BMR maintains weight

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SweetCheekszx0
SweetCheekszx0 Posts: 478 Member
in Health and Weight Loss
Okay s I'm trying to maintain my weight and unless I'm mistaken which I totally could be are you supposed to eat your bmr to maintain your wieght or lose it?

My bmr according to MFP is " Your estimated BMR is: 1,135 calories/day*" wtf?!? That's kind of low I couldn't imagine eating that to maintain lol

That being said how do I start the maintanance process? Should I just ad 100 + cals a week?!? Or 50 or 200 idk lol or do you add +cals each day?!? And how on earth do I track this and not loose my mind over water weight ?!?

Anyone's advice is greatly appreciated ❤????:flowerforyou:

Replies

  • SweetCheekszx0
    SweetCheekszx0 Posts: 478 Member
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    Anyone ?!? Lol no??
  • leeanneowens
    leeanneowens Posts: 319 Member
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    Bump
  • foleyshirley
    foleyshirley Posts: 1,043 Member
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    No, you eat at your TDEE to maintain, not your BMR.
  • Krane925
    Krane925 Posts: 7 Member
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    To maintain your weight you need to eat your BMR+your energy expenditure.
    Since your activities can differ everyday something like a fitbit can help pinpoint more or less how much you should be eating to maintain.
    The BMR calculation will maintain your weight only if you lay in bed all day.
  • SweetCheekszx0
    SweetCheekszx0 Posts: 478 Member
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    Wait so my bmr is what my body burns on its own? If so I thought everyone needed 1200 .. I'm confused & how do u figure out ur tdee?
  • WendyTerry420
    WendyTerry420 Posts: 13,274 Member
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    Your BMR is to maintain weight if you are in a coma. Otherwise, what you need to maintain your weight is to eat at your TDEE. (Total Daily Energy Expenditure)

    That's your BMR multiplied by a factor for your activity level, the total amount of calories burned in a day.
  • Krane925
    Krane925 Posts: 7 Member
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    For rough estimations use these coefficients
    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
  • SweetCheekszx0
    SweetCheekszx0 Posts: 478 Member
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    To maintain your weight you need to eat your BMR+your energy expenditure.
    Since your activities can differ everyday something like a fitbit can help pinpoint more or less how much you should be eating to maintain.
    The BMR calculation will maintain your weight only if you lay in bed all day.


    Well I'm pretty much not active only during school breaks which is when I hit the gym but that's like 4 months out of the yr ?!? Other then that I'm a fulltime student n mum of a 4 yr old I'm not sure where that puts me lol
  • LorinaLynn
    LorinaLynn Posts: 13,247 Member
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    BMR is the amount of calories your body requires to maintain your current weight if you are COMPLETELY at rest. Not sedentary. More like comatose. The second you wake up, grope your nightstand for your glasses, and stumble off to the bathroom (maybe that's just me in the morning) you're burning more calories than your BMR.

    You need to calculate your TDEE (total daily energy expenditure) to maintain your weight. This link - http://www.fat2fitradio.com/tools/bmr/ - will tell you how much you need to eat to maintain your weight. Be sure to include your exercise in your activity level. And being a mum requires quite a bit of activity.

    If you don't want to do any extra homework, change your MFP settings to maintain and eat most of your calories earned from exercise. Be prepared to have some fluctuation as your body adjusts, and do some tweaking after a while.

    For me, MFP calculates too low. Outside of exercise, I'm fairly sedentary, but I need to have my settings on "very active" AND eat my exercise calories to maintain. It's easier for me to just go for the 2300 calories that fat2fitradio suggests.
  • WendyTerry420
    WendyTerry420 Posts: 13,274 Member
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    Wait so my bmr is what my body burns on its own? If so I thought everyone needed 1200 .. I'm confused & how do u figure out ur tdee?

    This thread is what helped me figure it out:

    http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/654536-in-place-of-a-road-map-2-0-revised-7-2-12
  • SweetCheekszx0
    SweetCheekszx0 Posts: 478 Member
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    For rough estimations use these coefficients
    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

    Thank you!!! So much ❤ ive heard of ppl going way high like 2000 n not gaining a thing n maintaining is this because of their activity level I kno I sound quite oblivious but I am lol
  • amberlykay1014
    amberlykay1014 Posts: 608 Member
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    Wait so my bmr is what my body burns on its own? If so I thought everyone needed 1200 .. I'm confused & how do u figure out ur tdee?

    This thread is what helped me figure it out:

    http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/654536-in-place-of-a-road-map-2-0-revised-7-2-12


    YES! ^^ Read this.
  • SweetCheekszx0
    SweetCheekszx0 Posts: 478 Member
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    Wait so my bmr is what my body burns on its own? If so I thought everyone needed 1200 .. I'm confused & how do u figure out ur tdee?

    This thread is what helped me figure it out:

    http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/654536-in-place-of-a-road-map-2-0-revised-7-2-12


    Using this site I got 14.5 % body fat bmr of 1185 or 1256
    I put my GW on the site as my current weight so both numbers were the same to stay that weight with little to no excercise it said 1507 caloric count does this sound right to anyone lol?
  • WendyTerry420
    WendyTerry420 Posts: 13,274 Member
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    Wait so my bmr is what my body burns on its own? If so I thought everyone needed 1200 .. I'm confused & how do u figure out ur tdee?

