Having difficulty with determining Calorie intake

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tarmack
tarmack Posts: 1
in Health and Weight Loss
6 weeks ago this coming Sunday, I started seriously tracking everything I eat. I started at 232.6lbs and was down to 222lbs last week, measuring again on Sunday. I shot for a 35/35/30 Protein/Carb/Fat ratio mix, but ran into issues with hitting the calorie goals. My primary focus was getting as close to the protein number as I could each day but I still have a lot of work to do to nail down compliance.

I'm also following a rather intense 5 day a week workout plan. Monday is Chest/Tri, Tuesday is a random circuit or crossfit style workout (tons of pushups, pullups, squats, lunges etc), Wednesday is our Deck workout (deck of cards, number represents the reps, suit represents the exercise, no rest until the deck is finished), Thursday is Back/Bi and Friday is Delts. Each workout is 40-45 minutes long with maybe 30 seconds in between sets on the lifting ones. Lifting days are all superset mix.

I used the IIFYM TDEE calculator which gives me what feel like pretty crazy high target numbers and wanted to get some feedback. Male 32, 5 foot 10, 222lbs, estimated 25% body fat and 5 days a week workouts tells me that my TDEE is 2900, pegging fat loss aggressive at 2300 calories a day. This feels high, especially when I let MyFitnessPal do the same calculation and it pegs me at 1400 calories a day. Something just doesn't feel like it is adding up here. And I wasn't even using the "5 days *Intense" option in IIFYM which I probably should have been as that's a more accurate representation of how these workouts usually go.

My 6 week food plan ends this Sunday, so I had planned to review and make minor alterations now for that. The 6 week workout plan started a week late, so I won't be changing that up for another week.

Any advice?

Replies

  • PapaChanoli
    PapaChanoli Posts: 178 Member
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    I just started weighing my food and it is already obvious that it is really helpful for calorie tracking. Are you weighing?

    EDIT: Rereading your post, I think I misunderstood what you were seeking advice on the first time. I'm sure you'll get better help from others.

    Weighing rocks though.
  • abadvat
    abadvat Posts: 1,241 Member
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    You need to track workout on MFP and eat it back - personally i use MFP only for tracking purposes but not calculating.
    Calories / macors seem right - maybe the 5 weeks 10 lbs might be a bit too fast - but then again, if your health is not giving you warning signs, your energy levels are ok and your strenght / push remain stable then you should be alright.
  • madimurrell12
    madimurrell12 Posts: 29
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    The difference is that the TDEE calculation is including your exercise and the MFP one isn't, so when you work out you would eat more than 1400 calories anyway.
  • sbarella
    sbarella Posts: 713 Member
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    The difference is that the TDEE calculation is including your exercise and the MFP one isn't, so when you work out you would eat more than 1400 calories anyway.
    Exactly :) But your workouts might be difficult to estimate with MFP, so I'd try with IIFYM for a few weeks then revaluate your energy levels / weight loss at that point. Just my 2 cents.

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