Eating at TDEE - 20%. Help! Does it work?

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Replies

  • Cobwellac
    Cobwellac Posts: 75 Member
    Sadly, my TDEE minus 20% is just under 1150. Boo!
  • 3dogsrunning
    3dogsrunning Posts: 27,167 Member
    Sadly, my TDEE minus 20% is just under 1150. Boo!

    With 4lbs to lose, 20% is too high of a goal.
    You seem to exercise often, did you include that in your TDEE?
  • rachelannecraig
    rachelannecraig Posts: 92
    bump
  • Annelies11
    Annelies11 Posts: 174 Member
    Sadly, my TDEE minus 20% is just under 1150. Boo!

    If you have just a few pounds to lose I would strongly suggest eating TDEE-10%, or eating at maintenance and doing heavy lifting to build muscle (which is what I am doing). It is making me look more toned, my body fat % is going down, and it increases calorie burn throughout the day. Plus I feel healthy and strong, which was not the case when I was eating 1200 cals/day!

    Eating less than 1200 cals a day will hurt your body and cause you to lose muscle. Are you working out? Did you factor that into your TDEE? I only work out 3x per week for 45 minutes and my TDEE is 2000.
  • Cobwellac
    Cobwellac Posts: 75 Member
    I wear a FitBit, which gives me my TDEE. I do lift heavy, about 3-4 times a week.
  • AmyRhubarb
    AmyRhubarb Posts: 6,890 Member
    <
    Yes it works! I also went to TDEE minus 20% (1800 cals a day) and have had my absolute best success since doing so over a year ago. I'm up to 1950+ now - diary is open, photos in my profile, and info with milestones and that sort of thing (I think it's visible) on the left side of my profile.

    Best move I ever made was eating according to the road map! :drinker:
  • diolpah
    diolpah Posts: 134 Member
    Wait, let me check . . .

    . . . ok, back. Yup, the fundamental laws of thermodynamics are still in effect.
  • CrimsonDiva7
    CrimsonDiva7 Posts: 171 Member
    Making the transition up to TDEE minus 20% (at 1670 now) but struggling with clean eating.
  • Warchortle
    Warchortle Posts: 2,197 Member
    Why would it scare you? The idea of eating less than you burn.
  • mareeee1234
    mareeee1234 Posts: 674 Member
    It is PETRIFYING, but I am SO glad I did it. Its so sad to see girls eat so low, when they CAN eat more and still not get fat !

    I started off by doing a 'metabolism rest', eating tdee for 8 weeks (2000 cals for me)
    I also started lifting 3 x a week (Stronglifts program) at the same time
    I didn't get fat in these 8 weeks - eating more, dropping cardio, and lifting made sure of that :)

    I now eat 1600-1800 calories, still lift 3 x a week and do cardio about 2 times a week and love it !

    ... I'm only 5' btw and EAT ;)
  • csheltra26
    csheltra26 Posts: 272 Member
    I'm so glad you posted this, i'm going through the same thinking right now. I have been on this site and logging for about 5 weeks and lost about 16lb. I just did the TDEE-20 and it wants to up my calorie from 1500 to 2400. This just sounds crazy to me and i'm not sure what to do either! I'm 6'2 255lbs.

    I'm certainly no expert but 1500 cals seems awfully low to me for someone who is 6'2.

    Agreed on this. I am much shorter and I eat more than 1500 calories a day and the scale has been moving. We don't need to starve ourselves, just eat 500 calories less than we burn each day for a 1 pound a week weight loss. My hubby is 5'10 and has a lot of muscle. We both had our BMR's calculated and he burns 2800 calories a day just to live. Mine was 1600. That doesn't take into account any activity or moving around we do. He could easily eat just 2800 a day and lose weight.

    2400 calories sounds about right for you. I would add 100-200 calories a day and increase that much week over week until you hit 2400. Good luck!
  • mareeee1234
    mareeee1234 Posts: 674 Member
    Also -

    In the first couple weeks I was feeling a bit bloated, but knew to stick with it

    By 4-6 weeks, I was feeling much better!
  • mareeee1234
    mareeee1234 Posts: 674 Member
    And

    Check out the "eat more to weigh less" group

    lots of posts.. people sharing their experiences ect:


    http://www.myfitnesspal.com/groups/home/3817-eat-more-to-weigh-less

    :flowerforyou:
  • csheltra26
    csheltra26 Posts: 272 Member
    Sadly, my TDEE minus 20% is just under 1150. Boo!

