Metabolism reset- TDEE issues

LizzyAlexandra
LizzyAlexandra Posts: 26
in Health and Weight Loss
Ok, I know I need to get up to my maintenance level, yet I am having difficulty understanding something.
These are my stats:
Height- 170cm or 5"7
Weight- (last time I checked before the metabolism reset) 60.9 kg/134 lbs
BMR- 1461 kcal/day
TDEE-20% - 1810 kcal/day
TDEE- 2265 kcal/day

I understand I need to eat up to 2265 kcal, but do I need to eat up to this kcal level even on non-workout days?
I exercise 5 times a week with a mix of everything- cardio (Tae Bo), Toning (Pilates), & Strength training with weights. I also walk A LOT and add this into my exercise, because after all, it is exercise on its own.

If I were to take into account my TDEE-20% I would have to burn off 455 kcal just to get there from maintenance level. In total, I would have to burn 2265 kcal a week to keep this, excluding the two days when I don't exercise.

I am getting so confused as to how to eat up to TDEE level for my metabolism reset. Somebody help!
(And I am sorry if this doesn't make any sense. Does this make sense??)

The reason for the metabolism reset is because I screwed up my eating pattern over a long-ish period of time, never ate above 1100 kcal/day, exercised like a madwoman and would burn off at least 600kcal in one go and would never eat back a single kcal. Long story short, I realized it wasn't a very smart thing to do, but as I add on to the amount I am eating, I am heading towards TDEE level, but don't understand how much I have to eat and on what day :S

Your response would be deeply appreciated :)

Replies

  • Ploogy
    Ploogy Posts: 115 Member
    If your TDEE figure you posted was calculated with a "sedentary" multiplier, then yes, you eat up to that point as it represents your normal expenditure.
  • LizzyAlexandra
    LizzyAlexandra Posts: 26
    If your TDEE figure you posted was calculated with a "sedentary" multiplier, then yes, you eat up to that point as it represents your normal expenditure.

    Oh, ok. No the one above is my TDEE including my activity.
    My sedentary TDEE is 1753 kcal/day. So I should just use that one then, and if I do exercise, eat back my calories to reach at least BMR?
  • daydream_believer
    daydream_believer Posts: 332
    If your TDEE figure you posted was calculated with a "sedentary" multiplier, then yes, you eat up to that point as it represents your normal expenditure.

    Oh, ok. No the one above is my TDEE including my activity.
    My sedentary TDEE is 1753 kcal/day. So I should just use that one then, and if I do exercise, eat back my calories to reach at least BMR?

    you could do that... it is like the MFP way of doing it (eating back exerise calories on workout days.. or days with extra activity). however if you go with the TDEE calculation you did earlier you can eat that same amount every day (even on non workout days) if you would prefer eating the same amount daily. i find this easier and have recently increased to maintenance. x
  • paulperryman
    paulperryman Posts: 839 Member
    EVeryone above explained it easier :) Set your TDEE to what your average daily activity is (if you want to exercise set it higher) or set it to sedintary and then log exercise and eat at that level to maintain. and creep back upto those levels don't just jump massive calorie amounts in one go

    also the right types of foods can stabilise or make your motabolism naturaly more efficient too, just google them

    your BMR is what you want to eat to just live without moving at all, you never want to eat at just that. you want to eat your TDEE which will be around 20% higher then BMR atleast.
  • michellekicks
    michellekicks Posts: 3,624 Member
    Your TDEE is calculated as a daily average... your 5 days of activity averaged out over 7 days. So you eat at TDEE every day, even on rest days... for a reset. If you are working out that hard just to lose weight, back it off and figure out your TDEE at a lower level of activity. Then do that lower level of activity and eat what you calculate as TDEE 7 days a week. If you like doing that much activity and want to do it anyway, just eat the higher amount.

    I recommend clicking on "Groups" up above and finding the "Eat More to Weigh Less" group. There is plenty of information about what to expect on a reset.
  • LizzyAlexandra
    LizzyAlexandra Posts: 26
    Thanks guys :) I understand it more which makes this easier :)
    I jumped from 1100 straight to 1600 so I definitely feel a difference in food intake, will increase much more slowly from now on but I do feel a definite change in energy levels. Also, I don't know if this is connected, but when I wake up, I actually wake up, no feelings of rolling back to sleep. I don't know if this is normal but it definitely has improved my lifestyle. More gets done!

