Are you losing on TDEE?

I dont have similar stats but I am losing on TDEE
I calculated through a bunch of different calculators and took the average because some i felt were high, but then some were low. I'm not quite sure why there is such a difference but anyway..
Im 33, sw 270, cw 205, gw 150, 5'3" and mine worked out to be 1800 as an average. I feel WAY better doing it this way than when I first started out and ate only 1200-1400. Good luck on your journey! :drinker:

TDEE with a deficit definitely works. The issue is being sure that the information you're using is correct. The fault isn't with the method it's with the calculations.

I don't have a heart monitor yet, but I input my workouts as 40 mins High impact aerobics, which says I burn 425 cals per workout.
BMR is the amount of calories I would burn if I was lying in bed all day. TDEE is the calories I need to maintain my current weight working at an office and doing Insanity 5 times a week ( there is 1 yoga like workout that I don't count, cause its not cardio). So according to that I should eat 2005 cals a day to lose a lb week.

Oh, gotcha, I wasn't figuring in the deficit.

Hi I've been ignoring the TDEE calculators and MFP recommendations on how much I should eat because it seems so high. I just started Insanity and I think I need to eat properly to support this program. Is there anyone else out there with similar stats as me who is losing on TDEE recommendations?

27 year old Female
CW 201 lb
GW 160 lb
Height: 5' 6"

Im doing Insanity...so I do 40 mins high impact aerobics 5 times a week. I work at an office job..so other than insanity im not very active. My BMR is 1713 cal and my TDEE is 2505. I want to lose 1 lbs per week. So I should eat 2005 cals a day.

Anyone with similar stats as me having success?

Keep in mind that all of these calculators are estimates...they're good starting points based on statistical averages of individuals with similar stats. Really, so long as you don't fall outside of those statistical averages (generally a medical condition of deficiency of some sort) then it works provided your inputs are correct...the old saying garbage in, garbage out.

You might have to tweak things a little bit but ultimately it's just simple math...you need XXXX calories to maintain weight (TDEE)...you cut from that to lose. MFP and TDEE are 6 of 1 if you are doing them right...the problem people run into is they don't understand why they're supposed to eat back calories with MFP (and they often overestimate anyway) and they compare a 2 loss goal with MfP to a 20% TDEE cut which is usually closer to 1 Lb per week.

When it doesn't work, it's generally not the method...it's the approach and user error 9x out of 10...other than that it comes down to medical conditions and/or other deficiencies that are hindering weight loss

i lost 30 lbs in 3 months when i first started dieting and working out. I was eating 1300 - 1400 cals a day and doing 30 minutes of heavy cardio on an elliptical and lifting weights for 10-15 minutes (weights and cardio 5 days a week) I was not eating back my exercise calories. And i was 265 lbs. I dropped weight so fast and then it all stopped. I realize now that i must have killed my metabolism. Once i couldn't lose anymore i quit all the dieting and hard work. I still watched what i ate and off and on for the next year i did some running. I didnt gain anything back but didnt lose either. Now im back at it a year later and i want to lose weight the right way so i can keep losing slowly. Cutting calories back too much will only harm me in the long run. But it is hard for me to wrap my head around eating 2000 cals a day and actually losing weight. Thanks for the input. I think im gonna up my cals to 1600 this week and go to 1800 next week and see how i do at 1800 for a few weeks. ( Before i started Insanity I was eating 1400 and running 2 miles, 3 or 4 times a week)

I wouldn't go up in the next week...leave it at 1600 a couple of weeks, then if you are losing too much (over 1lb a week) then up it again to 1800 and then see how it happens.

And i was 265 lbs. I dropped weight so fast and then it all stopped. I realize now that i must have killed my metabolism. Once i couldn't lose anymore i quit all the dieting and hard work. I still watched what i ate and off and on for the next year i did some running. I didnt gain anything back but didnt lose either.

You won't hurt your metabolism with what you did/are doing. If you eat less calories in a day than you expend (BMR + Exercise), you will feel hungry at times, and that is your body telling you it is converting stored energy (fat) into the energy you need.

If you stall out on weight loss, cut more calories. Eating less always works. You could also NOT exercise and lose weight. But to keep or gain muscle AND lose fat, you do need to do strengthening exercises and get enough protein.

When you lose weight, your maintenance needs also go down (play with your BMR calculator and look at the difference between your current and goal weights). So if you want to lose 1 lb/week, that is 500 cal/day deficit (or 3,500 cal/week which is the energy stored in a pound of fat). Every time you lose weight, you start encroaching into that deficit, so you will lose weight slower unless you also drop your overall intake. It's like chasing a ball downhill - every time you get closer to your goal, it moves some. Every couple of weeks I "reset" my "Goals" in MFP to keep it currrent.

