Myfitnesspal and calories per day? (BMR/RMR)

[msi1337]

I am a 35 yr old male, weighing 274lbs at 5'8" in height with a lightly to moderately active lifestyle. I have tried different BMR/RMR calculators and I realize I should be somewhere between that and the amount of calories to stay at my current weight. Using myfitnesspal it puts me at 2000 calories per day (I have it set to 2lbs per week to lose). Every calculator I have used puts my BMR at around 2100-2400 calories.. Is 2000 calories too low? I am definetly having hunger urges during the day..

 

[RagingBITCH]

msi - similar to any data analysis, I wouldn't worry too much about single points of data. (IE, one day is off) Try to average out a week to the 30% carb, 35% fat/protein. It's like saying the stock market is down 100 points one day and you should pull out all of your money from all stocks. It's one day.

It is a problem if one day you are 80% fat, 15% carb, and 5% protein, and attempt to average it out by going the opposite extreme a few days to hit the average though. Take a look at what you are eating and work on balancing it out earlier on in the day vs trying to meet one or the other at the end when you are at a deficit in one category at dinner time.

If you are always a bit off, or need help figuring it out, then generate a list that's heavy on one or two of the categories, so you have a FAQ/cheat sheet of what you can eat. IE, something like the below. It's not an all inclusive list, just a few examples.

Protein Deficient
- Lean cuts of meat

Protein & Fat Deficient
- Fattier cuts of meat, eggs, nuts

Fat Deficient
- Nuts, oils, avocados

Carb Deficient
- Fruits, whole grains

Congrats on quitting smoking and committing to it 🙂 That's the first step.

 

[msi1337]

thank you for the reply! Once I quit for sure I realized how gross it was the entire time.
also, I like the idea that it doesnt have to be a perfect science and just an average.

I am really starting to feel better and motivated..thank you!

 

[RagingBITCH]

thank you for the reply! Once I quit for sure I realized how gross it was the entire time.
also, I like the idea that it doesnt have to be a perfect science and just an average.

I am really starting to feel better and motivated..thank you!

I like your attitude 🙂 Gotta start somewhere! And if you need more motivation, post up your progress. It's a great way to keep track of accountability. (Or blog, if you have one) Knowing someone is reading about that donut you are tempted to eat can give you extra willpower to just say no!

 

[msi1337]

new topic

 

[smackababy]

Using you measurements and the first calculator that came up in Google, it gives your BMR of 2398.62. So, to maintain your weight at a sedimentary lifestyle you're looking at 2878.3 calories a day. That is 20148.4 per week. Now, if you want to lose 2lbs a week, you have to consume 7000 less calories. That is a total of 13148.4 per week, or 1878.34 per day.

That is depending on your activity level though.

I'd suggest possibly eating less calorie dense food to help with hunger. You could easily eat 1500 calories of candy in a single sitting, but 1500 calories of celery is going to be tough.

 

[msi1337]

Thanks smack, but it still doesn't answer if eating less calories than my BMR is going to mess my metabolism up?

 

[Nebor]

Thanks smack, but it still doesn't answer if eating less calories than my BMR is going to mess my metabolism up?

No, it's not. You should be eating under BMR and exercising in order to lose weight at this point.

 

[blackdogdeek]

This is from the fat-loss sticky at the top of this sub-forum:

This is the area that most ATer's have questions about. The simplest aspect of losing weight is that you have to be in a caloric deficit. The problem with many diets (or views of diets) is that people think they have to starve to get thin. This is completely wrong. If you don't eat enough, your metabolism dips and actually starts burning fewer calories. In essence, your body goes into a starvation mode, which tries to SAVE energy as much as possible (aka saving fat). The first thing you should do if you want to lose weight is look up your basal metabolic rate (BMR). This is the amount of calories your body needs to function. You must be above, even if only slightly, this while dieting at all times or else your metabolism will crash. BMR is different from your caloric maintenance. BMR is the amount of calories required by the body to survive (not including locomotion, digestion, thought processes, exercise, etc). Caloric maintenance is the amount of calories required to maintain weight at one's particular activity levels (which DOES include all of an individual's daily activities). You need to be in between your BMR and you caloric maintenance to lose weight. This way you maintain your normal metabolism (compared to the crash you would experience if you dipped below your BMR), but are still in a caloric deficit (allowing you to lose weight).

