Here's why you're not losing weight! Follow this equation!

Okay I just want confirmation that I have this down right....Sorry to dumb it down so much.

MFP set me up with a 980 cal deficit a day to lose 2 pounds per week. This gave me 1200 calories a day to eat.
I started p90x and burn 500 calories a day doing this exercise.
This means I should eat 1700 calories a day and I still keep my 980 deficit which means I still should be on track to lose 2 pounds a week.

Correct????

OK, someone help me, I have read several forums all to do with the same thing and I am still confused.

If my BMR shows as 1631( I used the fitness frog site) , and my activity level is Sedentary ( I sit at a desk all day), am I calculating my equations correctly?

1631 X 1.2 = 1957.2 = TDEE
1957.2 - 500 = 1457.2 = Calorie Goal

I would like to lose 1.5 to 2lbs per week, I have 50-60 lbs to lose. I have been trying to stay within 1200 calories, including my excersising as that is what MFP stated. Should I actually be eating closer to 1400 calories?

Your calculations look good (based on my experience... I am NOT a doctor or dietician)! I would suggest upping your calorie goal to 1450 (eat back any exercise too). Make sure your additional calories are made up of lean proteins and good fats (chicken, fish, nuts, dairy, etc.). And DON'T despair after one week where you may or may not lose (possibly even gain that first week). Your metabolism needs some time to adjust and consistency (plus patience) are all you need. You can do it!!!

It doesnt??? I thought 1 to 2 pounds per week was healthy?

I am sure others will add. You may not be losing weight because you are not drinking enough water. I really have this problem in the winter.

And, a pound is 3,500 calories. If you maintain your activity, when you eat 3,500 less calories than you burn, you will lose one pound. That is simple math.

Truth is, you don't simply want to loss weight. You want to learn to eat healthy and live right. That is the ultimate goal. So, eating 500 less calories than you burn will have you lose a pound a week. Eating 1,000 less calories will have you lose 2 pounds a week. On Biggest Loser, they lose 10 pounds a week. Yep, you figured it out, they are burning 5,000 more calories a day than they are consuming. I wouldn't do this without a doctor and proper vitamins. But, they have the doctors, the trainers and the dietitians to help them. For the rest of us: eat healthy, burn more than you eat, drink water and exercise.

:noway:

I've been quoted...

I want to add a few things to clarify stuff. The "chart" that I posted originally that was quoted was using example numbers of a specific person's BMR. You need to know your BMR for it to work. Conveniently, MFP has a BMR calculator (it's under the Tools tab.) There are also lots of different sites around the internet that have calculators using different formulas, my personal favorite is the Katch-McArdle formula, as that takes individual muscle mass into consideration. Of course, if you don't know your body fat percentage, just stick with the MFP number, it's gonna be close enough.

The full formula I was referring to is "BMR x Activity Factor = TDEE"
TDEE stands for Total Daily Energy Expenditure, which is the total number of calories you burn on a normal day. BMR is the total number of calories you would burn if you were in a coma, in other words, just enough to maintain vital organ function and maintenance. The real goal is to find your BMR, then use that to calculate your TDEE (be honest with your activity level, the only person you hurt lying about it is you,) then NET somewhere between those 2 numbers and you will lose weight.

What does NET mean? It means "Food Eaten - Exercise Calories Burned." This is an important distinction, as most people just pick BMR and decide to just eat that. But, when you burn calories while exercising, you are essentially erasing those calories from your diet for the day. So, if your BMR is 1400, and you choose to eat 1400, and then you exercise and burn 800 calories on a nice long run, then you've only netted 600 calories. Most people will agree that if you eat 600 calories a day without exercising, it's not healthy. Well, netting 600 calories a day is equally unhealthy, as the body doesn't recognize a difference between the too. Either way, it only has 600 calories to run and maintain your vital organs with (when you exercise, your body uses that energy as it happens, it doesn't think about whether it should save some to keep your heart beating, as far as the body is concerned, you aren't on a treadmill, you're running from a tiger, and if the tiger catches you, well, it won't need to worry about keeping your heart beating, anyway.)

So, recap. Use the BMR calculator, and then figure out your TDEE from there. Pick a number between them, and NET it consistently. Lose weight. Enjoy life. :drinker: