TDEE -20% or TDEE -15%???

ajcmoran2005
ajcmoran2005 Posts: 173 Member
in Health and Weight Loss
Hi everyone,

I have about 9-10 pounds to go until I reach my goal weight and I'm just not sure what my TDEE should be. I've seen some posts saying if you are close to your goal then you should do TDEE -15% or even 10% but then some people have said -20% is fine. So if you have less than 10 pounds to lose what would you recommend?

Replies

  • Roxiesmother
    Roxiesmother Posts: 49
    Bump because I'm in the same position and would like to know too.
  • Lyadeia
    Lyadeia Posts: 4,603 Member
    That depends...

    What are your current stats (weight/height/body fat%/gender)? And what is your goal?

    The general rule is that the leaner you get, the less your deficit needs to be. 20% is generally good for most overweight people, but once you get into the healthy and lean BF%, that's when people reduce to 10-15% under their TDEE.

    I am a female at 22% trying to get to 16%, and I am currently having great success at TDEE-15%. I anticipate going to TDEE-10% when I get under 20% body fat because that is when I would risk losing more LBM than I would like if my calorie intake was too low.
  • ajcmoran2005
    ajcmoran2005 Posts: 173 Member
    That depends...

    What are your current stats (weight/height/body fat%/gender)? And what is your goal?

    The general rule is that the leaner you get, the less your deficit needs to be. 20% is generally good for most overweight people, but once you get into the healthy and lean BF%, that's when people reduce to 10-15% under their TDEE.

    I am a female at 22% trying to get to 16%, and I am currently having great success at TDEE-15%. I anticipate going to TDEE-10% when I get under 20% body fat because that is when I would risk losing more LBM than I would like if my calorie intake was too low.

    I'm not sure about body fat percentage but I am 5'4 1/2", female and about 133 pounds. I would like to get to 124 but 122 would be perfect. I got down to 123 about a year ago and within a week I was back to 125 so I just don't know if 122 will work :).
  • srk369
    srk369 Posts: 256 Member
    That depends...

    What are your current stats (weight/height/body fat%/gender)? And what is your goal?

    The general rule is that the leaner you get, the less your deficit needs to be. 20% is generally good for most overweight people, but once you get into the healthy and lean BF%, that's when people reduce to 10-15% under their TDEE.

    I am a female at 22% trying to get to 16%, and I am currently having great success at TDEE-15%. I anticipate going to TDEE-10% when I get under 20% body fat because that is when I would risk losing more LBM than I would like if my calorie intake was too low.

    I'm not sure about body fat percentage but I am 5'4 1/2", female and about 133 pounds. I would like to get to 124 but 122 would be perfect. I got down to 123 about a year ago and within a week I was back to 125 so I just don't know if 122 will work :).

    I think you would be fine at 15%. I am a little shorter than you and weigh 132 now. I have pretty high bf% at 31% and am good at 20% but I'm getting close to the point that I need to drop to 15% deficit once I drop below 30%.

    I read another post last week that was about your last comment of not being able to stay at the 122 mark the last time. I thought it was really intersting...

    http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/993576-why-you-gain-weight-if-you-eat-more-than-your-cut
  • Antlady69
    Antlady69 Posts: 204 Member
    This is good info, thank you! I'm currently at 31% BF according to calculators (or 25% according to my scales), and have been wondering about this, too. I still have a bit to go, though. :)
  • auroranflash
    auroranflash Posts: 3,569 Member
    I would honestly try TDEE -20 for 8 weeks and work on fitness goals. Take pics and measurements first. If you're not getting realistic positive results, cut to -15 for 8 weeks. Take notes and experiment.

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