How many calories am I meant to eat?

Jay9201
Jay9201 Posts: 119 Member
edited December 23 in Goal: Gaining Weight and Body Building
Hi all, just wanted to know if I get some help I'm getting confused how many calories to consume.

Quick stats I'm female, 27 years old , 5'5. I currently weigh in at 170lbs I gained weight when I was off sick recently diagnosed with gluten intolerance so was out of work and gym.

Many online calculators have said my TDEE is between 2074 and 2202 and my BMR is between 1574 and 1774. I'm currently eating at 1500 calls.

Not sure if I opened a thread on here before but my currently fitness activity is lifting weights 3x a week I'm trying to lift heavy weights/body decomposition.

But should I be eating less than BMR or my TDEE especially since I started lifting weights I'm always eating.

Any tips?

Replies

  • puffbrat
    puffbrat Posts: 2,806 Member
    Use the guided setup on this site and enter your info. Set you weight loss to 0.5lb or 1lb per week and then eat the NET calories that MFP sets for you. Do that for several weeks and then evaluate if that number seems reasonable for you.
  • Jay9201
    Jay9201 Posts: 119 Member
    MFP tells me to eat 1200 cals when I set my info up and i was really hungry eating that amount. Especially lifting weights eating 1200 cals is way too low for me.
  • puffbrat
    puffbrat Posts: 2,806 Member
    Jay9201 wrote: »
    MFP tells me to eat 1200 cals when I set my info up and i was really hungry eating that amount. Especially lifting weights eating 1200 cals is way too low for me.

    That seems low for your height and weight. How many pounds per week loss did you put to get that 1200 calories? What activity level did you set and was that actually reflective of your daily non-exercise calories?

    Also, not as big a difference with weight lifting, but MFP is intended for you eat back exercise calories.
  • Jay9201
    Jay9201 Posts: 119 Member
    I put 0.5 for weightloss and activity is lightly active. I have an office job but activity wise I'm moderately active. Also I don't eat back exercise calories just to keep myself in a deficit. Maybe it's my version of the app showing the lower figures?
  • Joanna2012B
    Joanna2012B Posts: 1,448 Member
    When I first started MFP I weighed 191lbs, I am 5'3" woman. MFP also told me 1200 calories!!! I was miserable and hungry all the time. So I upped my calories to 1500, that was better, less murderous! I was happiest when I upped to 1800 Calories. I found I was satisfied and had energy to workout. Keep playing with your numbers until you find what works for you. I agree 1200 is too low even without weights!!
  • puffbrat
    puffbrat Posts: 2,806 Member
    Jay9201 wrote: »
    I put 0.5 for weightloss and activity is lightly active. I have an office job but activity wise I'm moderately active. Also I don't eat back exercise calories just to keep myself in a deficit. Maybe it's my version of the app showing the lower figures?

    That shouldn't matter. It could be a glitch but this just doesn't sound right. I tried entering your stats to see what it would tell me but that part of site is apparently down right now.

    For perspective - I am a 34 year old female, 5'6", sedentary. Right now I am 193lbs and lose 1lb/week eating 1510 calories per MFP. In reality I can eat ~75-100 calories more per day to lose that 1lb/week. In the past when I was 170 lbs, I could lose 0.5lb/week eating 1650 calories.

    1500 calories is probably reasonable for you to lose weight, and you just need to try it for a while and see what your actual results are. Simply because this kind of thing bothers me and makes me curious, I would recommend trying the guided setup again when it starts working, but that is up to whether or not you want to bother.

  • slbbw
    slbbw Posts: 329 Member
    That does not seem right. I am 5'5" 148lbs right now set to 0.5 per week, lightly active and my baseline with no exercise is 1640. So in theory at 170 you should be well above that. If 1500 is doable for you try that for a month, and use you weightloss over that period to calibrate your goals.
  • Jay9201
    Jay9201 Posts: 119 Member
    Thank you! I think there is a glitch I can't access that part right now. So I will try again setting it to 0.5 and activity level to lightly active and see how much that calculates too.
  • Jay9201
    Jay9201 Posts: 119 Member
    Joanna2012B wrote: »
    When I first started MFP I weighed 191lbs, I am 5'3" woman. MFP also told me 1200 calories!!! I was miserable and hungry all the time. So I upped my calories to 1500, that was better, less murderous! I was happiest when I upped to 1800 Calories. I found I was satisfied and had energy to workout. Keep playing with your numbers until you find what works for you. I agree 1200 is too low even without weights!!

