I'm getting ready to start calorie counting to take control of how much I consume, to maximize my weight loss. I have heard starting is the biggest step and it takes some getting used to, so it might take me a few days of recording what I'm eating and checking labels to really get into the swing of things, but I'm confident if I put my mind to it, I can do it.

I have heard mentions of Basal Metabolic Rate when it comes to calorie counting, and I was wondering what is the correlation of BMR to calorie counting, and how I determine what my BMR is and how many calories I should be consuming a day.

If it helps, I am 21 years old, 5'5", weigh 280 lbs, and I want to lost 140-150 lbs.

Your BMR is the calories you burn each day just by being alive. If you were to just lie in bed for a day these are the calories that you would burn.

To determine your BMR you can use the following forumla:
BMR = 655 + ( 4.35 x weight in pounds ) + ( 4.7 x height in inches ) - ( 4.7 x age in years )

Not necessarily the most accurate way, but it does give you a ballpark figure.

From there you can figure out how many calories you should be eating based on your activity level. This is the Harris Benedict Equation, but you might find that other forumlas work better for you. You might need to go up or down depending on your needs (I know personally I need to eat higher than this).

To determine your total daily calorie needs, multiply your BMR by the appropriate activity factor, as follows:

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

You'll get the calories you need to maintain your weight by using these forumlas. To lose 1lb per week subtract 500 from the number you get. To lose 2lbs per week subtract 1000.

It might work beautifully for you or it might not. Trial and error is really the only way you'll find out Good luck!

Ah, wow. That's fantastic....a lot of numbers! But still, fantastic! This is very helpful. With this I'd be able to write down my caloric intake without running blind on how much I SHOULD be eating! Thanks so much!

At freedieting.com there are weightloss calculators. I put in my stats and the weight I wanted to be and I eat the calories I would need to maintain that weight. So far so good.

You can do this! It is tedious at first but you get the hang of it quick. The smartest thing I did was buy a digital food scale. May be the best $20 I ever spent.

korij, just wanted to post and wish you good luck since you and I began at the exact same place - although I'm 12 years older than you are.

I began losing at about 1800 calories per day, and after a couple weeks, when I felt that I didn't really need all 1800 calories per day to feel full and satisfied as long as I was eating good, nutritious food, I dropped my daily calorie intake to 1200-1500. I ate within that range for the rest of my weight loss, and am still doing so today to lose these last few pounds.

I used the Harris-Benedict formula that sonitakle posted to assess how much weight I was losing in comparison to how much of a calorie deficit it seemed I was creating, in part as a way to check whether my calorie counting seemed relatively accurate. For most of my weight loss, the formula was pretty spot on with what I was losing on average over time. Do keep in mind that those numbers are for average losses - you won't see X lbs lost every single week. Some weeks will be higher and some will be lower.

A different calorie limit or range may work better for you, especially as you are younger than I am, but I just thought I'd throw my experience out there as one to consider. Good luck!

Edit: I'll definitely second toobig's recommendation to buy a food scale! I use mine constantly, and couldn't live without it!

Oh yes this is very important! Totally forgot.

I never lost the same amount week after week. Some weeks I would lose 3 or 4lbs and then not lose for 2 weeks. I lost at an average of around 1.8 pounds per week but it's not as if my body lost like that on clockwork!

It would have been nice, but it didn't happen

Totally true for me too!! Pretty funny actually - I saw a nutritionist after I'd been losing weight for 12 weeks or so, and I brought all my logs with me (food, weekly weigh-ins, etc.). She pointed to the week where I'd lost 'only' 0.7 lbs and said "what happened here?" Um, nothing happened, that's normal week-to-week variation! The weeks before and after that one I'd lost ~4 lbs! It was then that I knew I probably wouldn't go back to see her again.

I just wanted to say Good luck and thanks to sontaikle - I've never used that equation before I'll have to check it out....
Good luck korij!

I started out writing all my food down in a journal and it really seemed tedious. Than I was lead to myfitnesspal.com and it has been a lifesaver!! It is so much easier to log my food on the website and the database has pretty much everything listed!!

Check it out!

I'll second the myfitnesspal.com recomandation.

I second the food scale. I have one I use every day, for every meal. It is much more accurate than measuring for me.

I am going to go on over to freedieting.com to check there weightloss calculators.

Wilma

I'm just getting started on the calorie counting thing, but I have to say I already love having a digital food scale. I can tare it so as I make something with tons of ingrediants, like a green smoothie, I can set the blender carafe right on top of the scale, tare it, and ad ingrediants one at a time and tare between everything. So much faster and more simple than trying to measure and convert things. Plus I know I am getting more accurate calorie counts this way.

A phone app is what helped me the most. I use Calorie Count (but thinking about changing cuz the latest updates are causing the app to crash). It's great to be able to log and keep track of everything anywhere.

korj- How are you doing? I'm sending positive vibes your way. You can do this. "It won't always be easy. It will always be worth it."

All the best with your efforts Korjil. I began as a calorie counter a long time ago and have sort of come back around to it as it allows me more freedom of choice!

I am finding the numbers are a pain when you are short and older LOL! Now if I were twenty years younger and few inches taller ... ; )

Lee