Does anyone NOT count their Exercise calories??

55in13

Eat them back, I do and my weight loss is small but steady and more importantly sustainable

"sustainable" is tossed around here a lot when things are debated. I really don't want to prove that what I do is sustainable, because you can't prove this while you are alive... :bigsmile:

marciebrian

TDEE method? What is that?

MFP put me on 1200 calories/day... what should I be on then?

Thank you all!

MFP only "puts you on" 1200 if you choose "lose 2lbs per week" and sedentary, especially if you have quite a lot to lose.

If you are short, and already at a low weight it also may give you 1200. 1200 is just a starting point. Some women need to go below that to lose. You can't generalize and you have to use your own judgment after observing how your body responds to diet and exercise.

Hands clapping!!!! Bravo finally someone saying not every body is the same. I am short, not much to lose and not only does MFP have me at 1200 cals w/1/2 lb to lose but my TDEE is only 1400. Every person has to find the right balance for themselves. Good luck

55in13

I believe it is extremely counterproductive to automatically eat back your exercise calories. Most people are eating more than they think and not burning as many calories as they believe through exercise. The calculations (BMR, TDEE, calorie burn) are often inaccurate. If you're working out very hard and are hungry, then sure, eat a small but filling snack, say, a handful of nuts, and keep track of your weight on the scale to make sure that you still are creating an appropriate deficit and losing.

The scale can be a fairly bad indicator of whether or not your diet is working when you consider all the different variables that can affect it. I would never use scale weight as the only indicator to determine an appropriate deficit.

Day to day maybe not, but over a series of days or weeks it certainly tells you if what you are doing is working. You don't say what you do use or prefer to measure. I think the poster was trying to say the scale will tell you if you are around the deficit you think you are. The real point in the post is that both consumption and burn are estimates, even if you measure pretty accurately (with a few rare exceptions, most foods are somewhat inconsistent as are most exercises). The tendency seems to be int direction where they would not cancel each other out, but more likely compound any minor errors.

skymel14

TDEE method? What is that?

MFP put me on 1200 calories/day... what should I be on then?

Thank you all!

MFP only "puts you on" 1200 if you choose "lose 2lbs per week" and sedentary, especially if you have quite a lot to lose.

If you are short, and already at a low weight it also may give you 1200. 1200 is just a starting point. Some women need to go below that to lose. You can't generalize and you have to use your own judgment after observing how your body responds to diet and exercise.

Hands clapping!!!! Bravo finally someone saying not every body is the same. I am short, not much to lose and not only does MFP have me at 1200 cals w/1/2 lb to lose but my TDEE is only 1400. Every person has to find the right balance for themselves. Good luck

I agree, thank you everyone for the positive reinforcement! I will log my exercises as 1 calorie, that way I don't feel like, "Oh I just worked off 410 calories according to the treadmill, so it's ok for me to have that slice of cake with dinner instead of a glass of wine (400 calories vs 110.....).

Tflowers34907

If you're following MFP's suggestions, you should eat them back. MFP gives a lower initial calorie goal than other calorie counting sites or guidelines would because it assumes you will be eating more when you exercise.

For instance, To lose one pound a week, MFP would suggest I eat about 1400 calories. I typically burn between 200-600 calories from exercise. Let's go with 400 as an average. That would give me a total of 1800 calories.

A site that estimates my TDEE would tell me I need to eat about 2300 calories at my current exercise and activity level to maintain my weight. To lose one pound a week, I'd take 500 calories off that amount and I'd be at 1800 calories, which is exactly what I'd get using MFP's estimates.

If I didn't eat my exercise calories, I wouldn't have a 500 calorie deficit, I'd have a 900 calorie deficit. That's about 40% below my TDEE. That's pretty huge. Most people suggest eating 10-25% below the TDEE.

Think of it in terms of money... If you got a 10-25% decrease in your salary, you could probably find a way to cut costs and comfortably live. If you had a 40% decrease in your salary, you'd have a really hard time paying your bills. Food is your salary, and your body needs it to function properly.

This was a great explanation for me. Especially since I have the same amount of allotted calories. I also wonder if it matters more along the lines of what you eat vs how much. Certainly 1400 calories of fruits, veggies, and lean meats is different than 1400 calories of processed foods, grease, and sweets. Though I would love more sweets... :-)

toutmonpossible

Think of it in terms of money... If you got a 10-25% decrease in your salary, you could probably find a way to cut costs and comfortably live. If you had a 40% decrease in your salary, you'd have a really hard time paying your bills. Food is your salary, and your body needs it to function properly.

If we're playing analogies, you could argue that a significant decrease in your salary would make you tap into the savings (your fat) that you'd put away for an emergency, just as intended.

Some people do well on healthy, low-calorie diets, and/or Intermittent Fasting, and 1200 is not technically a Very Low Calorie Diet.

2stepscloser

I log them but I do not eat them. Personally, the weeks that I've eaten them or some of them, I don't see much movement on the scale. Not sure if it has anything to do with the weight I need to lose but my body has done very well with what I'm doing.

