I don't understand calorie math

lovmyguy
lovmyguy Posts: 13
in Getting Started
Hi all!! So help me understand. I am 5.5, 175 pounds female and sedentary for years. I started watching my calorie intake and started exercising daily about 3-4 weeks ago so my 1st question is does that mean I'm still sedentary. I.don't do much else physicaly throughout the day other than regular minor household things. I am not understanding my own math. I want to lose 2 pounds a week. I ate about 1300 calories yesterday and burned 847 doing aerobics. Am I doing this right. I ate a lot and burned a lot. As a sedentary person I am suppose to burn about 1430 calories a day according to to BMR. And 1 pound of fat is 3500 calories. So I see this as.... Now follow me here ..... I ate 1300 calories, natural burn off 1430 and exercise burn off 847. Leaving me a deficit of -977 calories. If I did this daily it would mean I would be losing about 2 lbs a week. Right?

Replies

  • zenalasca
    zenalasca Posts: 563 Member
    If you are counting the calories burned from your workouts and otherwise sedentary, then keep the setting at sedentary. As long as you have a deficit of at least 500 calories you will lose weight fairly quickly and nearly 1000 is a big deficit- you won't achieve that every single day or you'll burn out. If MFP says "if every day were like today..." I wouldn't trust it too much. I found I lost weight faster than it predicted
  • lovmyguy
    lovmyguy Posts: 13
    Thank you . MFP wants a goal calorie intake. I don't even know what to put so I put 900. I just take calories taken minus calories burned by BMR and calories burned with exercise to find my deficit. Is that OK or am I doing it wrong?
  • Lottiotta
    Lottiotta Posts: 162 Member
    900 per day seems pretty low to me. I'm 170cm, 61kg or so, and I have a deficit of 150 per day - I usually end up eating about 1500 calories per day. Okay so I'm intending to lose verrrrry slowly, but generally speaking I've only ever heard of people going under 1000 per day under medical supervision.
  • lovmyguy
    lovmyguy Posts: 13
    So do you mean 900 is very low as in the deficit is too much? Because I did consume 1300 calories. I just Burned a lot off. I'm not understanding you. What do you mean 900 is to low. And under 1000 under Dr. Supervision.
  • SezxyStef
    SezxyStef Posts: 15,267 Member
    So do you mean 900 is very low as in the deficit is too much? Because I did consume 1300 calories. I just Burned a lot off.

    MFP is set up so you eat back your exercise calories...at least some of them...to get to at least 1200 calories.

    Activity level is based on non exercise movement so if you sit most of the day yes you are still sedentary...to be considered lightly active your job must have you walking at least 10k steps a day or standing....but just because you have a desk job doesn't mean you are sedentary.

    I work in an office...but I manage to get in 10k steps typically at work without trying that hard...that also includes the stuff i do at home when I get off work such as cooking dinner, doing up some laundry, tidying up etc.
  • Cryptonomnomicon
    Cryptonomnomicon Posts: 848 Member
    http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/819055-setting-your-calorie-and-macro-targets

    Exercise calories

    http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/818082-exercise-calories-again-wtf
  • BombshellPhoenix
    BombshellPhoenix Posts: 1,693 Member
    http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/819055-setting-your-calorie-and-macro-targets

    Exercise calories

    http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/818082-exercise-calories-again-wtf

    ^these are awesome links.

    You burn calories by just being alive. MFP has already built in a calorie deficit for you without exercise. At 170 lbs without exercise, I lost my weight on 1650 net, meaning on days I exercised I ate BACK the calories earned from exercise, so I really ate around 1900+. The goal isn't to go negative. It's just to maintain a calorie deficit. Your body still needs calories to function properly.

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