Please explain TDEE and exercise to me :(

n00bielolly
n00bielolly Posts: 6 Member
in Health and Weight Loss
I'm sure you read about this all the time but I am new to this and would love some advice.

I am starting the TDEE - 20% method but I'm a little confused.
My TDEE is about 2400 and my bmr is 1500.
so if I eat about 1900 calories a day but burn 900 that would mean that I'm way under my bmr.
I'm aware that the TDEE method takes into account exercise. I exercise 6 days a week. But should I at least eat back some of my exercise calories to get back up to my bmr?

Would really appreciate your help :)

Replies

  • SparkleShine
    SparkleShine Posts: 2,001 Member
    I'm no expert on this but I think if you accurately fill in your info about activity level, you should be fine. Although--- I have wondered about this. Say you enter you workout 5 days a week- to one person this may mean they do a 30 or 45 minute walk. To another this may mean they do a hardcore 60-90 minute workout session.
  • watfordjc
    watfordjc Posts: 304 Member
    Your BMR is what you'd burn if comatose (or close) for 24 hours.

    If your BMR is 1,500 exercise and food will not change that, although over time they will have an effect through weight changes and other things that will change your metabolism (recalculate your BMR/TDEE every 10-15 pounds or so).

    Some people say "never Net less than your BMR" but if you are using the TDEE method you've already taken into account your exercise and activity level, and even if your exercise is concentrated to one part of the week it should average out as above BMR.

    If, for example, you were to go on a long hike that wasn't included when you calculated your TDEE, you could either log the exercise and eat some of the calories back, or recalculate your TDEE if it is going to be a regular thing (two ways of doing it, there's probably more).

    Edited for typo.
  • AmyRhubarb
    AmyRhubarb Posts: 6,890 Member
    If you routinely burn so much through exercise that it drops you to a net below your BMR, then I would refigure the numbers with a higher activity level, or cut back on the exercise.

    If it's just an occasional super high burn day, then I wouldn't worry about it, but on that day, I'd eat back enough cals to be netting a couple hundred above BMR. That's what I do when I have a long run every so often that leaves me in that situation.

    Does that make sense?
  • n00bielolly
    n00bielolly Posts: 6 Member
    Ahh ok I got thanks so much everyone it all makes a lot more sense to me. Really appreciate your feedback :)
  • cwolfman13
    cwolfman13 Posts: 41,865 Member
    Your exercise should be included in your activity level. That 900 calorie burn should be accounted for already...if not, your activity level is incorrect.

    When you do TDEE, you do have days that are a bit more or a bit less but it averages out over the course of a week. If using TDEE method, you should be in a relatively consistent routine, burning a relatively consistent amount of calories which can be accurately accounted for with your activity level in determining TDEE.

    If you aren't in a consistent routine and your burns are all over the place I'd recommend going with the NEAT method (MFP) and eating back exercise calories (most of them).
  • Mokey41
    Mokey41 Posts: 5,769 Member
    If your TDEE is 2400 with your activity level included what are you doing for exercise that's burning 900 calories and how are you calculating that burn? Someone who's TDEE is 2400 would have to do some intense exercise to burn 900. I would need to run for at least 1.5 hrs or cycle 3 hours to get that kind of burn.
  • n00bielolly
    n00bielolly Posts: 6 Member
    I've just started month 2 of Insanity. E.g. today I burned 878 calories during an hour of Max Interval Circuit.
  • Mokey41
    Mokey41 Posts: 5,769 Member
    I've just started month 2 of Insanity. E.g. today I burned 878 calories during an hour of Max Interval Circuit.

    But how do you know this? HRM? Or guessing?
  • n00bielolly
    n00bielolly Posts: 6 Member
    I have a heart rate monitor

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