So eat under your Tdee not bmr

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  • Rawfoodsho
    Rawfoodsho Posts: 181
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    My bmr is approx 1400 calories and my tdee is around 3000. To maintain I eat around 3000 calories to lose I eat somewhere between bmr and tdee, ( I choose to eat at a smaller deficit to lose so I never go down close to bmr). To gain I eat over Tdee. All these numbers are estimations but I am able to adjust my intake just fine I just use the numbers as a guide.

    How is your bmr 1400 and your tdee 3000
  • Rawfoodsho
    Rawfoodsho Posts: 181
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    I maintain at 1800 doing nothing, so I'm not really understanding how you could believe BMR is maintenance.

    Doing nothing means literally doing nothing. just laying there and breathing, all day, every day.

    Well what about a wow player or a computer addict who sits in front of the computer for 12 hours plus a day? Only gets up to eat and poop?
  • __Di__
    __Di__ Posts: 1,630 Member
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    So if your Tdee is 1900 but your bmr is like 1500 you what? You have eat under 1900 but not under 1500? AND if you eat under your bmr for a few weeks and dont lose people blame it on that? So you have to eat in between those calories EXACTLY or you cant lose? How is it logical that eating under your bmr will not make you lose? We know the starvation mode myth's so please, spare me.

    But lets say a 400 pound person ate 2000 calories a day, wouldn't that leave them with a huge deficit? Suggesting they eat their bmr of like 3500 when they are trying to lose, is pretty ridiculous, that bmr is way to high to lose on.

    All well and good if you know exactly what your TDEE is.

    What happens if your day-to-day life is never the same two days running? How can you be sure you have the correct TDEE level for you?
  • Mr_Knight
    Mr_Knight Posts: 9,532 Member
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    I maintain at 1800 doing nothing, so I'm not really understanding how you could believe BMR is maintenance.

    Doing nothing means literally doing nothing. just laying there and breathing, all day, every day.

    That isn't sedentary, that would be comatose.

    Laying on a couch is not comatose.

    3000 steps burns extremely few calories.

    All these numbers are approximations - in the end, you have to pick a starting point, and adjust based on individual results.
  • Mr_Knight
    Mr_Knight Posts: 9,532 Member
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    All well and good if you know exactly what your TDEE is.

    What happens if your day-to-day life is never the same two days running? How can you be sure you have the correct TDEE level for you?

    Track your food intake, track your weight loss/gain, and calculate your actual TDEE from that.
  • ladynocturne
    ladynocturne Posts: 865 Member
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    I maintain at 1800 doing nothing, so I'm not really understanding how you could believe BMR is maintenance.

    Doing nothing means literally doing nothing. just laying there and breathing, all day, every day.

    That isn't sedentary, that would be comatose.

    Laying on a couch is not comatose.

    3000 steps burns extremely few calories.

    All these numbers are approximations - in the end, you have to pick a starting point, and adjust based on individual results.

    Very true, they are just calculations.

    I just think the idea that BMR is maintenance is a dangerous idea, especially the way a lot of people under eat on this website.

    If my maintenance calories were my BMR, I think I'd cry every day, such a small pittance of food.
  • nas061
    nas061 Posts: 256 Member
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    Your body needs the BMR (the minimum calories for your body to function in a healthy manner) to survive.

    BMR is your TDEE when activity equals zero. There is nothing magical about it. If you eat less calories than your TDEE then your body will not obtain the calories it needs to survive and so it breaks down stored glycogen and fat to generate the extra needed and so you lose weight.

    If you are active or inactive your TDEE is the "minimum calories for your body to function in a healthy manner", but those calories don't have to come in the way of food and drink, and can come from stored reserves.
  • nas061
    nas061 Posts: 256 Member
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    Yeah. It's not good for your health to eat under BMR (basic metabolic rate) as that's what you use just to breathe and keep warm.

    BMR is not some "line in the sand" below which your calorie intake must not fall. AIn fact as soon as you eat less than your TDEE your body does not have enough to survive which is why you lose weight as fat reserves are mobilised and burnt as fuel.
  • cwolfman13
    cwolfman13 Posts: 41,874 Member
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    Suggesting they eat their bmr of like 3500 when they are trying to lose, is pretty ridiculous, that bmr is way to high to lose on.

    If you think that someone with a BMR of 3500 won't lose weight while eating 3500 calories per day, then you don't understand what BMR means.

    she doesn't understand much of anything if you've seen any of her posts since joining...she thinks you can get fat eating at a deficit and others can lose weight or maintain eating at a surplus...initially I just thought good trolling...now I just think she doesn't understand anything and generally refuses to listen to anyone...not sure why she actually asks questions on the forum.
    What happens if your day-to-day life is never the same two days running? How can you be sure you have the correct TDEE level for you?

    mine averages out over the course of the week to be pretty much 2700 - 2800 calories per day. You have to get out of the minutia that is a singular day...this isn't about a singular day...losing, maintaining, gaining are all about consistency over a period of time.
  • BusyRaeNOTBusty
    BusyRaeNOTBusty Posts: 7,166 Member
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    Pretty sure the "don't eat under your BMR" thing is made up. I've never heard of that outside of MFP and never seen any literature on it.

    Yes, you need to eat under your TDEE to lose weight. Eating at a moderate to small deficit (TDEE- what you actually eat) is more sustainable, enjoyable, prevents muscle loss (along with adequate protein and weight training), and helps ensure adequate nutrient intake. Most people recommend a 20% deficit if you have a lot of weight to lose, or 10% for a little weight.
  • thesophierose
    thesophierose Posts: 754 Member
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    I hope the OPs question was answered by all this back and forthness. I would say do the -% off your TDEE because you will lose weight that way, :) and not be hungry per say, less grumpy, or whatever peoples symptoms are from eating at a deficit.
  • Mr_Knight
    Mr_Knight Posts: 9,532 Member
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    You have to get out of the minutia that is a singular day...this isn't about a singular day...losing, maintaining, gaining are all about consistency over a period of time.

    Two thumbs up.
  • aniqa109
    aniqa109 Posts: 364 Member
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    Can anyone help me ny bmr is 1450 and tdee is 1950 so whats a good daily calorie limit to eat at to lose weight i am currently 3 stones overweight.
  • KnitSewSpin
    KnitSewSpin Posts: 147 Member
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    what does mfp give you ? eat that plus exercise calories.
  • cwolfman13
    cwolfman13 Posts: 41,874 Member
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    Can anyone help me ny bmr is 1450 and tdee is 1950 so whats a good daily calorie limit to eat at to lose weight i am currently 3 stones overweight.

    If you ate your BMR you would have a 500 calorie per day deficit which would equate to roughly 1 Lb per week. I'd also suggest some exercise to get your TDEE up though...conversely you could put into MfP to lose 1 Lb per week and eat back your exercise calories (allowance made for estimation error of course).

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