How does everyone work out their calories to eat per day?

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f68bau
f68bau Posts: 15
in Health and Weight Loss
MFP in guided mode advises me to eat below my BMR - at about 1350. My BMR is 1537.
I'm 5"5, or 166cm, weigh 71kg or 157 pounds. Age of 22, and female :)

Should I eat my BMR per day, and 300 extra on the days that I run/exercise? (I burn about 300 during Cto5K).

Finding this quite confusing as there is so much different info around!!

Also, feel free to add me - always good to see other people's food diaries and what they get up to :)

Replies

  • JenMc14
    JenMc14 Posts: 2,389 Member
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    If you eat at your BMR, you will maintain your weight. In order to lose, you have to eat less than you burn. So, if you burn just over 1500 calories with no exercise, then you should eat less than that. But, you really should never eat below 1200, because your body needs the fuel. One days you exercise you can (and should) eat more, but again, to lose, you should consume less than you burn.
  • HideNGeek
    HideNGeek Posts: 136 Member
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    If you eat at your BMR, you will maintain your weight.

    This isn't completely accurate, according to what i've picked up from using MFP. You need to work out your TDEE.
    Eating at your TDEE will maintain weight.
    Eating above your TDEE will gain weight.
    Eating at your BMR will lose weight.
    Eating below your BMR will lose weight, but this will be from muscle.

    I eat between my TDEE and my BMR, this has resulted in a consistent weight loss (for me anyway)
  • NelehY
    NelehY Posts: 52 Member
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    I eat between my TDEE and my BMR, this has resulted in a consistent weight loss (for me anyway)
    A lot more complicated - but that is what my husband and I have been doing and we are making steady progress so far.

    :smile:
  • JesterMFP
    JesterMFP Posts: 3,596 Member
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    If you eat at your BMR, you will maintain your weight. In order to lose, you have to eat less than you burn. So, if you burn just over 1500 calories with no exercise, then you should eat less than that. But, you really should never eat below 1200, because your body needs the fuel. One days you exercise you can (and should) eat more, but again, to lose, you should consume less than you burn.

    This is wrong: if you eat at your TDEE (total daily energy expenditure) you will maintain your weight. Your BMR is a lower number than your TDEE.
  • f68bau
    f68bau Posts: 15
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    Thanks guys! So eat between BMR and TDEE to lose, in conjunction with eating back exercise calories!
    So between 1530 & 2113!
    Yuss more food for me to eat :D
  • ladyraven68
    ladyraven68 Posts: 2,003 Member
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    If you eat at your BMR, you will maintain your weight. In order to lose, you have to eat less than you burn. So, if you burn just over 1500 calories with no exercise, then you should eat less than that. But, you really should never eat below 1200, because your body needs the fuel. One days you exercise you can (and should) eat more, but again, to lose, you should consume less than you burn.

    No, BMR is what your body uses surviving at rest.

    even at sedentary levels your tdee would be bmr x 1.2, so no, you would not maintain weight eating at bmr.
  • Kincar
    Kincar Posts: 601 Member
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    I'm about the same size as you. My BMR is 1550. According to my Bodymedia, my TDEE average is 2230 (on-line calculators also have me around that number).

    I started off eating at least my BMR plus exercise calories. Now that I have a BMF I eat a cut from my TDEE. That ends up being anywhere from 1800 - 2200 depending on the day. I am much happier than I was eating 1300 to 1400 calories a day.
  • BigDaddyBRC
    BigDaddyBRC Posts: 2,395 Member
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    Eat your BMR less the caloric deficit. If you work out, get an HRM with a Calorie burner...eat those you burn.

    Tracking your food...ALL OF IT and your exercise is important. Be honest and you will succeed
  • megsmom2
    megsmom2 Posts: 2,362 Member
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    There's a wonderful tool called My Fitness Pal. You put in some numbers and it spits out a calories goal for you! And by cracky ...it works!
    why overcomplicate?
  • carld256
    carld256 Posts: 855 Member
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    There's a wonderful tool called My Fitness Pal. You put in some numbers and it spits out a calories goal for you! And by cracky ...it works!
    why overcomplicate?

    I was going to say something like that. The numbers are already there for you. You don't really need anything else. Put in accurate information and you're done.
  • ironanimal
    ironanimal Posts: 5,922 Member
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    TDEE - 20%.
  • cmriverside
    cmriverside Posts: 34,121 Member
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    There's a wonderful tool called My Fitness Pal. You put in some numbers and it spits out a calories goal for you! And by cracky ...it works!
    why overcomplicate?

    I was going to say something like that. The numbers are already there for you. You don't really need anything else. Put in accurate information and you're done.

    Yes. Agree. Why make it complicated? But, that said, the OP doesn't have a lot to lose and probably set her/his goal too aggressively.

    Use this as a guide, and reset Goals here: http://www.myfitnesspal.com/account/change_goals_guided

    If you have 75+ lbs to lose 2 lbs/week is ideal,
    If you have 40-75 lbs to lose 1.5 lbs/week is ideal,
    If you have 25-40 lbs to lose 1 lbs/week is ideal,
    If you have 15 -25 lbs to lose 0.5 to 1.0 lbs/week is ideal, and
    If you have less than 15 lbs to lose 0.5 lbs/week is ideal.

    This site works by you eating what you are given. Don't try to bypass the system, you'll be sorry. I've been here five years, you can either "get" it now or keep fighting till you do.


    Don't complicate it. Use the tools as given here. In a month, reevaluate.

    Read these for a good explanation of how this site is a bit different than some others:

    http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/10665-newbies-please-read-me-2nd-edition

    http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/186814-some-mfp-basics
  • hesn92
    hesn92 Posts: 5,967 Member
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    Mine gave me a goal of less than my BMR when I was trying to lose weight too. I just changed it from sedentary to lightly active and it gave me a better number. People are saying "don't over complicate it" but MFP is a "dumb" tool. It's a good tool if you need it to crunch the numbers and spit out a solution for you, but if it's below your BMR, which you should never eat below, MFP doesn't care. It gives you that goal anyway. I think that is something this website really needs to change but that is just my opinion.
  • DavPul
    DavPul Posts: 61,406 Member
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    Is it me or do people make this waaaaay too complicated. You already put your height, weight and how much you'd like to lose each week into MFP. On your FOOD screen it gives you a number, eat to that number. If it's green then you still have calories to eat, if red (and in the negative), you've gone over. That's really all there is to it.

    You can run different calculations is you wish, and you can choose to eat around a different set of carb/fat/protein macros if you wish. But few new folks to the site, try to eat (healthily) to zero.

    This site is made to start working for you right out of the box with minimal input. I've made a few changes to mine, but for the most part, instead of learning TDEE, MFP, BMI, BMR, I just learned to K.I.S.S.
  • DavPul
    DavPul Posts: 61,406 Member
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    There's a wonderful tool called My Fitness Pal. You put in some numbers and it spits out a calories goal for you! And by cracky ...it works!
    why overcomplicate?

    Thank you!!!! I was beginning to think I was the only one thinking this.

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