eat it back?????? I don't get it
ninabaz
Posts: 75 Member
Honestly without sounding like I'm a nit wit I honestly don't understand the concept. Can someone explain to me why I would eat back calories burned? I know hashed out many many times....I just want to do this right this time.
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My doctor told me not to worry about "eating back" calories burned--just focus on your regular calorie goal, regardless of how much you burned.
I think the idea is to make sure your body has enough nutrition so it doesn't go into starvation mode. I've lost 40 pounds so far and I personally don't really notice a change to my metabolism whether or not I eat back what was burned. Everyone is different though, so maybe it does affect some people.0 -
your daily calorie goal on MFP does not factor in how many calories you burn from exercise, it only calculates how many you burn a day from just existing and your normal day to day activities. eating back exercise calories rewards you for being more active and ensures you're not eating too little.0
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surruhehlizabeht wrote: »My doctor told me not to worry about "eating back" calories burned--just focus on your regular calorie goal, regardless of how much you burned.
I think the idea is to make sure your body has enough nutrition so it doesn't go into starvation mode. I've lost 40 pounds so far and I personally don't really notice a change to my metabolism whether or not I eat back what was burned. Everyone is different though, so maybe it does affect some people.
It appears your doctor does not understand how MFP works. MFP gives you a calorie goal assuming you don't do any exercise. You eat that in order to meet your weekley weight loss goal. If you exercise your deficit is larger so you eat the cals back so you are at your original deficit to lose your goal amount of weight.
OP: As an example say MFP gives you 1450 calories to lose 1 lb/week, and you plan on exercising 5x/week for an average of 400 cals per workout. well MFP will tell you to eat 1450 on the days you don't workout and 1850 on the days you do whereas a "professional" or TDEE calculator may tell you to eat 1700 everyday regardless if you workout.
So for the week MFP will have you eat 12,150 (1450*2+1850*5) whereas doing it the other way will have you eat 11,900 (1700*7) almost the same number of cals for the week (250 dif). The issue in not following MFP is if you don't workout the full 5 days or burn more or less than planned. If that is the case you may lose more or less than your goal, whereas MFP will have you lose your goal amount regardless how much you actually workout.
What many MFPers do is take the low 1450 and not eat back exercise calories which is wrong, if you are not eating them back then your daily activity level should reflect the higher burn with would be covered in the 1700/day above.
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ninafoster9 wrote: »Honestly without sounding like I'm a nit wit I honestly don't understand the concept. Can someone explain to me why I would eat back calories burned? I know hashed out many many times....I just want to do this right this time.
If you really want to do it right this time, some of the best knowledge, put the most succinctly, with answers to all your questions, are stickied at the top of the various forums. I would suggest starting with these posts
A guide to get you started on your path to sexypants
Calorie Counting
Logging Accuracy
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Think of your body like a car. You just raced it 100 miles. Do you refill the tank or try for another 50?
It also helps to separate work out ideas from weight loss ideas. Eat less to lose weight. Work out to be awesome.0 -
I typically don't eat them back but when I do it's because I exercised loads above and beyond my normal exercise to earn extra wiggle-room to eat something I wouldn't allow the calories for on any given day (like the meal out to a restaurant on the weekend etc).
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The idea is to lose weight at a safe and sustainable rate - eating back exercise calories allows your body to receive the proper nutrients to avoid muscle loss in the process of fat loss. I personally set my MFP to sedentary and use a HRM for calories burned - then I add 80% of the calories burned into available food calories. It's a little slower this way, but makes me less hungry (or starvalin' as my 3 year old niece would say)
Make sense? 0 -
MFP does let you factor in your activity level in your calorie goal.0
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So essentially its there in case you go over by a bit its not going to kill your progress....just don't go overboard?0
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Here's my best attempt:
Let's say you told MFP you were sedentary when you set up your goals, it's going to calculate recommended daily calories to achieve your weight loss goals based on that, whether you said you want to lose 0.5, 1, or 2 pounds a week. That number doesn't factor any exercise and puts you at the calorie deficit estimated to help you meet your goals if you didn't exercise. This is also true if you told MFP you were lightly active or active. The idea is that is based on your general routine, not including the exercise.
Now, add in exercise... That's more calories burned. So now you're thinking, okay, good more deficit = more loss... Not always true. Your body needs fuel to perform, including exercise.
Let's say MFP put you at 1200 daily calories and that's all you ate ever, including days you exercised. I'd be pretty confident in saying eventually, you're going to feel tired and burnt before long on that.
Here comes the theory of eating back exercise calories. Now, in my opinion and that of many others, MFP over-estimates calorie burns. My general practice is to average out over the course of a week eating back about 50% of the calories burned. Sometimes on a Saturday if we're hanging out with friends, I might eat back more, but on other days, I might not eat back any. It generally averages out. You could also use a fitbit, garmin, etc to track activity and base on those calories burned as well. I wouldn't go by what you see on a treadmill or elliptical machine however, for example. Those burns are generally higher than what MFP comes up with.0 -
I'm not very knowledgeable on the eating back of calories concept, but I believe that it means that since your calorie goal is already set less than your BMR (calories to maintain your current weight), you should eat back some workout calories so that you do not go too far into a deficit that is safe. Plus the site over estimates calories burned on exercise tasks and even when following the packages, you can never be completely accurate on how much calories are in something you eat. I don't bother eating back my calories burned.
