Do you eat up all your calories burnt while exercising?

Loperinnen
Loperinnen Posts: 8 Member
edited November 29 in Fitness and Exercise
Guess the title says it all; do you eat up your burnt calories?
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Replies

  • Jruzer
    Jruzer Posts: 3,501 Member
    Yup.
  • mean_and_lean
    mean_and_lean Posts: 164 Member
    Nope.
  • snowflake930
    snowflake930 Posts: 2,188 Member
    No, never.
  • sijomial
    sijomial Posts: 19,809 Member
    Yes. Both when losing weight and when maintaining.
  • janejellyroll
    janejellyroll Posts: 25,763 Member
    Yes.
  • UG77
    UG77 Posts: 206 Member
    If I was in maintenance mode as opposed to the currently, holy crap I need to lose 100+ lbs mode I'm currently in I would consider it but I'd probably never totally eat them back as I'd be somewhat skeptical of the accuracy of those calories in both directions.
  • Chieflrg
    Chieflrg Posts: 9,097 Member
    I'm comitted to eating so of course. .
  • Rocknut53
    Rocknut53 Posts: 1,794 Member
    No, but I do eat a little more (100-300 calories) on heavy exercise days. Between possibly underestimating calories in and overestimating calories burned, I like to have a cushion to cover discrepancies in both. Map My Hike and MFP give me what I think are crazy overestimates on calorie burn.
  • Nuke_64
    Nuke_64 Posts: 406 Member
    Yes. If you burn a reasonable amount, you are putting yourself in a higher than expected deficit. Encouraging people not to eat back exercise calories could be encouraging a VLCD, depending on their normal calorie goal. As there are a lot of women hear shooting for 1200 calories and men, 1500, that would include a lot of people.
  • GsKiki
    GsKiki Posts: 392 Member
    99% of the time no, but when I do I eat up to half of it back. It depends on the person tho, what your condition and your goal is.
  • snowflake930
    snowflake930 Posts: 2,188 Member
    Honest question, if you are eating all of your exercise calories back, how do you calculate for sure how many calories you burned. The exercise machine, my fit bit, and my iphone all come up with different numbers for the calories burned.
  • sijomial
    sijomial Posts: 19,809 Member
    Honest question, if you are eating all of your exercise calories back, how do you calculate for sure how many calories you burned. The exercise machine, my fit bit, and my iphone all come up with different numbers for the calories burned.

    Pick one method/estimate that seems reasonable, stick with it consistently and adjust calorie balance based on actual results over time.

    What machine or what exercise will determine which method is most likely to be "reasonable".

    Think ahead to maintenance, you will have to account for exercise then so why not practice those skills now?
  • mean_and_lean
    mean_and_lean Posts: 164 Member
    Nuke_64 wrote: »
    Yes. If you burn a reasonable amount, you are putting yourself in a higher than expected deficit. Encouraging people not to eat back exercise calories could be encouraging a VLCD, depending on their normal calorie goal. As there are a lot of women hear shooting for 1200 calories and men, 1500, that would include a lot of people.

    How do you know your calorie burn is actually accurate? That is the whole reason why I don't eat back my exercise calories.
  • snowflake930
    snowflake930 Posts: 2,188 Member
    sijomial wrote: »
    Honest question, if you are eating all of your exercise calories back, how do you calculate for sure how many calories you burned. The exercise machine, my fit bit, and my iphone all come up with different numbers for the calories burned.

    Pick one method/estimate that seems reasonable, stick with it consistently and adjust calorie balance based on actual results over time.

    What machine or what exercise will determine which method is most likely to be "reasonable".

    Think ahead to maintenance, you will have to account for exercise then so why not practice those skills now?

    I am in maintenance. Have been for over two years. When I gain (over 5# fluctuation) I eat less calories until I am back down.
  • sijomial
    sijomial Posts: 19,809 Member
    sijomial wrote: »
    Honest question, if you are eating all of your exercise calories back, how do you calculate for sure how many calories you burned. The exercise machine, my fit bit, and my iphone all come up with different numbers for the calories burned.

