely never go below 1200 calories. At 900 calories, you won't be able to support your body properly.

Hi there, I am using it. It says 1200 which I do eat but then I exercise so the net reduces to the 896 I thought I was supposed to be doing to lose 2lbs a week. I didn't put the exercise n to the initial calculation (I put sedentary then just add it on a daily basis in to the diary) as my exercise changes daily/ weekly.

Under MFP's plan, the 1200 ALREADY gives you a deficit to lose 2lbs/wk. When you exercise you are supposed to eat those calories, and you still have a deficit to lose 2lb/wk (but some people only eat 50-75% of exercise cals to account for inaccuracies). That is how MFP works. Your exercise IS NOT supposed to be included in your initial calculation which is why MFP adds the calories in because if you expend more energy you need to fuel your body properly. You should try MFP's numbers for a while (meaning 3-4 weeks) to see is it works. However, if you are 168 and want to get down to around 145, since that's only about 20 pounds a 1lb/wk loss might work better for you. If you try MFP's 1200 + exercise cals for 3-4 weeks and it's not working, I would suggest changing your goal to 1lb/wk. Later on you can get into BMR and TDEE, but if you're just starting I would just stick with the numbers you're given.

Thank you, that's kind. When I filled out the details for MFP though they asked what my activity level was - so if I said I was very active, wouldn't it up my calories to cover that exercise?

No. When MFP asks for your activity level it is talking about your day-to-day life WITHOUT exercise. So what kind of job do you have? It gives examples, such as if you're a nurse I think it says that would be "lightly active." So you place that in - NO exercise accounted for. MFP is smart - a lot of people trying to lose weight struggle with regular exercise. So MFP does not work on the premise that you WILL work out 3x a week. You have to separately put in your exercise and then MFP says "okay, you exercised, now you have to give your body some more fuel."

Hi there, So as I understand it:1 lb of fat = 3500 calories so if I want to lose 2lbs a week I need to cut 7000 calories from my BMR which is around 1896 a day. So by my calculation I need to be having 896 NET calories a day.

No, no, no, no. You do not eat below BMR, you eat below TDEE (Total Daily Energy Expenditure) which is BMR plus your normal activity level.....

I know that you are asking an honest question, but please, take time to read the 100s of posts and information MFP has about BMR, TDEE and net calories. It's all here, and doesn't need to be retyped. All you need to do is look and read!

Hiya, I'm genuinley sorry to have wasted your time. But I don't think it's that clear really... So if I set up my MFP to include the exercise I do... then it will tell me what calories to eat. But then if I track the exercise it is surely the same as tracking it twice?? Maybe I am very stupid. But I'm really confused. and as the lady said above - there are lots of different opinions about this so I am a bit lost.

You're getting confused between the method MFP uses and the TDEE method. I would really just start with MFP's numbers and see how it works for you. There are so many success stories using MFP's method of eating back exercise calories and getting to goal.

Again, MFP's initial daily caloric goal DOES NOT include exercise, which is why it adds extra cals when you do exercise. If you use TDEE-20% the TDEE DOES include exercise cals so you don't eat extra unless you change your routine and thus change your TDEE (but you're still eating calories for exercise, it's just ALREADY in the formula).

I must have mis-remembered what I filled in when I started this - I could have sworn that I had to out my exercise in and didn't. Thanks for the advice. I'm going to go back in and enter all my info to make sure I've done it right. Then stick to the MFP guidelines. If it really works then it seems a very very simple way to do things rather than adjusting your TDEE every day according to your activity levels. (and this will probably mena I could have had that extra slice of pizza :sad:

Yes, you probably could eat more (and I would suggest putting in only 1lb/wk). But, just to try and clarify - TDEE doesn't change every day. When you calculate TDEE you include how much you exercise (so 3x/wk, 5x/wk) - then based on that it gives you the same number of calories to eat every day. But you then have to make sure you exercise that much, at least most of the time.

I don't know about your activity level. Some people say you should never choose sedentary unless you really hardly move around at all. So you maybe could try lightly active. You just have to be prepared to give each change time, at least 3-4 weeks to see if it's working, then change things if it's not.

I lost 30 pounds in probably about 6 months by eating very low calorie (not intentionally and not a good idea for long term sustainability). I lost the next 20 pounds in about 4-5 months. It's getting harder because I'm closer to goal. I haven't lost in about a month, but I maintained - mostly because I was working away from home and stuff. I had to dramatically up my calories to start losing again after that 30 pounds, which is why I say that 2lb/wk might not work for you (but it might, it just tends to work better for those who have more to lose). But I also had to spike to get my weight loss going again, which is a whole other thing (and doesn't exactly follow MFP's plan)! But that's why I say start simple, follow MFP, give each change time, but then don't be afraid to try something else if what you're doing isn't working.