Opinions on My TDEE

healthy4life4mykids
healthy4life4mykids Posts: 84
in Health and Weight Loss
I want to lose at a relatively gradual pace, the 1200 calories that MFP gives me for 2 lb a week was too low, I felt like crap and I'd rather only lose a pound a week and be able to stick with it through my goals.

Question is the Scooby site gives me TDEE - 20% at 1725 per day. That seems like a lot, if I add in my exercise calories that's close or even over 2000 a day, those of you who do or have done TDEE, did you eat some calories back or no? Have you had success in using the TDEE method? Thanks for your help :)

Replies

  • EvanKeel
    EvanKeel Posts: 1,904 Member
    TDEE includes your exercise activity (the T stands for Total, I believe), or at least it should. Using that method, you would not eat back your exercise calories. And yes, using a deficit of TDEE - 20% has worked for me.

    EDIT: Now finding your actual TDEE may take an annoying amount of accurate logging and experimentation. Any site you go to is going to use an equation based on averaged data. They can certainly be used as a starting point, though.
  • GauchoMark
    GauchoMark Posts: 1,804 Member
    well, considering that 2 lbs per day is not gradual - it is a 1000 calorie a day deficit - and MFP caps your calorie intake at 1200 minimum, the TDEE is about the same calculation-wise.

    However, if you use the scooby site, you don't log exercise. You just eat the same amount every day no matter what your activity is. If you use the MFP site, you need to log and eat back exercise calories - at least a portion.

    I personally prefer to use a sedentary tdee, log exercise and eat them back. I feel that it is more accurate for those of us that have varied schedules. It has worked very well for me.

    Just quit trying to lose lbs per week unless you are about 100 lbs or more overweight.
  • Greenrun99
    Greenrun99 Posts: 2,065 Member
    As was mentioned no eating back exercise calories that is all factored in.. so you eat the 1 number everyday. Just make sure you do your exercise that you said you do so your not overeating. If you log exercise in MFP, it would be 1 calorie for the burn amount
  • Stage14
    Stage14 Posts: 1,046 Member
    You do not eat back exercise calories with TDEE, assuming you figured it based on the correct activity level.

    However, personally, because my activity varies so much, I actually figured my TDEE at Sedentary and readjusted THAT number (-20%) as my MFP goal. It was almost 400 calories higher than MFP had me on, and I do still figure in and eat back exercise calories. It's a weird mix of the two methods, but I've been on it for almost 6 weeks and so far it's working better than anything else has.
  • healthy4life4mykids
    healthy4life4mykids Posts: 84
    As was mentioned no eating back exercise calories that is all factored in.. so you eat the 1 number everyday. Just make sure you do your exercise that you said you do so your not overeating. If you log exercise in MFP, it would be 1 calorie for the burn amount


    That's a good idea, thanks. I still want to keep track of it, this makes sense!
  • GauchoMark
    GauchoMark Posts: 1,804 Member
    You do not eat back exercise calories with TDEE, assuming you figured it based on the correct activity level.

    However, personally, because my activity varies so much, I actually figured my TDEE at Sedentary and readjusted THAT number (-20%) as my MFP goal. It was almost 400 calories higher than MFP had me on, and I do still figure in and eat back exercise calories. It's a weird mix of the two methods, but I've been on it for almost 6 weeks and so far it's working better than anything else has.

    pretty much the same method I used.
  • healthy4life4mykids
    healthy4life4mykids Posts: 84
    You do not eat back exercise calories with TDEE, assuming you figured it based on the correct activity level.

    However, personally, because my activity varies so much, I actually figured my TDEE at Sedentary and readjusted THAT number (-20%) as my MFP goal. It was almost 400 calories higher than MFP had me on, and I do still figure in and eat back exercise calories. It's a weird mix of the two methods, but I've been on it for almost 6 weeks and so far it's working better than anything else has.

    pretty much the same method I used.


    Hmmm, math makes my brain hurt, lol. So TDEE at sedentary for me 1616 (at -20% cal reduction, again using the Scooby site)....so I would set MFP at 1293, and eat back all of exercise cals?
  • GauchoMark
    GauchoMark Posts: 1,804 Member
    that should work. Of course, you might not want to do sedentary if you have a really active job like construction worker or ER nurse etc. I have found, however, that most people have jobs that sedentary works well for.

    My advice - lay out a plan, stick to it for a couple of months, and if you are losing weight too fast or slow, make a small change to your numbers until you get it dialed in. These are just estimates anyways.
  • Greenrun99
    Greenrun99 Posts: 2,065 Member

    Hmmm, math makes my brain hurt, lol. So TDEE at sedentary for me 1616 (at -20% cal reduction, again using the Scooby site)....so I would set MFP at 1293, and eat back all of exercise cals?

    Yup all of the exercise calories.. preferably from a HRM (not MFP estimations)
  • hdyanneh
    hdyanneh Posts: 39
    I must have MEGA reading/research to do on all this. I understood nothing! I should probably start with tdee ( i have almost no idea what that means) and Im trying to adjust my calorie intake from the 1200 that mfp recommended.
  • kzakian
    kzakian Posts: 45 Member
    I'm 5'7 and eat 1750 calories a day, losing 1 pound a week consistently. I also eat back most of my exercise calories. Don't be afraid to eat what looks like a lot of calories - anything below maintenance level is a loss!

    Hope that helps :)
  • Francl27
    Francl27 Posts: 26,371 Member
    You're comparing apples and oranges though. TDEE-20% will give you a rough loss of 1 lb a week, so if you want to compare it with MFP, put the 'lose 1 lb a week' setting on MFP. Once you add your exercise calories to MFP, you should get pretty close to TDEE-20% then.

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