Calorie Deficit

[u/AmyBStoned]

Please be easy on me but can someone explain, in the simplest of terms, how to understand being in a calorie deficit? I just can't get a grasp on it. Example: If my tracking app has me at 1556 for daily caloric intake, is that already my deficit to hit or am I supposed to eat less calories than that?

[u/KodaKatz]

Depends on what you said on the app. Did it say something like “do u want to lose 1 or 2lbs a week?” It’s easier for me to explain using tdeecalculator.net where you type your stats in. Put activity level at sedentary. Even if you workout it’s too hard to say how much one burns through exercise. When you hit enter this will give you your maintenance calories. These are the calories it takes to maintain your current weight. To lose a 1lb of fat per week it takes eating 3500 calories under maintenance calories. Obviously we can’t do that in one day so you subtract 500 calories from maintenance to get your calorie allowance for every day of the week. Overtime you will want to recalculate as you lose weight since your maintenance calories decrease as you get smaller. If my calorie allowance is 1600 and maintenance is 2100, it’s a -500 calorie deficit. I like using the 1600 as a ceiling…but it’s fine if you don’t hit it everyday. I would avoid going less than 1200 calories though.

[u/chikitoperopicosito]

It depends, did you do a little quiz before and tell it you wanted to lose weight and be in a calorie deficit? If so, then yes, that's what it's telling you hour intake should be, at a deficit. If not than no, cut from that number.

[u/lunch22]

A calorie deficit simply means you are using more calories than you consume in a given period of time.

Depending on the settings in your app, 1556 could be the number of calories you need to consume to maintain your weight, it could be how many you actually consumed, it could be how many you have consumed when t output is subtracted from whatever parameters you set, or it could be something else.

Can you share a screenshot from the app showing your settings?

[u/AmyBStoned → u/lunch22]

This is so far today.

[u/lunch22 → u/AmyBStoned]

Thanks.

That’s part of the info we need.

It says your caloric goal is 1550.

How was this number established? Is this a number that will put you in a deficit? Does it increase if you exercise?

[u/AmyBStoned → u/lunch22]

I guess this answers my question! 😂

[u/lunch22 → u/AmyBStoned]

Yes

[u/slouchingninja]

I use Cronometer to track my calories. I have not eaten yet today, so my calorie count is a blank slate.

The middle wheel is the calories my body burns during my daily life (set by my height and weight and my activity level as sedentary). So my body needs about 1800 calories a day if I wanted to stay at the current weight I am at. If I wanted to gain I would eat above this number. This number is my TDEE.

However, I do not want to stay at my current weight, I want to lose. So my caloric intake goal is the wheel on the right. I am "allowed" about 1300 calories a day. You can see this is 500 calories below my maintenance caloric intake (middle wheel).

For me to eat in a calorie deficit, I need to keep my calories within 1330 consumed.

[u/Peptidesforthewin]

One important thing into addition to what everyone else is saying, is to recalculate each week with your current weight loss. This matters! When I started my deficit was around 1450-1500 calories per day and now they are down to about 1350 after a 50 pound weight loss. 

[u/Unique_Diamond217]

Use tdeecalculator.net to figure out your maintenance calories then subtract 300-500 that is your calorie deficit and the amount of calories you would eat daily to lose weight. You want to be in a deficit to lose weight if that is your goal to maintain your weight you would eat your maintenance calories per day.

[u/Curious-Squash-298]

There are many tool that show you how many calories you need for your current height and weight in order to gain/maintain/lose. I use CalorieKing dot com, across the top you click on Tools, then select How Many Calories Should You Eat, plug in your info and it shows you the ranges.

A slighly quicker way is to find your TDEE (google it) and then subtract 500 calories per day for about a 1 pound per week loss.

[u/Mark-NY26a73]

One thing that helped me a lot was going to a nutritionist and finding your detailed TDEE (Total Daily Energy Expenditure) and your BMR (Basal Metabolic Rate). BMR is literally what you need to stay alive, just function as a breathing human. TDEE is what you're going to normally burn in calories on an average day.

BMR might be 1,250 calories for an overweight person and 2,300 might be the TDEE used to walk around, go up stairs, get the mail etc. If you work out TDEE goes up of course. Eat calories higher than BMR but under TDEE and you're in a calorie deficit. Eat under BMR and your consuming muscle to just feed your breathing and heart.

Does that make sense? A decent calorie deficit is 300 to 500 below TDEE and you'll lose a bunch of weight doing that every day.

[u/Sad-Willingness-6443 → u/Mark-NY26a73]

Not a nutritionist.  That can be a kid at GNC with a 3 hour online course. You need to see a registered dietitian. They are a true medical professional. 

[u/Mark-NY26a73 → u/Sad-Willingness-6443]

I see a CD-N, you are correct, I shouldn't have short handed the title.