Should I REALLY add the calories I burn back in to my count?

fat2fitaddict · January 2016

Ok, so I have read a few things online that says I should NOT add the calories that I burn from daily exercise back into my daily count. For example: If my goal is 1500 cals a day and I burn 300 from walking, I should still only consume no more than 1500 cals from food/beverage...not 1800..hence 1500+300=1800.

What do you think? I tried this yesterday and ended up still going over my 1500 goal...what are your thoughts?

Dreysander · January 2016

I see a lot of people adding back half the calories to compensate for caloric burn overestimates. So you'd add +150 meaning you'd eat 1650 instead of 1500.

jemhh · January 2016

If you're using the MFP calorie goal you should eat your exercise calories.

siluridae · January 2016

Don't add them back if you want to be done with your weight loss faster.
What's the point of burning the calories if you're just going to eat them back?

coreyreichle · January 2016

To maintain a correct deficit, and to minimize muscle loss.

A 1000 cal deficit will cause a larger proportion of muscle loss than a 500 cal deficit.

flabassmcgee · January 2016

Depends on the method.

With MFP, it's giving you an estimated calorie amount closest to your BMR+ daily activity with a deficit factored in already. Your BMR (basal metabolic rate) is the amount you eat to keep just your vital organs functioning. Your daily activity is asked for after your account creation (i.e. Sedentary, Lightly Active, etc). Then, you add calories for your burn during exercise to compensate for the severe deficit. You are still in a deficit if you eat them.

I don't use the MFP method because I think their calorie estimations are too high. I have a FitBit and I calculated my own BMR+TDEE (total daily energy expenditure). I eat 20% less than my TDEE and lose.

You can calculate your TDEE here: http://www.fat2fittools.com/tools/bmr/

Just be sure you use your current weight for your CURRENT and GOAL weight. Choose the activity level that best applies to you and eat 20% less than that. Don't eat exercise calories back, just that amount, and you'll do fine.

LivingtheLeanDream · January 2016

Eat back 50-75% of exercise cals more to account for mfp overestimating the burn and also food logging inconsistencies

jemhh · January 2016

Many of us view e exercise/training as a fitness pursuit rather than a weight loss pursuit. Those who feel that way often choose to fuel their fitness.

VintageFeline · January 2016

Because I want to retain as much muscle/lean body mass as possible and being too aggressive with my deficit will not achieve this.

Plus I really like not feeling like death while working out, I want to fuel my workouts and actually enjoy them.

And as others have pointed out, it does depend on the method you are using. TDEE or the MFP NEAT method. I do the MFP way because I don't have a structured workout schedule so it's just safer to ensure I hit my deficit consistently.

3dogsrunning · January 2016

The issue with reading other sources is that MFP is set up a little different than most places recommend.
Most sites use TDEE which is Total Daily Energy Expenditure, that includes all calories your body uses throughout the day including exercise. Your calorie deficit is taken from that. In this case, no you would not eat your exercise calories, they are already accounted for.

MFP is not set up that way though. MFP is designed to figure a calorie goal without accounting for exercise. When you do exercise, you are supposed to log it and eat those calories back. A lot of people choose to eat a portion back to err on the side of caution as any method (including Heartrate monitors) have a degree of error.

If figured correctly both of these methods will get you to the same place when averaged over the week. The main difference is with TDEE you eat the same number of calories everyday. That's good for people who like to plan ahead and with consistency. With MFP, you eat more on days you exercise. I found it helpful for when I wasn't getting as much exercise as I planned in, I didn't have to worry I was eating too much.

lemurcat12 · January 2016

It depends on how you get the calorie goal and what type of exercise you do/how aggressive a goal it is.

Lots of calorie goals INCLUDE estimated exercise, so for those you of course would not add back exercise calories. Others assume you get a certain amount from cutting calories (say a lb/week) and that reasonable exercise on top of that is gravy (here I'd distinguish between adding in some extra walking or about 200-300 calories from light cardio or weights vs. a heavy cardio program that burns lots of calories, like a significant training program).

MFP, on the other hand, gives you a calorie goal that assumes you do not exercise (unless you included it in your activity level), so you'd normally add it back, especially if you already have an aggressive goal (2 lbs or 1200 cal, for example). That said, many types of exercise can be overestimated, so you might want to eat back only some.

For walking, personally, I walk about the same amount every day (quite a bit) and consider it part of my overall activity level, so it's why I call myself lightly active, not sedentary, and not something I add back. But if you are sedentary in your setting, you'd probably want to add back some or try using a pedometer.

lemurcat12 · January 2016

Fitness.

blossomingbutterfly · January 2016

This is up to you to figure out what works best for you and your goals.

3dogsrunning · January 2016

Asking questions is a good way to figure out what might work best for him and his goals.

Because I checked to see if you were male or female, I note you are male.
Just another note - 1500 is considered the bottom intake for males. You don't give your height/weight/activity level but chances are you probably can and should eat more than 1500 and still lose weight.

blossomingbutterfly · January 2016

Asking, sure. But no one can tell him yes or no he should or shouldn't eat the exercise calories back. Some will say yes eat all, some will say no don't eat any, some will say eat any range in between. It's something that's a personal preference that he needs to try out and see what works best for him based off of his weight loss and fitness goals. That's not something we can really answer for him.

cassieknights951 · January 2016

cassieknights951 · January 2016

Ive been eating my caleries that I burn and in the last 6 days have still lost 3.6Ib so it's working for me

arditarose · January 2016

I would argue, what's the point of burning calories if you're not going to eat them back? This coming from a cardio hater.

ETA: If you're using the MFP method.

RGv2 · January 2016

Yes, that is how MFP is designed. You enter in your stats, activity level, goal and MFP spits out a number for you assuming exercise isn't part of your activity level.

Let's stay you maintain at 2500 calories and want to lose 1lb per week, so then you'd cut 500 calories per day.

2500 maintenance - 500 = 2000 calories per day to lose 1lb.

Let's say you add in a daily workout that burns 300 calories. You now maintain at 2800, So:

2500 + 300 workout cals = a new maintenance of 2800

2800 new maintenance - 500 = 2300 calories per day to lose 1lb per week.

Now, with that said, many say to start out eating back ~50-75% of exercise calories and adjust from there because it's all really an estimate.

Also, if you're a 30 year old male cutting at 1500 cals....you really should be making sure you eat back a good chunk of your exercise calories.

If you provide stats (ht/wt/workout routine) we can help out a more specifically.

fat2fitaddict · January 2016

Thank you guys. The artical was from a website iifym.com where it gives you your TDEE (total daily energy expendature) but i can see how MFP has its own version too. I personally am 30 yr old male (31next month) 250lbs 5'11 tall and exercise 45 mins/day for 4 days a week

lemurcat12 · January 2016

TDEE method includes exercise upfront, so is a different way of getting your goal than MFP, as I suggested in my prior post. You wouldn't eat back exercise if doing that method, as you include it in your estimate.

That said, 1500 sounds wrong for your stats using that method.

Should I REALLY add the calories I burn back in to my count?

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