JJordon

Currently, there are few consumer devices that can truly, accurately calculate burned calories. Especially, when you consider strength training.

I still set my exercise calories to just 1 calorie burned.

Also, I dont like MFP messing around with my intake macros and totals since I burned XYZ calories.

Saratini76

Some of us with weight problems have those problems because of unhealthy relationships with food and I don't think that using it as a reward is a good idea. I know that is NOT what the "eating it back" philosophy is actually about, but I think it might be risky for people who already have problems with their relationship with food.

This is exactly why I think my doctor told me not to. I do have a very unhealthy relationship with food, almost an....obsessive fixation with it . It's slowly changing, and I know my body needs fuel, but my mindset is still a work in progress.

redraidergirl2009

I'm quitting counting them for awhile because it did me no good. I didn't eat them all back most days, just some days. More often than not I only ate maybe 200 of them back. But it does seem counter productive if you burn 500 (supposedly) and eat it back...where is the deficit?

lithezebra

I don't always count all of my walking, because I don't think it rises to the level of exercise beyond my normal activity level. I do, however, eat back my exercise calories. I'm trying to stay at the same weight, AND, equally importantly, keep ALL my hard earned muscle mass.

Joehenny

I log it but don't count it. I have no clue what all this "eat it back" talk is. The site is calculating your tdee based off average daily activity so what would one have to even eat back?

Jess1caLe

Our bodies need fuel... if you're eating, for instance, 1200 calories a day (which isn't enough for me as it is) and then you burn 400 calories through exercise your net calories would be 800 calories.

The recommended daily intake for a 1 year old baby is 900 calories. So eating 800 calories is really unhealthy.

Your body needs fuel and it needs to repair. Even if you eat back all your exercise calories there is still a serious POINT to exercising...:

1) Exercise builds up your lean muscle. Lean muscle burns more calories per day than fat does. The more lean muscle you have the more calories you'll be burning just by being alive

2) An exercised body is a healthy body. For now and for the future. Do you want to be the old lady that's stuck at home or do you want to be the old lady who still gets out and about when she's 85?

3) Being fit is awesome. Muscle is awesome. Not only will you FEEL great, but you'll LOOK great.

4) Following on from 3.... FIT is the new skinny.

BUMP.

battyg13

I log but dont count them as i generally fuel my body during the day taking into account my evening exercise regime

Stargrace2

I log it but don't count it. I have no clue what all this "eat it back" talk is. The site is calculating your tdee based off average daily activity so what would one have to even eat back?

This. MFP calculates your TDEE based on the exercise level you input and then averages it out as to what you should eat weekly if you INCLUDE your exercise.

If you do NOT include your exercise when calculating your TDEE THEN you would eat them back.

It's very simple. If your TDEE is calculated using your weekly exercise levels, don't eat calories back. If it's calculated without your weekly exercise levels, eat them back.

Terpnista84

I'm starting back this week. I did awful with my calories last week and I'm sure I averaged under 1,200. Luckily, I didn't burn too many calories exercising since the 30 Day Shred does not burn a lot. But this week I am definitely going to follow MFP and eat back those calories. I am going to try to at least get within 75 calories of my goal every day (the Happy Hour I am attending on thursday should help a lot).

Don't put in all this work for nothing. It sucks when you work hard and don't see any results so remember to EAT!

redraidergirl2009

Our bodies need fuel... if you're eating, for instance, 1200 calories a day (which isn't enough for me as it is) and then you burn 400 calories through exercise your net calories would be 800 calories.

The recommended daily intake for a 1 year old baby is 900 calories. So eating 800 calories is really unhealthy.

Your body needs fuel and it needs to repair. Even if you eat back all your exercise calories there is still a serious POINT to exercising...:

1) Exercise builds up your lean muscle. Lean muscle burns more calories per day than fat does. The more lean muscle you have the more calories you'll be burning just by being alive

2) An exercised body is a healthy body. For now and for the future. Do you want to be the old lady that's stuck at home or do you want to be the old lady who still gets out and about when she's 85?

3) Being fit is awesome. Muscle is awesome. Not only will you FEEL great, but you'll LOOK great.

4) Following on from 3.... FIT is the new skinny.

I'm calling BULL on this. What works for some doesn't work for others.
I exercise and built lean muscle. guess how much weight I've lost, about a pound in 2 months. My clothes do not fit any better. My arms look better but thats about the extent of it and I do weight training three days a week and have been since March. Looks like that lean muscle isn't helping me burn any fat.

If you can get 2000+ calories a day that's great for you, but personally I cannot and hope to lose any weight. in fact I gain FAT eating over 1800 working out 4-6 days a week. Not sure how that happens but it did.

paday

1200 calories is very low. I was stuck in that mindset for a long time with little weight loss results. Now I eat well over that, continue my workout regime, and am still losing weight/toning up. I also eat back my exercise calories if I'm hungry and want food, which I normally do after working out.

