Is it bad if you exercise but don't "eat back" the calories you burned?

soygorda18

I've always heard that you should not use exercise as an excuse to eat a lot. I just started on MFP, and the calorie goal I'm given is 1460. Then I add in some exercise, and it increases the calorie number (yesterday, for example, my calorie goal was increased to 1830). I am a little nervous to actually go ahead and eat through those extra calories, thus accidentally gaining back all the 40ish pounds I lost almost three years ago. I've already gained back a little since I stopped the program I was on before--around ~5 to 10 pounds--so I do not want to take any more chances with my weight. I was wondering if any of you more seasoned MFP users have any thoughts on how important it is to eat back all the calories you burn through exercise, and the consequences--good or bad--of not eating back those calories. Thanks!

Makterbro

Some people do, some people don't. It depends on you. If you feel like you are still hungry after you work out, then eat back some of the calories you burned. MPF often overestimates the calories burned in workouts so I would recommend that if you eat back some of the calories you burned, eat back only half.

SezxyStef

If you don't you are below 1200 net calories which is not healthy.

As the pp said it depends...I could always eat them all back and still lose weight...some people can't...most people eat back 50-75% of them and call it good.

But use trial and error. Eat half of them back and if you are still losing but a little hungry eat 75%...repeat as necessary.

soygorda18

Glad I now know about MFP overestimating calorie burn--I'll keep that in mind. I've been eating back about half my exercise calories and have so far lost a pound. So far so good!

Thanks!

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ILiftHeavyAcrylics

It depends. If you're logging accurately, with food scale, and your calorie goal is lower then you should eat them back. If you're estimating or measuring by volume only, or if your calorie goal is higher I wouldn't worry about it too much. Personally I ate back every single one. I didn't find that MFP overestimated for me.

My advice is to choose a way to proceed, do that for a month, and see how you're doing. If you're losing too fast (more than a pound per week or so) eat more. If you're not losing enough eat a little less.

999tigger

I would just add people also overestimate the effort they put in to burning calories as well. I sometimes eat back if im hungry and dont if im not. Its nice to have the reserve to dip into.

shadow2soul

If I don't eat back at least some, after about a week I find that I no longer have the energy to get through my workouts. I don't use MFP estimates however. I use a hrm for all non-step based workouts and log around 80% of the reported calorie burn. I have no idea what formula my HRM uses for calorie burns. However, I do know that based on duration/avg HR calculators online, my HRM gives me a lower calorie burn (by about 10%). I use a fitbit for tracking my daily activity and any walk/run workouts. I then eat 50-100% of my logged exercise/adjustment calories. This system has worked out pretty well for me.

bbrat333

I eat some of mine back, but not always all. MFP I believe assumes by default you are putting your everything into every minute of workout, and if you are, it's probably pretty accurate. I know that when I'm not so into it I'm probably not moving as much as MFP thinks, thus it would overestimate.

FYI you can adjust the numbers before logging, so if I put in 30 mins of something and MFP puts a burn I know isn't right, I reduce it to something more reasonable for the effort I put into the workout, before I save it.

Also, listen to your body, often it knows better than any computer (as long as it's not saying "eat that bag of Cheeto's"). If you are still hungry and willing to eat something on the healthy side, then do it.

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NYfirefighter

I often do, if I don't I'm screwed
I can easily burn 1200 calories when walking 4 hours (often more depending on distance/terrain) and have the problem that I get nauseous after some 15 miles and therefore often can't eat anymore so I have to make up for those 600+ burned exercise calories + BMR after a few hours of getting home
However, I don't eat back what I burned from an hour walking or calisthenics

Aemely

I eat most exercise calories back b/c otherwise I would be a hangry person. However, I don't count the small stuff (walking to/from mailbox, taking trash down the hill, taking stairs at work, etc.), so those are deficit calories unaccounted for. So far, so good.

alereck

You never know how many calories you are burning, it's a big estimation. Some people choose to do it and it's fine but I don't do it. It's much simpler to eat the same amount of calories every day so that you can make the appropriate adjustments when needed.

Your daily calorie goal is also an estimation, it's a starting point in which you should adjust based on your results. You can start at the number MFP has given you and see if you start to lose / maintain / gain, how your energy level is and if you are still hungry after you reach your goal. Then adjust accordingly.

It's a personal choice, I just find that keeping it simple is always best. If you eat 1,600 every day and don't lose anything after 6 weeks then go to 1,400 and see how that goes. If you eat 1,600 but can't get through your workouts and are always hungry then eat 1,800 and see if you still lose weight....

Good luck.

getitamb

A heart rate monitor will help you with this. Mfp does overdo it

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peachyfuzzle

I don't think that anyone has said "experiment" yet. Try eating the calories back for a couple of weeks, and see if it is getting you where you're looking to go. If not, then decrease the calories you eat back to like 50% of your total burned for a couple of weeks, and see where that takes you. If you find that 50% is too little, or too much, adjust accordingly.

bikergirlalex

I don't EVER feel comfortable eating what I've burned, I don't think I would lose weight that way!

justcat206

I don't. MFP tends to underestimate my calorie intake and drastically overestimate my burn, so I record my exercise manually as 1 calorie so I don't give myself permission to eat those calories back. However, if you're really really active (I'm not) then you may need to eat back a few. Just play around and see what keeps you at a loss.

Kalikel

Eat half. See how it goes.