I need help finding the correct caloric range (TDEE)

onwarddownward
onwarddownward Posts: 1,683 Member
in Health and Weight Loss
I am brain dead when it comes to TDEE. I have not been doing it. Can someone help me with the calcuations? I have been eating at about 1500 cals and I am completely washing out here. I am exhausted, my hair is falling out a bit and I am thinking of quitting. I need help.

I am:

48
female
258 lbs
I swim an hour a day, burning about 1000 calories (I'm not overestimating - it's an aggressive swim)
I do some pushups, situps, unweighted squats, lifting and such, about 30 minutes a day.

I looked on the TDEE site and there are several methods to calculate what I should be shooting for and I don't know which to choose. Is there anyone who can help me?

I'm starving.

Thanks in advance.

Replies

  • Danni3ll3
    Danni3ll3 Posts: 365 Member
    Try using this spreadsheet. It is done by HeyBales in this site and is what I use. I agree with you that TDEEs can be all over the place depending on what site you use.

    https://docs.google.com/spreadsheet/ccc?key=0Amt7QBR9-c6MdGVTbGswLUUzUHNVVUlNSW9wZWloeUE#gid=14

    I hope this helps.
  • onwarddownward
    onwarddownward Posts: 1,683 Member
    Thanks. It set me at 1784.
  • stephaniefiteni
    stephaniefiteni Posts: 48 Member
    http://iifym.com/iifym-calculator/
  • wild_wild_life
    wild_wild_life Posts: 1,334 Member
    I like fitness frog's calculator.

    http://www.fitnessfrog.com/calculators/tdee-calculator.html

    What is your height?

    Of course, chronic dieting, medications, and other hormonal alterations like PCOS, menopause or underactive thyroid can affect your metabolism so you have to take it with a grain of salt. Your ideal deficit off your TDEE also varies. How did you come up with 1500?
  • cmriverside
    cmriverside Posts: 34,458 Member
    At your weight, 1700, 1500, won't really matter. If you use the TDEE method, DO NOT add back and eat exercise calories.

    Why not just use MyFitnessPal's numbers? It works, and especially at your weight you shouldn't have trouble losing with an aggressive deficit. The TDEE stuff is much more important as you approach a healthy weight.

    Keep It Simple.

    You will become accustomed to the low calories after a while. Stick with it.

    .
  • onwarddownward
    onwarddownward Posts: 1,683 Member
    I like fitness frog's calculator.

    http://www.fitnessfrog.com/calculators/tdee-calculator.html

    What is your height?

    Of course, chronic dieting, medications, and other hormonal alterations like PCOS, menopause or underactive thyroid can affect your metabolism so you have to take it with a grain of salt. Your ideal deficit off your TDEE also varies. How did you come up with 1500?

    I used to be 5"11, have a big frame. I'm 5'8" now.
  • cmriverside
    cmriverside Posts: 34,458 Member
    I like fitness frog's calculator.

    http://www.fitnessfrog.com/calculators/tdee-calculator.html

    What is your height?

    Of course, chronic dieting, medications, and other hormonal alterations like PCOS, menopause or underactive thyroid can affect your metabolism so you have to take it with a grain of salt. Your ideal deficit off your TDEE also varies. How did you come up with 1500?

    I used to be 5"11, have a big frame. I'm 5'8" now.

    Wut? You shrunk THREE inches? Wow.
  • wild_wild_life
    wild_wild_life Posts: 1,334 Member
    According to fitness frog, your TDEE would be between 2900-3200 depending on whether you would consider your exercise moderate or heavy -- since it's an estimation, I'd round to 3000. The IIFYM calculator, which uses a different and probably more accurate formula, also puts you around 3000.

    A 2 lb loss per week would be a 1000cal daily deficit. Right now you are at a 1500 cal daily deficit if your total intake is 1500. That's a high deficit. If you're hungry and weight loss has stalled at 1500, I would try eating closer to 2000 cals per day (gross, no additional for exercise). Hopefully that would help with hunger and sustainability and you should lose at a good clip even if the TDEE is a bit off. You could also try adjusting your macros, make sure you are getting enough protein as it tends to be more satiating.
  • 2aycocks
    2aycocks Posts: 415 Member
    Two questions I want to ask you, since you say your hair is falling out. Have you started menopause, or peri-menopause yet? And have you had blood work to check your thyroid levels? OK, let's make it 3 questions. Do you have any autoimmune diseases?