    Are you sure about that? I am under 5' tall and my BMR is 1600, making my TDEE even higher than that. It's not BMR less 500, it's TDEE. 2 very different numbers.
  • determinedbutlazy
    determinedbutlazy Posts: 1,941 Member
    I gained 3lbs then dropped it after a month... Plus another 10lb in the following three months.
    It works. Just make sure you stick to your regular activity level and I don't see why it wouldn't work for you :)
  • rschreiber
    rschreiber Posts: 23 Member
    Just this week I figured out my TDEE - 20% at Lightly Active (that would not include exercise) and then am adding in my exercise on top of that. I find it very motivating to add in Exercise Calories, but the goal that MFP set for me just wasn't enough on my resting days. That's okay, right?
  • HartJames
    HartJames Posts: 789 Member
    Bumppsss
  • redraidergirl2009
    redraidergirl2009 Posts: 2,560 Member
    since I am just starting I am wondering if I should just eat at the TDEE - 20% or start closer to my TDEE which is 2395?
  • luticiaf
    luticiaf Posts: 92 Member
    Me too, just started! I felt like I'd been eating alllll day. A little apprehensive, it is a complete mind shift, eh? I'm giving it a week anyway... I'll add you!
  • luticiaf
    luticiaf Posts: 92 Member
    for the record, if you go from 1200 to 1800 fast, you'll probably gain a little weight while your body adjusts to the new amount. Better to gradually up your calories over about a 1 to 2 month period to let your body adapt, I'd say anywhere from 100 to 200 calorie increase with about 7 to 10 days allowed to let your body settle. It's a little different for everyone, but that's a pretty standard method.

    Yes, I had kind of wondered if this might be a problem... I'll keep it in mind for the next few days
  • 2stepz
    2stepz Posts: 814 Member
    Question: Is there a weight loss range where this TDEE-20% works best? Or should this be followed for all?

    If someone has a very large amount to lose (>75 lbs) is TDEE - 20% enough? Seems very slow, as when I do all the calculations, that is less than 1 lb per week loss.
  • Lyadeia
    Lyadeia Posts: 4,603 Member
    Hello!

    I read all of the information on eating at TDEE - 20%, as opposed to 500 calories less than your BMR as is sometimes suggested. So I basically went from being told to eat 1200 calories (MFP suggestion based on wanting to lose 1.5 pounds a week) to 1800 calories based on the TDEE -20% equation.

    I am so scared of eating this much! If any women have done this can you share your stories/experiences (i'm a woman so my experiences with weight loss might be different than a man's)? Did it take a while for the weight to come off or did you see it immediately. I do agree that 1200 calories is too low but 1800 seems so high.

    If anyone can tell me about their thoughts on it, that would be great! My stats: 29 year old female, weight is 150 pounds. I have around 32% body fat (based on calculations online and a trainer recently tested it). I work out 3-4 times a week, twice with resistance training, twice with high intensity cardio. I don't need to lose weight quickly but I do want to see it move each week.

    Suggestions? Thanks in advance!

    MFP places me at 1260 calories plus exercise calories which is about 1600 or so a day. I did this for a while, but my weight loss came to a complete halt. I had some very knowledgeable people tell me to eat less...which seemed awful since I was already fatigued in my workouts...and then I had some other people try to grind it into my head about TDEE-20% which is something that I already knew worked, but was terrified to do. That was a month ago. In this past month, I broke my plateau following the second set of advice and setting my goal to 1775 calories. I have no idea what I weigh since I am not bound to the scale, but I will say that I am wearing size 5/6 jeans and that a month ago, those exact same jeans were too tight. My body fat is dropping steadily now that I am eating more!
  • Lyadeia
    Lyadeia Posts: 4,603 Member
    Question: Is there a weight loss range where this TDEE-20% works best? Or should this be followed for all?

    If someone has a very large amount to lose (>75 lbs) is TDEE - 20% enough? Seems very slow, as when I do all the calculations, that is less than 1 lb per week loss.

    People who have more to lose can eat as little as TDEE-30% safely, but should never eat less than that. As you get leaner, you will need to eat more.

    I ate TDEE-30% until I got down to 22% body fat and then I started eating TDEE-20% and started losing more.
  • Annelies11
    Annelies11 Posts: 174 Member
    I wear a FitBit, which gives me my TDEE. I do lift heavy, about 3-4 times a week.

    I can't help but think you must be doing something wrong then. There is no way your TDEE -20% is 1150 if you work out. Are you sure you are not using BMR to calculate?

    What is your age, weight and height?
  • nicholemaryaday
    nicholemaryaday Posts: 1 Member
    I am hoping this works for me!

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