Are your maintenance calories about what you predicted?

lightenup2016
lightenup2016 Posts: 1,055 Member
in Goal: Maintaining Weight
Hi--I'm not at maintenance yet--I have about 20 lbs to go. I was just wondering how your final maintenance calories at your goal weight compared with what you (or calculators) might have predicted. I've read that a lot of people slowly increase their calories, say upping them by 100 per day each week. Did your final maintenance level end up what you thought it would be, or was it higher or lower than expected/predicted? Thanks!
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Replies

  • kommodevaran
    kommodevaran Posts: 17,890 Member
    As predicted. I'm 46, sedentary, 5'3", hover around 123 pounds, and maintain around 1750-1800.

    100 calories per week wasn't slow enough for me (I had had a very small deficit for the last leg), I upped by 50 every three months.
  • 143353326
    143353326 Posts: 14 Member
    I’m 32 years old, 6’2, 189 pounds, and about 7% body fat. My BMR should be about 2,100 calories per day. That’s how much energy my body should burn every day, excluding any physical activity. Is it enough?
  • sijomial
    sijomial Posts: 19,809 Member
    I set my own numbers when losing (had to drop a bit lower than MFP's prediction) and initially my maintenance calories worked out as expected from my rate of weight loss.
    But after a couple months I started to lose slowly again and had to bump up calories by about 100 - 150/day.

    BMR isn't really a very useful number on its own unless you are totally sedentary.
  • Sued0nim
    Sued0nim Posts: 17,456 Member
    Mine was higher

    But I am significantly more active than I have ever been before in my life

    I'm 49, female, 5'8, 160 (goal)...I walk around 8-10k steps on average a day (odd days significantly more or less eg 2500 to 19000).. I workout / strength train 3 times a week (but has dropped to 2 arm cos of job) I did the +100 thing and settled around 2200-2400 with occasional days at 2700-3000
  • Sued0nim
    Sued0nim Posts: 17,456 Member
    143353326 wrote: »
    I’m 32 years old, 6’2, 189 pounds, and about 7% body fat. My BMR should be about 2,100 calories per day. That’s how much energy my body should burn every day, excluding any physical activity. Is it enough?

    Is that BMR or sedentary by MFP calculations (the latter is a 1.2 multiple of BMR)

    It's fairly irrelevant to maintenance TBH ...your TDEE on average is more relevant
  • neldabg
    neldabg Posts: 1,452 Member
    edited September 2016
    Maintenance is higher than I predicted. I was thoroughly convinced that to maintain 108-115lbs as a young 5'2" female student, I would have to eat the sedentary 1520 calories predicted by MFP a day (I did not consider myself active despite walking everywhere and following workout DVD's most mornings).
    Around the time I transitioned to maintenance, I got a Fitbit, and it showed me higher numbers. I worked my way up, gradually increasing calories by a range of 30-100 calories, and I now usually eat around 1700-2000 calories a day.
  • Machka9
    Machka9 Posts: 25,616 Member
    I hoped they'd be up around 2000 cal/day.
    Turns out they're around 1500 cal/day.
  • Francl27
    Francl27 Posts: 26,371 Member
    I honestly didn't predict anything, lol. My activity level is much higher than what I would have thought 2 years ago though!

    My maintenance is 2200. I suppose that if I trusted TDEE calculators it would be closer to 2350 though.. but I guess there's always tracking errors and whatnot...
  • trigden1991
    trigden1991 Posts: 4,658 Member
    I estimated my maintenance to average 2900 over the course of a normal week. My spreadsheet shows that my real maintenance was 2930. Pretty close I'd say
  • smiles4jo
    smiles4jo Posts: 202 Member
    I’m not ‘intentionally’ in maintenance right now, but my weight has been bouncing around the same 2-3 pounds for the last month or so. It’s totally my fault as I have been guesstimating a whole lot more, not tracking all my nibbles and not exercising as much. During that time, I have been hovering around 1,500 calories. That means that if I was logging properly, I would likely be around 1,700-1,800 calories.

    I’m 5’6”, female, currently weigh around 160 lbs and my FitBit tells me I walk around 13,000 steps a day. I am still hoping to lose another 20 lbs or so.

    I had never really given it much thought, but I would have expected my maintenance calories to be higher than 1,800. I don’t know why, I just did. Instead, this month has made me realize that maintenance is going to be very similar to when I was losing, just with a little extra flexibility. I don’t think I was ready for that.
  • cwolfman13
    cwolfman13 Posts: 41,865 Member
    My maintenance calories are variable depending the time of year.
  • The_Enginerd
    The_Enginerd Posts: 3,982 Member
    edited September 2016
    MFP estimated I should maintain on 2100-2150 a day. I actually have to eat 2300. I sit in a chair at a desk all day and hardly get up, all of my activity comes from either daily runs or yard work on the weekend. I guess I must be quite a figity person. Plus, I'm at a quite low BF%. My maintenance calories increased but about 100 calories at the same weight after a bulk/cut.
  • Sued0nim
    Sued0nim Posts: 17,456 Member
    smiles4jo wrote: »
    I’m not ‘intentionally’ in maintenance right now, but my weight has been bouncing around the same 2-3 pounds for the last month or so. It’s totally my fault as I have been guesstimating a whole lot more, not tracking all my nibbles and not exercising as much. During that time, I have been hovering around 1,500 calories. That means that if I was logging properly, I would likely be around 1,700-1,800 calories.

