BMR & caloric needs calculators
 

Why do all calories burned/BMR calculators, even the ones that take into account your weight, height, and age - always seem outrageously high? It's always estimated between 2100-2400 calories per day. Never in my life have I even come close to that many calories! So if my sedentary lifestyle (2100 cal) or my 'lightly active' lifestyle (walking 4 miles/day - 2400 calories) is that much - why doesn't the weight just fall off when I'm counting calories (strictly) at around 1100-1300? Ugh.!
Why can't I just find an accurate calories burned calculator without spending hundred's on a body bug? Has anyone ever come across an accurate calculator online?

I wondered too and tried many calculators. I ended up using webmd.com calculator and it worked for me

A doctor friend of mine told me to multiply my weight by 10 or 11 to lose weight if I remained inactive or lightly active,; 10 means losing weight faster. As you get more active you need to increase the multiplier (always ask your own health professional before trying any advice :)...see link below for more ideas on how this can help instead of the calculators

You can see articles on this
http://www.realsimple.com/health/nut...385/page9.html

Thanks for the link... it still seems huge for me... but maybe I will try upping my calories for a week and see what happens. It just seems.. WRONG.. for me to be eating so many calories! But if I *HAVE* to...;) I suppose it doesn't hurt to try some trial & error, I'm not under a huge time constraint (I'd like ~10 lbs by August to fit into a bridesmaid dress [better]). :)

I understand. I used like six different calculators and went with the lowest value. Maybe a 40% calorie reduction is enough to make your body hold on to weight or maybe mild thyroid issues are present. I can't possibly restrict that much without weekend binges. I eat 1800 but have to burn 600+ calories every day for the goal net calories. Good luck.

Originally Posted by ELBS717:
Never in my life have I even come close to that many calories! So if my sedentary lifestyle (2100 cal) or my 'lightly active' lifestyle (walking 4 miles/day - 2400 calories) is that much - why doesn't the weight just fall off when I'm counting calories (strictly) at around 1100-1300? Ugh.!

If anyone gives you this answer, please please, PLEASE pass it on to me!!

Started losing weight at 1800 calories a day
 

Originally Posted by ELBS717:
Thanks for the link... it still seems huge for me... but maybe I will try upping my calories for a week and see what happens. It just seems.. WRONG.. for me to be eating so many calories! But if I *HAVE* to...;)

When i started I weighed 172 lbs and I was eating 1800 calories a day and lost weight. Before this time, I had followed a doctors shet, was eating 1200-1400 calories a day and lost ZILCH, NADA. I realized that everyone's body was different and I needed to eat more calories in order to lose weight. It is really a trial and error process and what works for one does not necessarily work for another.
Good luck in this process

Originally Posted by ELBS717:
Thanks for the link... it still seems huge for me... but maybe I will try upping my calories for a week and see what happens. It just seems.. WRONG.. for me to be eating so many calories! But if I *HAVE* to...;) I suppose it doesn't hurt to try some trial & error, I'm not under a huge time constraint (I'd like ~10 lbs by August to fit into a bridesmaid dress [better]). :)

Yeah, one size does not fit all when it comes to weight loss. It will definitely be a trial and error process. Start with a number that seems reasonable given your current statistics and your goal. Stick with it a couple of weeks and see if you are getting results, if not start your adjustments. Keep in mind that the body fluctuates in weight daily given our intake, our output and various other health things that are going on with us. Be cognizant of your sodium intake as well as it can cause water retention and water is HEAVY. Sometimes it takes a bit longer for an adjustment to start seeing results, just be patient. Don't make huge adjustments, make them moderate. Maybe a 100-200 calories up or down. Once you get dialed in to what will work, you should see the results you are looking for.

I will also second kimmieval's advice on seeing a health care provider if you are still having issues.

Personally I think that the diet/exercise industry tries to treat calories in/calories out like a strictly accounted bank statement and in the real world it just doesn't seem to work that way for most of us. SO frustrating!

WHAT??? Ok I've been wondering this too. I've been tracking on my phone app and it says I should be eating 2200 cals a day based on my exercise and RDI....I get in about 1800 SOMETIMES but most days around 1500....

With that link it says I should be doing the following:

188 X 15.5 = 2914 cals a day! OMG!!!!!!!! Is this right?

Originally Posted by InsideMe:
WHAT???...

188 X 15.5 = 2914 cals a day! OMG!!!!!!!! Is this right?

OMG that does not sound right..that is why regardless of my activity I never made my multiplier greater than 11...:dizzy:

Here's my experience, FWIW:

I used www.freedieting.com. Their standard formula is based on the Mifflin-St.Jeor equation, which is supposed to be the most statistically accurate from what I've read. Certainly, it's one of the more conservative ones I've seen on the Internet.

However, I, too, did not believe I could eat as many calories as some sites were telling me. I started w/ 1400 per day and stuck to that from 6/2011 until Oct. 2011. I had not weighed myself at all at that time, but by Oct. I was satisfied with how I looked, so I switched to what I thought would be maintenance calories for me---1700 per day. Well, I noticed after 2-3 weeks, the weight seemed to be just falling off me. Skirts that I had bought at the beginning of October were getting loose. I could hardly believe it. I increased my calories to 1800. I seemed to keep losing. So, I finally decided I needed to know my real weight to get a true sense of my maintenance calories. I weighed myself the week after Thanksgiving, found out that I was 5 lbs. under my initial goal weight, and decided to increase my calories yet again. I won't bore you with any more details, but suffice to say that I am now at 2100 and seem to be able to maintain [so far] on that amount (perhaps even a bit more).

So, the moral of the story is that everybody's body is different. Use those calculators as a general guideline, but you'll need to experiment.

Originally Posted by lin43:
So, the moral of the story is that everybody's body is different. Use those calculators as a general guideline, but you'll need to experiment.

This. Lin is dead on. You'll have to find what works for you. There are a bunch of different calculators out there that use several different methods. Your best bet is to start with something reasonable, say 1500-1800, whatever you think. Then after a few weeks, if you are not seeing the results start your adjustments. You may have to adjust UP too, so be aware of that. The key is to get started counting, be aware of what you are consuming and using, make good choices, and keep track. It's a process and will take time to get to where you want to be, but if you stick with it, despite the ups and downs, you will reach your goal.

The number I was told to use was my unadjusted RMR. Mine is currently at 1778 so I subtract 500 to get 1278. This means burning off a pound from the deficit alone. If it's not right, I'm just going to adjust it up or down, whichever.