    You should definitely get your thyroid checked if you have not. Hair falling out is not normal unless you are starving yourself, like annorexia.
  • tworthen79
    tworthen79 Posts: 1,173 Member
    I like fitness frog's calculator.

    http://www.fitnessfrog.com/calculators/tdee-calculator.html

    What is your height?

    Of course, chronic dieting, medications, and other hormonal alterations like PCOS, menopause or underactive thyroid can affect your metabolism so you have to take it with a grain of salt. Your ideal deficit off your TDEE also varies. How did you come up with 1500?

    I used to be 5"11, have a big frame. I'm 5'8" now.

    You shrunk 3 inches?
  • zornig
    zornig Posts: 336 Member
    I've had the same question! I've used the calculators at Fitness Frog, IIFYM.com, Fat 2 Fit Radio, and Scooby Workshop. I get a range of values for TDEE -20% from 1750 to 2200 calories. Maybe it's because they measure activity levels differently? Some ask about hours of activity per week, versus days/week you exercise.

    So far I've been eating around the 1950 calorie range and losing weight at a pretty decent rate (slightly more than a pound per week). I'm female, 186 lbs, 39, 5'4", and do a combination of strength training and cardio exercise between 5-6 times per week (this week I did about 390 minutes of exercise at 65% max HR or higher). So I would think that someone of your height, weight, and activity level should be eating more like 2300-2400 calories per day to lose around a pound per week.
  • onwarddownward
    onwarddownward Posts: 1,683 Member
    Two questions I want to ask you, since you say your hair is falling out. Have you started menopause, or peri-menopause yet? And have you had blood work to check your thyroid levels? OK, let's make it 3 questions. Do you have any autoimmune diseases?

    You should definitely get your thyroid checked if you have not. Hair falling out is not normal unless you are starving yourself, like annorexia.

    Yes perimenopause, thyroid is perfect, no autoimmune disorders.

    Some of the hair issue might be from chlorine breaking off my hair. I'm not sure.

    I'm not anorexic.

    The perimenopause is a pain. I missed this last period. This has been happening since I was 43 or so.
  • onwarddownward
    onwarddownward Posts: 1,683 Member
    I like fitness frog's calculator.

    http://www.fitnessfrog.com/calculators/tdee-calculator.html

    What is your height?

    Of course, chronic dieting, medications, and other hormonal alterations like PCOS, menopause or underactive thyroid can affect your metabolism so you have to take it with a grain of salt. Your ideal deficit off your TDEE also varies. How did you come up with 1500?

    I used to be 5"11, have a big frame. I'm 5'8" now.

    You shrunk 3 inches?

    Yes. Three inches. I T-boned a car in 1988 that ran a stop sign and destroyed three lower lumbar disks. All of my loss has been in the spine. I still have super long legs and monkey arms. And 12 inch long feet.

    Do I calculate my height on 71 inches or 68?

    98% of my bones are still that of a 71 inch person.
  • cmriverside
    cmriverside Posts: 34,458 Member
    I like fitness frog's calculator.

    http://www.fitnessfrog.com/calculators/tdee-calculator.html

    What is your height?

    Of course, chronic dieting, medications, and other hormonal alterations like PCOS, menopause or underactive thyroid can affect your metabolism so you have to take it with a grain of salt. Your ideal deficit off your TDEE also varies. How did you come up with 1500?

    I used to be 5"11, have a big frame. I'm 5'8" now.

    You shrunk 3 inches?

    Yes. Three inches. I T-boned a car in 1988 that ran a stop sign and destroyed three lower lumbar disks. All of my loss has been in the spine. I still have super long legs and monkey arms. And 12 inch long feet.

    Do I calculate my height on 71 inches or 68?

    98% of my bones are still that of a 71 inch person.

    Boy. Sorry to hear that. I have no idea on which to choose. Why don't you take something in the middle? You can always adjust if you aren't getting the results - and it shouldn't be more than 50 or 60 calories difference for an inch and a half.
  • Danni3ll3
    Danni3ll3 Posts: 365 Member
    I would do the 68 inch since you lost the height in your trunk and that is where most of the weight would be in a body.
  • wild_wild_life
    wild_wild_life Posts: 1,334 Member
    Do I calculate my height on 71 inches or 68?