    I’m 5’6”, female, currently weigh around 160 lbs and my FitBit tells me I walk around 13,000 steps a day. I am still hoping to lose another 20 lbs or so.

    I had never really given it much thought, but I would have expected my maintenance calories to be higher than 1,800. I don’t know why, I just did. Instead, this month has made me realize that maintenance is going to be very similar to when I was losing, just with a little extra flexibility. I don’t think I was ready for that.

    They are you're not logging properly so have no idea how much you eating

    Your hovering around 1500 calories may well be 2000 for all you know ...or 2200



  • fiddletime
    fiddletime Posts: 1,868 Member
    I went from 1200 to 1350 calories in maintenance. I'm 61 and 5'2". I was pretty disappointed with that, but if I ate more, I gained. I lasted 2 months on maintenance but slipped and am out of maintenance now.
  • middlehaitch
    middlehaitch Posts: 8,486 Member
    Hahaha @fiddletime that 2 years younger and 1 inch taller makes a 150 cal difference.

    I'm 63yo, 5'1 and my maintenance was set at 1200 sedentary by MFP. This was pretty acurate, but over time I have got it up to about 1350. Don't log too often so it could be a bit higher or lower. I add between 150-200 a day with exercise.

    Wow! I have managed to get myself a decent calorie goal (for my age, weight, and height) :)

    Again, nowadays this is all a pretty rough estimate as I don't log often. I do know I don't feel as though I am going hungry, and I can fit in quite a few glasses of wine in a week, so I am happy.

    Cheers, h.
  • elliebath52
    elliebath52 Posts: 13 Member
    I am female age 64, 5ft 5 . I weigh approx 137 lbs (goal) and have been maintaining within 0-4 lbs for the past eighteen months . I walk an hour most days. I still log and my daily intake is 1500- 1600 cals
  • AnnPT77
    AnnPT77 Posts: 34,225 Member
    Higher than the calculators estimate. I'm 5'5", 120 pounds, 60 y/o, retired with a sedentary lifestyle outside of intentional (separately recorded/eaten) exercise. Calculators suggest around 1450-1500ish net calories. Reality seems to be more 1900-2000.

    I did up my calories gradually, but the end result is fairly consistent with what I'd have predicted from my loss rate & calorie goals while in deficit.

    The calculators, as you probably know, are based on averages of some study population. Though the standard deviation is small (i.e. steep, narrow bell curve), there is some variation around the average. Adding your loss rate (in pounds per week * 3500) to your calories eaten should give you a decent-ish estimate of your maintenance.
  • lightenup2016
    lightenup2016 Posts: 1,055 Member
    AnnPT77 wrote: »
    Higher than the calculators estimate. I'm 5'5", 120 pounds, 60 y/o, retired with a sedentary lifestyle outside of intentional (separately recorded/eaten) exercise. Calculators suggest around 1450-1500ish net calories. Reality seems to be more 1900-2000.

    I did up my calories gradually, but the end result is fairly consistent with what I'd have predicted from my loss rate & calorie goals while in deficit.

    The calculators, as you probably know, are based on averages of some study population. Though the standard deviation is small (i.e. steep, narrow bell curve), there is some variation around the average. Adding your loss rate (in pounds per week * 3500) to your calories eaten should give you a decent-ish estimate of your maintenance.

    Right--I recently calculated my actual TDEE that way, and it was higher than I thought based on the online calculators. They're just so difficult to figure out in terms of activity level! Thanks!
  • CindyFooWho
    CindyFooWho Posts: 179 Member
    MFP math has worked right out of the box for me ever since this journey started. I lost on the calories they predicted and I maintain on the calories they predicted. Furthermore, I eat back the calories that the app predicts and I maintain, and lost, as predicted.

    Sadly, it's 1560 that I maintain on (5' 4", 126lbs, 46 yo). But I like to exercise so that gives me everything I need. I honestly find that after 1560 + exercise calories, I'm really just eating for fun beyond that.
  • JessicaMcB
    JessicaMcB Posts: 1,503 Member
    Since I can't even accurately nail down maintenance calories yet much higher than I personally anticipated. Not sure how I would classify myself (running 60k a week +10-15k steps of life a day) compared to the activity labels but trying 2400 right now. 5'9", 125lbs :/
  • heybales
    heybales Posts: 18,842 Member
    Here's a better TDEE calculator than the rough 5 level ones that don't even include increased daily activity in the estimate, only undefined exercise. (is a mailman and desk jockey of equal BMR going to have the same TDEE if one does 4 hrs of lifting and one does 4 hrs of running weekly?)

    Just follow instructions in top right to make your own copy.

    Real figures of loss trump this of course, well, unless it included muscle mass loss from too fast.

