I AM SO CONFUSED

2catslover wrote: »

I have been looking at other sites and the calorie allowance is so inconsistent. How do you know how many calories you are supposed to eat? This site says 1500 and Lose it says 1500. That is a big difference in calories. Just wondering where the most accurate place to find how many calories to eat are.

Thanks for your help.

I am so confused now - last I checked 1500 = 1500 ??

Maybe you typed something wrong but you said that both sites said 1500 calories. There are other calculators out there and they are all going to give you slightly different answers. The amount of calories is going to depend on your current weight (age and height as well) and your goal weight and the time frame that you want to get to your goal weight. None of them are magic and you can adjust yourself if you feel like you aren't seeing the results that you want (although the recommendation is that women do not go below 1200 a day NET unless supervised by a doctor for nutritional and health reasons).

This one's always spot on for me. Subtract 10-20% from the number you get, and don't add exercise calories in, since you'll already have included them. (TDEE method)

http://www.health-calc.com/diet/energy-expenditure-advanced

Lose it factors in your exercise calories. Mfp expects you to add them separately and eat them back. So if you exercise much they're saying pretty much the same amount.

2catslover wrote: »

I have been looking at other sites and the calorie allowance is so inconsistent. How do you know how many calories you are supposed to eat? This site says 1500 and Lose it says 1800. That is a big difference in calories. Just wondering where the most accurate place to find how many calories to eat are.

Thanks for your help.

first of all, any of these calculators are just a reasonably good estimate to get you started. secondly, you have to know what methodology you're using (TDEE - Total Daily Energy Expenditure or NEAT - Non Exercise Activity Thermogenesis). most calculators use TDEE which will include some estimate of calories required to fuel exercise activity as well as your day to day...MFP on the other hand gives you a calorie target that is exclusive of exercise...meaning you eat to that target and do no exercise (not recommended) you will lose weight. exercise is accounted for with MFP by logging that activity and then MFP will bump up your targets based on that activity.

i don't know what method Lose It uses...but again, it's all an estimation; what's ultimately important is getting started and making adjustments as per your real world results. also, when you're comparing calculators make sure you're comparing apples to apples in regards to your rate of loss goals...some calculators use a % while others ask you how many pounds per week you would like to lose. a % cut from maintenance may or may not be equal to another calculator giving you a 1 or 2 Lb per week target.

Feel free to message me and I'll send you a copy

RAmelia63 wrote: »

Don't stress over the differences. EVERY one of these calculators, including what the machines show as burnt calories is an estimate. You should focus on macros (carbs, protein, sugar, salt, fiber and fat) versus calories to see best/quicker results. If you absolutely need a "number" try 1200, see how you do on that and increase in increments of 100 if need be but DO NOT drop below the 1200. Also, as your are testing these out, learn to distinguish real hunger signs. When tempted to eat, drink water and see if you're still hungry.
Snacks in between your 3 meals help a lot too! Also, DO NOT EAT BACK YOUR CALORIES EARNED FROM EXERCISE. They are just an estimate to be used as an emergency reserve and mitigate any guilt from going over your daily allowance.
You got this!✌️

I disagree with a lot of this. I do agree that all calculators are estimates. However, to say OP should focus on macros vs calories to see faster results, well . . . I agree focus on macros can be important for "best" results, if by best you mean it may contribute to how a person feels on a certain ratio of macros, but that's it. And a person should eat as many meals and/or snacks as they like and fits their lifestyle and calories.

Choose one number OP, and go with it for 4-6 weeks. If you choose to go with MFP, your initial calorie goal does not include exercise. You add your exercise in as you do it. Then, you may want to start with eating 50-75% of those calories back, as the numbers tend to be inaccurate for most (but not all) people. Adjust only after consistent and accurate logging, based on results over a reasonable period of time (not one or two weeks, more like four-six). If you are using MFP's system, exercise calories are not meant to be there as "emergency" reserve or to "mitigate guilt" over going over your daily allowance. Your exercise calories ARE part of your daily allowance. Most other sites already include your exercise up front, so either way, you should be eating those calories. Just choose one and go for it.

RAmelia63 wrote: »

There will clearly be differences of opinion and that's what makes these forums great (albeit confusing) because we can only speak as experts based on what we've individually have found to work.
My point is that if you are eating your calories back in (hungry or not) then there is no deficit per se.
But all great points, of course.

If OP is using MFP, and she entered a goal to lose weight when she started, then eating exercise calories does not mean she is no longer in a deficit. By eating those calories, she still maintains the deficit she asked MFP for. I think it's very important for new users to understand how MFP works. Telling OP otherwise is giving her misinformation.

MFP has been pretty accurate for me. I got to maintenance losing 0.25-0.5/week, being honest about my daily living activity level, weighing and measuring all foods (or estimating high when eating out), and eating 100% of my exercise calories. I had a loose six month goal and got where I wanted to be about two weeks early, so just about dead on. I understand some people only eat 50-75% of the exercise calories, and that's probably fine if you've got a small deficit (0.5/week rather than 1 or 2/week), but I'd give it a chance at 100% for at least a month first. Exrcise should be fueled.