Please help figuring out appropiate TDEE!

cabrerva · January 2014

Hello All,

First off thank you for taking the time to read and respond to my post.

Second, I have read the original topic of "TOPIC: TDEE & BMR: What they are and what to do with them" (TOPIC: TDEE & BMR: What they are and what to do with them) about two times, but I am not 100% sure I am calculating this correctly.

Stats: I am 23 years old, 5"3 and currently weight 164. My highest weight was around 185. My current goal is to get down to 140lbs. My ultimate goal weight would likely be around 130lbs.

My husband and I have stopped eating junk food for over a year now. We recently got serious about eating cleaner, and started that around November 2013. In December 13' I purchased a new weight scale, as well as a food scale to educate myself on portion sizes. I also read a bit on macros (beginner's stuff) and I always include a protein such as egg whites, chicken or turkey in our meals. I have a very crazy work schedule, sometimes I work for home, some days I am on the road for hours, some days I am sitting at my desk for the day. I have established attempting to have at least 3 to 4 meals with snacks in between. Since January 1st we have added going to the gym. I have started with Cardio (walking on treadmill at 3.5-4 MPH for 30 minutes, as well as the stationary bike or elliptical for 10 minutes) I am now 100% looking to pick up strength training, as I have read it can provide Women with a more toned look.

I calculated my BMR as 1554. (based off the Scooby's Workshop calculator.)

For days where I work from home/the office (no working out/ days off) I calculated my TDEE as "Sedentary - desk job and little to no exercise" TDEE=1865 , to lose 20% fat TDEE is 1492

For days where I am attending the gym "3-5 hrs / week MODERATE exercise" my Tdee is 2410. TDEE - 20% fat is 1928.

I am currently eating about 1200 calories, the first few weeks I would definitely go over. However my body is now accustomed to them and I find I have to make an effort to consume all 1200. (No, I don't feel hungry that often but I am sure I could add more meals throughout the day)

Anyone can critique my calculations? Thanks!! :flowerforyou:

cwolfman13 · January 2014

When you do TDEE it is basically an average over the course of the week...you don't take in different calories per your workouts, etc. You will have days when you are essentially "over-eating" and days when you are essentially "under-eating"...in the end it should average out.

So you should choose the descriptor that best describes your week, not your day. These calculators are good starting points, but you'll likely have to tweak things...nobody has a TDEE of exactly XXXX calories. For me, the "light active" was too few and the "moderate" was too many...I'm somewhere in between the two. I also have a desk job and I don't go nuts working out...basically 45-60 minutes on the bike 3-4 days per week, lifting 3x per week and cross training cardio work once per week. On my rest day I still eat 2700 - 2800 calories to maintain. Been maintaining for 7 months now.

cabrerva · January 2014

Thanks, that is helpful. It just seems like a big jump from 1200 to almost 1900 for moderately working out. Maybe I should try out going up to 1400 or somewhere near that and see how it goes!

Francl27 · January 2014

Yes TDEE is an average. I'd put you at lightly active with what you're doing, at best, if you're mostly sitting the rest of the time. Definitely not moderately active...

For what it's worth, with the weight I've lost and my TDEE calculations, I was moderately active when I walked one hour on the treadmill every day, and did some weight training of some sort twice a week (I sit most of the time otherwise). It's my issue with TDEE calculators, they don't seem to take into account your non-exercise activity at all.

parkscs · January 2014

Thanks, that is helpful. It just seems like a big jump from 1200 to almost 1900 for moderately working out. Maybe I should try out going up to 1400 or somewhere near that and see how it goes!

I think that's the right approach. Honestly all the calculators can do is give you an estimate. You should use them as a starting point and see how you feel when you eat that many calories. I would experiment for a few weeks and use it as an opportunity to learn more about your body.

cwolfman13 · January 2014

Thanks, that is helpful. It just seems like a big jump from 1200 to almost 1900 for moderately working out. Maybe I should try out going up to 1400 or somewhere near that and see how it goes!

