This has been bugging me for a while... "net" calories burned?

rprussell2004

Okay, this is actually something that I've been wondering about in the back of my head for quite some time now.

Shouldn't we be only logging calories that are above and beyond what we would have normally burned?

Example: Say I go for a run and my HRM says I burned 200 calories. So I would come here and log 200 calories and can eat another 200 calories and figure all is good.

BUT!! Maybe I would have normally burned 50 calories during that time frame ANYWAY, just by existing, breathing, creating body heat, yadda yadda yadda....

So my "net" burn is really only 150 calories and I just OVERATE by 50 instead...

Is the exercise tracking actually MAKING US ALL OVEREAT?

redfisher1974

I must go eat before I think this over....

concordancia

Does your HRM say that you burned any calories at all while sitting around at the computer, breathing, creating body heat and yadda yadda yadda?

The elevated heart rate is measuring what you burn above and beyond the yadda.

JoRocka

I switched to TDEE to include 3 workouts a week- I workout way more than that so I'm covered either way.

and how many calories exactly is yadda yadda yadda? I think that's the more important question.

JeffseekingV

No because MFP sets up your calories you might have burned anyway. ie... to live. You get three settings to try to get that as accurate as possible. ie... office job, slightly active and then something like really active. ie... physical labor for your job etc..

rprussell2004

JeffseekingV wrote: »

No because MFP sets up your calories you might have burned anyway. ie... to live. You get three settings to try to get that as accurate as possible. ie... office job, slightly active and then something like really active. ie... physical labor for your job etc..

Ahhh, okay... which addresses another q I've had, which is when I DID set that up, am I supposed to take into account my planned weekly workouts for that estimate, or not?

Because if I don't include the planned workouts, I have to call myself "sedentary," although it also (iirc) mentioned including exercise as part of it - but if I included the exercise as part of that, then I can't log it separately because I'd be double counting, but technically I'm NOT sedentary if I'm doing workouts, so I should include it, but...

(and round and round and round)

concordancia wrote: »

Does your HRM say that you burned any calories at all while sitting around at the computer, breathing, creating body heat and yadda yadda yadda?

The elevated heart rate is measuring what you burn above and beyond the yadda.

I haven't strapped the HRM on while I'm just sitting around, but I think this makes the most sense to me. That they'd design the things to only give you the delta in the first place.

Hm.

concordancia

MFP does NOT include workouts.
TDEE calculations DO include workouts.

JeffseekingV

MFP set up = set your calories you would normally burn outside of extra activities. ie.. running, weight lifting, running from the police etc.... You get to eat at the calorie count you have PLUS whatever your activities are outside of your normal activity. ie.. running from the police for 30 min is about 500 extra calories you can eat and still be on track to lose x lbs per week.

rprussell2004

JeffseekingV wrote: »

MFP set up = set your calories you would normally burn outside of extra activities. ie.. running, weight lifting, running from the police etc.... You get to eat at the calorie count you have PLUS whatever your activities are outside of your normal activity.

That's what threw me. If I'm planning a "normal" exercise regimen, then it is now part of my "normal" daily stuff.

I guess I just got stuck on that. Makes sense now. Thanks.

JeffseekingV wrote: »

ie.. running from the police for 30 min is about 500 extra calories you can eat and still be on track to lose x lbs per week.

I don't have to run from the police. I'm white.

(OH SNAP)

liftreadphilosophize

This is one reason why if you do eat back exercise calories, you should only eat back about half. It's also why I prefer the TDEE method (like others have said). I don't want to count calories burned twice, nor do I want to count them twice while also overestimating what I've actually burned.

JeffseekingV

Technically if you are able to track exercises and food accurately, you can eat all of it back. Not just half.

JoRocka

JeffseekingV wrote: »

Technically if you are able to track exercises and food accurately, you can eat all of it back. Not just half.

agreed- I usually find it safer to only eat a percentage- but if you're on point with it- you can eat them all.

I'd like to point out also-
For maintenance and/or comparable deficits SHOULD AVERAGE out as the following

NEET + Eat back calories = TDEE + workouts.

so a good way to see if you're on track- run the TDEE + your workouts.
average your NEET + Eat back calories.

you should average out over 2-3 weeks the same number of calories. It's a good check to make sure you're on the right path or in the right ball park with your estimations on calorie burns.