 

[alexhere]

wouldnt thought that so quickly
thank you.

msi1337 you have great energy, thank for asking here. informative thread!

 

[msi1337]

so Nebor says you can be under BMR without crashing your metabolism (which is I think the way MyFitnessPal is setup), but the sticky from SociallyChallenged states that you must be above your BMR (even just slightly).

 

[ewdotson]

A couple of points:

- I really couldn't say just how "bad" it is to go under your BMR, but the math is what the math is. It may be that you're setting your sights to high if you want to stick with 2 lb/week after you get past the initial loss of water weight. There's certainly nothing wrong with setting a more modest goal pace so long as one sticks to it.

- That said, hunger urges are not really, in and of themselves, a sign that you're doing anything problematic. Dieting kind of sucks. There's not really a way around that.

 

[z1ggy]

so Nebor says you can be under BMR without crashing your metabolism (which is I think the way MyFitnessPal is setup), but the sticky from SociallyChallenged states that you must be above your BMR (even just slightly).

It depends how much you are trying to cut per week. For example, I am about 5 foot 9 and 1/2, weigh around 190. My BMR is something like 1800cal/day. BMR is what it takes to keep you alive given the fact that you're essentially unconscious. So adding in your activity level like what type of job you perform for work, and how often you exercise will ultimately dertermine your daily active maintainence level.

So my daily maint. level might be something like 2200cal. So to lose 1lb per week, I'd need to eat on average, 1700cal. Now that 1700/2200 number I just said might be off because I did not consult the BMR calc just now, but you get the pic. 1700 is under my BMR of 1800. But it's close enough that my metabolism should not slow down if I am lifting, doing my cardio, etc.

The less active you are, the more likely you will need to eat less than your BMR to actually lose weight. That's why when you are dieting, you should lift AND do cardio at least 3 times a week.

I do 5+ so I can have the luxury of eating more.

 

[Nebor]

so Nebor says you can be under BMR without crashing your metabolism (which is I think the way MyFitnessPal is setup), but the sticky from SociallyChallenged states that you must be above your BMR (even just slightly).

Your body is not some high precision machine that's going to go haywire if you're off the mark by a few (hundred) calories. It's not the kolto pressure tanks from KotOR.

You need to eat fewer calories than you have been (likely under your BMR) and exercise more. People have lived off body fat for long periods of time. You are supposed to be hungry. Human beings are supposed to be hungry most of the time. It's what motivates us to explore and hunt.

Let me put it to you this way:
If you err on the side of too many calories, you will likely be hungry a lot, exercise a lot, and still gain (or not lose weight)
If you err on the side of too few calories, you will be hungry a lot, exercise a lot, and lose weight.

You're clearly not going to guess exactly how many gumballs are in the giant jar by eating the exact amount of calories, so ask yourself which side you want to err on. You would need to eat essentially nothing for days a time to endanger your metabolism.

 

[msi1337]

thank you guys for the clarification.. I thought when I read what Socially Challenged wrote that he meant you should never go below your BMR no matter if trying to lose weight or not.

 

[SociallyChallenged]

thank you guys for the clarification.. I thought when I read what Socially Challenged wrote that he meant you should never go below your BMR no matter if trying to lose weight or not.

I do mean that - unless you're considered morbidly obese. The BMR is important - it is the amount of calories you need for your body to function at its most baseline levels. If you dip below this, research shows that your caloric expenditure can drop by up to 30%. If you think about it, it's a pretty inefficient way to diet if you drop your calorie intake an extra 10% and your body drops your caloric expenditure by the same amount if not more. If your BMR is 2000, keep your calories at or above 2000. Don't crash diet. You're trying to make maintainable long-term changes - this is a good way to do it.