MFP vs IIFYM
irNathaniel
Posts: 178 Member
Ok - So im lost. MFP tells me to lose weight I need to eat 1600 Calories a day, thats at 2pound loss a week - on http://iifym.com/iifym-calculator/ it tells me to eat 2500 calories a day, thats to exact data.
Data is :
CARBS PROTEIN FAT FIBER CALORIES
GRAMS per day 249.9 196.8 63 51 - 64 2354
GRAMS per meal 83.3 65.6 21 17 - 21 785
How can this be? which do i listen too?
Data is :
CARBS PROTEIN FAT FIBER CALORIES
GRAMS per day 249.9 196.8 63 51 - 64 2354
GRAMS per meal 83.3 65.6 21 17 - 21 785
How can this be? which do i listen too?
0
Replies
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Me personally.... I go with IIFYM. Again, my personal choice, becasue for me it makes sense.
The difference is that in MFP you have to input the calories from exercise and then eat them back. With IIFYM caluclations you don't need to eat them back.
Why I say it makes sense. I burn between 800 to 1400 cals on a workout. Which means that on days I don't work out I get to eat 1600 cals ( let's say ) and on days when I do workout I can eat up to 3000 clas? I think this will mess me up very well ... so I prefer to have it well distribuited.
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Bear in mind that IIFYM includes exercise activity in its calculations, MFP expects you to record exercise outside your everyday activity separately.0
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Right, So IIFYM would make more sense then if you had a weekly routine. This is something I tend to do so to me it would make sense to go with IIFYM and use my Macro's with the calories, making sure Im hitting them, but this would mean coming up with my own solution to making sure I do hit them.
It's a bit difficult for me because of the way me and mrs do our weekly shopping plus we eat at her parents 2 or 3 nights a week. So I will have to come up with a solution.0 -
the IIFYM calculator goes a bit crazy with the amount fo protein you need, especially i you dont know your bodyfat %. 0.8 x your bodyweight in lbs is a pretty good measure for how much protein you need.0
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Well my routine includes alot of lifting - so more protein would be a bonus right? so if i stick to IIFYM to extra protein will help with muscle mass (lean or not).0
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Well my routine includes alot of lifting - so more protein would be a bonus right? so if i stick to IIFYM to extra protein will help with muscle mass (lean or not).
theres not really such a thing as too much protein, as you say it helps you retain LBM and keeps you fuller longer, but at the same time, your body only needs a certain amount and getting over and above that amount as no benefit.0 -
Well my routine includes alot of lifting - so more protein would be a bonus right? so if i stick to IIFYM to extra protein will help with muscle mass (lean or not).
theres not really such a thing as too much protein, as you say it helps you retain LBM and keeps you fuller longer, but at the same time, your body only needs a certain amount and getting over and above that amount as no benefit.
This is correct, no benefit getting more than you "need", but no harm in getting more either.
Also IIFYM probably only gives you a 20% deficit from TDEE which would be about 600 cals in your case, where you are telling MFP to give you a deficit of 1000 cals. I suggest a goal of no more than 1 lb/week (500 cals) prefrabley less. Since you only have 11 lbs to lose I suggest TDEE -15%, which if you were at - 20% would give you 2656 cals0 -
I go to my in-laws once a week. I ask ahead of time what we're eating and I have most of her recipes now (she cycles through things). That way I can try to fit things in. I don't stress about hitting my macros all the time (not my priority right now) but I do try to hit my protein as much as I can. Do what will work for you for life.0
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Is anyone else here glad MFP doesnt have a lose 5lbs per week option?0
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Its probably more like the 2500....
I'm 5'3, 147 pounds and can eat about 1800-1900 on average and lose weight pretty well.0 -
Okay - I will say it.. with so little to lose you should not be looking at the 2 lb option... at all. Change MFP to .5 pounds and see what you get.0
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MFP tells me 1200 and some change, IIFYM tells me between 1600-1900 depending which forumula I use . I am doing 1600 per day (it can be over/under a bit, but around that). I am .04 short of 2 lbs. this week but I don't do my weekly weigh in until tomorrow morning.Ok - So im lost. MFP tells me to lose weight I need to eat 1600 Calories a day, thats at 2pound loss a week - on http://iifym.com/iifym-calculator/ it tells me to eat 2500 calories a day, thats to exact data.
Data is :
CARBS PROTEIN FAT FIBER CALORIES
GRAMS per day 249.9 196.8 63 51 - 64 2354
GRAMS per meal 83.3 65.6 21 17 - 21 785
How can this be? which do i listen too?
It seems to be working, because when I was eating 1400-1500 I was losing less, although I also could have had some weight lifting water retention.0 -
MFP tells me that I should eat 1500 cals/day for maintenance. 1500 cals/day is too few calories for me even eating at a deficit. I lose weight on 1800 cals/day (slowly, because I'm already at my goal weight and just eating for maintenance plus cutting and bulking cycles so I shouldn't have too big a deficit) .... I actually maintain around 2100 cals/day.