Sometimes I think MFP just automatically defaults to 1200 (which, by the way, is the number of calories your body would need to keep you alive if you were bed ridden!) It may seem counter-intuitive but eating more (especially more of the right foods) will not prohibit your weight loss goals. Try the Fat2FitRadio website and use some of their calculators (BMR, body fat %, etc). When you calculate your BMR, don't eat less than the number recommended by the Harris-Benedict Formula. You'll be surprised at how many more calories this will allow. I know for me personally it was almost 300 more than MFP suggested, and I feel much better/healthier eating this amount.

In the end, weight loss is not an exact science that fits every single person. Find out what works best for your body but I can almost guarantee that exercising and eating a well-balanced, calorie filled diet (including treats) is the way to go if you're in this for the long haul and not just a quick swimsuit season fix.

GetSoda

I don't. It's the only way I can lose weight.
ymmv

lithezebra

I log it but don't count it. I have no clue what all this "eat it back" talk is. The site is calculating your tdee based off average daily activity so what would one have to even eat back?

Some of us set our activity level to sedentary, and log our exercise independently of activity level.

lithezebra

Our bodies need fuel... if you're eating, for instance, 1200 calories a day (which isn't enough for me as it is) and then you burn 400 calories through exercise your net calories would be 800 calories.

The recommended daily intake for a 1 year old baby is 900 calories. So eating 800 calories is really unhealthy.

Your body needs fuel and it needs to repair. Even if you eat back all your exercise calories there is still a serious POINT to exercising...:

1) Exercise builds up your lean muscle. Lean muscle burns more calories per day than fat does. The more lean muscle you have the more calories you'll be burning just by being alive

2) An exercised body is a healthy body. For now and for the future. Do you want to be the old lady that's stuck at home or do you want to be the old lady who still gets out and about when she's 85?

3) Being fit is awesome. Muscle is awesome. Not only will you FEEL great, but you'll LOOK great.

4) Following on from 3.... FIT is the new skinny.

I'm calling BULL on this. What works for some doesn't work for others.
I exercise and built lean muscle. guess how much weight I've lost, about a pound in 2 months. My clothes do not fit any better. My arms look better but thats about the extent of it and I do weight training three days a week and have been since March. Looks like that lean muscle isn't helping me burn any fat.

If you can get 2000+ calories a day that's great for you, but personally I cannot and hope to lose any weight. in fact I gain FAT eating over 1800 working out 4-6 days a week. Not sure how that happens but it did.

Who said anything about eating 2000+ calories? Netting at least 1200 calories per day is just the standard advice for anyone who isn't being supervised by a doctor.

Ohnoes

the exercise calories are the most delicious calories.


i eat about half of mine, its working!

csheltra26

I'm quitting counting them for awhile because it did me no good. I didn't eat them all back most days, just some days. More often than not I only ate maybe 200 of them back. But it does seem counter productive if you burn 500 (supposedly) and eat it back...where is the deficit?

If you are following MFP guidelines, it has already included a deficit. if you create too much of a deficit it can wreak havoc on your metabolism and make it difficult to maintain.

I lost 50 pounds quickly by working out like crazy and eating 1200-1400 calories a day. Created a big deficit. and then the weight all came back while i continued to workout and eat low calories. It has taken me 5 years to figure out how to fix my metabolism.

Most people on here have lost weight more than once - which means it wasn't easy to maintain after the loss because of VLCD. They have learned to do it right and are trying to help people to not make the same mistakes.

emzabee420

i was religiously tracking with mfp a few months ago, and exercising 3-4hrs/week. and eating back every single calorie (with my polar HRM). didnt lose much.

trying this again with fresh eyes. not saying i will never eat back my calories, but if i do i will make sure its not more than half, and only if im really hungry.....

if you tell me i can eat more, i am going to eat more..... so that didnt work out to well for me! I am ready to end 2013 with a bang tho, i think 6 months is just the right amount of time i need to lose these 20 or so lbs....

55in13

My personal belief is that how you maintain the low weight has very little to do with how you lose it. My research and my doctor tells me that a metabolic slow down that is not easily resolved is a rare medical condition and not a commonplace occurrence. 1200 calories is not VLC and subtracting exercise calories is not a recognized practice in determining consumption. What you eat is your calorie input, period. Anyway, either way can work. The weight comes off faster if you don't add them back. If you do, just be very conservative about how much you add back.

1fitnessplanner

I was wondering this and came to this thread looking for answers and what I've come up with is eat when you're hungry just eat the right foods. i have my levels set to sedentary as I'm a SAHM with a crawling baby- I do the insanity workout 6 days a week (burning 300-900 calories a day) in line with the schedule and I go for a walk for 30-60 mins a day with a stroller and 1/2 dogs. I don't tend to eat back my exercise calories and if I do I allow myself 200-300 of them then it doesn't matter how active I've been or if it's a rest day
I don't know if this is right but it's a healthier more manageable relationship with food and exercise than I had before and my current allowed calories is 1650 was 1800 when I started.


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