An easier way to setup goal calories - eating for who you wi

To make sure that I understand this correctly, this formula tells me that in order to maintain a weight of 150lbs I need to eat 2516 calories with my current activity level? If I wanted to maintain my unhealthy weight of 180lbs I would need to eat 2739 calories per day? I am having a mental block thinking that a 223 calorie defecit isn't going to be enough to loose the weight.

My BMR at 180lbs is 1584, activity is 1155
My BMR at 150lbs is 1455, activity is 1061

When I entered the new calorie goal of 2516, MFP calculated my weight loss to be 0.5lbs per week??????? :noway: :frown:

This method is precisely to get over the situation many put themselves in when they eat below their current BMR, which just causes it to lower anyway, and you plateau.
Made doubly-worse by not eating back any exercise calories.

Remember on above - future activity calories are based on that weight, you'll burn more now because you weigh more.
Also be aware that the activity level estimates are usually half what you would get anyway, looking at calorie burn even from more accurate HRM.

And MFP's math on weight loss would no longer apply because they are looking at their BMR/maintenance calculation on current body with NO exercise, minus a future body BMR/maintenance including exercise.
So must leave their math out of it.

Just confirm activity levels. Sleep is easy, everyday.

Are you really going to do a Hard 1 hr everyday, or was that 3 days / week. With 3 days weight lifting at Medium and only 45 each.

All of that must be avg back out to 7 days / week. Just in case that was missed.

I have been stuck on a plateau for 3 mos. and recently switched to Olivia's method. It seems that there are way too many BMR calculators out there, and they all seem to give a different result. The Katch method gives me a BMR of 1340, whereas the one you recommended, it is 1274 for my current weight, and 1243 for my goal weight. So are you saying I should set my calorie goal at 1274 and stop logging my exercise calories? Couldn't I achieve the same result by logging my exercise calories, but eating them back?
Or should I set it at 1274 or somewhere between, maybe 1300?

Thanks for your post.

Please reread my OP, you might have the wrong idea about BMR and its importance in weight loss.

But if you know BF%, by all means use what you want it to be along with goal weight. Usually people don't know where a safe range is, so better to skip it.
This calc uses the exact same Harris calc MFP and most sites use.

Also the wrong idea of what daily calorie goal should be.

The Katch method gives me a BMR of 1340, whereas the one you recommended, it is 1274 for my current weight, and 1243 for my goal weight. So are you saying I should set my calorie goal at 1274 and stop logging my exercise calories? Couldn't I achieve the same result by logging my exercise calories, but eating them back?
Or should I set it at 1274 or somewhere between, maybe 1300?

So just to clarify, that site uses the Harris-Benedict calc (which MFP uses) when you enter height.
It uses the Katch calc when you enter bodyfat %.

So either method is probably real close when talking about healthy final weight.
NOT where you currently are.

You set goal calories to future maintenance (with accurate estimates of current exercise levels), and forget exercise calories.

Should re-read original post for clarity as to why that works.

I've gotten several replies asking how to confirm that the ExRx site won't overestimate calories burned by just putting in hours at different activity levels.

You can confirm what it is using for an hour of exercise by 2 methods.

Easy:
While the info for you future self is in there, put 23 hrs on resting, and 1 hr on another level, 1 at a time.
The activity calories now show you what it is estimating for your future self to do 1 hr at that level.
Does that hr of burn compare to your actual exercise calories by HRM, or more likely it is below?
If it is above, then definitely select the next level down for your estimates.

Not-so-easy:
Take your future or current BMR / 24 (to get a 1 hr figure).
Take that value times the multiplier the calculator uses to see the hour burn.
sleep is BMR x 1
very light is BMR x 1.5
light is BMR x 2.5
moderate is BMR x 5
heavy is BMR x 7

For instance, my summer bike rides are high intensity, around 800 cal by HRM. This estimates 539 when I select Heavy.
So some built in protection by the fact extra calories are eaten all week long to compensate for exercise.
And when Spring comes and I do 2-3 hrs, I'll need to change my activity levels correctly.

Either way should help confirm you are selecting the correct level for your type of exercise. Or at least the level below.

Biggest thing is to remember to take a weeks worth of exercise and divide by 7 for avg daily.

Also, sitting watching TV like a bump on a log is resting. Almost may as well be sleeping. Be honest!

I did this and the numbers I got at ExRx were only 3 off from the ones from here.

For what, BMR or maintenance calories?

If BMR was the same, and maintenance was about the same, then you entered in your current stats. And yes, it uses exactly the same calculation for BMR that MFP uses, so it should have been exactly the same.
And that formula is most accurate for those at a healthy weight already.

If maintenance was the same, then you told MFP one activity level, and ExRx a different activity level, or failed to enter in normal avg exercise if you do any.

Please reread OP carefully. Or share the basic stats for double-check by mail.

I finally had the time to sit down and read this and I LOVE it. I am going to give a try and see what happens. I've been stuck at the same weight for the past 4 months, so it can't hurt, right??

Won't hurt, as it is meant to protect slowing your BMR down.

But you have done such an incredible job and are so close to goal weight already, it may take a few weeks to find out if it will work or not.

If your BMR is at healthy level already, and this method causes a few more pounds to drop but then leaves you about 5lbs away, either:
Re-examine if exercise levels are correct, may be overestimated.
or
Your healthy BMR really is lower than calculated, so drop another 100 cal off goal.
or
You have more lean mass from all that exercise, and your body doesn't want to go down in weight, because you would have to lose muscle weight.

As one post just commented, gal was fitting in high school jeans comfortable again, at 20 lbs more, because it is lean mass, not fat.