CONFUSED ABOUT BMR - HELP!!!

frannyannemum
frannyannemum Posts: 142
edited November 12 in Health and Weight Loss
Hi,

I am very confused about BMR. My BMR comes out at 1456 calories a day but I have goals set at 1200 calories a day. I normally come out at just under (10 - 20 calories) 1200 calories a day but normally burn between 500 - 700 cals a day and can never manage to eat them back. I know people say you should eat them back but I eat when I am hungry not just for the sake of it.

So how many calories should I be eating a day???

Help... :indifferent:

Replies

  • frannyannemum
    frannyannemum Posts: 142
    Anyone please?!?...
  • femmi1120
    femmi1120 Posts: 473 Member
    What are your stats?
  • Fipsie
    Fipsie Posts: 50
    Hahaha, I'm pleased that you've posted this topic, I was just searching thru old posts to see if it had been covered before (although I am sure it has, probably billions of times :) )

    My BMR is 1379, recommended calorie intake 1200... I've only just started adding my exercise in, there's no way I can 'eat back' (tho I could certainly 'drink back' them I suppose!) all those calories... Isn't it part of the whole 'losing weight' thing?! ;)

    Cheers x
  • wahmx3
    wahmx3 Posts: 633 Member
    This topic has of course been asked many times, but here is my take on it. You should never eat below your BMR so right off the top, you should be eating no less than 1456 a day. If you are eating just about 1200 and then burning off 500-700, your body is in starvation mode and you won't lose weight, you will lose muscle but of course you don't want that. MFP sets almost everyone at 1200, just go into your settings and adjust yours. Your BMR will change every 5-10 pounds though so be sure to make adjustments as you lose.

    Hi,

    I am very confused about BMR. My BMR comes out at 1456 calories a day but I have goals set at 1200 calories a day. I normally come out at just under (10 - 20 calories) 1200 calories a day but normally burn between 500 - 700 cals a day and can never manage to eat them back. I know people say you should eat them back but I eat when I am hungry not just for the sake of it.

    So how many calories should I be eating a day???

    Help... :indifferent:
    [/quote]
  • rainbowbow
    rainbowbow Posts: 7,490 Member
    Not sure how much you need to lose... But unless it's significant(and I mean significant) 1200 calories is too low. My suggestion- as someone who has been on MFP for 6 months and I've seen it time and time again.....

    Eat your BMR. (you will STILL be eating at a deficit.) this is the number of calories your body takes just to fuel your organs, brain function, etc. eating below this can be detrimental to your health.

    #2 you will find that you will hit a big whopping fat plateau really quick by not eating back your exercise calories. Essentially you create too high of a deficit in calories (likely below your BMR). I ate 1200 calories for 4 months... I only lost about 6 weeks of that. I started eating my BMR and consuming all calories burned during exercise and the weight start just dropping off.

    Please understand unless you have a LOT of weight to lose 1200 calories isn't reasonable, safe, and isn't going to give you the results you want.
  • yesthistime
    yesthistime Posts: 2,051 Member
    I was confused until I got help from helloitsdan (an MFP member). He has awesome suggestions for running your numbers on his profile. Good luck!
  • frannyannemum
    frannyannemum Posts: 142
    Not sure how much you need to lose... But unless it's significant(and I mean significant) 1200 calories is too low. My suggestion- as someone who has been on MFP for 6 months and I've seen it time and time again.....

    Eat your BMR. (you will STILL be eating at a deficit.) this is the number of calories your body takes just to fuel your organs, brain function, etc. eating below this can be detrimental to your health.

    #2 you will find that you will hit a big whopping fat plateau really quick by not eating back your exercise calories. Essentially you create too high of a deficit in calories (likely below your BMR). I ate 1200 calories for 4 months... I only lost about 6 weeks of that. I started eating my BMR and consuming all calories burned during exercise and the weight start just dropping off.

    Please understand unless you have a LOT of weight to lose 1200 calories isn't reasonable, safe, and isn't going to give you the results you want.


    Thanks everyone :happy:

    I am 5"2 and currently weigh 174lbs. I want to get down to between 130 - 135lb so have between 39 - 44lbs to lose. I started this at the beginning of last year and weighed in at 213lb. The weight literally dropped off me for 8 months and I went down to 165lbs, but it isn't anymore. Will adjust my goals and set my calorie intake at my BMR.
  • mikkey
    mikkey Posts: 24 Member
    My BMR is calculated at ~ 1600 because I'm tall. Furthermore, I have a fairly large muscle mass. However, I must be one of those weird people that has a very low metabolism, because if I eat more than 1400/day while exercising 5-6 times a week, I gain weight. So I don't think the BMR calculator is very accurate...
    Now, I'm eating ~ 1200/day and work out 4-5 times a week (1 hour of intense elliptical training for ~ 500 cal plus weight lifting and ab toning) and I'm losing 1 lb a week.
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