Maybe s tupid question

milesy1971
milesy1971 Posts: 30 Member
edited November 18 in Health and Weight Loss
As per the title this may be a stupid question but here goes

So to work out your target calories per day you need to work out your BMR right?

So my question is should i work out my BMR for my CURRENT weight or my TARGET weight.

Just thinking that if you work it out for your current weight then you are sort of aiming to maintain the current weight where as if it is for the target weight then you are aiming in the right direction???

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Replies

  • Chadxx
    Chadxx Posts: 1,199 Member
    PAV8888 wrote: »
    You estimate your current maintenance level and create a deficit from that.

    This
  • L1zardQueen
    L1zardQueen Posts: 8,753 Member
    Look up TDEE.
  • milesy1971
    milesy1971 Posts: 30 Member
    can i also ask for calculation figures - i have

    For men: BMR = (9.99 x weight in kilograms) + (6.25 x height in centimeters) - 4.92 x age in years + 5.

    PLUS an activity factor (approx 1.2)

    Sound right?
  • Sythfia
    Sythfia Posts: 28 Member
    edited May 2017
    You would need to work out your BMR with your current weight and then associate that with activity levels to add towards your TDEE which would be your maintenence amount of calories, in order to lose weight, you will need to be at a deficit of for example 20% calories less than your maintenence.
  • kgeyser
    kgeyser Posts: 22,505 Member
    Ok, I hope this breakdown is helpful in answering your question.

    Your calories burned each day are your Total Daily Energy Expenditure (TDEE). So the equation would look like this:

    TDEE= BMR + Exercise + Daily Activity (non-exercise physical movement). In maintenance, you would eat the number of calories equal to your TDEE. For weight loss, you would eat less than your TDEE in order to create a calorie deficit (eating less than you burn).

    MyFitnessPal's calorie estimate is BMR + Daily Activity - Calorie Deficit = Calorie Goal. MFP expects you to add in your exercise calories and eat those back, because you are already eating less than you burn with the built in calorie deficit.

    You do not need to burn off all the calories you intake, because you need calories to fuel your BMR and daily activity, as well as any exercise. Your calorie goal will change over time as you lose weight.
  • milesy1971
    milesy1971 Posts: 30 Member
    thank you all - supplimentary question lol where on earth do i find the MFP calculator
  • taylormoooon
    taylormoooon Posts: 130 Member
    This is how I do it -

    Home > Settings > Update diet/fitness profile

    Make sure your information is all accurate and then you save. Then:

    Home > Goals

    You'll see your target calories and macros. It's best to pick sedentary activity and add your exercise calories manually so that your calories aren't over-estimated.
  • Theo166
    Theo166 Posts: 2,564 Member
    milesy1971 wrote: »
    thank you all - supplimentary question lol where on earth do i find the MFP calculator

    It's part of the goal setting steps.
    Here's the BMR calculator though http://www.myfitnesspal.com/tools/bmr-calculator

    Here's a good TDEE calculator https://tdeecalculator.net/
  • PAV8888
    PAV8888 Posts: 14,311 Member
    edited May 2017
    Not at a computer so not sure which BMR equation you're using.

    You got the theory right... BMR x activity factor = tdee. These are of course estimates.

    And some start from BMR and some start from RMR which are sort of thought interchangable; but aren't quite the same as BMR would be slightly lower than RMR.

    In any case...the app uses a formula that is considered fairly accurate (Mifflin St Jeor's formula) for BMR and then assigns an activity factor of 1.25, 1.4, 1.6 and 1.8 to the various levels.

    Don't overthink it.

    Start with a level you think represents reality and a weight loss target that doesn't exceed 25% of your expected burn for the day.

    For most people that will be a target deficit of ~500 Cal. Obese and more active people may correctly be achieving tdees such that 750 or 1000 Cal deficits make sense.

    Start eating and logging and monitor what you log as intakes and expenditures vs your trending weight via your own averaging or an appropriate web site or app (trendweight.com, weightgrapher.com, libra android, happy scale iPhone)

    Compare your results over 2-3 weeks (male) 4-6 weeks (female) to account for water retention caused by hormonal fluctuation, and adjust your deficit or logging or both to account for reality!

    Easy Peasy :smiley:
  • milesy1971
    milesy1971 Posts: 30 Member
    thanks......i think my biggest problem with tracking calories is the nightly family meal - the wife cooks normally so to work out calories per serve always seems problematic

    im sure others have the same issue.any advise on how you handle this?
  • Theo166
    Theo166 Posts: 2,564 Member
    milesy1971 wrote: »
    thanks......i think my biggest problem with tracking calories is the nightly family meal - the wife cooks normally so to work out calories per serve always seems problematic

    im sure others have the same issue.any advise on how you handle this?

    It's OK to take swags at such meals. You'll soon discover if you are over or under estimating based on your actual weight loss and can adjust your portion sizes.
  • milesy1971
    milesy1971 Posts: 30 Member
    swags?
  • PAV8888
    PAV8888 Posts: 14,311 Member
    edited May 2017
    You could actually log all the ingredients in the recipe Builder comma measure the final quantity of output comma and therefore calculate the calories of the portion that you measure out for your self. That is what I tend to do but I like to be as accurate as I can with my measurements, something which is not a universal requirement for success. On the other hand if results are not happening as per expectations being more accurate may increase your chances of achieving them.
  • Hoshiko
    Hoshiko Posts: 179 Member
    milesy1971 wrote: »
    swags?

    Scientific Wild *kitten* Guess? Is my guess.

    Depending on your wife's calorie counting/estimation skills you could also ask her to help you keep track or estimate the overall calorie count of the meal, and use that to help you figure out a ballpark figure for your serving. That way, when you search the database for similar foods you have some idea of what to choose.