    I know 1500 cals is ok when I'm not training but days when I train I'm so hungry. Will keep playing with my numbers.
  • heybales
    heybales Posts: 18,842 Member
    Jay9201 wrote: »
    I put 0.5 for weightloss and activity is lightly active. I have an office job but activity wise I'm moderately active. Also I don't eat back exercise calories just to keep myself in a deficit. Maybe it's my version of the app showing the lower figures?

    Incorrect thinking there in regards to the way MFP works.

    Perhaps you are thinking of prior TDEE method you used where you told it the planned workouts, and your eating goal was based on doing that increased activity that included exercise.
    So many times to create the deficit you had to do the workouts (not actually if the work was done, but many incorrectly thought that).
    In those cases the deficit is taken off TDEE that includes average weekly exercise spread out over all the days.

    MFP though is giving an eating goal based solely on daily activity with no exercise.
    But then when you do more, you eat more.
    Same deficit.

    Why would you want a bigger deficit from a workout that for best effect the body really would want no deficit?

    Perhaps you aren't using MFP as intended and are using the TDEE method.
    Considering every TDEE calc I've seen only discusses exercise, and not increased daily life - you may have selected the wrong activity level.

    Would a woman your exact same stats doing same workout with same household responsibilities, but a mail carrier on walking route all day, really have the same TDEE as you?
    The calc would assign that same figure.
  • heybales
    heybales Posts: 18,842 Member
    You didn't use .5 lb loss rate, or got another figure wrong.

    With Sedentary TDEE at 1884, a 250 deficit is of course above 1200.
    Using Lightly Active you said would be 2110.

    And of course the correct 1610 would still only be on non-exercise days.
  • Jay9201
    Jay9201 Posts: 119 Member
    No on MFP i put 0.5 and lightly active and it came up with 1200 cals but I'm unable to access that it just says unavailable. When I access that I will try again to see what my calories should be.

    In terms of my exercise calories, I simply focus on my net calories. So hitting 1500 cals solely from food.
  • sijomial
    sijomial Posts: 19,809 Member
    edited October 2019
    Jay9201 wrote: »
    In terms of my exercise calories, I simply focus on my net calories. So hitting 1500 cals solely from food.

    Then stop using MyFitnessPal to set your calorie goal as it doesn't work the way you want to eat and the number given will simply be the wrong number.

    Try a TDEE calculator instead then you will get a suitable same every day calorie goal.
    This is a good one - https://www.sailrabbit.com/bmr/

    You can then manually set the number given as your goal on here.
  • Jay9201
    Jay9201 Posts: 119 Member
    sijomial wrote: »
    Jay9201 wrote: »
    In terms of my exercise calories, I simply focus on my net calories. So hitting 1500 cals solely from food.

    Then stop using MyFitnessPal to set your calorie goal as it doesn't work the way you want to eat and the number given will simply be the wrong number.

    Try a TDEE calculator instead then you will get a suitable same every day calorie goal.
    This is a good one - https://www.sailrabbit.com/bmr/

    You can then manually set the number given as your goal on here.

    I will try that thanks! Just managed to get onto my goals on MFP. Changed to 0.5kg to lose per week and lightly active and as my goal is to get to 130lbs eventually MFP calculated my calories to 1560 for my height.

    Will also try the link given, thank you!
  • erickirb
    erickirb Posts: 12,294 Member
    Jay9201 wrote: »
    MFP tells me to eat 1200 cals when I set my info up and i was really hungry eating that amount. Especially lifting weights eating 1200 cals is way too low for me.
    Jay9201 wrote: »
    MFP tells me to eat 1200 cals when I set my info up and i was really hungry eating that amount. Especially lifting weights eating 1200 cals is way too low for me.

    was that at 2 lb/week loss though? set your goal to lose 1 lb/week, and you are to eat back what you burn from exercise as well. other option is eat 500 cals/day less than TDEE
  • sijomial
    sijomial Posts: 19,809 Member
    Jay9201 wrote: »
    sijomial wrote: »
    Jay9201 wrote: »
    In terms of my exercise calories, I simply focus on my net calories. So hitting 1500 cals solely from food.

    Then stop using MyFitnessPal to set your calorie goal as it doesn't work the way you want to eat and the number given will simply be the wrong number.

    Try a TDEE calculator instead then you will get a suitable same every day calorie goal.
    This is a good one - https://www.sailrabbit.com/bmr/

    You can then manually set the number given as your goal on here.

    I will try that thanks! Just managed to get onto my goals on MFP. Changed to 0.5kg to lose per week and lightly active and as my goal is to get to 130lbs eventually MFP calculated my calories to 1560 for my height.

