Weight Loss

Alot of people on this site get obsessed about the Math!  I was OBSESSED but I figured it out for me.  Maybe it'll work for some of you.

Firstly I had to figure out MY BMR     &nbs p;       & nbsp;      &nbs p;       & nbsp;     http://www.bmi-calculator.net/bmr-calculator/

Which is 1483.15 (the number of calories my body burns if I stay in bed all day)

Then using the Harris Benedict Formula:
Harris Benedict Formula To determine your total daily calorie needs, multiply your BMR by the appropriate activity factor, as follows:

1. If you are sedentary (little or no exercise) : Calorie-Calculation = BMR x 1.2
2. If you are lightly active (light exercise/sports 1-3 days/week) : Calorie-Calculation = BMR x 1.375
3. If you are moderatetely active (moderate exercise/sports 3-5 days/week) : Calorie-Calculation = BMR x 1.55
4. If you are very active (hard exercise/sports 6-7 days a week) : Calorie-Calculation = BMR x 1.725
5. If you are extra active (very hard exercise/sports & physical job or 2x training) : Calorie-Calculation = BMR x 1.9

I'm moderatetely active working out 5 days a week
 1483.15 x1.55=2298.89

Knowing that, I multiplied by 7 to figure out the total number of calories I need a week 16,098. I then created a 3500(1 lb) deficeit. 16098-3500=12598 then I divided by 7(days in a week) I then came up the amount of calories I should consume a day 1799 to successfully lose 1lb per week.  (you can adjust the pounds lost per week, but try not to have a 1000 deficeit per day as I learned from a great help online.)

I know most people know this but it took me forever to figure it out.  I'm using mine as an example because examples do help.  I hope this helps all who are interested.

;)

I've been on this site since January and I think that is the most concise explanation I have ever seen. I usually have lost the track of the math about half way through. I was actually, for the first time able to calculate this for myself.

I've tagged this message for reference.

Thanks!

Yay supersized,

I'm so glad I was able to help out.  I was racking my brain for the longest time and I finally figured it out.  Some times C-C doesn't give you the best advice on your calories to consume per day, just because it lets you set unrealistic goals for yourself.  I wanted to do it right according to me.  It really helped. 

Amazing! Thanks for posting this--I too have been obsessing about the
math trying to figure out the magical equation and kept getting
confused :)

Thanks Melissa!

I went to the calculator, and it just wouldn't accept the fact that I'm six foot zero inches!  I had to enter my height as five foot twelve inches to get it to work!  LOL!

Split.

I think if use this formula you shouldn't use the activity log also.  I work out every day to some extent and if I put I am active it lets me have way too many calories and I know I will not lose so I go with sedenmentary and just add in the cals I burn a day when I burn them otherwise I know I'll not lose the weight

tagged!

Yes, that is right. 

If you use 'moderately active' based on the fact that you exercise 3-5 days a week, then you CAN'T log your workouts as extra.  Then you are counting twice for that workout.

The way that you are supposed to use the activity level is based on things such as: do you sit at a desk all day, or are  you up on your feet all day?  If you have a desk job, you are sedentary.  If you are a gardener, you are active. 

THEN, you log your actual *workouts* as extra, in your activity log.

so my base amount IS 1,420ish...

i always say i can add a extra 100 cals in eating for every 30 mins of exercise. What do you all say about that?

this is very interesting - I was never really sure *how* the different calculators got how much we were able to have and lose weight, now I know.

I'm curious... I did my calculations:

BMR= 2537.9 (went to the link you provided)
I am sedentary, so it would be multiplied by 1.2

2537.9 x 1.2 = 3045.48

so I times that by 7 to get 21318.36 (weekly amount of cals)

so I wanted to figure out for a 2 lbs loss, I subtracted 7000 (3500 x 2)
which brings me to 14318.36

then I divided by 7 (7 days a week) = 2045.48
which is the amount of cals I can have in a day.

*Now* I am averaging between 1500-1700 cals a day, and I'm not starving by ANY stretch of the imagination. Am I fine, staying at the 1500-1700? If I do stay at the current cal intake (say 1600/day), I should lose a little more a week, correct? That would estimate to an extra 400 cals per day that I'm not using, so over the course of a week that would be 400 x 7 = 2800 cals I'm not consuming, which would equate to approximately a 1/2 lb lost?

Am I understanding this correctly?

I'm more of a fan of always multiplying by 1.2 (sedentary) and then logging in all my activities.  I feel that this gives me a more accurate portrait of what I am doing, as my activities will vary in intensity and lenght when I do them.

I prefer to bike / run outside and not be stuck in doors to exercise.  I can get in a good mood and go for longer, or shorter.

Using the tool and the information here, I came out to 1867 calories per day to lose 1lb per week. 

Using the Expenditure tool here at CC, I get 2400.  Which would be 2400-500 = 1900.  Pretty similar.

ok ... I just did some more calculations, out of curiosity... I have about 260 lbs to lose to get to a goal of 150 lbs, which for my body frame and age is a little over "ideal", but it's what I think I'd be comfortable with.  (The smallest I have been as an adult was 160 lbs...if I find, at that point, I still need to lose, then I will adjust my goal accordingly.)