  • Theo166
    Theo166 Posts: 2,564 Member
    edited May 2017
    Hoshiko wrote: »
    milesy1971 wrote: »
    swags?

    Scientific Wild *kitten* Guess? Is my guess.

    Depending on your wife's calorie counting/estimation skills you could also ask her to help you keep track or estimate the overall calorie count of the meal, and use that to help you figure out a ballpark figure for your serving. That way, when you search the database for similar foods you have some idea of what to choose.

    Yes, SWAG is your best guess.
    I often just pick the most reasonable generic dish entry I can find in the database. It saves much time versus entering a new recipe for each meal. You can fine tune it by tweaking the serving size when you think the calories are a bit off.
  • Verity1111
    Verity1111 Posts: 3,309 Member
    I use https://www.freedieting.com/tools/calorie_calculator.htm I've lost 45lbs so far and it always has worked for me.
  • beanz744
    beanz744 Posts: 221 Member
    edited May 2017
    OP, just download myfitness (MFP) onto ur phone n set up a profile. MFP will work out the numbers for u n spits out a number for ur daily calorie allowance. then u just log ur food intake as accurately as u can n maybe do some exercises n the weight will come off.

    it will most likely not work if u and/or ur chef is not willing to contribute in logging ur food. its like playing the piano. while a small percentage of people can learn it by ears without lessons, most of us has to take lessons. weight loss is the same. a few of us can do it successfully by feel n eyeballing everything while most of us has to use a tool like MFP n do the homework consistently.

    good luck!
  • milesy1971
    milesy1971 Posts: 30 Member
    does this look right/... not so sure on the numbers

    or56k3c01ivm.png
  • amtyrell
    amtyrell Posts: 1,447 Member
    Put your current stats into mpg. Target 1 lb loss a week. Eat the number of calories mpg tells you and half your exercise calories every day
  • milesy1971
    milesy1971 Posts: 30 Member
    sorry can you say that again - so currently it tells me 1530 cals a day (sounds very very low) and target cals for exercise 770 a week?
  • JeromeBarry1
    JeromeBarry1 Posts: 10,179 Member
    Click "Apps".
    Click "BMR".
    done.
  • WendyLeigh1119
    WendyLeigh1119 Posts: 495 Member
    milesy1971 wrote: »
    thanks......i think my biggest problem with tracking calories is the nightly family meal - the wife cooks normally so to work out calories per serve always seems problematic

    im sure others have the same issue.any advise on how you handle this?

    My boyfriend cooks all of the family meals from scratch as well. Use the barcode scanner and leave out the ingredients (bottles, bags, etc) and scan them after dinner and figure out how much your serving was based on how many were used total to cook for the family. It's not easy, but scanning harder things liked marinades, sauces, dressing, etc makes the figuring easier.
  • CharlieBeansmomTracey
    CharlieBeansmomTracey Posts: 7,682 Member
    WendyLeigh1119 wrote: »
    milesy1971 wrote: »
    thanks......i think my biggest problem with tracking calories is the nightly family meal - the wife cooks normally so to work out calories per serve always seems problematic

    im sure others have the same issue.any advise on how you handle this?

    My boyfriend cooks all of the family meals from scratch as well. Use the barcode scanner and leave out the ingredients (bottles, bags, etc) and scan them after dinner and figure out how much your serving was based on how many were used total to cook for the family. It's not easy, but scanning harder things liked marinades, sauces, dressing, etc makes the figuring easier.

    even the barcode scanner entries can be way off
  • CharlieBeansmomTracey
    CharlieBeansmomTracey Posts: 7,682 Member
    JeromeBarry1 wrote: »
    You'll have to get your wife to weigh and record the weight of everything she prepares for your meal. Then you'll have to enter it in your food diary. This will be a test of true love if she does it right on your behalf.

    I haven't had to do that, as I married a beautiful woman who can't, won't, and shouldn't cook.

    my hubby weighs everything for me if he is cooking. if Im cooking I do it myself. he knows how important it is to me. she could at least weigh stuff out for you if she cant,wont or shouldnt cook lol
  • WendyLeigh1119
    WendyLeigh1119 Posts: 495 Member
    edited June 2017
    Definitely check that barcodes match bottle or bag. But I got my boyfriend a food scale to make it easier on him. He likes to have the kitchen to himself, so I don't dare get in the way. We just go over the "stats" after dinner together. If it's veggies and fruits and such, calories are minimal so I don't worry about exact measurements too much. It's the pastas, sauces, and grains I'm really vigilant about. "Give me literally 1/4 of a bagel with the eggs" is practically a mantra around here, lol.
  • Christine_72
    Christine_72 Posts: 16,049 Member
    milesy1971 wrote: »
    thanks......i think my biggest problem with tracking calories is the nightly family meal - the wife cooks normally so to work out calories per serve always seems problematic

    im sure others have the same issue.any advise on how you handle this?

    I love/hate when my husband cooks. I love it, because i don't have to cook, but i hate it because i have to guesstimate the calories as best i can. One of the main reasons i do the majority of the cooking is so i can be accurate with calories!
  • Mavrick_RN
    Mavrick_RN Posts: 439 Member
    milesy1971 wrote: »
    thanks......i think my biggest problem with tracking calories is the nightly family meal - the wife cooks normally so to work out calories per serve always seems problematic

    im sure others have the same issue.any advise on how you handle this?

    Treat it like a restaurant. You have control over simple green salad ingredients/salad dressing. Log it. You have control over portion size with the main entree (no seconds) and use the closest guess when you enter it in your log. Round up.

    You can offer to help cook a meal one night a week and weigh and measure the ingredients yourself.
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