Psychology of "eating back calories"

Nikki_XC

If I eat back my calories, I gain the weight. So forget it, I just try to eat in moderation. I burn a lot of calories on my mountain bike rides, so I'd rather try to not to focus on "burn to earn."

Izzwoz

Do you feel like a rodent in an exercise wheel trying to earn food ? - No. I exercise to get fit and healthy, not to earn food.

Do you punish yourself for overeating by racking up some exercise calories to neutralise it ? - No. I make a decision on whether I can "handle" not being in a deficit for that day or want to plan ahead and exercise. Neither of which is a punishment.

Do you resent having your exercise efforts wiped out by "eating back" ? - As above, exercise is not about losing weight, it's about losing fat AND becoming fit and healthy. So no effort is wiped out, in fact, it is supported by exercise.

Are you driven to regular exercise to accommodate your overeating ? - I don't overeat anymore.

Or is the extra food a reward for something you enjoy doing anyway ? - No. Extra food is to fuel the body to sustain the exercise. Not my fault if it is tasty food :-)

3dogsrunning

I like the set up. To me, eating the extra calories is fueling my workouts. I also like that I eat less on days I am less active. If I have a bad week and miss a whole bunch of workouts, I am not eating extra like I would if I was doing the TDEE method.
I have no resentment towards it. I don't workout to eat.

carolyn0613

I really like earning those extra calories. I tried TDEE-% but when I didn't get that bonus set of calories to eat, it was too hard. I like to eat....

CherylP67

Eating back exercise calories was a big aha moment for me. The thought had never occurred to me until I started this journey 7.5 weeks ago. I was reading these boards voraciously, learning all I could about BMR, TDEE.

I am having much more success this time around. I eat sedentary TDEE-20%, and I eat my exercise calories back if I'm hungry. I don't eat them because they're there, I use them if I need them. This has made a huge difference to me, this is my lifestyle, and it's doable for me. Previously when I was restricting myself to 1200 a day no matter what, or 24 points a day on WW, I was miserable, tired, hungry all the time and obsessed. I really didn't have the energy to workout.

This eating back the exercise calories idea felt like the clouds opening up and the angels singing. I feel like it was one of the keys to success I had been missing all along. Your body is a machine, food is the fuel. If you fill up your gas tank and drive 120 miles, you'll have gas left over. If you drive 240 miles, you're going to have to fill up the tank before you can get anywhere else. Fuel in, energy out and the further you go, you'll need to refuel.

Putting guilt and emotion on eating calories back makes it emotional, not basic survival.

bsuew

I just can't eat back my exercise calories, it feels wrong and like Im undoing any hard work. But then I do have a tendency to obsess over numbers....

This is so me! I just feel like, why am I even exercising if I'm eating them back?

Turnaround2012

Really Good Post. It really made me think.
I really like to exercise now, but it took me about 2 months of being committed to a healthier lifestyle to really get "into it".
The reason was that I was brainwashed into thinking that one should eat 1300-1400 calories if you wanted to lose weight and then work out all the time. Because of that flawed philosophy, my workouts were misery, and I would lose energy 15 minutes in.

Now, taking the time to really understand TDEE (Total Daily Energy Expenditure) etc. I am actually losing lbs and inches by eating on the average of 1800-2200 calories per day depending on my exercise. I am not losing as fast as I used to when I went on the "crash" diets, but I don't give a rip. I have energy all day long and my workouts are getting increasingly more varied, strenuous, and fun. (I have just started doing Squats and Deadlifts and I am digging it!)

I do play some "head games" regarding when to enter exercise or not

If I work out early in the AM (getting up before 6:00 AM) then I reward myself by logging my exercise calories in the morning. It is a good feeling know that you have started out the day doing something really positive.

Most of the time I track my exercise on the phone and enter it at the end of the day. That Way I eat to my normal calorie goal in my mind the whole day. I adjust with Nuts or natural peanut butter if I need to up my calories. I usually eat back 50% of my calories.

This is a lifestyle change not a quick fix and it is really starting to get fun!

rezn8

C'mon,
Does anyone understand that if you want to be physically fit you need to eat to support your workouts? If you maintain a calorie deficit you WILL lose weight initially. BUT, you will eventually start burning muscle mass and you don't want to do that. You must keep your metabolism revved up by doing a combination of things. Losing weight is only part of the game. If you build lean muscle mass it will be much easier to maintain a healthy weight and fit body.

patentguru

Not psychology. Simple math. On high cardio days, I need more fuel so I eat more. On low cardio days, I need less fuel so I eat less. When I want to cut, I eat less on both high cardio and low cardio days.

