When figuring TDEE

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teesams21
teesams21 Posts: 20
in Health and Weight Loss
In the TDEE calculator it asks if you are light active1-3 days a week or moderate 3-5 days a week. My workout 6 days a week may not qualify the same as another persons 6 day workout as far as calories burned. I excercise usually 6 days a week but it is for 1/2 hour walking ( at 11% incline to work up a good sweat and at 3.6 mph not jogging to kill my joints). Plus on 3 days I added toning to my routine( about 20 minutes) I also have a desk job so I am sedentary as well.I have finally hit my plateau with about 15 lbs to go. I have lost 79 in 10 months. I thought maybe I needed to reevaluate some things. I have always been set at 1200 on here and always ate back the estimated 300 calories I burned doing walking giving me 1500 a day. Any advice as to what I should say my activity level is for TDEE purposes? And once I find my TDEE then I should drop like 500 calories for a deficit right. ( do not eat back calories using the TDEE numbers right? because they are figured in) I have always understood everything and it has worked right along until lately. Then I see people say to bump up calories. Just a little frustrated. If i try burning more calories it will put me below 1200 a day and I have read never to go below 1200. Any advice would be great!

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  • RuthieCass
    RuthieCass Posts: 247 Member
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    First, are you using a scale to weigh your food portions? I think the first step would be to make sure you're eating what you think you are.

    Based on your description, you sound lightly active to me. But I don't think you should get too hung up on figuring this out, since you often need to alter your calories based on your progress.

    Next, I think you might be overestimating the calories that you're burning. 300 calories sounds a bit high for a half hour walk (and maybe a bit high for the days that you "tone"). You could try eating back only 1/2 of those calories.

    79 lbs in 10 months is great! But as you get closer to your goal weight, your weight loss will slow down You also have a bit less room for error. Subtracting 500 calories from your TDEE would mean that you're trying to lose 1 lb per week, which may be too fast at your current weight. A goal of 1/2 lb per week might be more reasonable.
  • Mokey41
    Mokey41 Posts: 5,769 Member
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    I set MFP to sedentary because I have a desk job. My exercise can be sporadic depending on life's challenges so I add it separately as I do it and decide how I choose to use those calories. I don't like the TDEE calculations because I don't always do the same thing and can't swear to exercising a certain amount per day.

    How are you estimating your calorie burns for exercise as well? If I run for 35 minutes at 6 mph I burn about 300 calories. 300 for a 1/2 hour walk seems really high and strength training is a very low calorie burn so you may want to re evaluate your exercise numbers.
  • ingeh
    ingeh Posts: 513 Member
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    I use the scooby workshop calculater as you chose number of hours worked out. I chose 3-5hrs now as I usually do 3.5-4hrs a week. I was losing 1-1.5lbs a week when I used the 1-3hrs level and eating 1680cals, now im on 1900cals. It works out with me roughly BMR + workout calories so works out sort of same as how MFP works. Its alot easier this way as you dont need to worry about exercise calories and having more or less food on different days.
  • xidia
    xidia Posts: 606 Member
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    30 mins at 11% and 3.6mph is pretty tough, so the calories might not be that far off.

    If you're determined to go the calculated TDEE route, I suggest you take your non-exercise TDEE multiplied by 7, manually add in your exercise cals over the week to get total TDEE, subtract 1750-3500 and divide by 7 to get your daily allowance.

    Personally, I log all exercise (that's why I have a FitBit), set MFP to sedentary and my desired deficit, then eat up to whatever MFP tell me I can have on a given day because I find that more reliable. Also, will run for beer + pizza, so I like the motivation of knowing I can eat more if I do more exercise. Or that I'll have to do some exercise to burn off the chocolate bar I ate...
  • teesams21
    teesams21 Posts: 20
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    Thanks one and all for any input. Yes I use a scale for my meals for weights and serving sizes. The walking at the incline gives me a great sweat workout so it isn't that I am just casually walking along. The machine says I burn 350 but I say 300..lol. Maybe it is that I just can't expect to loose as much as I was before as quickly. I too agree if I want that something extra I have to work it off. Guess I will just stick to what I have been doing for now and see where it takes me. Thrilled with where I am but want the rest off and done with :-) Thanks again!
  • teesams21
    teesams21 Posts: 20
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    What is really weird is never did I struggle with being hungry and this last month where it has really slowed down and I feel like nothing is happenning for me I feel hungry all the time. bizzarre!

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