Keep in mind that you also have to think of your other day to day activities as well, not just your exercise. You also need to think about the intensity of your exercise, etc. Example, I workout about 6-8 hours per week...but if I put high active or whatever, it's way too much ...because I work at various intensities and not all of it is balls to the wall...in fact very little of my exercise is balls to the wall. I also have a desk job so sit most of the day until I get home and then I'm taking care of my 18 m.o. and 4 y.o. and cooking and cleaning and fixing, etc.

You just have to play with your numbers....If I were you I would start at light active and give it 3-4 weeks and see where you are and make adjustments then. I started at light active and had to adjust up just a little...not much.

Also understand that the two methods are 6 of 1 if you're doing them right and comparing apples to apples loss goals. TDEE - 20% is roughly 1 Lb per week...and 1200 MFP is usually for 2 Lbs per week. Also, you're supposed to eat back an estimate of your exercise calories with MFP...with TDEE you don't do that because that estimate is already included in your activity level.

My MFP goal to lose 1 Lb per week was about 1850...with exercise I was grossing 2100 - 2200 calories most days. My TDEE - 20% is 2160 to lose about 1 Lb per week. As you can see...6 of 1, half dozen of the other.

meshashesha2012 · January 2014

i do the TDEE method and i go with the moderately active option.

i also have a desk job, but i figured out that the moderately active option assumes that in those 3-5 workouts i'm burning 300-500 calories per workout (which i do) so i think it;s a good approximation.

from there i just deducted 1000 calories from the daily total in order to lose 2 pounds a week. that still leaves me with a decent amount of food to eat, but as i get closer to my goal i'll lower my weight loss goal to 1 pound a week.

you dont have to eat that exact amount every day, you could also leave a few hundred calories a day and save for 1 day out of the week where you'll be hungrier.

also, i put your info in the calculator here http://www.fat2fitradio.com/tools/bmr/ and got this to maintain your current weight:

Sedentary (little or no exercise, desk job) 1867
Lightly Active (light exercise/sports 1-3 days/wk) 2140
Moderately Active (moderate exercise/sports 3-5 days/wk) 2412
Very Active (hard exercise/sports 6-7 days/wk) 2684
Extremely Active (hard daily exercise/sports & physical job or 2X day training, i.e marathon, contest etc.) 2956

cabrerva · January 2014

I guess it's hard because even at the office I am not entirely sitting down, and I do for the most part travel to see clients at least 3 if not 4 days of my week. I have a fibit force and I am currently tracking my steps and distance throughout the day.. Ideally I would only use the lower TDEE only on my off days from the gym. I may take your advice & start with lightly active until I can up my cardio/strength training over the next few weeks.

cabrerva · January 2014

I don't think I am at the point where I burn that much during workouts, although I am certainly working my way up there! If I go to the gym consistently for the next month or so I will reward myself with an HRM monitor to help keep my cardio in check

cabrerva · January 2014

Agree, definitely going for lightly active for now , I'm convinced, thanks!

meshashesha2012 · January 2014

I guess it's hard because even at the office I am not entirely sitting down, and I do for the most part travel to see clients at least 3 if not 4 days of my week. I have a fibit force and I am currently tracking my steps and distance throughout the day.. Ideally I would only use the lower TDEE only on my off days from the gym. I may take your advice & start with lightly active until I can up my cardio/strength training over the next few weeks.

TDEE is more a weekly average (a big clue to that is the fact that exercise limits are broken down by how many times per week). so you dont have to change up the amount you eat per day.

cabrerva · January 2014

Seriously.

I think my stomach's size has literally shrunk, as I get full so much quicker now. I definitely haven't even felt like 1200 is low (a little at the beginning, but I was probably eating about 2500 calories before) , but now I want to be good to my body & give it enough fuel.

