How do I accurately calculate my calories to be in a deficiency?

melpidal
melpidal Posts: 34 Member
edited November 2024 in Health and Weight Loss
This might be obvious but there's so many counters and info and I'm just unsure what's the most accurate?

Replies

  • janejellyroll
    janejellyroll Posts: 25,763 Member
    Do you mean how do you get a calorie goal or are you asking how do you accurately measure your intake to meet your goal?
  • melpidal
    melpidal Posts: 34 Member
    How to get a calorie goal
  • janejellyroll
    janejellyroll Posts: 25,763 Member
    melpidal wrote: »
    How to get a calorie goal

    This website has a pretty good one. I lost over 40 pounds using MFP's calorie goal.
  • rybo
    rybo Posts: 5,424 Member
    Pick one of the calculators and go with it. Adjust as needed, up or down based on weight gain or loss. The calculators are a starting point.
  • toxikon
    toxikon Posts: 2,383 Member
    edited May 2017
    I like to use this TDEE calculator, seems pretty accurate: http://www.sailrabbit.com/bmr/

    Calculate your TDEE then subtract 500 from it if you want to lose 1lbs a week. So if your TDEE is 1800, you should consume 1300 to lose a lbs a week.

    I like to use my sedentary TDEE (I have a desk job) then manually add exercise and eat back 50% of my exercise calories.

    So a normal day for me might look like this:

    Daily calorie goal = 1300 cals (based on Sedentary TDEE - 500)
    Brisk walk = 100 calories burned (50% = 50 calories)
    Calories I can eat today: 1350 cals
  • cmriverside
    cmriverside Posts: 34,458 Member
    Yeah, like rybo says. ^^

    I used Myfitnesspal's numbers all the way, added back in my exercise calories, ate every delicious one and lost my 70 pounds in 2007. I made a couple adjustments along the way depending on how I was doing. It's your experiment to run. Keep good records, adjust when needed.

    Just start.
  • TeaBea
    TeaBea Posts: 14,517 Member
    edited May 2017
    rybo wrote: »
    Pick one of the calculators and go with it. Adjust as needed, up or down based on weight gain or loss. The calculators are a starting point.

    This^

    Weight loss numbers won't be exact. There are lots of averages and estimates. Activity level is a range but websites use one number. People with a higher % of lean muscle mass use more calories; websites can't know your %. When you log food and/or exercise those are going to be estimates as well.
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