And there is no such thing as starvation mode... its a myth.0 -
ninafoster9 wrote: »So essentially its there in case you go over by a bit its not going to kill your progress....just don't go overboard?
No, that isn't right, it is there as you are supposed to eat them in order to meet your weekly weight loss goal.0 -
I use a garmin. So far I'd say pretty accurate0
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ErikThaRed wrote: »I'm not very knowledgeable on the eating back of calories concept, but I believe that it means that since your calorie goal is already set less than your BMR (calories to maintain your current weight), you should eat back some workout calories so that you do not go too far into a deficit that is safe. Plus the site over estimates calories burned on exercise tasks and even when following the packages, you can never be completely accurate on how much calories are in something you eat. I don't bother eating back my calories burned.
And there is no such thing as starvation mode... its a myth.
BMR is what you would burn in a coma to maintain weight. maintenance calories will always be higher, even if you stayed in bed all day.0 -
I am not eating it back and am determined to use those calories burned to add up to the magic 3500 cal / lb of fat to melt this stuff off. My lofty goal....lose 10 lbs a month for 5 months, develop good habits of healthy eating and increased exercising so when I transition into maintaining I am ready to shift over to new maintenance strategies. So far I am ahead of my goal 11 lbs in 25 days. The month is not over yet. I celebrate all of the extra exercise cal's burned and fat lost from my body and am careful to consume good nutritional food every day. Try it for a week and see how it feels.0
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ninafoster9 wrote: »So essentially its there in case you go over by a bit its not going to kill your progress....just don't go overboard?
No, that isn't right, it is there as you are supposed to eat them in order to meet your weekly weight loss goal.
Oh OK. Yup I'm a nit wit lol0 -
oneloopygirl wrote: »Here's my best attempt:
Let's say you told MFP you were sedentary when you set up your goals, it's going to calculate recommended daily calories to achieve your weight loss goals based on that, whether you said you want to lose 0.5, 1, or 2 pounds a week. That number doesn't factor any exercise and puts you at the calorie deficit estimated to help you meet your goals if you didn't exercise. This is also true if you told MFP you were lightly active or active. The idea is that is based on your general routine, not including the exercise.
Now, add in exercise... That's more calories burned. So now you're thinking, okay, good more deficit = more loss... Not always true. Your body needs fuel to perform, including exercise.
Let's say MFP put you at 1200 daily calories and that's all you ate ever, including days you exercised. I'd be pretty confident in saying eventually, you're going to feel tired and burnt before long on that.
Here comes the theory of eating back exercise calories. Now, in my opinion and that of many others, MFP over-estimates calorie burns. My general practice is to average out over the course of a week eating back about 50% of the calories burned. Sometimes on a Saturday if we're hanging out with friends, I might eat back more, but on other days, I might not eat back any. It generally averages out. You could also use a fitbit, garmin, etc to track activity and base on those calories burned as well. I wouldn't go by what you see on a treadmill or elliptical machine however, for example. Those burns are generally higher than what MFP comes up with.
^THIS!!! It's about sustainability. If I exercise, I don't like to eat back all my calories but I know they are there so I can splurge every now and then. And that's human. We need those rewards so we don't go insane counting every calorie of every day.0 -
ErikThaRed wrote: »I'm not very knowledgeable on the eating back of calories concept, but I believe that it means that since your calorie goal is already set less than your BMR (calories to maintain your current weight), you should eat back some workout calories so that you do not go too far into a deficit that is safe. Plus the site over estimates calories burned on exercise tasks and even when following the packages, you can never be completely accurate on how much calories are in something you eat. I don't bother eating back my calories burned.
And there is no such thing as starvation mode... its a myth.
BMR is what you would burn in a coma to maintain weight. maintenance calories will always be higher, even if you stayed in bed all day.
Gotcha... thanks.0 -
ninafoster9 wrote: »ninafoster9 wrote: »So essentially its there in case you go over by a bit its not going to kill your progress....just don't go overboard?
No, that isn't right, it is there as you are supposed to eat them in order to meet your weekly weight loss goal.
Oh OK. Yup I'm a nit wit lol
No you are not. MFP just works different than other sites. If MFP gives you a goal of say 1200 cal another site might say 1450 to lose the same amount of weight, but what the other site did was average say 4 days of exercise over the 7 days, whereas MFP may have you eat 1200 for 3 days and 1800 for 4 (assuming you burn 600 cals/workout), which at then end of the week would be almost the same intake.0 -
I think a lot of these answers, while absolutely correct, maybe explain it too much, which may make it more confusing. Let me try:
1. You tell MyFitnessPal how many lbs per week you want to lose.
2. MyFitnessPal says, "OK, if this girl does absolutely NO exercise at all, she can still lose the weight by eating this amount of calories daily (because her body will still be burning off more than what she consumed, even with no workout that day, so she'll still be in a calorie deficit)."
