A different way to set up MFP goals - that WORKS!

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  • lilah808
    lilah808 Posts: 60
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    I wanted to make sure I have this right, and also make sure your technique applies to me, since I have 71 lbs to lose.

    I weigh 241 and am 5'9. My goal weight is 170. I would like to lose 2 lbs per week.
    My BMR (according to MFP) = 1,845
    So I should always eat 1,845 calories everyday?
    1,845 x 1.3 = 2,398 gives me a 553 burn on non-workout days
    On workout days, I can burn 447 and not eat back the calories for a 1000 deficit or if I burn more than 447 calories during a workout, I need to eat those extra calories above the 447 back?

    Did I figure this correctly? And again, does this apply to me, since I have so much weight to lose, or should I do what MFP says to do? I want to lose 2lbs per week... a nice consistent pace without ripping the weight off too quickly.

    Thank you very much!
  • lilyinlove
    lilyinlove Posts: 441 Member
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    going to bump this for the people on my friends list that think eating less is more!!!
  • loustevo
    loustevo Posts: 23 Member
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    bump
  • mrrad
    mrrad Posts: 46
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    Bump.
  • thankyou4thevenom
    thankyou4thevenom Posts: 1,581 Member
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    BUMP
  • joclougherty
    joclougherty Posts: 59 Member
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    Hi Olivia,

    I sent you a rather garbled message, but just wanted to clarify: my BMR on MFP is 1403 and maintenance is 1890. I am 5'7" and weigh 156lbs. So am I correct in thinking that I set MFP to maintenance (1890) then I try to eat below that on non exercise days but keep above 1403 (should I aim for 1500 giving me a deficit of 390 on non exercise days?). On days I run I should do the same but not worry too much about eating a bit more but make sure the green number at the bottom of the page is no more than 1000......
  • boroladnz
    boroladnz Posts: 1 Member
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    Bump -
  • olivia3263
    olivia3263 Posts: 263 Member
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    Okay so im not fully understanding this, a little help with the numbers would help. :)
    I noticed that my BMR and Maintence is close to a few posts above but i usually burn about 700 to 1000 calories a day, so if i did how many calories am i eating? And how do i set this up to make sense on mfp diary?

    Weight- 170
    BMR- 1503

    Please & Thank You!

    MFP Calorie goal: 1954
    Actual Calorie goal: 1550 - don't go below
    This gives you a deficit of 404 on your non-workout days. If you burn anything over 596 (we'll say 600 to make it easier), eat the extra calories. So if you burn 700 you should eat at least 1650. If you burn 800, eat at least 1750, and so forth.
  • Tigermad
    Tigermad Posts: 305 Member
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    I wanted to make sure I have this right, and also make sure your technique applies to me, since I have 71 lbs to lose.

    I weigh 241 and am 5'9. My goal weight is 170. I would like to lose 2 lbs per week.
    My BMR (according to MFP) = 1,845
    So I should always eat 1,845 calories everyday?
    1,845 x 1.3 = 2,398 gives me a 553 burn on non-workout days
    On workout days, I can burn 447 and not eat back the calories for a 1000 deficit or if I burn more than 447 calories during a workout, I need to eat those extra calories above the 447 back?

    Did I figure this correctly? And again, does this apply to me, since I have so much weight to lose, or should I do what MFP says to do? I want to lose 2lbs per week... a nice consistent pace without ripping the weight off too quickly.

    Thank you very much!

    Hello

    I am sure Olivia will be along later to answer your query. I am in a similar predicament to you. I still want to lose 47 pounds (maybe more) and have been losing 2lbs per week over 4 months using mfp way. I am testing this new way out but my major concern is that I probably won't lose as much per week now I am eating more. My deficit per day now without excercise is 380, so over the week this would only be 2660. This is not even enough to lose 1lb. I would need to exercise every day and burn 620 cals every day to get the 7000 deficit I would technically need to lose 2lbs. I can't burn 620 every single day so I do not think I will lose even a pound on this, but I am willing to give it a go. I was eating 1200 cals so getting a deficit of 680 on non workout days, a total of 4760 deficit for the week but I still lost the 2lbs.
  • olivia3263
    olivia3263 Posts: 263 Member
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    My goodness Olivia, have we made you regret posting this topic yet? You're so patient! :smile: I think I'm understanding this...

    MFP estimates my BMR as 1544. So...

    1. I should never eat below that amount.
    2. If I work out, I should only eat back exercise calories if I've burned more than 600 calories.

    Correct?

    Also, were these calculations only intended for runners?

