Totally Confused With Daily Calories!

dalesampson1
dalesampson1 Posts: 9
in Health and Weight Loss
To quell the flames before i start! Yes i have searched MFP forums, lots of other forums, researched all i can think of, and im totally confused beyond belief!

My wife and I have both just started to get serious about weight loss after finding out i have diabetes. I went through and "setup" mfp with the info needed.
Its gave me a goal of 1700 calories a day, this is below my BMR according to many different calcs ive tried, however after a week i "feel" its working, good energy, feel better ect.
It gave my wife a goal of 1200 calories while giving a BMR of 1450. 1200 seems too low and is below BMR. Im worried that i have not got the totals correct for her (and myself, even though i seem ok for now, but is it sustainable?).

Our stats in case anybody can help!
ME:
Weight 222lb
Height 5' 11"
Age 34

Her:
Weight 202lb
Height 4' 8"
Age 44

Thanks for anybody that can help! My main worry is if she dosnt feel good, or dosnt see some kind of results (weight loss or inch loss or even energy) she will fall of the wagon and right now she trying so hard i dont want her to get disappointed in anything!

Replies

  • ksolksol
    ksolksol Posts: 194 Member
    Your goal calories depend on whether you set it for losing 1/2 pound, 1 pound or 2 pounds per week. Are you setting your weight loss goal too aggressively for you to manage? The plan you can stick to is better than the plan you can't. Remember, too, that MFP will figure in your exercise calories and give you those, so if you exercise 300 calories worth, your goal for that day will go to 2000.
  • SparrowGal2014
    SparrowGal2014 Posts: 33 Member
    THEORETICALLY, if you go with your BMR for your current weight, you will maintain. You need to be in a calorie deficit to LOSE. Your wife is only 4' 8"? 1200 seems ok by all math. I need to lose 45 lbs @ 5'1" and my BMR for my GOAL WEIGHT is 1100-1200. And MFP won't calculate less AND you guys need to START somewhere. If you feel that you need to lose weight, any starting deficit would be beneficial. I bet if you tried to go to low, you would find yourself feeling cranky & deprived. Also, maybe enter what a typical day was looking like BEFORE you made the decision to make some changes. Slow & steady wins the race!
  • jemhh
    jemhh Posts: 14,261 Member
    She is shorter so that alone will cause her BMR to be low. Then the MFP calories are, in part, based on the loss rate you choose. Two pounds a week whacks 1000 calories off, 1 pound is 500, 1/2 pound is 250. MFP keeps a 1200 calorie minimum limit though. So even if you chose 2 pounds for your wife, the lowest it will state is 1200.

    Is your wife doing any exercise? MFP adds those calories back in and they are meant to be eaten.
  • Liftng4Lis
    Liftng4Lis Posts: 15,151 Member
    If her weight loss goal was put in too aggressively (2 lbs a week), it would give her a reduced caloric goal. If her activity level was put in incorrectly, it would also give her a reduced number. Check those first. Alternately, you can adjust them by choosing custom and raising her daily calories.
  • codycsweet
    codycsweet Posts: 1,019 Member
    My question is what did you set your activity at when you set it up?

    For instance when I started I set mine up as sedentary bc at least half the day I sit at a desk.
    What I later found out after getting a Fitbit is that I was lightly active. And the. There are days that I'm active t very active so this will change ur initial calories for the day. Also keep in mind that you are going to eat back at least some of ur exercise calories back.


    Edit
    Also what is your rate of loss per week .5, 1, 1.5, or 2lbs a weeks?

    http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/819055-setting-your-calorie-and-macro-targets

    As a rule of thumb, the following weekly targets would give a balance between minimizing these negative side effects and seeing a reasonable weekly weight loss:
    More than 75 lbs: 2 lbs/week
    40-75 lbs: 1.5 lbs/week
    10-40 lbs: 1 lb/week
    Less than 10 lbs: 0.5 lb/week

    Obviously, the deficit that is right for you will depend on your personal circumstances and how well you deal with the deficit. For example, for someone who is morbidly obese, the health benefits of getting the weight off quickly will often outweigh the possible negative impact and, as such, a higher than 2 lb a week deficit may well be appropriate.
  • dalesampson1
    dalesampson1 Posts: 9
    I set both weight loss goals to 1lb per week. We have started to exercise with 3 days a week walking/jogging and started convict conditioning 2 days a week (body weight program). We are eating back the calories (mostly) from the exercise.