    Just TDEE Please spreadsheet - better than rough 5 level TDEE charts.
    https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1G7FgNzPq3v5WMjDtH0n93LXSMRY_hjmzNTMJb3aZSxM/edit?usp=sharing
  • jolive7
    jolive7 Posts: 283 Member
    143353326 wrote: »
    I’m 32 years old, 6’2, 189 pounds, and about 7% body fat. My BMR should be about 2,100 calories per day. That’s how much energy my body should burn every day, excluding any physical activity. Is it enough?

    7% was a typo right
  • memickee
    memickee Posts: 250 Member
    @heybales Thanks for the spreadsheet.
  • maxit
    maxit Posts: 880 Member
    edited October 2016
    My maintenance level turned out to be higher when I was weight training regularly (because fit bit under estimated my calorie burn). Not weight training it turns out to be pretty much what MFP said it would be.
  • powered85
    powered85 Posts: 297 Member
    heybales wrote: »
    Here's a better TDEE calculator than the rough 5 level ones that don't even include increased daily activity in the estimate, only undefined exercise. (is a mailman and desk jockey of equal BMR going to have the same TDEE if one does 4 hrs of lifting and one does 4 hrs of running weekly?)

    Just follow instructions in top right to make your own copy.

    Real figures of loss trump this of course, well, unless it included muscle mass loss from too fast.

    Just TDEE Please spreadsheet - better than rough 5 level TDEE charts.
    https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1G7FgNzPq3v5WMjDtH0n93LXSMRY_hjmzNTMJb3aZSxM/edit?usp=sharing

    Nice spreadsheet! I wonder if it can be tweaked to use the Katch-McArdle formula for BMR if you know your rough bf%?
  • heybales
    heybales Posts: 18,842 Member
    Try this one then if more accuracy desired (I have seen 150-200 cal BMR differences based on BF%, so decent amount that should be accounted for).
    Stay on Simple Setup and Progress tabs.
    Review sample data in yellow cells, then delete all that data in yellow cells - use your stats where you have them. You may not have all, especially in Body Fat Calc area.
    Just confirm you enter a value into the BF% field. Either from calc, or your own measurement method.

    https://docs.google.com/spreadsheet/ccc?key=0Amt7QBR9-c6MdGVTbGswLUUzUHNVVUlNSW9wZWloeUE
  • swim777
    swim777 Posts: 599 Member
    fiddletime wrote: »
    I went from 1200 to 1350 calories in maintenance. I'm 61 and 5'2". I was pretty disappointed with that, but if I ate more, I gained. I lasted 2 months on maintenance but slipped and am out of maintenance now.

    Don't feel like the Lone Ranger! I struggle, too. I quickly gained back the 3-4 lbs after losing 80, but I have trouble keeping it I that higher range too. I still exercise regularly and try to keep it down by weighing regularly and eating at a deficit several days banking calories for others. I WILL get this!
  • suziecue20
    suziecue20 Posts: 567 Member
    I'm 68 and 5ft and my MFP losing calories were 1200 and my maintenance 1340 but I often go over that and so far have totally maintained my 51lb loss, even though it's only been 4 months. For the first month I stuck rigidly to the 1340 but found I was still losing a teeny bit so that's why I don't fret if I go over by a couple of hundred some days.
  • girlgroves
    girlgroves Posts: 235 Member
    I'm 45, 140lbs and 5ft 6" and have been gradually increasing my maintenance calories since I hit my goal weight in the summer. It's all been a bit of an experiment really - not made easier by the fact that I tend not to eat a consistent number of calories every day (I eat much more on weekends for example) and can gain back anything from 150 to 450 calories per day through exercise depending on what I do (I usually eat back all my exercise calories!). A quick calculation of my average daily net calories since the beginning of this month though (I can't believe I haven't thought to do this before!?) and I'm perfectly maintaining on an average of 1,835 net per day. MFP puts my maintenance calories at 1,820/day with my activity level set at lightly active. I have a desk job, but am quite active outside of that - so yes - spot on really! Even if I hadn't realised it until now!
  • cwolfman13
    cwolfman13 Posts: 41,865 Member
    I would say my maintenance calories are generally higher than I initially predicted. When I upped my calories my energy went up...I actually started training harder than I was able to in a deficit...training harder and longer meant my maintenance calories went up even further.

    That said, it's really a moving target...maintenance is basically a range of calories, not a specific number...and it's going to be variable depending on what you're doing. My maintenance calories tend to be lower in the winter because my training drops off a bit...basically I'm not on the bike as much. My maintenance calories go back up in the spring when I start training for the cycling season...my maintenance range can increase significantly depending on the mileage I'm putting in.
    maxit wrote: »
    My maintenance level turned out to be higher when I was weight training regularly (because fit bit under estimated my calorie burn). Not weight training it turns out to be pretty much what MFP said it would be.

    You need to keep in mind that it is pretty normal to put on scale weight when you're upping calories...people freak out about this and forget that they're eating more...thus there will be more inherent waste in your system...you are also going to hold onto more water and replenish depleted glycogen...all of that shows up on the scale...the number on the scale isn't just fat.

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