Cut NET calories to balance the amount of hunger you are willing to live with, and a weekly loss that is acceptable (2 lb/week or less). If 1600-1200/day worked for you, go back to that.

Good luck!

My thick head....it finally makes sense. TDEE is confusing when you compare it to MFP. They both give you the same end result...its just displayed differently.

MFP says to lose 1 lb a week I should net 1600 cals. (Eat back exercise cals.)

According to TDEE I should eat 2000 cals with my current fitness program (insanity) I am estimating the 40 min high intensity aerobic workouts to burn 400 cal. So my net cals for days I workout is 1600. On TDEE I do not eat back exercise cals because they are already factored in.

Both ways of figuring put me at 1600 cal net and have me eating 2000 cals a day (on workout days). I'll give it a go. I was netting as low as 1200-1300 and not starving. So eating 1600 on non workout days and 2000 on workout days will be lots.

I dont know why this was so hard for me to understand

I love it when the light bulb comes on...it's a great feeling. Also, keep in mind that intial losses, particularly when you have a lot to lose can be rather large and fast...but they slow down to normal rates of loss eventually which is probably what you're experiencing. Ultimately, weight loss is a slug fest (I prefer it to marathon)...just keep on keepin' on.

I'm losing on TDEE -20%. All my stats are on my profile. I adjust my TDEE and calorie goal daily based on my fitness tracker (Jawbone UP) burn and any exercise I do. I usually eat between 2000-2400 calories on an active day.

the calculators only give you an estimate. If you are losing weight on what the calculator says is your TDEE, then it's not really your TDEE. Your TDEE, by definition, is the amount you have to eat to keep your weight stable. If you're losing weight, you're eating at a deficit, if you're gaining weight, you're eating at a surplus.

The calculators are based on averages, they're not going to be spot on for everyone. You have to use the calculator to give you a starting point, then adjust your calories based on real world results. If you're losing at what the calculator says is your TDEE, then add 100-200 calories and eat that number, and see if your weight is stable (give it at least a week or two so you're not thrown by water weight fluctuations). If it's not, add 100 or so more.... and repeat until you find your actual TDEE.

All the calorie calculators underestimate my TDEE. Katch-McArdle underestimates it by maybe 100 calories or so. Harris Benedict by more than this, and the one MFP uses underestimates it by a ridiculous amount like 300-400 calories. The reason is probably that I have a high lean body mass for my height. I go by real world results though, so it's not really a big deal.

i used scoobysworkshop.com to figure out my tdee. i do eat at that minus 20% and i love it. its a slow loss but im not bothered by that cuz i lift heavy 5 days a week and i do not want to sacrifice my hard earned muscles lol. i just log my workouts as 1 calorie burned and eat pretty much same amt of calories whether i workout or not. cuz according to that site, your workouts are already figured into the calorie range they give you!

I would like to switch to TDEE, to be honest, but I really hate seeing the calories go RED on days I don't exercise.

TDEE users, do you just ignore that?

I will NOT do 1250 calories on days I don't exercise. :mad: :explode: :mad: :explode:

Normally on days I do exercise I'm at 1800 (TDEE-20, but it's also been the same as eating back a portion of exercise calories) and it's been working great. It's the off days I'm not sure about. I've just been putting up with red numbers and just being annoyed by it.

You can manually put in your calorie goal for the day and not use what MFP gives you. I'm doing TDEE - 20%. I don't log my exercise because that was figured in when I did the TDEE calculations. That's the easiest way for me to keep up and it's working.

I would like to switch to TDEE, to be honest, but I really hate seeing the calories go RED on days I don't exercise.

TDEE users, do you just ignore that?

I will NOT do 1250 calories on days I don't exercise. :mad: :explode: :mad: :explode:

Normally on days I do exercise I'm at 1800 (TDEE-20, but it's also been the same as eating back a portion of exercise calories) and it's been working great. It's the off days I'm not sure about. I've just been putting up with red numbers and just being annoyed by it.

You customize your calorie goals to be your gross calories. Most people just log exercise as 1 calorie or just use the comment box when using the TDEE method. You have to ignore pretty much all of the MFP stuff when using the TDEE method because you're utilizing a NEAT method but actually using the TDEE method.

TDEE goes by the hours that you workout per week when using the scooby calculator instead of the intensity level and that is something that worries me..I workout 3-5 times a week for about 30-40 min each time and may burn 180-250 calories. that adds up to about 2 hrs a week or a little over so I chose the category of 1-3 hrs per wk-Did I do that correct?