I don't want my exercise calories added to my total remaining food calories....

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tgilk2255
tgilk2255 Posts: 1 Member
in Getting Started
.... is there a setting to change this?

I'm exercising to lost weight. Not eat more.
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Replies

  • yasminquezada
    yasminquezada Posts: 1 Member
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    I am on the same boat as you, can't seem to figure it out yet.
  • sculptcha
    sculptcha Posts: 163 Member
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    you can manually change the number of calories burned to 1.
  • MommyL2015
    MommyL2015 Posts: 1,411 Member
    edited April 2015
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    I'm fairly new to this but I understand it as the total amount of calories it allows for you for the day (according to how you have it set up for yourself) including those added back for exercise, will be for weight loss, not maintenance, so even if you eat them back, you will still lose. I could be wrong. I don't eat much of mine back but there have been days where I have just because I was hungry. (edited to add that even when I do eat them back, I do not gain weight, I have consistantly lost.)

    To answer your question, I have no idea if that can be turned off or not.
  • RoxieDawn
    RoxieDawn Posts: 15,488 Member
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    No this is the MFP way.. The MFP deficit is calculated so you do eat some of your exercise calories back that you log daily. And this is assuming you have not over estimated calorie burn for exercise, this is why you should only eat some.

    But since you do not want to eat back you calories you burned... just don't..
  • cbills65
    cbills65 Posts: 164 Member
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    A lot of people log their exercise but for the calories burned they use "1". That way they have accounted for the activity and time spent doing it but the earned calories won't show up. This is the only way I am aware of to circumvent the padded calories from exercise.
  • DirrtyH
    DirrtyH Posts: 664 Member
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    This is going to blow your mind guys, but here's the super secret hack I came up with for this. Are you ready?

    I.... don't log my exercise. !!!
  • pinkshoelaces
    pinkshoelaces Posts: 111 Member
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    Uh, well MFP is designed so you can eat them back and still lose weight (Tho most suggest only eating half back because MFP can over estimate calories burned). If you don't eat them back, you run the risk of creating too large a deficit and burning yourself out from not properly fueling your work outs. I eat back most my exercise calories and I've lost 80 pounds so this method works.

    But no one can make you eat them, so just don't log your exercise if that's what you want.
  • bmele0
    bmele0 Posts: 282 Member
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    I've lost 110 and I eat back some, if not most of my exercise calories back. As I get stronger and do more intense workouts, the more I need the fuel.
  • lemurcat12
    lemurcat12 Posts: 30,886 Member
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    You can not log it, or you can log it and change your burn to 1, as someone said upthread. Or you can ignore it. Not terribly difficult.

    However, MFP gives you a maximum goal for a reason--health--so ignoring it and trying to go below it isn't really a good idea unless you don't think your logging will be accurate or you are quite overweight and under a doctor's care.
  • mbcieslak87
    mbcieslak87 Posts: 206 Member
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    There are two schools of thought on this:

    1. You can set your MFP to sedentary; this should lead MFP to guess your daily caloric burn and adjust from there according to your weight loss goals. With this line of thinking, then you can eat back your exercise calories, because they were not adjusted for in the sedentary setting. However, MFP tends to overestimate caloric burn in exercise, so I would suggest never eating back more than 70% of what it says you burned, if you want to maintain your goals (losing a lb a week, or whatever)

    2. A second school of thought is following TDEE - 20 %/something similar (you can input your calorie goals manually into MFP, or use one of their higher activity level settings for a rough estimate); where you estimate your caloric burn throughout the week, with your workouts included and adjust for there according to your weightloss goal. If this is your preference, then you should not be eating back your exercise calories - you can manually input your exercise burn in as one (it won't let you put zero).

    MFP's method of sedentary plus eating back what you burn can be great for beginners or those whose exercise daily/weekly varies greatly. However, if you follow a regular workout schedule from week to week and can closely estimate your output, TDEE - 20% offers a nice notion of being able to eat the average/same amount of calories everyday of the week, which IMO makes meal planning much easier. Both work - so it's just personal opinion for the most part. Below is a good website for figuring our your TDEE - 20% if you're interested.

    http://scoobysworkshop.com/accurate-calorie-calculator/

    Good Luck!
  • PAV8888
    PAV8888 Posts: 13,786 Member
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    tgilk2255 wrote: »
    .... is there a setting to change this?
    I'm exercising to lost weight. Not eat more.

    While anyone is free to use any tool any way they feel like, understanding how the tool is supposed to work is often useful.

    MFP already includes your complete, agreed upon, caloric deficit in the number of calories you get when you start your day. By not eating exercise calories back you are increasing this deficit.

    For some people increasing this deficit is not a problem, because the increased deficit still has them losing weight within the "safe" 0.5% to 1% of bodyweight per week range.

    For other people increasing this deficit IS a problem.

    They end up netting as little as 500 to even 0 Calories, creating huge deficits, and losing a mix of muscle and fat. And depressing their BMR, and reducing their TDEE as a consequence. And feeling like crap. And rebounding and gaining all the weight PLUS a little bit more back.