Anyways... at 408, as I showed above, my calculations showed me to be a little over 2000 cals/day.  So I did the calculations for me at 350 lbs and then me at 300 lbs, just to see how much I would be allowed, calorie-wise, to maintain a 2-lb/week loss... at 350 it would be 1739.9 cals/day, and at 300 it drops to 1059.85 cals a day.  If that's the case then how, pray tell, do I sustain a 1.5-2 lb/week loss at, for example, 250 lbs?  I'm going to be only allowed about 700 cals/day!  That's not even healthy.  My body will go into starvation mode and it will be counter-productive.  Even the 1059 cals/day at 300 is too low.  I can't even begin to *imagine* how much exercising I would have to do to offset the extra calories.  I'm not a big fan of exercising to begin with and the thought of having to do an hour or more of it, just so that I can eat 'normally', isn't sitting to well.

Suggestions??  Advice??

As you lose weight activity will get easier for you, Just getting on your feet and walking will make a big difference.  As you get more active you will burn more calories.  It's too early to be concerned about 300 right now.  I have not done the math but I believe your numbers may be off.  Good luck to you.

I was wondering too. I had my husband - who is awesome in math - look over my figures, and we even did it for 200 lbs, at a 1.5 lbs loss - and came up with 1201.26 (for the 1.5 lbs loss) and 951.26 for 2 lbs loss... so I re-did the figures at 300 and came up with 1473.26, which makes a LOT more sense!!!   I just did the calculations #1) total curiosity and #2) so that I know what I'm going to be facing.

I have always su**ed at math. LOL

shayna55 wrote:

If you use 'moderately active' based on the fact that you exercise 3-5 days a week, then you CAN'T log your workouts as extra. Then you are counting twice for that workout.

That's not quite correct. If you are an active person, your BMR will be higher (it takes energy for your body to repair itself from workouts). You can and should still count your workouts as extra.

Want to see your weight loss come to a screeching halt as you enter starvation mode? Stop counting your workouts as extra.

Chris, very active and counting every minute of every bike ride, losing slowly and steadily while eating mountains of food.

Ok now I am confused.  The difference between what CC says and what these new fangled math says is about 500 calories. 

I feel like I have been starving to death lately and my weight loss has more or less plateued.  I am eating between 1500 and 1700 calories per day and I work out 6 days a week (HIIT & weights).  Is it possible that I am not eating enough?

Help!

Dawnmac im in the same boat!! try 2 maintanace days a week @ 2,000 cals and see if that gets things moving, i feel So much better when i eat that much two times a week!!! I have lose 0.5 a inch on my tummy (yeh, might not seem a lot) but to me its loads! i have 2.5 inches to go, and i did it with Kevkkis 'two maintanace days a week' plan!

Thanks Han!  Quick question though; do you do your extra calorie days on heavy workout days or not or it doens't make a difference?

My normal eating plan is breakfast, 3 hours later a snack,  hours later lunch, etc.  That USED to be good.  Now I am starving in a couple of hours and I am not losing anymore weight. 

I have another couple of months yet until I have to order my wedding dress and I only have between 5-10 lbs to go (I haven't decided how much to lose yet).  But bloody hell this last few just don't want to go!

The most useful post i have EVER seen on this site is this post by coach dee. I couldn't actually find the original, this is someone else's re-posting of this fabulous info. I actually cut and pasted it into word and made a pdf document out of it and i refer to it occasionally and send it to my friends.  It includes the same math as the original post in this thread.  Here it is:
Women: BMR = 655 + ( 4.35 x weight in pounds ) + ( 4.7 x height in inches ) - ( 4.7 x age in years )

This will calculate what you require even if you were to sit on your butt all day or sleeping most of the day.

Harris Benedict Formula To determine your total daily calorie needs, multiply your BMR by the appropriate activity factor (BE HONEST WITH THYSELF), as follows:

1.      If you are sedentary (little or no exercise) : Calorie-Calculation = BMR x 1.2

2.      If you are lightly active (light exercise/sports 1-3 days/week) : Calorie-Calculation = BMR x 1.375

3.      If you are moderatetely active (moderate exercise/sports 3-5 days/week) : Calorie-Calculation = BMR x 1.55

4.      If you are very active (hard exercise/sports 6-7 days a week) : Calorie-Calculation = BMR x 1.725

5.      If you are extra active (very hard exercise/sports & physical job or 2x training) : Calorie-Calculation = BMR x 1.9

This is the total number of calories you need in order to maintain your current weight.

If you want to lose fat, a useful guideline for lowering your calorie intake is to reduce your calories by at least 500, but not more than 1000 below your maintenance level. Remember friends that one pound of fat = 3500 calories. That is why 1-2lbs per week is the best rate of fat loss. Anything faster would mean you are probably losing muscle mass (bad) and losing water(bad). You want to lose FAT baby!

For people with only a small amount of weight to lose, 1000 calories is clearly ridiculous and would be too much of a deficit. As a guide to minimum calorie intake, the American College of Sports Medicine (ACSM) recommends that calorie levels never drop below 1200 calories per day for women or 1800 calories per day for men. Even these calorie levels are considered by most fitness, nutritional and exercise professionals to be quite low.

An alternative way of calculating a safe minimum calorie-intake level is by reference to your body weight or current body weight. Reducing calories by 15-20% below your daily calorie maintenance needs is a useful start.

im' new to this site (dec.31) and this is wonderful that someone took the time to explain this for me.I was actually able to figure it out.Thanks.

I just found this in the library and though old, is still a great post!!!

There are a couple of new people here today, so, this *bump's* for you!