DanaHerro · January 2014

i do the TDEE method and i go with the moderately active option.

i also have a desk job, but i figured out that the moderately active option assumes that in those 3-5 workouts i'm burning 300-500 calories per workout (which i do) so i think it;s a good approximation.

from there i just deducted 1000 calories from the daily total in order to lose 2 pounds a week. that still leaves me with a decent amount of food to eat, but as i get closer to my goal i'll lower my weight loss goal to 1 pound a week.

you dont have to eat that exact amount every day, you could also leave a few hundred calories a day and save for 1 day out of the week where you'll be hungrier.

also, i put your info in the calculator here http://www.fat2fitradio.com/tools/bmr/ and got this to maintain your current weight:

Sedentary (little or no exercise, desk job) 1867
Lightly Active (light exercise/sports 1-3 days/wk) 2140
Moderately Active (moderate exercise/sports 3-5 days/wk) 2412
Very Active (hard exercise/sports 6-7 days/wk) 2684
Extremely Active (hard daily exercise/sports & physical job or 2X day training, i.e marathon, contest etc.) 2956

This. 1000 times this. I use lightly active, even though I workout 5-6 times per week and run about 15 miles a week....but I give myself about 1650/day. I don't always eat that much but I at LEAST eat 1400/day. IMO 1200 is too little and you could be hindering your weight loss by not "fueling the fire" as it were. Then one day a week I have a cheat meal so I have 1 day a week where I likely eat closer to 2500-3000 calories. It all balances out as I don't eat my exercise calories back either

Look at it more as a weekly caloric goal rather than daily, but I still think 1200 is too little. Yeah, it'll be hard at first, you'll feel stuffed, but spread it out along the day and try higher calories foods. For example, a handful of almonds or 2T of peanut butter is a quick 170-200 calories to add to your day without having to stuff yourself ya know?

DonM46 · January 2014

Please point to where MFP calculates TDEE.
You can't.
It's not needed.
I didn't know what this was until I'd reached my goal.
Weight watchers uses some kind of point system.
Other weight loss approaches use a myriad of alternate systems.
THIS is MFP.
Why do people continue to introduce external and unrelated elements?
If you want to follow MFP;s recommendations, fine, stay here and do that.
If you want to use points or TDEE, fine, use some other program.

FoxyLifter · January 2014

I definitely haven't even felt like 1200 is low (a little at the beginning, but I was probably eating about 2500 calories before) , but now I want to be good to my body & give it enough fuel.

I would like to point out that 1200 might not feel low because your brain has stopped sending hunger pangs. Why send them if the feeling will just be ignored? In turn, the brain saves the energy it would use to send them. No hunger pangs =/= getting enough fuel for your body. Many people with anorexia don't feel hungry. This is probably why.

P.S. Although I mentioned anorexia, please don't think that I think that you are showing signs of anorexia. Sometimes, people mistakenly set an aggressive weight loss goal for their current weight. It seems to be a come trend on MFP, especially at the beginning of the new year.

Boogage · January 2014

I reckon 1200 is too low for most people. It can be a scary thought to eat so much but I tried the low calorie approach and was exhausted constantly and my hair started to turn white! Not good. Upping my cals was very hard as I struggled for a long time to eat more but it was the best thing I could have done for my health and it helped me break a long plateau.

Don't know if this info will help but, I haven't started exercising again yet (Christmas and illness has thrown out my routine) so I am fairly sedentary currently and I've been consuming 1500-1550 cals a day for the last 11 days. In this time the couple of pounds I gained over Christmas has come off and my weight now seems to be holding steady. I'll be eating even more once I get back to exercising especially as I want to bulk. I'm 5'4 and 107lbs.

cabrerva · January 2014

awesome advice, thank you! I think I started to feel the tear & wear from only eating 1200 at this point.. I had a tough week last week and fell off the wagon a bit. My husband was sick and I made a million excuses and didn't make it to the gym, my eating was not also great- but today's a new day! Just got a stationary bike in, but man that seat is so hard. Definitely going to try 1400.

cabrerva · January 2014

Good point, different approaches do seem to all work if people just follow through

cabrerva · January 2014

I see what you mean, and I think I agree, as I was not feeling hungry anymore! I have been on MFP for a while, on and off, but I honestly could have never believed that eating over 1200 could still be healthy- or even necessary

Please help figuring out appropiate TDEE!

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