Do heavy people really burn that many calories at rest?

So, I was just curious about what we burn while resting, since today for me and tomorrow are two rest days (Mostly because loads of family stuff and cooking for everyone). I just did a quick calculator and it says my age, height, and weight burns over 2,000 calories a day at rest. Is that.. real? That seems insane to me. I know heavier people burn more naturally since it takes more energy to keep us going (by heavy I mean my size particularly 350+). Over 2,000 calories seems sort of crazy though. Is it fairly accurate?

My surgeons office always has ran a bmr at each visit and when I started with the surgeon at 319 lbs my bmr was above 2000 as I have lost it has gone down. I would guess that number you got is fairly accurate.

Judging from three years of OCD measuring/weighing and logging -- I would say it's pretty accurate. It's also what I call the dirty-little-secret of massive weight loss: as you become smaller, it takes fewer calories to maintain less weight.

I think that's why people get to a certain weight and think their metabolism is messed up. It's not -- it's just that it takes so fewer calories to simple exist that even eating the same amount doesn't result in as fast a loss (if any.)

I remember being able to lose an appreciable amount of weight when I was at my highest weight by simply cutting out sodas and skipping snacks. Now I maintain my weight at 951 calories. I don't even LOSE at that!!

It's really ****ty, actually. I mean, you do all this work and the reward is you get to eat even less!! Yay!

It's like getting the Zonk curtain on Let's Make a Deal.

Right now (early out) that reward sounds nice! Eating is such a chore. I know people say to enjoy it because it fades though. My love for food has dwindled down.

I just said this on my IG...I used to love food now it's just like blah...which is good because people keep saying the restriction feeling wont last forever so if I by developing a different view of food I/(we) wont slip back into old habits?!?

A really easy quick-and-dirty method for determining your calorie burn is to multiply your weight by 10 for a lady and 12 for a man. So, if you weigh 200 lbs, you'd need around 2000 calories a day to simply maintain your weight. This a VERY rough calculation and will vary from person to person, but it's a good rough guide if you don't have another handy resource.

Years ago I had my BMR tested by going into an office and breathing into a tube for about fifteen minutes. I was told to not eat or drink anything and to not do any strenuous activity beforehand. That test told me that I'm super-efficient and burn only 9 calories per pound. I've found this to be reasonably accurate.

How many calories you burn can be affected by lots of things, including muscle mass. This is why men generally lose weight faster and can eat more than women--they generally have more muscle and muscle takes more energy to maintain. I'm currently working with a trainer to develop more muscle mass at lower my body fat. I'm hoping this also helps me to be warmer!

Like Kat said, as there is less of you, you need less and less to maintain your weight. If your doctor offers it, it might be worth it to go in and get your BMR checked. The results might be surprising and more information is always useful.

Also, please don't fall into the trap of "broken metabolism". If your metabolism is truly broken, you are dead. If someone tells you they can't lose weight because their metabolism "doesn't work", they are wrong and just don't see the 400 calorie coffee drink and 400 calorie pastry they get in the morning to "jump start their metabolism" as being the thing that's wrong. :D

Jen

It's so interesting how our bodies handle energy at rest. I never would have thought just going about my day burned so much, and then on the rest of my days adding my gym trips to it. No wonder the weight loss is so quick! I'm not complaining!

It's crazy, right? That's why SMO people who say, "But I hardly eat anything!" are in denial or ignorant of what they're actually eating/drinking.

I'm down in the 180s now and it's sad to see that I'm down to 1400 calories to lose weight now. I remember the glory days of being able to eat 1800 or even 2000 and still lose weight!

I track my active calories with my Apple Watch and at the end I joke with my trainer, "Yay, I can have a latte!"

Good for you for being on the right track. :D

Jen

I did that blow-into-a-tube test too, several years ago. Though I weighed at least 200 pounds (and it could have been quite a bit more - I don't remember exactly where I was on the scale), I was told that my body, when totally at rest, would burn 1400 calories per day. Kind of a bummer, given my weight, but then I'd been crazy crash dieting up and down for quite a while. I wonder if that number still is accurate, and if so, what it will mean for me at goal (150 or so)? Whatever it is, I will do my very best to maintain.

That also may depend on overall muscle mass for a person. Someone with higher muscle mass should have higher BMR that someone else at the same high and weight.

Then there is the hormonal aspect. And men vs women...