I'm confused

debraguevara

I'm confused. I exercise to burn calories so why does myfitnesspal add those calories on to my calories for the day? Shouldn't those just be burned to help lose fat?

Kalikel

They base your calories each day on your lifestyle e.g. sedentary, lightly active). Additional exercise done means you burn more calories, so they give you more to eat...maybe too many, according to some.

Some people eat all those extra calories, some eat none of them and others eat half or some other percentage. If you're unsure, try eating half back and see how that goes.

TimothyFish

Not everyone using myfitnesspal wants to lose weight. Also, some people exercise enough that if they didn't eat more they would lose weight too quickly.

cityruss

MFP decides your total amount of calories burned from daily activities (lifestyle). This does not include additional exercise - Your maintenance

MFP deducts an amount from this to create a calorie goal dependent on your weight loss target - Your deficit

If you then burn calories from exercise your are increasing your deficit (because additional exercise has not been factored in to your daily target), you have the option of eating them back, and returning to your set deficit level, or not eating them back and further increasing your deficit.

So, MFP works on a net daily goal...

Net Calories Consumed = Total Calories Consumed - Exercise Calories Burned.

Be aware that MFP appears to inflate calorie burn from exercise, so be cautious.

segacs

Here's how it works: MFP assumes you do zero exercise other than your normal daily activity level (work, errands, etc.) and gives you a calorie target based on no exercise.

But, since most people *do* exercise, they actually need to be eating more calories in order to support and fuel that exercise. If you go for a run three times a week and eat as though you're not running, then you could be in too steep a deficit and you won't be able to fuel your runs -- not to mention, you'll probably feel hungry and angry all the time.

MFP "rewards" you for your exercise by giving you the burned calories to eat back. The net calories for the day (calories eaten minus exercise burn) don't change, but your gross calories (total calories ingested) will fluctuate based on how much exercise you do. Exercise more, and you'll be able to eat more.

Personally, that approach doesn't really work for me. I do better on a plan where I eat a consistent number of calories each day, so I can plan my meals. I also don't like the idea of "rewarding" exercise with eating more calories, since that kind of thinking got me into trouble in the past, where I'd get off the treadmill and immediately eat a candy bar figuring I'd earned it. Nope. Doesn't do it for me.

Instead, I manually set my goals to take my exercise into account (TDEE method) and I simply don't log my exercise in MFP. That works for me. YMMV.

Pinkylee77

Also some people know they are going to eat more for what ever reason and so they try to exercise more to preventive wt gain. When I hike several miles it burn lots of calories and I really need to eat a bit more.