    Thanks, you rock!

    Haha, responding to these questions makes me feel like I have a second job. I love it!

    Yes, you should set your MFP calorie goal to 2007 (your BMR x 1.3)
    Make sure to aim for at least 1550 (I like round numbers). If you burn more than 543 calories during a workout, make sure to eat the extra calories.

    The nutritionist I went to was specifically geared toward runners, but I think the rules apply to anyone. It definitely benefits people who workout more than people who don't. And the way I set it up in MFP, it's beneficial to anyone who has a maintenance TDEE of less than 2200 before exercise because they cannot safely reach a 1000 calorie deficit on non-workout days without going below 1200, which isn't safe. It's a way to maximize your weight loss without depriving your body of what it needs :) Good luck!
  • SouLThinking
    SouLThinking Posts: 308 Member
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    bumping. Sounds very interesting.
  • olivia3263
    olivia3263 Posts: 263 Member
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    this is what i do, i set my goals to loose .5lbs a week and i dont eat back my exercise calories this seems to be working for me right
    This is basically what this method is for me and easier to understand. Thanks
    I agree with these folks. Basically, when you get close to your goal (only 10-20 pounds left to lose, for example), you need to create less of a deficit (no more 2 lb/week business), which clearly will give you more calories to play with per day. You should be eating closer to maintenance, since soon you will switch to maintenance and it wouldn't be a good idea to go from 1200 cals/day to 1900 cals/day (or whatever your maintenance mode might be).

    Personally, I prefer to aim for whatever goal is on my MFP page, rather than aiming for a lower goal every day depending on exercise. So I have manually set my goals to be around 0.5 lb/week loss (although slightly more, like 0.6 because it works out to be slightly higher than my BMR). Right now I'm not doing a lot of exercise since it gets dark at 4:30 pm and I'm in graduate school in finals season. But someday when I get back to running, I plan to eat most of my exercise calories back, but not all because I don't have a HRM and I'm unsure of the accuracy of my calories burned.

    If what you're doing is working, then keep doing it! If not, then play around with the numbers some, and don't be afraid to try increasing your calorie intake for a week or two if you're at a plateau and closing in on your goal weight. Good luck to all!

    I agree with everything you're saying. The problem I had with the .5 lb/week setting was that it's only 250 calories. We're all just guessing with our workout calculations, food calorie calculations, bmr, tdee - all of it - it's all an estimation. 250 calories is not a whole lot, and it's REALLY easy to make a mistake. I just purchased a food scale and realized how easy it could've been to go over my calories unknowingly with a couple missteps in food calculations. Also, when I had my long run burns (over 1000) it felt silly to try to eat so much to satisfy the 250 calorie deficit, especially when I was doing those long runs, in part, to lose weight.

    This way, I can safely give myself a little more wiggle room, and I'm actually enjoying my workouts more because I'm not worried so much that I miscalculated my burn. And I LOVE seeing the green calories remaining number and knowing it's my deficit for the day. I think that's my favorite part, because if I decide to have an evening treat, I can see that it just makes the deficit a little smaller, but as long as there's a deficit, I'll still lose.

    Anyway, different strokes for different folks. Good luck! :)
  • olivia3263
    olivia3263 Posts: 263 Member
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    I love the concept of this, but my problem is my BMR is 1207 and I like food too much to stay at that everyday! But congrats on your success!

    How many calories can you have to maintain?

    To maintain MFP says 1620. RIght now I have my calorie goal at 1500

    Yeah, for you I would set it like this:
    MFP goal - 1620
    Calorie goal - 1300 (eat at least this) - but at least this gives you a 320 calorie deficit on non-workout days
    you could reach a 1000 calorie deficit by burning 680 calories. But if your BMR is so little, I would assume you wouldn't have to lose too much. Again, you don't HAVE to create a 1000 calorie deficit - it's just a minimum. If you burned over 680 you would have to eat at least the surplus.
  • kerrbear20
    kerrbear20 Posts: 20 Member
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    bump - but i'll be back soon, this could be the answer i have been looking for this past year. running 15 miles per week and have 100lb to lose but the fat just isn't shifting. im off now to try and work out my bmr and maintenance then i will have loads of questions lol
  • Ilovedrinkingtea
    Ilovedrinkingtea Posts: 597 Member
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    Bump. I exercise like billy-o and I should be in better shape than I am. I plan to read this thread later on.

    xx
  • olivia3263
    olivia3263 Posts: 263 Member
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    BMR is 1922
    1922 x 1.3 = 2499
    Non workout days I would get a 577 burn.