    Edit: Activity i set to lightly active.
  • SparrowGal2014
    SparrowGal2014 Posts: 33 Member
    The BMR calculator that I use online calculated you @ approx 2100 for your CURRENT weight & 1590 for the Mrs. If you want a good comparison use the Harris-Benedict equation manually:Women: BMR = 655 + (4.35 x weight in pounds) + (4.7 x height in inches) - (4.7 x age in years)
    Men: BMR = 66 + (6.23 x weight in pounds) + (12.7 x height in inches) - (6.8 x age in years)

    I couldn't cut & paste the activity multipliers
    I got that from about.com. The online calculators use this equation. We, in the medical field use it too! And don't overestimate your activity or try to go from 0-60 in a few days. I think it's safe to say, that also might not be helpful to reach the goal. Good luck!
  • dalesampson1
    dalesampson1 Posts: 9
    The BMR calculator that I use online calculated you @ approx 2100 for your CURRENT weight & 1590 for the Mrs. If you want a good comparison use the Harris-Benedict equation manually:Women: BMR = 655 + (4.35 x weight in pounds) + (4.7 x height in inches) - (4.7 x age in years)
    Men: BMR = 66 + (6.23 x weight in pounds) + (12.7 x height in inches) - (6.8 x age in years)

    I couldn't cut & paste the activity multipliers
    I got that from about.com. The online calculators use this equation. We, in the medical field use it too! And don't overestimate your activity or try to go from 0-60 in a few days. I think it's safe to say, that also might not be helpful to reach the goal. Good luck!

    So if my BMR is 2100, then i should have 2100 calories + what i burn in exercise? or would be be 2100 - some % + exercise?

    Edit: Just wanted to point out that in 15mins, 6 different people have tried to help! This has goto be the most active and helpful forum ive ever found, you guys are all AMAZING!
  • SparrowGal2014
    SparrowGal2014 Posts: 33 Member
    Dale-that 2100 calories is to MAINTAIN your current weight. So, what MFP suggested MAY be right for you. And men lose weight faster (initially) because of higher muscle density-totally physiology of the human body. I DON'T eat my activity calories. That's entirely up to you. If you ate the 2100 cal & your exercise calories, you probably wouldn't lose anything and may gain.

    If you and your wife just started, like I said, I would see where you were last week as opposed to the changes you're making. Like if you had hot cakes & sausage from Mickey Ds on the way to work, a sub for lunch w/ chips & then some steak, mashed potatoes & corn on the cob for dinner w/ ice cream as dessert & maybe a candy bar as a snack-plug that into MFP. It may be a typical day of 4000 calories. In which case, any change like to an egg w/ whole wheat toast, turkey & cheese on rye w/ fruit and lean steak, baked potato w/ measured whipped butter & light sour cream w/ maybe a frozen fruit bar & a granola bar significantly cuts your cal & fat, but adds fiber, protein & micronutrients. You'll be astounded by what you see. Of course, I don't know your eating habits I was just trying to use common things people are familiar with to illustrate small changes.
  • MelodyandBarbells
    MelodyandBarbells Posts: 7,724 Member
    Plugging in your wife's stats, it does indeed give 1230 calories for losing 1 lb per week, assuming sedentary outside of exercise. To get a bit more food using plain MFP process she can exercise, or set her weight loss target to .5 lb per week instead. The .5 lb a week deficit being so small means she'll likely need to use a digital scale and be very accurate with her food logging from day 1. When you have much more wiggle room, that spoonful of peanut butter or unlogged condiment may not have as much of an effect.

    As for the exercise, we either tend to use a Heart rate monitor (HRM) for a more accurate picture of calories burned, or eat back just a portion like 50-75% of the exercise calories suggested by MFP for our exercise activity. Yet another option would be for her to pick a number she likes, such as 1500 or 1600 calories, log all the food accurately; but not log the exercise calories. If she's losing weight after six or so weeks, keep it up, otherwise reduce by about 100 calories per day, rinse, repeat
  • ksolksol
    ksolksol Posts: 194 Member
    THEORETICALLY, if you go with your BMR for your current weight, you will maintain.

