Is my TDEE really higher now that I've lost weight?

Francl27
Francl27 Posts: 26,371 Member
edited November 23 in Goal: Maintaining Weight
I am extremely confused.

I checked Scooby to see how much I was eating to maintain my 200-205 pounds for 10 years, being completely sedentary... It said 2000 calories.

How is that even possible? My TDEE now is 2200. Ok, I exercise an hour a day so that's a huge difference, but when I see how much I'm struggling to stay under my calories most days, when before I would just have gone and eaten 4 servings of cheese, I have a hard time believing that I was actually eating less.

Does exercise increase appetite that much? Has anyone else noticed that?

Replies

  • AsISmile
    AsISmile Posts: 1,004 Member
    Yes, exercise can really really increase appetite.
    Also, are you still as sedentary in your normal activities as you were before your weightloss?
  • mattyc772014
    mattyc772014 Posts: 3,543 Member
    I would say for me exercise increases my appetite so that is why I like to calorie cycle on days that I have heavy training. I feel better. Remember those calculators are just an estimate. If you stick to an exercise routine TDEE becomes easier. Use your own data over a 2-3 week period to dial in your TDEE.
  • Francl27
    Francl27 Posts: 26,371 Member
    AsISmile wrote: »
    Yes, exercise can really really increase appetite.
    Also, are you still as sedentary in your normal activities as you were before your weightloss?

    Well I cook more now.
  • LivingtheLeanDream
    LivingtheLeanDream Posts: 13,342 Member
    edited August 2015
    Yes exercise makes all the difference to TDEE :smiley:
    The only time I feel my appetite increase noticeably is when I do extreme steps above my norm. ..(ie anything above 25k steps makes me hungrier)
  • Francl27
    Francl27 Posts: 26,371 Member
    Well my point really is that there is no way I was only eating 2000 calories before. I just don't get it. Maybe because I was usually not eating breakfast? But if I ate like I used to, I would gain weight back, guaranteed...
  • hutccj02
    hutccj02 Posts: 2 Member
    I've often found the estimates of how many calories I'd need just to exist at the weight I am to be grossly over-estimated. I'm guessing this may also be true for you. I'd say that if you can find some weeks in which you were diligently recording your calories, but maintaining weight, take that as your TDEE. (And if you don't have 3-4 weeks at one weight, find several distinct 1-2 week no change periods and compare them with the estimates given. From this you may be able to identify the percentage of the overestimate...roughly.)
  • Francl27
    Francl27 Posts: 26,371 Member
    hutccj02 wrote: »
    I've often found the estimates of how many calories I'd need just to exist at the weight I am to be grossly over-estimated. I'm guessing this may also be true for you. I'd say that if you can find some weeks in which you were diligently recording your calories, but maintaining weight, take that as your TDEE. (And if you don't have 3-4 weeks at one weight, find several distinct 1-2 week no change periods and compare them with the estimates given. From this you may be able to identify the percentage of the overestimate...roughly.)

    I know what my TDEE is. It's 2200. I just don't understand how I got 2000 as TDEE when I was 200, while I was eating horribly and didn't gain a pound for 9 years.
  • Francl27
    Francl27 Posts: 26,371 Member
    edited August 2015
    HappyCampr1 wrote: »
    I have a question. What is Scooby telling you that your current TDEE should be? You already know it's 2200, but I'm wondering if it's just not a correct calculator for you. If it's under for your previous weight and under calculating your current TDEE, then I suspect the calculator is just not the right one. There are a bunch out there. If you find a calculator that most closely resembles your current TDEE and then go back and see what it says your previous TDEE should have been, that might be closer. I don't know...just a thought. None of the online calculators work for me, so trying to go backwards would be pretty useless in my case.

    Fair question. It says 2100 if I put moderately active (3-5 hours a week) but I usually do 6-7 hours, just not always very intense.

    The only thing that makes a difference with the other calculators is my activity level though, which was pretty nil before. I'm just shocked really. My metabolism must be really good or something if my TDEE should have been 2000... although to be fair, I don't really remember what my diet was, maybe I'm forgetting the good days? I never cooked and I just remember eating cheese, salami, fast food, croissants etc all the time...
  • TimothyFish
    TimothyFish Posts: 4,925 Member
    Francl27 wrote: »
    hutccj02 wrote: »
    I've often found the estimates of how many calories I'd need just to exist at the weight I am to be grossly over-estimated. I'm guessing this may also be true for you. I'd say that if you can find some weeks in which you were diligently recording your calories, but maintaining weight, take that as your TDEE. (And if you don't have 3-4 weeks at one weight, find several distinct 1-2 week no change periods and compare them with the estimates given. From this you may be able to identify the percentage of the overestimate...roughly.)

    I know what my TDEE is. It's 2200. I just don't understand how I got 2000 as TDEE when I was 200, while I was eating horribly and didn't gain a pound for 9 years.

    I could see it spitting out 2000 for a 200 pound person who is doing no exercise and sedentary.
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