    And as I understoood, this will last for 8 weeks at maintenance after I go up to TDEE level, during that time, I will have to make the numbers 'my own' if it is not right, then after do a 15% reduction to lose weight? If 20% is 2lbs drop per week, then I think that is too much. My goal is 5.2 kg loss then maintenance for life, and I would rather do it the healthier way.
  • LizzyAlexandra
    LizzyAlexandra Posts: 26
    If you like doing that much activity and want to do it anyway, just eat the higher amount.

    I love exercising. It gives me such a good feeling after working out. 5 hrs a week is perfect for me, no more no less, but never burning more than 600 kcal in one hour like I used to do :/ I take it easy but still make an effort. Also, I'm on my feet a good part of the day, so I need the extra energy.
  • paulperryman
    paulperryman Posts: 839 Member
    If you like doing that much activity and want to do it anyway, just eat the higher amount.

    I love exercising. It gives me such a good feeling after working out. 5 hrs a week is perfect for me, no more no less, but never burning more than 600 kcal in one hour like I used to do :/ I take it easy but still make an effort. Also, I'm on my feet a good part of the day, so I need the extra energy.

    I too can burn anywhere from 500-1000 calories and hour easy infact the first week and a half i was burning 1500 calories in 80min sessions every day and wasn't eating any of those back i lost 4 kilo's but it was probably mostly muscle (might add i had a high blood pressure problem i didn't know about which was obviously increasing my heart rate and the heart rate monitor registers that as more calorie burned the higher your heart rate is on average) but now at the 3 week mark i've stagnated at 6 kilo's lost probably because my body has taken a stand and said, BACK OFF, well that and Blood Pressure medicine has reduced my heart rate so i'm not burning as much.

    Currently trying to eat most of my calories back and keep at just the 1000 calorie deficit including exercise i have set. but that's like 2000-2400 calories a day which is massive. So i feel your pain in that respect and i too am addicted to going to the gym now but like you i am now trying to balance it out, so i'm building more muscle and working on my core and keeping Cardio to around a quick 30mins a day enough to get the heart rate up but not too much that i have to eat alot more.

    PS i was 244lbs at 175cm so not much different then you.
  • LizzyAlexandra
    LizzyAlexandra Posts: 26
    If you like doing that much activity and want to do it anyway, just eat the higher amount.

    I love exercising. It gives me such a good feeling after working out. 5 hrs a week is perfect for me, no more no less, but never burning more than 600 kcal in one hour like I used to do :/ I take it easy but still make an effort. Also, I'm on my feet a good part of the day, so I need the extra energy.

    I too can burn anywhere from 500-1000 calories and hour easy infact the first week and a half i was burning 1500 calories in 80min sessions every day and wasn't eating any of those back i lost 4 kilo's but it was probably mostly muscle (might add i had a high blood pressure problem i didn't know about which was obviously increasing my heart rate and the heart rate monitor registers that as more calorie burned the higher your heart rate is on average) but now at the 3 week mark i've stagnated at 6 kilo's lost probably because my body has taken a stand and said, BACK OFF, well that and Blood Pressure medicine has reduced my heart rate so i'm not burning as much.

    Currently trying to eat most of my calories back and keep at just the 1000 calorie deficit including exercise i have set. but that's like 2000-2400 calories a day which is massive. So i feel your pain in that respect and i too am addicted to going to the gym now but like you i am now trying to balance it out, so i'm building more muscle and working on my core and keeping Cardio to around a quick 30mins a day enough to get the heart rate up but not too much that i have to eat alot more.

    PS i was 244lbs at 175cm so not much different then you.

    Well, good luck with everything. It sounds like you are definitely on track now, what with eating back calories and not allowing deficit to be too high.

    I guess the term 'you can do/eat everything in moderation' really applies to this. There is only so much you can eat/exercise before it is considered to be excessive.

    I kept doing cardio, without realizing how much I need to balance it out with strength training, so I also cut back on cardio to build more muscle and become more toned.

    Hope you see the progress that you want to see and as it is a long process, keep going! It can only get better.

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