3. If she DOES exercise, she can eat back up to as many calories as she burned off, and still lose weight, because it will even out.
Yeah?0 -
This from @blankiefinder. Which is what I typically post as an answer to these common questions Plus this link.
http://community.myfitnesspal.com/en/discussion/833026/important-posts-to-read/p1blankiefinder wrote: »If you really want to do it right this time, some of the best knowledge, put the most succinctly, with answers to all your questions, are stickied at the top of the various forums. I would suggest starting with these posts
A guide to get you started on your path to sexypants
Calorie Counting
Logging Accuracy0 -
...but...MFP seems to REEEEALLY inflate calorie burn, so keep that in mind. (For example: I burn like 600cals in an hour of Zumba, but MFP gives me a calculation of like 800something...so my trick, that's worked so far, is to give myself 100 calories back for every 15 minutes of exercise in my target HR zone)...0
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Close but not quite on #3. it should say:MelWick524 wrote: »I think a lot of these answers, while absolutely correct, maybe explain it too much, which may make it more confusing. Let me try:
1. You tell MyFitnessPal how many lbs per week you want to lose.
2. MyFitnessPal says, "OK, if this girl does absolutely NO exercise at all, she can still lose the weight by eating this amount of calories daily (because her body will still be burning off more than what she consumed, even with no workout that day, so she'll still be in a calorie deficit)."
3. If she DOES exercise, she can eat back up to as many calories as she burned off, and still lose weight, because it will even out.
Yeah?
"If she does exercise she should be eating those calories back in order to lose her goal amount of weight per week"
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MelWick524 wrote: »I think a lot of these answers, while absolutely correct, maybe explain it too much, which may make it more confusing. Let me try:
1. You tell MyFitnessPal how many lbs per week you want to lose.
2. MyFitnessPal says, "OK, if this girl does absolutely NO exercise at all, she can still lose the weight by eating this amount of calories daily (because her body will still be burning off more than what she consumed, even with no workout that day, so she'll still be in a calorie deficit)."
3. If she DOES exercise, she can eat back up to as many calories as she burned off, and still lose weight, because it will even out.
Yeah?
Ahh!!!! Simple thank you!!!!0 -
MelWick524 wrote: »...but...MFP seems to REEEEALLY inflate calorie burn, so keep that in mind. (For example: I burn like 600cals in an hour of Zumba, but MFP gives me a calculation of like 800something...so my trick, that's worked so far, is to give myself 100 calories back for every 15 minutes of exercise in my target HR zone)...
MFP does seem to over estimate, but OP said she has a Garmin HRM, she isn't going off MFP estimates0 -
@Juliet3455 another great link!
If you want a quick fix, post on the forums and get answers from random strangers who may or may not know what they are talking about.
If you want to learn from the respected experts, start with reading the stickied posts, they are there for a reason. Then ask questions when you have enough of a knowledge base to filter out the garbage from the pearls.0 -
MelWick524 wrote: »...but...MFP seems to REEEEALLY inflate calorie burn, so keep that in mind. (For example: I burn like 600cals in an hour of Zumba, but MFP gives me a calculation of like 800something...so my trick, that's worked so far, is to give myself 100 calories back for every 15 minutes of exercise in my target HR zone)...
MFP does seem to over estimate, but OP said she has a Garmin HRM, she isn't going off MFP estimates
You'd be shocked how easy it is to mis-use a HRM. Simply by leaving it running after your workout 'to calculate after burn' will add on hundreds of calories, as it isn't meant to work that way! If I forget to pause mine and take a break, it will give me 300 calories for sitting on my butt. I wish.0 -
Well, I will try to explain with a simple example:
A car drives, say, 50 miles every day. To do that, it needs a particular amount of fuel.
Now if this car starts driving 80 miles every, you could do one of two: give it a fuel allowance enough for 80 mile right off the bat, or use the same fuel amount you did for 50 miles then top it off with extra fuel later.
The first method (giving an allowance) is like using TDEE. This method already accounts for exercise calories within your allowance so no need to eat back exercise. The second method is to set your activity level to sedentary (or whatever base level sans exercise) then top off your allowance with the extra calories.
Now is this necessary? No, but it is preferable. It helps reserve your energy and your muscle mass. Having too steep of a deficit could cause you to be tired, could speed up muscle loss (and hence lowering your maintenance calories even further), and could cause some deficiencies in the nutrients that you need more of the more active you are. You get the added advantage of having more wiggle room in your diet - which is as important as weight loss itself, since it makes it easier for you to stick to your diet.0 -
My dietitian has said don't eat back the workout calories as long as I am getting the right nutrition. She has focused more on the nutrients than the calories eaten. ( We wish we could hide the calories column in MFP). It is all about balance and if you want this to work long term you need the balance. Don't go hungry. Eat right and healthy, and exercise.
She also says it is important to eat within an hour of getting up in the morning and to eat plenty of protein with every meal.0
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