    It's my understanding that BMR is simply the basic number of calories to maintain bodily functions if you did nothing but lie in bed. Considering that most of us get up and go to work and wash our dishes, eating at your BMR would cause you to lose, not maintain. It's your Total Daily Energy Expenditure, or TDEE, that is your maintenance. My TDEE, if I don't exercise, is just under 1700. My BMR is closer to 1350. If I set my goal at one pound per week, we'd subtract 500 from the TDEE to get 1200, which is under my BMR. If I go half a pound, it would be 1450, about 100 above my BMR.
  • ewhip17
    ewhip17 Posts: 515 Member
    At the risk of being flamed (it's fine, I can take it) can I suggest not over thinking this right away? In other words, go with the MFP recommendation for a couple of weeks and see how you feel and if you are losing weight. I'm totally on board with the idea of eating as much as possible while losing lbs, but it's also very different for everyone. I see people my size on here every day eating more or less than I do and exercising more or less than I do. It works for them but after 8 mos. I have a much better handle on what MY body (and brain) requires - thanks to logging and reporting in MFP.
    The MFP recommendations are what I've used since the beginning and they work - for me. AND (this is very important) not having to think about it so much is what has made MFP work for me. It gives me a number, I stick to it, I lose weight. If I go an extended period without losing I adjust - mainly by taking a really hard and critical look at how accurate my logging has been and what my activity level has been. Usually I find the answer in one or both of those areas.
    Anyway, genuinely trying to help. :-)
  • SparrowGal2014
    SparrowGal2014 Posts: 33 Member
    THEORETICALLY, if you go with your BMR for your current weight, you will maintain.

    It's my understanding that BMR is simply the basic number of calories to maintain bodily functions if you did nothing but lie in bed. Considering that most of us get up and go to work and wash our dishes, eating at your BMR would cause you to lose, not maintain. It's your Total Daily Energy Expenditure, or TDEE, that is your maintenance. My TDEE, if I don't exercise, is just under 1700. My BMR is closer to 1350. If I set my goal at one pound per week, we'd subtract 500 from the TDEE to get 1200, which is under my BMR. If I go half a pound, it would be 1450, about 100 above my BMR.

    Remember BMR is a CALCULATION on paper RMR is an ACTUAL result from a physical test. I have done the test(s) as part of a study and it was lower than the calculation on paper-I was younger & in better shape, which would calculate higher. Everyone's body is different, and you may need to play with some numbers and work whats best for you. Life is not math. So whatever positive changes to improve your health are GREAT! Especially since you mentioned diabetes!
  • dalesampson1
    dalesampson1 Posts: 9
    Thanks to everybody for the help! Think im just going to trust MFP and see how it goes over the next few weeks. I think i managed to confuse myself with looking it all up lol! I like to know exactly what im going, WHY im doing it, and how it works, think ill back off of the knowing why and how for now and just see what happens!
  • StaciMarie1974
    StaciMarie1974 Posts: 4,138 Member
    Perfectly understandable that you're trying to figure it all out, understand the why's behind the science.

    If it gets too overwhelming try to keep this in mind: a simple philosophy of move more/eat less will cause you to lose weight.

    You don't have to 'master' everything at once. First focus on 1) incorporating some regular activity (seems you're doing this) 2) honestly & accurately tracking/logging your food (can always fine tune as you go) and 3) drinking a decent amount of water.
    Thanks to everybody for the help! Think im just going to trust MFP and see how it goes over the next few weeks. I think i managed to confuse myself with looking it all up lol! I like to know exactly what im going, WHY im doing it, and how it works, think ill back off of the knowing why and how for now and just see what happens!
  • Nutmeg76
    Nutmeg76 Posts: 258 Member
    I only skimmed hte replies, so forgive me if I repeat this.

    MFP will increase your daily calories for any exercise you input above your "lightly active" amount, so that keeps you from under eating.
  • TeaBea
    TeaBea Posts: 14,517 Member
    THEORETICALLY, if you go with your BMR for your current weight, you will maintain. You need to be in a calorie deficit to LOSE. Your wife is only 4' 8"? 1200 seems ok by all math. I need to lose 45 lbs @ 5'1" and my BMR for my GOAL WEIGHT is 1100-1200. And MFP won't calculate less AND you guys need to START somewhere. If you feel that you need to lose weight, any starting deficit would be beneficial. I bet if you tried to go to low, you would find yourself feeling cranky & deprived. Also, maybe enter what a typical day was looking like BEFORE you made the decision to make some changes. Slow & steady wins the race!

    No......BMR is laying in bed doing nothing.......TDEE is maintenance.

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