Calorie deficit and TDEE

tracieangeletti
tracieangeletti Posts: 432 Member
in Health and Weight Loss
According to Fat2FitRadio.com my TDEE is 2015 calories a day. I'm a 46 year old female, 5'2" tall, and I workout 5-6 days a week. I had been eating 1200-1300 calories a day for quite awhile and had people tell me I should up my calories so I've bumped it up to 1500 a day. My friend said she thinks this is still too low. I thought you could still take a deficit on your TDEE to lose weight at a steady pace. My question is what is the minimum calorie level a day that I should eat and still lose at a steady pace? I weigh 131 now and have no real idea how much more I should lose. I was thinking around 10 to 15 more lbs. According to the hand held thingy at the gym my bf is at 28%. I'll be honest and tell you I'm calorie phobic. The thought of raising my calorie intake is terrifying for me but I want to do this correctly and healthfully. Suggestions??? :smile:

Replies

  • Mokey41
    Mokey41 Posts: 5,769 Member
    Are you eating your exercise back? I'm 55, same height and weigh 115. I eat 1350/day and rarely eat back exercise. Been doing this for over 2 years and haven't died yet.
  • DeeVanderbles
    DeeVanderbles Posts: 589 Member
    It is commonly suggested to eat at most at a 20% deficit from TDEE. Based on the TDEE you mentioned, that'd be 1,612. 1500 isn't that much lower so it seems reasonable to me.
  • honu178
    honu178 Posts: 13 Member
    Hi there, I had the same fears as well. On my work out days I eat 2100 calories and non work out days I eat 1600. I highly suggest raising your calorie intake as it can work against you. Initially when i started with MFP, I was only eating 1200 calories and always fatigued, I also did not lose much weight/fat. I'm 5'3" 128lbs. and at ~20% and started out at 163 and ~30%.

    I have 2 protein shakes a day (whey post work out) and before bed (I suggest casein) to up your calories. You can always increase your protein by 2oz. I used to have 4 oz of meat but I've made it to 6oz and don't be afraid to up your carbs. Test it out for a week and see if your body reacts. Since you work out a lot you need the calories! hope that helps some.
  • tracieangeletti
    tracieangeletti Posts: 432 Member
    No, not eating exercise calories back. I don't even log my exercise in cuz frankly for some of it I don't know how!! lol
  • NutellaAddict
    NutellaAddict Posts: 1,258 Member
    No, not eating exercise calories back. I don't even log my exercise in cuz frankly for some of it I don't know how!! lol

    Interesting..if you need assistance let us know...
  • psych0kitty
    psych0kitty Posts: 313
    No, not eating exercise calories back. I don't even log my exercise in cuz frankly for some of it I don't know how!! lol

    You should not eat back exercise calories if you use a TDEE that already includes your activity level and exercise. That's the best way to do it, honestly.

    Also, if/when you increase your calories, you need to try it for more than two weeks (not just one week like someone else said). Two weeks or less is not a good test.
  • Brunner26_2
    Brunner26_2 Posts: 1,152
    No, not eating exercise calories back. I don't even log my exercise in cuz frankly for some of it I don't know how!! lol

    You should not eat back exercise calories if you use a TDEE that already includes your activity level and exercise. That's the best way to do it, honestly.

    Also, if/when you increase your calories, you need to try it for more than two weeks (not just one week like someone else said). Two weeks or less is not a good test.

    I would say a month. It may actually be better to try and maintain for a little while to make sure you actually have an accurate TDEE before going back to losing.
  • jacksonpt
    jacksonpt Posts: 10,413 Member
    According to Fat2FitRadio.com my TDEE is 2015 calories a day. I'm a 46 year old female, 5'2" tall, and I workout 5-6 days a week. I had been eating 1200-1300 calories a day for quite awhile and had people tell me I should up my calories so I've bumped it up to 1500 a day. My friend said she thinks this is still too low. I thought you could still take a deficit on your TDEE to lose weight at a steady pace. My question is what is the minimum calorie level a day that I should eat and still lose at a steady pace? I weigh 131 now and have no real idea how much more I should lose. I was thinking around 10 to 15 more lbs. According to the hand held thingy at the gym my bf is at 28%. I'll be honest and tell you I'm calorie phobic. The thought of raising my calorie intake is terrifying for me but I want to do this correctly and healthfully. Suggestions??? :smile:

    Anything under your TDEE will lead to weight loss. If TDEE is 2015, 2014 will lead to weight loss, it's just be obscenely slow. So it's really up to you... try to find a balance where progress is fast enough to keep you motivated, but where you are also eating enough to feel good and sustain long term.