    It doesn't make a significant difference.
  • onwarddownward
    onwarddownward Posts: 1,683 Member
    Ok. The calculator says 2566 is for light activity, 2892 for moderate, 3214 for heavy.

    I do swim an hour every day, except today, but I don't do much else. I don't work and am, frankly, lazy.

    If you were me, where would you set the cals on the MFP goals? And am I supposed to then eat exercise calories?

    Just trying to get this straight.
  • zornig
    zornig Posts: 336 Member
    Ok. The calculator says 2566 is for light activity, 2892 for moderate, 3214 for heavy.

    I do swim an hour every day, except today, but I don't do much else. I don't work and am, frankly, lazy.

    If you were me, where would you set the cals on the MFP goals? And am I supposed to then eat exercise calories?

    Just trying to get this straight.

    Why don't you start with 2566 and see how you feel and whether you get the results you're looking for? Do not eat exercise calories back if you are using this method--that energy expenditure is already accounted for in the TDEE.
  • cmriverside
    cmriverside Posts: 34,458 Member
    Ok. The calculator says 2566 is for light activity, 2892 for moderate, 3214 for heavy.

    I do swim an hour every day, except today, but I don't do much else. I don't work and am, frankly, lazy.

    If you were me, where would you set the cals on the MFP goals? And am I supposed to then eat exercise calories?

    Just trying to get this straight.

    What calculator?


    If you used some offsite TDEE calculator, you DO NOT eat more on exercise days. Only you can choose your Activity Level - and whatever the calculator suggested is what you should use. They are all a little different.


    If you use MFP, just set it to Active & "Lose two pounds per week" AND eat back the extra calories you receive from exercise.

    Pick one.

    At your weight, you can afford to have a large deficit. Just use MFP, keep it simple.
  • cmriverside
    cmriverside Posts: 34,458 Member
    What you don't want to do is to keep changing it. The only way you can gauge the effectiveness of your plan is to be consistent and keep good records. No matter which method you use, they all depend on accurate record keeping over a period of time before making any more changes.

    That means a digital food scale, and scrupulous food entries every meal. If you choose MFP, just use all their numbers, including their exercise numbers. It is set up in a specific way - just trust the program, and keep good records.
  • wild_wild_life
    wild_wild_life Posts: 1,334 Member
    Ok. The calculator says 2566 is for light activity, 2892 for moderate, 3214 for heavy.

    I do swim an hour every day, except today, but I don't do much else. I don't work and am, frankly, lazy.

    If you were me, where would you set the cals on the MFP goals? And am I supposed to then eat exercise calories?

    Just trying to get this straight.

    Why don't you start with 2566 and see how you feel and whether you get the results you're looking for? Do not eat exercise calories back if you are using this method--that energy expenditure is already accounted for in the TDEE.

    I think she's saying her TDEE with light exercise is 2566, so she needs to take a deficit from that to lose.
  • wild_wild_life
    wild_wild_life Posts: 1,334 Member
    According to fitness frog, your TDEE would be between 2900-3200 depending on whether you would consider your exercise moderate or heavy -- since it's an estimation, I'd round to 3000. The IIFYM calculator, which uses a different and probably more accurate formula, also puts you around 3000.

    A 2 lb loss per week would be a 1000cal daily deficit. Right now you are at a 1500 cal daily deficit if your total intake is 1500. That's a high deficit. If you're hungry and weight loss has stalled at 1500, I would try eating closer to 2000 cals per day (gross, no additional for exercise). Hopefully that would help with hunger and sustainability and you should lose at a good clip even if the TDEE is a bit off. You could also try adjusting your macros, make sure you are getting enough protein as it tends to be more satiating.

    Just reporting my answer from above. Anything in the neighborhood of 2000 would be a good starting place IMO.
  • wild_wild_life
    wild_wild_life Posts: 1,334 Member
    What you don't want to do is to keep changing it. The only way you can gauge the effectiveness of your plan is to be consistent and keep good records. No matter which method you use, they all depend on accurate record keeping over a period of time before making any more changes.