    Average workout day is around 750 burn, so on a workout day, I would eat 2249 (1922+327 excess exercise calories), leaving a calorie deficit of 1000 (maintenance 2499+750 burn=3249)

    I thought I had it all figured out...until I tried to figure it out! Does this look right?

    THANK YOU OLIVIA!!! :flowerforyou:

    MFP goal - 2499
    Calorie goal - 1922 - now since you have more to lose, you could safely reach a 1000 calorie deficit without working out (1499). Right now you're not in any real danger, so dipping below your BMR would be ok for you. But if you want to stick with this method, you would aim to eat around 1922 whether you workout or not. Anything you burn above 423 you would want to eat to keep the 1000 calorie deficit. So if you burn 750, eat 1922+327 - yup, your calculations are correct).
  • olivia3263
    olivia3263 Posts: 263 Member
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    I wanted to make sure I have this right, and also make sure your technique applies to me, since I have 71 lbs to lose.

    I weigh 241 and am 5'9. My goal weight is 170. I would like to lose 2 lbs per week.
    My BMR (according to MFP) = 1,845
    So I should always eat 1,845 calories everyday?
    1,845 x 1.3 = 2,398 gives me a 553 burn on non-workout days
    On workout days, I can burn 447 and not eat back the calories for a 1000 deficit or if I burn more than 447 calories during a workout, I need to eat those extra calories above the 447 back?

    Did I figure this correctly? And again, does this apply to me, since I have so much weight to lose, or should I do what MFP says to do? I want to lose 2lbs per week... a nice consistent pace without ripping the weight off too quickly.

    Thank you very much!

    Exactly right! :)
  • Aries03
    Aries03 Posts: 179 Member
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    Bump
  • olivia3263
    olivia3263 Posts: 263 Member
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    Hi Olivia,

    I sent you a rather garbled message, but just wanted to clarify: my BMR on MFP is 1403 and maintenance is 1890. I am 5'7" and weigh 156lbs. So am I correct in thinking that I set MFP to maintenance (1890) then I try to eat below that on non exercise days but keep above 1403 (should I aim for 1500 giving me a deficit of 390 on non exercise days?). On days I run I should do the same but not worry too much about eating a bit more but make sure the green number at the bottom of the page is no more than 1000......

    So you would set it like this:

    MFP calorie goal - 1890
    Actual calorie goal - 1500 - eat this whether you workout or not.
    If you burn more than 610, eat the surplus calories. Just make sure the number in green stays below 1000.
  • olivia3263
    olivia3263 Posts: 263 Member
    Options
    I wanted to make sure I have this right, and also make sure your technique applies to me, since I have 71 lbs to lose.

    I weigh 241 and am 5'9. My goal weight is 170. I would like to lose 2 lbs per week.
    My BMR (according to MFP) = 1,845
    So I should always eat 1,845 calories everyday?
    1,845 x 1.3 = 2,398 gives me a 553 burn on non-workout days
    On workout days, I can burn 447 and not eat back the calories for a 1000 deficit or if I burn more than 447 calories during a workout, I need to eat those extra calories above the 447 back?

    Did I figure this correctly? And again, does this apply to me, since I have so much weight to lose, or should I do what MFP says to do? I want to lose 2lbs per week... a nice consistent pace without ripping the weight off too quickly.

    Thank you very much!

    Hello

    I am sure Olivia will be along later to answer your query. I am in a similar predicament to you. I still want to lose 47 pounds (maybe more) and have been losing 2lbs per week over 4 months using mfp way. I am testing this new way out but my major concern is that I probably won't lose as much per week now I am eating more. My deficit per day now without excercise is 380, so over the week this would only be 2660. This is not even enough to lose 1lb. I would need to exercise every day and burn 620 cals every day to get the 7000 deficit I would technically need to lose 2lbs. I can't burn 620 every single day so I do not think I will lose even a pound on this, but I am willing to give it a go. I was eating 1200 cals so getting a deficit of 680 on non workout days, a total of 4760 deficit for the week but I still lost the 2lbs.

    Yes, this is definitely more beneficial for people who have less to lose. If your maintenance calories before exercise are greater than 2200, you can create a 1000 calorie deficit safely without exercise (1200 calories) - then setting it up with your MFP calories goal at 1200, if eat all your exercise calories you will keep your deficit of 1000 (2 pounds a week). Once your daily burn is less than 2200, it's harder to keep that 1000 calorie deficit while still eating enough so that your body doesn't freak out on you. It will still work, but you may find the old MFP way a little easier to manage. Hope that helped :)

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