Frustrated with TDEE and calorie numbers.

lozzieemayjenkins
lozzieemayjenkins Posts: 71 Member
in Health and Weight Loss
I'm 22 years old, female, 5ft 3 and currently 208lbs. My current activity level is probably sedentary.. I work full time & stand for most of the shift and I have an 19 month old little boy, but I wouldn't say I run around or did much activity on an average day, and I'm currently not exercising..

I went through a bad breakup 3 weeks ago, and for the first week ate very little due to just not having much of an appetite, then the 2nd week I ate more but still only averaged about 700 calories a day, and my weight stalled and I didn't lose or gain anything. Could've been due to stress, but more than likely was the dreaded starvation mode!

My question is.. How many calories should I eat a day to lose the weight I want to lose? I was 136lbs 14 months ago, so wanna get back near that weight & be at least 140lbs.. So I've got 68lbs to lose!

I'm planning on going back to the local gym soon, and will probably be able to go at least 3 times a week for an hour. My aim is to do weight training & then some light cardio afterwards.

I was advised by helloitsdan, the OP of in place of a road map 2.0 that I should eat 1600 calories a day & do resistance weight training.

1600 is my sedentary TDEE minus 20%.

But when I'm exercising will I still be classed as sedentary? Dan told me to workout, so he must know I will be but yet still kept me at 1600 calories.. Is this a good number for me?

Replies

  • linski24
    linski24 Posts: 155 Member
    Hi Lauren
    I was reading yday (I've become rather obsessed with reading everything diet and exercise grrr) that you can set your tdee minus 20% to sedentary and then eat your a good portion of your exercise cals back ... It was on a thread on here ..!! Have a look fir it .. Ill look and post you the name of the link x
  • linski24
    linski24 Posts: 155 Member
    The topic is called "success with TDEE minus 20%" .... There's a huge discussion on it :-)
    Hope it helps ... You asked a week ago how I was getting on with it .. Well I have lost 3.6lbs in January :-)
  • jak12345
    jak12345 Posts: 12 Member
    Hi Lauren, I would say 1600 is probably a good starting point. Most of the numbers we throw around so easily only provide a reference point and are not totally accurate. It is often hard to measure the calories in dish with multiple ingredients. The number of calories burned in a day or a particular activity can vary widely as well.

    Try it along with working out and see what type of results you have and adjust from there. I suggest taking body measurements along with your initial weight. Personally, I have struggled with shedding weight, but have made good results in changing my body make-up, which has been rewarding. I will be making some adjustments to my plan for weight loss.

    The exercise portion has produced a tremendous psychological boast, even without shedding pounds. Try for some activity everyday -- you'll be surprised how good you feel. Dance to oldies with your little one -- you'll both enjoy it.

    Watching my calories closely has been a real "ahaa". I tend to underestimate how many calories I take in and forget to count some small ones that add up over time, e.g. coffee creamer. I also tend to overestimate the calories I burn -- machines aren't always accurate. I'm entering the "be honest with yourself" phase.

    If you have to question whether you are sedentary, you're probably sedentary - most of us are that work inside. If you start losing weight it is probably the appropriate classification. If you stall and find yourself starving and irritable, adjust it. Best of luck to you!

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