    That means a digital food scale, and scrupulous food entries every meal. If you choose MFP, just use all their numbers, including their exercise numbers. It is set up in a specific way - just trust the program, and keep good records.

    Agreed.

    Good luck!
  • onwarddownward
    onwarddownward Posts: 1,683 Member
    What you don't want to do is to keep changing it. The only way you can gauge the effectiveness of your plan is to be consistent and keep good records. No matter which method you use, they all depend on accurate record keeping over a period of time before making any more changes.

    That means a digital food scale, and scrupulous food entries every meal. If you choose MFP, just use all their numbers, including their exercise numbers. It is set up in a specific way - just trust the program, and keep good records.

    Agreed.

    Good luck!

    I am good at measuring. But I do tend to over report my cals and underestimate my exercise. I have to stop doing that. Part of the reason I was under reporting my swimming is because people were visiting my page and saying, "No way were you swimming that hard for an hour!" So I dropped my rating down to stop getting the comments. But I am swimming vigorously. I swim two miles an hour. I don't care who you are, that's vigorous.That's about 1200-1500 calories, depending upon the stroke. Now that I butterfly more, it's very intense.

    But I can't swim if I get sick from under eating.

    I have to get out of the mindset that if I go super low, I will lose it faster. It doesn't help that MFP keeps telling me, "If you ate like this every day, you would weigh 239 pounds in five weeks."

    But that's a lie. If eating nothing would do that for me, then I would be there now. As it is, I am sick, shakey and exhausted. I am willing to give TDEE eating a honest go and see how it works. I can't stand feeling like I am going to keel over.
  • luckydays27
    luckydays27 Posts: 552 Member
    Pick a method and stick with it.

    I use MFP set a 1 lb a week weight loss goal (500 cal daily deficit). I eat back most (or all) of my exercise cals because I have MFP set to sedentary mainly because I am quite lazy and have a purely desk job. I use a HRM to determine my cals burned during fitness.

    I also have a fitbit to help determine my daily calorie burn since there are days that I am active and others that I barely move.

    I have consistently lost 1 lb a week since doing this.

    As an aside, the numbers match pretty closely to what my TDEE - 20% would be on my fitness days. (based on the scooby calculator)
  • wild_wild_life
    wild_wild_life Posts: 1,334 Member
    What you don't want to do is to keep changing it. The only way you can gauge the effectiveness of your plan is to be consistent and keep good records. No matter which method you use, they all depend on accurate record keeping over a period of time before making any more changes.

    That means a digital food scale, and scrupulous food entries every meal. If you choose MFP, just use all their numbers, including their exercise numbers. It is set up in a specific way - just trust the program, and keep good records.

    Agreed.

    Good luck!

    I am good at measuring. But I do tend to over report my cals and underestimate my exercise. I have to stop doing that. Part of the reason I was under reporting my swimming is because people were visiting my page and saying, "No way were you swimming that hard for an hour!" So I dropped my rating down to stop getting the comments. But I am swimming vigorously. I swim two miles an hour. I don't care who you are, that's vigorous.That's about 1200-1500 calories, depending upon the stroke. Now that I butterfly more, it's very intense.

    But I can't swim if I get sick from under eating.

    I have to get out of the mindset that if I go super low, I will lose it faster. It doesn't help that MFP keeps telling me, "If you ate like this every day, you would weigh 239 pounds in five weeks."

    But that's a lie. If eating nothing would do that for me, then I would be there now. As it is, I am sick, shakey and exhausted. I am willing to give TDEE eating a honest go and see how it works. I can't stand feeling like I am going to keel over.

    Eat more. With those calorie burns, you are clearly undereating. There are no bonus points for starving yourself.

    You might also consider taking at least a day or two off exercise each week, especially if you are doing both swimming and body weight exercises every day.

    I admire your swimming ability. I just started swimming for exercise, and I can only do a slow front crawl for about 20 minutes before I am ready to pack it in. I can't wait until I am a stronger swimmer and can breathe well enough to really get my heart rate up.
  • onwarddownward
    onwarddownward Posts: 1,683 Member
    I am going to set aside a weekly rest day. I am also opting out of the squat challenge that I got into. Just doing the exercises is enough. I don't need to be doing 400 daily in 30 days.

    I've been pushing way too hard.

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