Seriously MPF?!

Ok I used your calculator and it gives two very different BMR numbers for you. One is the Harris-Benedict Formula and it specifies your BMR at 1898. The other formula it used is the Katch-McArdle and it read as follows: Based on the information you provided, body fat percentage of 58.1%, you have a lean body mass of 99 lbs., and your BMR is 1342 calories.

I think the Katch-McArdle is more specific because it takes into account your lean body mass so if I were you I would not assume that your BMR is anywhere near 1890. I wouldn't start eating more. I would eat witht the assumption that your BMR is actually 1342.

I need to get my body fat percentage calculated because I think this is a key number to have when trying out different calorie levels.

Katch-McArdle disregards the energy required to maintain the bodyfat so it is not accurate for untrained obese people. You should use Katch-McArdle if you are strong and lean.

Which is exactly why I didn't use it myself. I researched each method of calculation, and the Harris-Benedict seemed to it my situation the most accurately.

Carry on! :drinker:

WFT?

But seriously, it sounds like you're well on your way. :flowerforyou:


ETA: My advice re: BMR/TDEE/calorie limit is start with the higher one you have from that site. Figure out your calorie limit and stick to it...consistently...and weight and measure everything. Weigh daily (if you can handle scale volatility). Do this for 4-6. Monitor your results. With this information, you'll have the data you need to calculate your own specific TDEE. Adjust your limit accordingly (either up or down) and go again for 4-6 weeks. Repeat until goal.

It really is this simple.

Based on your body fat percentage on this calculator, your BMR is only 1295.

http://www.naturalphysiques.com/20/basal-metabolic-rate-bmr

Holy COW No, just no. There is no way her BMR is 1295. Its 1900. MINE is 1212 and I am 110 pounds.

OP, keep on keeping on. You can do this. Just remember, everything is about your next good choice. It took me years to get where I am, and I did it by a series of good choices, a better one every day than I made the day before. I know if I tried it all at once, I failed every time.

Good luck!

Wait - I'm kind of new to this and I"m a little confused. I went to http://www.fat2fittools.com/tools/bmr/ and calculated my BMR. I've been trying to eat between 1200 and 1400 calories/day (plus some exercise and usually not eating back those calories). The calculator said my BMR is 1313 and I should be eating 1603 calories/day if I'm sedentary. So I should be eating MORE?

Yeah you should definitely be eating more. If you starve yourself like that you are just going to end up losing your muscle, having your metabolism tank and your body suffer as a result. You might lose a lot at first but it will become harder and harder to lose and you will just feel worse and worse. If your BMR is 1300 and you exercise your TDEE (the amount you would eat to maintain your weight) is probably in the 1800-2000 range. For safe weightloss you want to eat calories between your BMR and your TDEE so probably something like 1500-1600 calories a day. You will still lose weight doing that and it will be more sustainable without causing yourself harm.

I think that your BMR should just be a guideline. Yes technology is awesome and is aiding us in getting to our goals, but I personally don't think..in aspect to weight loss..you should be afraid of eating too little. Yes so in the case of a person who has depleted him/herself with extreme deficits will enter starvation mode over time, but usually this will happen to someone who doesn't have many reserves . It doesn't happen in a day or in a week for someone who has a lot of excess weight. Worst thing that will happen is your metabolism will slow down, but it is physically very highly unlikely for a person to gain weight when the calories in vs calories out is a deficit.

Starvation mode is caused by a huge drop in metabolic rate, over time. Eating too little will possibly cause your metabolism to slow down, and perhaps even to the point where it will prevent weight loss, but definitely not weight gain.

Adaptive Thermogenesis is the process of metabolic rate slowing down over time due to a prolonged deficit, the more excessive a deficit is, the more weight lost. It actually slows down little by little. However when you jump back to the original lifestyle, the weight will come back. That is why it's best to make a lifestyle change.

The bigger picture is that your body is losing weight every day, and you need to tweak your diet/intake accordingly.
A woman's body is likely to retain water weight from +/- day 21 to day 7 in her cycle, for an average of 5 days in those days.

People are scared to enter starvation mode, but it's unlikely, any deficit will cause weight loss,, which will require constant tweaking of calorie deficit (not starvation). An excessive/extreme deficit over time will cause extreme weight loss, and you will probably pick it up again if it is not sustained (which is referred to as starvation mode). Here is a little info, http://www.aworkoutroutine.com/starvation-mode/

I don't recommend an extreme calorie deficit, it's extremely unhealthy and a fad diet which will slow your metabolism down in the long run and make all those precious pounds you lost come right back. Eating a tad over or under your daily requirements will not really impact your weight loss over time, many people keep weekly diaries as well, which is great, because if you over do it on Tuesday, you can fix it on Wednesday and not give up.

My actual point is, listen to your body..learn to distinguish between thirst and hunger, comfort/emotional and real hunger, the psychology about weight loss plays a bigger role than people like to believe.

“It’s very easy to confuse dehydration with hunger,” says Wansink. “We know our body is craving something and we just assume that it’s food – but frequently it’s liquids, especially in active people. I would guess that seven times out of 10, what people think of as hunger is really just a mild case of dehydration.” Extract from mind over fatter (which is an amazing eye opener book about how we think about weight)

It has been a month now and I hope you have been successful!

PS: I just wanted to give a clear description about starvation mode, I am not in any way intending that an extreme deficit diet must be followed, just that you shouldn't worry too much about starvation mode. Trust me, I've learnt the real hard way that shortcuts don't work in the long run. I have a fond interest in researching nutrition and how your body works via books, information sessions by doctors/therapists & internet, it's incredibly interesting