Need help determining my activity level with TDEE and BMR calculators

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onthefitdisc
onthefitdisc Posts: 24 Member
edited September 2017 in Health and Weight Loss
Though I have lost significant weight a few times in the past, this is my first time around using TDEE and BMR numbers in weight loss. Last time around here I lost about 25lbs with the MFP standard recommendations, which gave me 1200 calories and I figured in my own exercise. During that time in my life I was super busy, ate almost the same thing every day, walked about 30 mins per day, but otherwise no real exercise. Not ideal for me.

Reading here about the more personalized and accurate calculations using TDEE and BMR and seeing the larger number of calories to eat was hard to get past mentally at first. But I had to face facts with the way my body kept stalling and I was so tired. I was also disheartened at first that I would only expect to lose 1lb/week or so, but honestly that is a more sustainable rate. So, huge mental shift.

Over the past week, I've been eating more calories based on a light activity level, feel so much better, and went down in weight. So I think I'm on the right track. I feel like I'm actually respecting my body by fueling it, getting more protein, and feeling great!

So my question is, is my lifestyle truly "light activity?" Part of having trouble determining is that I'm not as active as I used to be, and I'm trying to get back to a good challenging but manageable level. They talk about how many days you exercise per week but there's also what you're doing and for how long. I'm a therapist so my job has me sitting all day. I work out a few times a week on a schedule that looks something like this, at most active:

Mon/Wed: Weights/resistance - 30-40 mins
Tues/Thurs: Walk/Run (3.2-5.2 mph) or Elliptical 25-30 mins
Sunday: Skating 60-90 mins - it's a lot of balance but certainly not high intensity.

My stats:
Age 41
Female
Height 5'5"
SW: 226
CW: 216
First GW: 178

I've never looked like I weigh as much as I do, so I think I have a pretty good muscle base naturally. I read something recently about how to tell your frame and I can definitely close my thumb and middle finger around my wrist - though I really don't give much weight to that kind of thing (no pun intended!).

Can anyone give guidance on which activity level actually reflects my lifestyle?

Replies

  • janejellyroll
    janejellyroll Posts: 25,763 Member
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    Your MFP activity level is supposed to be based on your non-exercise activity. You then log your exercise to get additional calories. So, in MFP terms, you're probably not lightly active.

    That said, if you're losing weight on the "lightly active" level, I don't see the need to change it until/unless this is no longer working for you.
  • onthefitdisc
    onthefitdisc Posts: 24 Member
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    I'm not using the MFP automatic calculations this time around. I'm calculating my specific recommendations based on TDEE calculators, which factor in your weekly activity level in your recommended calories.
  • janejellyroll
    janejellyroll Posts: 25,763 Member
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    onthefitdisc wrote: »
    I'm not using the MFP automatic calculations this time around. I'm calculating my specific recommendations based on TDEE calculators, which factor in your weekly activity level in your recommended calories.

    Are there guidelines on the calculator you used as to how they define "lightly active"? Since we don't know how they are calculating it, it's going to be challenging for us to answer your question.
  • MegaMooseEsq
    MegaMooseEsq Posts: 3,118 Member
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    Forgive me if I misunderstand, but it sounds like the recommendations for "lightly active" are producing results you like, but that you are curious if you are using the correct activity modifier? And you're using something like this: https://www.supertracker.usda.gov/bwp/index.html? I guess the answer is, maybe?

    The calculators provide estimates based on what is true for most people. Many people will find they lose a little bit faster or a little bit slower than the calculators estimate. This might be because you're not accurately tracking food and/or exercise, or because you actually do have a metabolism that falls outside of standard deviations. The best thing you can do is to try and follow whatever guidelines the calculator in question gives you, and then track your calories and weight loss to see if you're getting the results that you would expect. You might need to adjust the modifiers to get recommendations that reflect your experience, or adjust the calories you're eating, but at least you have a place to start.
  • onthefitdisc
    onthefitdisc Posts: 24 Member
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    Sorry, I had read things on the message boards that made me think my question was a little more straightforward than it was. I'm referring to the information in the following thread and have used the calculators referenced in this post:

    http://community.myfitnesspal.com/en/discussion/931670/bmr-and-tdee-explained-for-those-needing-a-guide/p1
  • MegaMooseEsq
    MegaMooseEsq Posts: 3,118 Member
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    Maybe I'm just not understanding why you want to know, and without knowing that, can't really come up with a good answer. I mean, depending on the guidelines given I could see calling your level of activity either "lightly active" or "active", but that doesn't really mean anything. All you're really trying to do is to figure out your maintenance calories so that you can figure out your goal to maintain whatever deficit you want - and again, the calculators are just guidelines. Your best bet is just to charge ahead, track everything, and adjust as needed.

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