    This thread is what helped me figure it out:

    http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/654536-in-place-of-a-road-map-2-0-revised-7-2-12


    Using this site I got 14.5 % body fat bmr of 1185 or 1256
    I put my GW on the site as my current weight so both numbers were the same to stay that weight with little to no excercise it said 1507 caloric count does this sound right to anyone lol?

    I think you are underestimating your activity. Didn't you say you are a student? Don't you walk to class? How long do you spend walking around campus? Sedentary means sitting on your butt all day, not sitting for an hour, walking for 15 minutes, then sitting for an hour, walking for 15 minutes. I don't know where you go to school, but when I was in college, I spent at least an hour a day just walking around campus from class to class and to my dorm and the cafeteria and such. On top of all the walking around campus, you are taking care of a four year old. Do you do that entirely from your couch or chair?

    Here is a good article with pictures on ideal body fat for men and women:
    http://www.builtlean.com/2010/08/03/ideal-body-fat-percentage-chart/

    One thing you could try is to set your activity multiplier at 1.75 of your BMR for "lightly active." (I don't believe that you are sedentary unless you are using an electric wheelchair on campus and letting your 4 year run around unsupervised. :laugh: teasing) That puts you at 1986 calories to maintain. That actually makes a lot more sense for someone who is young and has low body fat. 1500 calories would be way too little for you. Lots of people in their 20s that have low body fat will burn around 2000-2500 calories a day, depending on their height and build, without hitting the gym at all.

    You said in the OP that you want to maintain your weight. If that's your goal, then aim for 1900-2000 calories each day. If you are also trying to get/stay fit, and start going to the gym regularly, then be sure to be eating back at least a good portion of your exercise calories. And make sure that you are getting enough protein, especially if you are going to start an exercise program.

    :flowerforyou:
  • LorinaLynn
    LorinaLynn Posts: 13,247 Member
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    Peg Bundy is the example I like to give of sedentary. She sat on a couch watching tv and eating bon-bons all day, and she was a horrible mother. Since I'm going to assume you're a good mom, you're lightly active at minimum.

    And I agree with Wendy that college students are hardly sedentary, too. Between walking from class to class and carrying my books and supplies, I had a LOT of activity when I was a student.
  • habapu
    habapu Posts: 25
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    Bump
  • SweetCheekszx0
    SweetCheekszx0 Posts: 478 Member
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    Wait so my bmr is what my body burns on its own? If so I thought everyone needed 1200 .. I'm confused & how do u figure out ur tdee?

    This thread is what helped me figure it out:

    http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/654536-in-place-of-a-road-map-2-0-revised-7-2-12


    Using this site I got 14.5 % body fat bmr of 1185 or 1256
    I put my GW on the site as my current weight so both numbers were the same to stay that weight with little to no excercise it said 1507 caloric count does this sound right to anyone lol?

    I think you are underestimating your activity. Didn't you say you are a student? Don't you walk to class? How long do you spend walking around campus? Sedentary means sitting on your butt all day, not sitting for an hour, walking for 15 minutes, then sitting for an hour, walking for 15 minutes. I don't know where you go to school, but when I was in college, I spent at least an hour a day just walking around campus from class to class and to my dorm and the cafeteria and such. On top of all the walking around campus, you are taking care of a four year old. Do you do that entirely from your couch or chair?

    Here is a good article with pictures on ideal body fat for men and women:
    http://www.builtlean.com/2010/08/03/ideal-body-fat-percentage-chart/

    One thing you could try is to set your activity multiplier at 1.75 of your BMR for "lightly active." (I don't believe that you are sedentary unless you are using an electric wheelchair on campus and letting your 4 year run around unsupervised. :laugh: teasing) That puts you at 1986 calories to maintain. That actually makes a lot more sense for someone who is young and has low body fat. 1500 calories would be way too little for you. Lots of people in their 20s that have low body fat will burn around 2000-2500 calories a day, depending on their height and build, without hitting the gym at all.

    You said in the OP that you want to maintain your weight. If that's your goal, then aim for 1900-2000 calories each day. If you are also trying to get/stay fit, and start going to the gym regularly, then be sure to be eating back at least a good portion of your exercise calories. And make sure that you are getting enough protein, especially if you are going to start an exercise program.

    :flowerforyou:

    1900 sounds fantastic looking forward to it any advice on bumping up my cals? Like how should I do this up a 100 cals a week?!?
  • SweetCheekszx0
    SweetCheekszx0 Posts: 478 Member
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    Peg Bundy is the example I like to give of sedentary. She sat on a couch watching tv and eating bon-bons all day, and she was a horrible mother. Since I'm going to assume you're a good mom, you're lightly active at minimum.

    And I agree with Wendy that college students are hardly sedentary, too. Between walking from class to class and carrying my books and supplies, I had a LOT of activity when I was a student.

    Actually yea prob light activity with my four yr old but with school yea no I walk in and out its a adjunct campus so its rite by home and I drive to and frm so I walk for like all of 2 minutes lol but thank u I am a good mother !!❤ Lol
  • ras0780
    ras0780 Posts: 2 Member
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