Help finding TDEE

Options
Hello,

I've been trying to use MFP on and off for awhile now. I've found that the 1200 calories it sets for me leaves me hungry most of the time and with no successful results. I've recently seen posts about using TDEE instead. I've come across a website that factors in your target goal weight to give you a TDEE and have come up with 1596. Given my stats below, does this seem accurate? I'm trying to factor in more excercise but it's been difficult with the winter and busy life lately! As the excercise increases, should I re-evalulate this number?
Female, 29yrs, 5'1, 157lbs, target 130lbs, sedentary (desk job, maybe 1-2 light workouts/week)

Replies

  • clarebear230786
    clarebear230786 Posts: 30 Member
    Options
    from the figures you have given this is about right :)
  • melaniecheeks
    melaniecheeks Posts: 6,349 Member
    Options
    That's about right. But remember that it's a rough guide, not an exact figure. Clearly the amount of energy you use each day is going to be different, so this is just a target range.

    I'd go for 1600, and aim to be +/- 100 calories of that. Try for a month, assess results, tweak.
  • sirvivor007
    sirvivor007 Posts: 45 Member
    Options
    Your BMR with an activity factor of 1.2 (no exercise) is 1785 calories. To use a 20% deficit you would eat 1425 calories a day. If you only did this consistently you would lose about 1/2 pound per week. However you have a VERY small margin of error per day. about 300 calories. You can eaily miss that many calories in say, the dressing on a salad if you are not super mindful.

    If and when you can fit in exercise eat back half the calories burned. Days you cant exercise stick to 1425. DONT over estimate your exercise calories, which is easy to do. The treadmill may say you burned 300 calories in an hour, but it doesnt factor in age, weight, heigth, and heart rate. Nor does it subtract the calories you would have normally burned in that hour do nothing and most people miss this in the calculations.

    A few 100 calories over/below will be the differnce in consistent loss or no loss/gain
  • derio
    derio Posts: 4 Member
    Options
    I randomly opened two topics. Yours and this, which I'll just leave here:
    http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/1176534-i-m-sexy-and-i-know-it-my-first-year-of-strength-training

    Don't starve yourself. Eat more and lift heavy. This could be you in a year: :smile:
  • SezxyStef
    SezxyStef Posts: 15,268 Member
    Options
    Why does MFP have you set at 1200? Are you aiming for over 1lb a week loss??? if so go for 1lb or even 1/2lb.

    As for TDEE, if you use an online calculator it is an estimate.

    If you want your true TDEE you need to be accurate with logging, meaning weighing your food and the calculation goes like this

    Total calories consume+(lbs lost x 3500)/# of days (preferably over 2 weeks)

    That gives you your true TDEE...no guessing, no estimate. Subtract 15-20% off if you want to be agressive and eat that everyday regardless of exercise. This does need re-evaluated based on weight etc but not as exercise increases as you can't guarantee you will do that all the time.