LorinaLynn

When I first joined, it motivated me. I was a fairly sedentary person who wanted to be able to run a 5k, and every bit of motivation helped me achieve that goal. It also made me realize I could eat a pretty damn good amount of food and still lose weight.

The other time I tried to lose weight counting calories, I ate under 1000 calories and that wasn't a pleasant experience. And progress was so slow that I was convinced something was wrong with me and I was doomed to always be just a little bit overweight. So being able to eat a total of 1600-2000 and still lose felt abso-frickin-lutely incredible. :drinker:

Once I got a better understanding of nutrition and fitness, I stopped thinking about it in terms of "eating back" and just thought of it as "eating." I don't need the extra motivation to exercise... how I feel and how I look is motivation itself. I know I'm going to keep exercising the way I do, so I have to eat to fuel that. I've been eating based on my TDEE instead for about a year now and greatly prefer that.

aquamarinex

I think I do it to have some fun or treats if you like - on 1,200 calories a day if I didn't at least do a little exercise I would have to cut out everything I liked and then to be frank I would give up on the whole idea of losing weight. I can also plan better for events where I may indulge more so that the impact is less - yet to see if it works as pretty new to all this and haven't yet done first weigh-in as I plan to do that every ten days or so or I shall get addicted to the BMI machine at the gym!

d4ley1

it depends on the individual exercise junkies just do it cos thats what they do. for me food is the reward the exercise is important for health i see it as a necessary chore the reward for which is being able to eat more. as far as exercising retrospectively for the days sins i don't buy in to that because for me this program is about life change i aint going back to where i was having said that im going to celebrate birthdays, Christmas weddings, anniversaries etc a life that doesnt allow me this luxury is a poor one! so in summary for me i exercise for the health benefits the ability to eat more as a result is a welcome side effect and if i go over on special occasions so be it. before i started i ate like everyday was my birthday lol.

Johanne1957

bump

Montarosa456

*Does this work for you in terms of motivation?

Sometimes...But only if I have a indulgent meal coming up.

*Do you feel like a rodent in an exercise wheel trying to earn food ?

No - I absolutely love working out and I'd never want to feel like that...It sounds very discouraging.

*Do you punish yourself for overeating by racking up some exercise calories to neutralise it ?

You can't out exercise a bad diet - I'd prefer just to eat well/healthy than punish myself...we should love our bodies not 'punish them'.

*Do you resent having your exercise efforts wiped out by "eating back" ?

No way - Because for some crazy reason MFP calculates my amount on me burning around 1,810 cals a week when It's more likely to be 3,000 +. I know the human body has a natural fuel resource for workouts but past a certain level/time you need more fuel and to re: fuel and therefore if your re:fueling to be healthy/exercise efficient it's not a problem. It's only a issue if you 'eat back' with total rubbish because 'you've earn't it'

*Are you driven to regular exercise to accommodate your overeating ?

Nope - I'm driven because I love to have a strong/healthy body.

*Or is the extra food a reward for something you enjoy doing anyway ?

I don't really feel it's extra food or a 'reward' its basic nutrition and sometimes people get nutrition and calorie counting confused and a genuinely healthy choice may have more calories (aka if you look at the calorie content of some fruits or your better to eat some dried fruit+ nuts than a chocolate bar etc).

Mokey41

I rarely eat back exercise (unless it's something major like a 3 hour bike ride and I'm starving) and most often don't log it either. Food is not my reward for good behaviour!

LivingtheLeanDream

bump

cmeiron

I hated playing that numbers game and especially hated being hungry on rest days. I just stick to a TDEE approach now and eat the same amount every day. Much easier, and I find THAT motivates me to stay on top of my normal workout routine week to week.

peachfigs

I have an approximate understanding of how many calories I burn during a workout, and instead of 'eating them back' I just eat them as part of my daily calories. If I'm not working out that day, I just eat my normal amount.

55in13

I have not been doing that while I had plenty to lose; I just used exercise to accelerate the process. Now that I am getting closer I am re-evaluating; on a day with a long run if I eat too little my remaining fat can't cover the deficit with what it can release in a day. My most common exercise has been running 5-10 miles 3-4 times a week, which was fine to average in when I had enough fat to release enough calories to cover the deficit each day.

seltzermint555

It's hard for me to get my head around, but I generally do it.

Before I started MFP I think I was really shooting myself in the foot a lot when it came to exercise. I'd regularly eat about 1200 calories and walk 5 miles briskly or other exercise...and not adjust up my calories at all. I did not understand about that! I somehow believed that if I didn't exercise my body would only need like 600-800 calories to survive so anything more was what made me heavier. Don't get me wrong, I've never eaten calories that low but I just did not understand the connection...kind of embarrassing, now.