    Will also try the link given, thank you!

    You're welcome!

    A couple of things worth mentioning.....
    1/ Beware different units of weight @heybales was talking in pounds and you are working in kilo as regards your chosen rate of loss.
    2/ Always remember that the MPF goal is only for a day with no exercise so the target given is 1560 + exercise calories. When you use a TDEE calculator the daily goal includes an average of your intended exercise already so keep that in mind when you compare numbers.
  • Jay9201
    Jay9201 Posts: 119 Member
    sijomial wrote: »
    Jay9201 wrote: »
    sijomial wrote: »
    Jay9201 wrote: »
    In terms of my exercise calories, I simply focus on my net calories. So hitting 1500 cals solely from food.

    Then stop using MyFitnessPal to set your calorie goal as it doesn't work the way you want to eat and the number given will simply be the wrong number.

    Try a TDEE calculator instead then you will get a suitable same every day calorie goal.
    This is a good one - https://www.sailrabbit.com/bmr/

    You can then manually set the number given as your goal on here.

    I will try that thanks! Just managed to get onto my goals on MFP. Changed to 0.5kg to lose per week and lightly active and as my goal is to get to 130lbs eventually MFP calculated my calories to 1560 for my height.

    Will also try the link given, thank you!

    You're welcome!

    A couple of things worth mentioning.....
    1/ Beware different units of weight @heybales was talking in pounds and you are working in kilo as regards your chosen rate of loss.
    2/ Always remember that the MPF goal is only for a day with no exercise so the target given is 1560 + exercise calories. When you use a TDEE calculator the daily goal includes an average of your intended exercise already so keep that in mind when you compare numbers.

    Wow, thank you so much!
  • gavinknowlesfitness
    gavinknowlesfitness Posts: 2 Member
    Good post. I am 170 lb guy trying to get down to 10% bodyfat. I am close so decided to recalculate my cals using MFP. I would also get hungry some days and can't sleep so recalculated and sync Pacer step app with MFP so I could eat back my calories. I am ecto-endomorph so need carbs to fill out. So i used seditary and maintain weight settings with sync with Pacer step counter. Giving this a try. I like sleeping!
  • staticsplit
    staticsplit Posts: 538 Member
    Having net 500 calories is promoting unhealthy behaviours--3.75 pounds a week is very unlikely to be healthy, even if you have a lot of weight to lose. A blanket statement of 'you will lose 60 pounds in 4 months' is also silly--that would put me at 90 pounds at 6 ft *eye roll*. Plus all caps sounds like you're yelling.
  • Spadesheart
    Spadesheart Posts: 479 Member
    heybales wrote: »
    Jay9201 wrote: »
    I put 0.5 for weightloss and activity is lightly active. I have an office job but activity wise I'm moderately active. Also I don't eat back exercise calories just to keep myself in a deficit. Maybe it's my version of the app showing the lower figures?

    Incorrect thinking there in regards to the way MFP works.

    Perhaps you are thinking of prior TDEE method you used where you told it the planned workouts, and your eating goal was based on doing that increased activity that included exercise.
    So many times to create the deficit you had to do the workouts (not actually if the work was done, but many incorrectly thought that).
    In those cases the deficit is taken off TDEE that includes average weekly exercise spread out over all the days.

    MFP though is giving an eating goal based solely on daily activity with no exercise.
    But then when you do more, you eat more.
    Same deficit.

    Why would you want a bigger deficit from a workout that for best effect the body really would want no deficit?

    Perhaps you aren't using MFP as intended and are using the TDEE method.
    Considering every TDEE calc I've seen only discusses exercise, and not increased daily life - you may have selected the wrong activity level.

    Would a woman your exact same stats doing same workout with same household responsibilities, but a mail carrier on walking route all day, really have the same TDEE as you?
    The calc would assign that same figure.

    I wouldn't exactly discourage people from not counting exercise so long as their body appears to be handling it, and they are consuming a healthy amount of calories for the micro and macro-nutrient needs, so long as they don't already have a very, very low body fat. Of course, even that in moderation. If someone is doing 1200 calories in cardio everyday, that's obviously not sustainable. The person who was suggesting losing 60 pounds in 4 months above is an example of what not to do.

    Counting exercise calories is so individualized and difficult to do that, for me at least, if I tried to actually eat back exercise calories, it would have slowed my progress to a crawl. This would have invalidated a good deal of the effort. The psychological power of seeing your body change is really motivating, and if it's done in a safe, sustainable manner, I wouldn't say no.

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