Activity Levels?

AllegraAlyce
AllegraAlyce Posts: 23 Member
in Goal: Maintaining Weight
So... I'm fairly sure I must have a higher metabolism or more muscle than it seems the activity levels account for. Because the calories it recommends to "Maintain weight" are definitely too few. My mother actually quit using this site for the same reason, she needed to eat several hundred more calories in a day than indicated. (She was getting cold and lethargic, upped her calorie intake and whazam... better... back to the recommended calories for a few days.. back to cold and lethargic.)

I'm wondering if being fairly small stature has anything to do with this, or if we just underestimate how much we move? As women go we are both fairly muscular, so maybe that is it? I just got back on, and logged a "normal" day and it told me I will be gaining weight, but I know myself well enough to know this is a good maintenance level. Cranking up the exercise and I lean out quickly, but if drop the calories much below what I'm eating now and I get shaky, lightheaded and lethargic. This is actually why I got back on here myself, because I tend to under eat when I exercise. My goal is to get into better shape without actually losing weight. I'm between 115 and 120lbs depending on time of day and time of month, but I find tracking the actual number a pretty useless indicator of how I feel and look. :/

How do you go about determining your appropriate "activity level" on here? Has anyone else found the calorie recommendation to be too low?

Replies

  • sijomial
    sijomial Posts: 19,809 Member
    It's just an estimate for a whole population which gives you a reasonable starting point for an average person. Think of it as a bell curve - fine for the majority but there will always be outliers.
    Unfortunately I'm an outlier in the opposite direction and had to cut 300 calories - I simply custom set my calorie goal based on experimentation rather than changing activity levels.

    Go by your own results over a period of time and also how you feel. Working from your own data and results also self-corrects any logging inaccuracies as long as you are consistent.
  • 3dogsrunning
    3dogsrunning Posts: 27,167 Member
    Are you logging your exercise additionally? This site's calorie goal is without exercise so that could make a significant difference if you aren't logging it.

    Other than that, as the other poster said, this and all other calculators are based on averages. Some people are above, some people below that. It is meant as as starting place. You can manually chance your calorie goal to where you feel it is appropriate and avoid the weight gain warnings.
  • AllegraAlyce
    AllegraAlyce Posts: 23 Member
    Logging exercise, yes, but I notice that it doesn't seem to give you and "calorie" credits for weight training.. so not sure what to do there.
  • AllegraAlyce
    AllegraAlyce Posts: 23 Member
    I just don't consider myself to be THAT active, but maybe I just move more than I think I do? I know this sounds kind of bass ackwards, as I'm pretty sure I've heard it said people tend to think they more MORE than they actually do.
  • 3dogsrunning
    3dogsrunning Posts: 27,167 Member
    Logging exercise, yes, but I notice that it doesn't seem to give you and "calorie" credits for weight training.. so not sure what to do there.

    You can search it under the cardio section and it will give you a calorie value. It is pretty low as there are a number of confounding factors to estimating. I would get around 200, which worked for me
  • sijomial
    sijomial Posts: 19,809 Member
    Logging exercise, yes, but I notice that it doesn't seem to give you and "calorie" credits for weight training.. so not sure what to do there.
    If you search under the cardio category for "Strength training" or "circuit training" you will get a calorie estimate.
  • AllegraAlyce
    AllegraAlyce Posts: 23 Member
    Awesome, thanks!

    (And I know that the actual weight lifting is low calorie use, but it seems to crank up my metabolism enough that it seems like it should be accounted for somehow.)
  • navygrrl
    navygrrl Posts: 517 Member
    Also, you can always set custom calorie goals if the MFP setup isn't working for you.
  • closedforremodeling
    closedforremodeling Posts: 3
    I am just getting started here. Have important question. What activity level should I put down.
    I am a delivery driver for a surgical supply company. Much like a FedEx driver. I am in and out of hospitals lugging surgicals trays and implant totes. Would that be considered, active or lightly active.