The underestimate seems to come from two factors... 1. MFP expects me to log and eat back exercise calories (though the amount of exercise I do doesn't equal 600 cals/day so it's still an underestimate).... 2. I have a high lean body mass for my height and MFP uses a formula based on weight and height only, not body fat percentage or lean body mass... lean body mass is more metabolically active than fat mass, so this kind of calculator is going to underestimate the BMR of someone with a high lean body mass for their height. Katch McArdle, which is based on weight and lean body mass (rather than height) gives me an estimate that's much closer than the MFP estimate.
In any case, no matter what calculator you use, it's not going to be spot on, as it's a prediction based on averages. Most people find they need to adjust the calorie numbers up or down a little based on their real world results, until they find the ideal calorie number, i.e. where you see slow and steady fat loss, but still have enough calories to not be hungry all the time and eat all the foods you want to include in your diet (albeit with adjusted portion sizes).0 -
I understand that, but even if I said I am a couch potato (which I definitely am not) and took the 1637 calculation IIFYM gave me minus 20%, I am still over a hundred calories more than MFP.Bear in mind that IIFYM includes exercise activity in its calculations, MFP expects you to record exercise outside your everyday activity separately.
In reality, I exercise more like at least 6 workouts per week, although some may be on the same day. Since MFP doesn't consider the exercise to calculate your initial calories, I think the only valid comparison to what it tells you to eat is the couch potato calculation.0 -
Is anyone else here glad MFP doesnt have a lose 5lbs per week option?
Holy crap yes...wowsers...
I have found that what MFP gives me for a daily intake + exercise calories is actually my TDEE-20% (which is 1lb a week)...it might not work out for everyone but I think if they choose the right activity level...a reasonable amount of weight to lose weekly it should work out pretty good.
To the OP yes change MFP to 1/2lb a week
If you have 75+ lbs to lose 2 lbs/week is ideal
If you have 40-75 lbs to lose 1.5 lbs/week is ideal
If you have 25-40 lbs to lose 1 lbs/week is ideal
If you have 15 -25 lbs to lose 0.5 to 1.0 lbs/week is ideal
If you have less than 15 lbs to lose 0.5 lbs/week is ideal
BTW I use IIFYM as well...I find their TDEE number more in line with reality as opposed to scooby which is over my calculations by 100 calories..doesn't seem like much but x7 that is an extra 700 calories a week...1lb in 5 weeks is what I would probably gain if I used scooby....0 -
Not true, MFP didn't "tell" you that - it was your choice to select 2lbs a week, MFP didn't tell you to make that choice.Ok - So im lost. MFP tells me to lose weight I need to eat 1600 Calories a day, thats at 2pound loss a week.
It's just a calculator, by selecting a very rapid weight loss goal you get a dreadfully low calorie allowance (to achieve that rate of loss means a 1,000 calorie a day deficit).
I would recommend you make a more conservative choice.0 -
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mfp calculator is much better imo, mfp usually estimates way too low in my experience0
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You're not supposed to be losing 2 lbs/week, you're supposed to be losing 0.5 lbs/week, because you have 5 kg to go.0
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Is anyone else here glad MFP doesnt have a lose 5lbs per week option?
Most of the threads I have seen where the majority of replies tell the OP they arent eating enough are due to MFP telling the person to eat 1200 calories a day based on their 2lb per week goal. (2lbs per week (of actual fat - ~7000 cal deficit) is pretty aggressive)
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Ok - So im lost. MFP tells me to lose weight I need to eat 1600 Calories a day, thats at 2pound loss a week - on http://iifym.com/iifym-calculator/ it tells me to eat 2500 calories a day, thats to exact data.
Data is :
CARBS PROTEIN FAT FIBER CALORIES
GRAMS per day 249.9 196.8 63 51 - 64 2354
GRAMS per meal 83.3 65.6 21 17 - 21 785
How can this be? which do i listen too?
http://iifym.com/iifym-calculator/
Step 1: Calculate Your TDEE (daily calories required)
MFP Calculator =/= TDEE IIFYM Calculator
They are 2 different calculations. If you are going to use http://iifym.com/iifym-calculator/ you dont eat back exercise calories on MFP. All of your work/exercise/activity is figured into your TDEE. So if you record calories burned in an activity on MFP use 1 calorie.
MFP is setup to record and eat back exercise calories.
I hope that answers / helps.0 -
I was following MFP's calorie recommendations and have been working out like a fiend....5 days a week up to 11 workouts in total. And, I've been starving. I have done this for months and lost nothing and actually gained inches. So, I tried IIFYM and increased my calories and followed my macros. Guess what? I lost 2.4lbs!! This has not happened since before February! So, yep....right now I'm a firm believer that IIFYM works IMHO. YWLSMV (your weight loss success may vary - we all have different things that work for us).
MFP was saying I would only lose .2lbs a week eating what IIFYM recommended and I'm following the reckless calorie amount! 0
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Wd8tZiHexPc
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