    So, yes, if you do understand how MFP works, and if your total deficit is such that you will lose within the generally safe 0.5% to 1% of bodyweight range, then go ahead and don't eat back your exercise calories.

    Otherwise you may want to eat back:
    50% of weight-training calories
    75% of circuit training or HIIT calories and
    100% of steady state aerobic activity calories.

    and compare your expected to actual weight loss over a period of weeks and adjust.
  • onedayTHISYEAR
    onedayTHISYEAR Posts: 34 Member
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    Never worked that out either...

    One of the things I did was if I did 20 mins of something I put 2 mins so the calories it added would be little, but I understood how much I had done
    OR
    once you have eaten for the day or the NEXT day log your genuine exercise for the previous day, so that you don't accidentally use it, and that way if you want the graph for what exercise you have done you still have it :smile:

    Now that I have changed the exercise I am doing I do like to see the graph of calories used... so I am now on the OR :wink:
  • malibu927
    malibu927 Posts: 17,565 Member
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    You eat in a calorie deficit to lose weight, you exercise for your health. As MFP is designed to be done without exercise, any calories burned will be added to your deficit. In order to keep your deficit healthy and sustainable, and to keep your body fueled to continue to workout, it's expected that you would eat back a portion of those exercise calories.
  • isulo_kura
    isulo_kura Posts: 818 Member
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    You c
    malibu927 wrote: »
    You eat in a calorie deficit to lose weight, you exercise for your health. As MFP is designed to be done without exercise, any calories burned will be added to your deficit. In order to keep your deficit healthy and sustainable, and to keep your body fueled to continue to workout, it's expected that you would eat back a portion of those exercise calories.

    Not everyone is using this method though. Many people are using the TDEE based system. So you either don't add the exercise or add it as one calorie burned or if you are in the US you could pay a ridiculous amount of money for MFP premium
  • geraldaltman
    geraldaltman Posts: 1,739 Member
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    It can be aggravating, but at the end of the day, you want to be under your total calorie goal. I am also looking closely at staying at or under the key nutrition goal numbers. I am not there but I am learning how to swap out calories and/or what kind of foods I can have that won't bust those numbers but add some calories when I am short. Otherwise seeing the calories burned is a positive reinforcement for me to keep going, at least when the scale doesn't.
  • mayharmony
    mayharmony Posts: 16 Member
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    I just don't log exercise. Unless I need it for the calories that day, then I will log it and reduce the number of calories burned to about 70% as others have said.
  • lemurcat12
    lemurcat12 Posts: 30,886 Member
    edited April 2015
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    isulo_kura wrote: »
    You c
    malibu927 wrote: »
    You eat in a calorie deficit to lose weight, you exercise for your health. As MFP is designed to be done without exercise, any calories burned will be added to your deficit. In order to keep your deficit healthy and sustainable, and to keep your body fueled to continue to workout, it's expected that you would eat back a portion of those exercise calories.

    Not everyone is using this method though. Many people are using the TDEE based system. So you either don't add the exercise or add it as one calorie burned or if you are in the US you could pay a ridiculous amount of money for MFP premium

    Fair bet that someone who says "not exercising to eat more, but to lose weight" isn't using TDEE method, since TDEE method includes an estimate for exercise in the calorie goal.

    I do think a simple way to do it and not mess with TDEE is just tell MFP you are sedentary and want to lose 1 lb/week and then exercise to try and get another lb (assuming a 2 lb goal is appropriate for your weight, of course).

    If I were doing that I'd do what I do for TDEE and put in 1 calorie.
  • joepratt503
    joepratt503 Posts: 191 Member
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    sculptcha wrote: »
    you can manually change the number of calories burned to 1.

    this...that simple.

  • veganbaum
    veganbaum Posts: 1,865 Member
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    I'm going to assume you're new and haven't been lurking, or you wouldn't be asking this question. However, if you are creating a deficit from TDEE, please disregard the following.

    I'd suggest using MFP as it is designed when just starting out, rather than adjusting. Adjustments can come later.

    That means, logging your food accurately (by weight for solids, not cups or estimates), logging your exercise, and eating at least 50-75% of your exercise calories (to account for overestimation in exercise calories).

    Try that for at least four - six weeks. Then start adjusting if your losses aren't where you expect them to be based on the numbers. As stated, this assumes you are using MFP's method, and not TDEE. Down the line you can learn more about TDEE and whether that will work better for you.

  • malibu927
    malibu927 Posts: 17,565 Member
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    isulo_kura wrote: »
    You c
    malibu927 wrote: »
    You eat in a calorie deficit to lose weight, you exercise for your health. As MFP is designed to be done without exercise, any calories burned will be added to your deficit. In order to keep your deficit healthy and sustainable, and to keep your body fueled to continue to workout, it's expected that you would eat back a portion of those exercise calories.

    Not everyone is using this method though. Many people are using the TDEE based system. So you either don't add the exercise or add it as one calorie burned or if you are in the US you could pay a ridiculous amount of money for MFP premium

    I know how TDEE works. I used it for three months. But if you're following MFP's goals, then you should be eating back a portion of your calories.

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