    As far as the calorie phobic thing... talk to some of the eat more to weigh less folks (they have a group here).
  • tracieangeletti
    tracieangeletti Posts: 432 Member
    It is commonly suggested to eat at most at a 20% deficit from TDEE. Based on the TDEE you mentioned, that'd be 1,612. 1500 isn't that much lower so it seems reasonable to me.

    So 1500-1600 is a safe amount?? Cool. I know someone posted 1350 and trust me I would feel SO much safer eating at that level, but honestly I was starving most of the time when I was eating around that. I know I'm capable of doing that but being hungry all the time was becoming draining on me and probably those around me as well!! lol It's a mental thing with me. Every time I go to eat I have a little voice in my head that incites panic about calories, fat, etc... That in itself is draining. Trying to change my mentality when it comes to food. It's almost as difficult as losing the weight is. :frown:
  • tracieangeletti
    tracieangeletti Posts: 432 Member
    According to Fat2FitRadio.com my TDEE is 2015 calories a day. I'm a 46 year old female, 5'2" tall, and I workout 5-6 days a week. I had been eating 1200-1300 calories a day for quite awhile and had people tell me I should up my calories so I've bumped it up to 1500 a day. My friend said she thinks this is still too low. I thought you could still take a deficit on your TDEE to lose weight at a steady pace. My question is what is the minimum calorie level a day that I should eat and still lose at a steady pace? I weigh 131 now and have no real idea how much more I should lose. I was thinking around 10 to 15 more lbs. According to the hand held thingy at the gym my bf is at 28%. I'll be honest and tell you I'm calorie phobic. The thought of raising my calorie intake is terrifying for me but I want to do this correctly and healthfully. Suggestions??? :smile:

    depends how fat you are.

    this will explain everything.
    http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/943139-weight-loss-cheat-sheet-ipoarm

    According to this, if I did calculations right, I should eat 1700 a day which, ironically, is the calorie level my son set up for me on mfp. This just seems so scary to me!! But from what I've been reading this is the amount that is suggested. I may have to give myself some sort of "diet" lobotomy to shut my brain up so I can eat this amount or close without going crazy. lol Curious, I have no idea what my fats or proteins should be at. It seems that I'm always going over the protein recommendation. Do these numbers really matter? Is it ok to just concentrate on the calories or do the macros make a huge difference??
  • tracieangeletti
    tracieangeletti Posts: 432 Member
    According to Fat2FitRadio.com my TDEE is 2015 calories a day. I'm a 46 year old female, 5'2" tall, and I workout 5-6 days a week. I had been eating 1200-1300 calories a day for quite awhile and had people tell me I should up my calories so I've bumped it up to 1500 a day. My friend said she thinks this is still too low. I thought you could still take a deficit on your TDEE to lose weight at a steady pace. My question is what is the minimum calorie level a day that I should eat and still lose at a steady pace? I weigh 131 now and have no real idea how much more I should lose. I was thinking around 10 to 15 more lbs. According to the hand held thingy at the gym my bf is at 28%. I'll be honest and tell you I'm calorie phobic. The thought of raising my calorie intake is terrifying for me but I want to do this correctly and healthfully. Suggestions??? :smile:

    depends how fat you are.

    this will explain everything.
    http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/943139-weight-loss-cheat-sheet-ipoarm

    According to this, if I did calculations right, I should eat 1700 a day which, ironically, is the calorie level my son set up for me on mfp. This just seems so scary to me!! But from what I've been reading this is the amount that is suggested. I may have to give myself some sort of "diet" lobotomy to shut my brain up so I can eat this amount or close without going crazy. lol Curious, I have no idea what my fats or proteins should be at. It seems that I'm always going over the protein recommendation. Do these numbers really matter? Is it ok to just concentrate on the calories or do the macros make a huge difference??

    just focus on calories.

    Thank you sooo much for your help!! Btw LOVE your weight loss cheat sheet!! Very easy to read and understand!
  • tanialuke
    tanialuke Posts: 36 Member
    This is a revelation that of course makes perfect sense!! I have been eating back my exercise calories- no wonder I am not losing. I am going to stop logging exercise at all and just eat at TDEE-20%. Thank you!
    No, not eating exercise calories back. I don't even log my exercise in cuz frankly for some of it I don't know how!! lol

    You should not eat back exercise calories if you use a TDEE that already includes your activity level and exercise. That's the best way to do it, honestly.

    Also, if/when you increase your calories, you need to try it for more than two weeks (not just one week like someone else said). Two weeks or less is not a good test.

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