Could someone help me with determining maintenance cals?

[reilly7]

I'm female, 53 yrs old, weight is 155lbs and i'm 5' 6" and not overweight at this weight (i have a large frame) and one BMR calculator says 1,329 cals but i would like to know how many cals i can consume daily to MAINTAIN? For some reason i haven't been able to use my fitbit to determine.

Thanks

[Heybales]

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@reilly7 wrote:

I'm female, 53 yrs old, weight is 155lbs and i'm 5' 6" and not overweight at this weight (i have a large frame) and one BMR calculator says 1,329 cals but i would like to know how many cals i can consume daily to MAINTAIN? For some reason i haven't been able to use my fitbit to determine.

Thanks

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Why haven't you been able to use your Fitbit?

Because comparing a 5 level rough TDEE chart you are guessing from, to an infinite level device that actually goes with you and sees how active you are - 1 guess as to which one will be better estimate.

If you are curious as to what BMR Fitbit is using - go to your daily 5 min block graph at the calorie burn section.

Find the lowest levels during sleep/non-moving time.

That value / 5 x 1440 = BMR that Fitbit is using.

Usually very close to Mifflin BMR. Which is indeed only sleeping deeply calorie burn, no where near maintenance, or TDEE as it's called.

[reilly7]

I am using my FitBit but it tells me calories burned within a day,

i would like to know roughly how many calories to maintain my weight at my age/height/gender, etc.

i average about 15,000 steps a day, i would just like a rough estimate.

[Raviv]

But that's the thing.  It's going to vary from day to day and week to week.  That's why most people have a Fitbit, so they can adjust to more or fewer calories as their activity increases or decreases throughout the day.

If you're trying to get to maintenance, then just go to your Food Plan (on the Food Log page)  and Edit Goal so that you're no longer trying to lose weight.  Calories in should equal calories out, and those are going to be different every day.

If you want a single number that applies to every day, no matter how much or how little you do, then it's going to be highly inaccurate most days - either too few calories or too many.

[Heybales]

You may be misunderstanding something, or I'm misunderstanding.
Yes, Fitbit is telling you the number of calories you burn IN A day, incase
you mean something else by saying 'within' a day.

If you eat the same amount you burn - you maintain weight.

So your Fitbit is telling you how much you burn for your gender, age,
weight, height, and doing the activity you do based on steps and resting
metabolism estimate.

You may or may not have to correct it for some types of exercise, depending
on what you do and what device you have.

So whatever it says you burn - that's what you eat, to maintain weight.

If you want to know what number that is on average - look at your emailed 1
week report at daily calorie burn average.

That's better than any 5 level rough estimate.

Curious what exactly you think the Fitbit is telling you, or what did you
think it was, because I'm hoping I've corrected your thinking now?

[SunsetRunner]

@reilly7

It's possible to set your goal weight to your current weight to know a estimation to maintain weight.

Personally try listening to my body.. basing portions on hunger (not so hungry, just take less..), eat slowly and paying attention when getting satisfied, not needing more.

Not using a food plan and not stepping on a scale anymore (interferes with the bodies wisdom when needing more nourishment, but would not fit in the 'plan').

Always eating mostly under anyway calories wise when logged food before, but not being hungry 'cause of eating nutritient rich foods mostly.. no need to eat more 'calories' when a plan tells to, when your body tells it has enough..

Try trusting your amazing body

When having eaten to little over time (even when always eating until satisfied), getting a desire to eat, like having a feast (feeling can just keep on eating but taking healthy choices and trying noticing when getting the 'now we have enough' but not feeling stuffed) signal..

Our bodies are very clever and let us know when something is missing (like when needing more nourishment, even when believing having eaten enough already).. or when having eaten to little over time, the desire to eat can grow (some days not eating much at all calories wise, other days having more..)..

Our bodies when trying listening to will take care of our natural weight range without needing counting calories (though hard to overeat when eating nutritient rich food until satisfied most of the time, and trying only eating when being hungry again, not eating just cause its time to eat, but because your precious body needs nourishment). Honoring when feeling having enough..

When eating, try tuning into your body how you feel, does it need nourishment? Can it wait? Just need a little bit more? Maybe the only opportunity of eating will be now, not being able to until tomorrow.. what looks the most appealing? How much?

When feeling that you need to force feed your precious body because of eating with family.. never force feed your body when it doesn't need anything.

[reilly7]

Thanks.

i just wanted a rough estimate, that's all, for a female my age/height/and estimated activity level which of course i know will vary from day to day.

i've lost 100 lbs at age 48 and been in maintenance for quite a while now, being age 53 so i do know quite a bit about losing and maintaining 🙂

[Raviv]

The best estimate for you is going to be looking at your weekly calories burned then.  Maybe take a few weeks worth of data and average them out.  Then divide the calories burned by the number of days sampled.

Any other data is going to be interesting, but completely useless when applied to individuals.

[Magnusson]

With the data you have given you should be able to maintain your weight with a daily consumption of no more then 1854 calories.

This is with a sedentary lifestyle with little excersize. Obviously you can consume more if you excersize - and thats where fitbit should help with data.