    Thank you for your help. Good luck to all.


    Heavy H
  • 3dogsrunning
    3dogsrunning Posts: 27,167 Member
    I am just getting started here. Have important question. What activity level should I put down.
    I am a delivery driver for a surgical supply company. Much like a FedEx driver. I am in and out of hospitals lugging surgicals trays and implant totes. Would that be considered, active or lightly active.

    Thank you for your help. Good luck to all.


    Heavy H

    My regular job has me driving around a lot and in and out of the car occasionally. I chose lightly active. I dare say your job is more active than mine usually (I don't carry anything either).
  • TomZot
    TomZot Posts: 165 Member
    FYI...weight training calorie burn is found under "cardio." Look for "strength training."
  • Laura3BB
    Laura3BB Posts: 250 Member
    Maybe you need a fitbit or something like it - I use up 400 or more cals a day without noticing it. You're probably underestimating your burns.
  • deansdad101
    deansdad101 Posts: 644 Member
    I am just getting started here. Have important question. What activity level should I put down.
    I am a delivery driver for a surgical supply company. Much like a FedEx driver. I am in and out of hospitals lugging surgicals trays and implant totes. Would that be considered, active or lightly active.

    Thank you for your help. Good luck to all.


    Heavy H
    HH;
    Flip a coin, pick one, and get started TRACKING every single morsel of food that passes your lips.
    You DO NOT "need" to spend (waste IMO) money on the latest and greatest ACME Personal Amazo usb/bluetooth/wifi enabled gizmo.
    For most people (ie not gymrats, bodybuilders, marathon runners) it ends up nothing more than carrying out your (and all the online sites) "guesstimates" to the 10th decimal place.

    Assuming you are in generally good health, no "known", specific "issues" (diabetes, heart disease, etc), just pick a "goal" number and get started. TDEE - 500 cals/day is as good a start as any other and IF your "guesstimates" (activity level, etc) are close, AND, whatever "site" you use is reasonably accurate, it "should" result in somewhere around a 1#/week weight loss.

    You'll need a decent bathroom scale (~$30), good kitchen scale ($15-20), and a set of kitchen measuring cups (and spoons) - that's IT.

    Set up an online "tracker" (MFP is as good as any but there are many choices available in the googlemachine if that one's not your "style".

    Track EVERY SINGLE calorie IN (food), every single day, and weight daily.

    IGNORE day to day "fluctuations" in weight (totally normal).

    Once you have accumulated a couple weeks of data, and ONLY then, will it become meaningful.

    If after two weeks (or so), you have been "religious" and "accurate" about recording your data take a look at the "long term" (2-3 weeks here, more as you go along) TRENDS - those are what matter.

    If after a couple weeks your AVERAGE loss per week is greater than 1#/week (but less than 2) your "guesstimates" are pretty close and you can either leave "well enough alone" or adjust your "goal targets" up or down by 250/day - but when you do, WAIT at least another 2 weeks (for things to stabilize and the "averages" to be meaningful). "Expect" the loss rate to decline "on its own" after the first couple weeks.

    As time goes on, you WILL have to adjust Cals IN (down, due to "new" weight) and the loss rate will decline - it's normal.

    Run your BMI/BMR/TDEE calculations at least once a month and compare the results to what you now "know" actually has been proven to work for you.

    KISS might not give you "numbers" carried out to 10 decimal places - but it works (and is a whole lot more likely to be "maintainable" over time unless you are an OCD "numbers freak".)
  • jess17587
    jess17587 Posts: 153
    i think your body is telling you need more by sending you these signals and you should set a calorie goal your self like i did then see how you weight goes over 2 weeks the worst that will happen is you could gain a couple of pounds that wont notice and will go when you give your self a decrease.
    don't worry about eating less on days when your not so active because your body learns to adapt and i eat around the same everyday (weather i excerise or not) and i haven't gain weight over night from it

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