    Pick one method/estimate that seems reasonable, stick with it consistently and adjust calorie balance based on actual results over time.

    What machine or what exercise will determine which method is most likely to be "reasonable".

    Think ahead to maintenance, you will have to account for exercise then so why not practice those skills now?

    I am in maintenance. Have been for over two years. When I gain (over 5# fluctuation) I eat less calories until I am back down.

    So are you using the TDEE method then, including an average amount for your activity/exercise?
  • Jruzer
    Jruzer Posts: 3,501 Member
    Honest question, if you are eating all of your exercise calories back, how do you calculate for sure how many calories you burned. The exercise machine, my fit bit, and my iphone all come up with different numbers for the calories burned.

    My honest answer is that I very carefully weighed all the data sources I could find, did some reading, and used a HRM for quite a while (until it broke.) I then came up with answers that are lowball estimates for each activity I commonly do and subtract 2 kcal/min to obtain a net burn from the gross estimates. When I do an careful accounting of my weight trends and calorie consumption and burn, I'm satisfied that my estimates are pretty good.

    If I don't eat my exercise calories, and even sometimes when I do, I find that my workouts suffer. I can't imagine not eating them - I'd barely have the energy to get up in the morning!
  • CasperNaegle
    CasperNaegle Posts: 936 Member
    Really depends on if you are cutting, maintaining, or trying to build. I stay in a 20% deficit if I'm working to cut body fat. If you are maintaining you just up your 20% back in and watch your weight over time.
  • sijomial
    sijomial Posts: 19,809 Member
    Nuke_64 wrote: »
    Yes. If you burn a reasonable amount, you are putting yourself in a higher than expected deficit. Encouraging people not to eat back exercise calories could be encouraging a VLCD, depending on their normal calorie goal. As there are a lot of women hear shooting for 1200 calories and men, 1500, that would include a lot of people.

    How do you know your calorie burn is actually accurate? That is the whole reason why I don't eat back my exercise calories.

    Just like your food logging - absolute accuracy isn't necessary.
    But you can guarantee zero isn't a good estimate!
    For some exercise it's really easy to be pretty accurate, for others much harder.
  • Nuke_64
    Nuke_64 Posts: 406 Member
    Nuke_64 wrote: »
    Yes. If you burn a reasonable amount, you are putting yourself in a higher than expected deficit. Encouraging people not to eat back exercise calories could be encouraging a VLCD, depending on their normal calorie goal. As there are a lot of women hear shooting for 1200 calories and men, 1500, that would include a lot of people.

    How do you know your calorie burn is actually accurate? That is the whole reason why I don't eat back my exercise calories.

    Trial and error. Start at 50% from whatever method you have at your disposal and see what the long term results are.

  • ald783
    ald783 Posts: 688 Member
    Not usually, just because I like to go over my calories on weekends when I go out more, so I try to kind of bank those calories. I don't necessarily need or want those calories on the day I earn them.
  • Nuke_64
    Nuke_64 Posts: 406 Member
    sijomial wrote: »
    Honest question, if you are eating all of your exercise calories back, how do you calculate for sure how many calories you burned. The exercise machine, my fit bit, and my iphone all come up with different numbers for the calories burned.

    Pick one method/estimate that seems reasonable, stick with it consistently and adjust calorie balance based on actual results over time.

    What machine or what exercise will determine which method is most likely to be "reasonable".

    Think ahead to maintenance, you will have to account for exercise then so why not practice those skills now?

    I am in maintenance. Have been for over two years. When I gain (over 5# fluctuation) I eat less calories until I am back down.

    So you are probably underestimating how much food you eat. As this is working for you, I say stay with it. Underestimating on Calories in, while over estimating calories out (on the calories out side, overestimating a negative number would be that same as underestimating a positive number).

    I don't think you should recommend this to others as they will have hard time recreating your errors in estimations.

  • samciruolo
    samciruolo Posts: 20 Member
    I don't. I am still working on recomposition and weight loss. Trying to stay at 1500 cals/day. Besides cheat days are still a reality.
  • TeaBea
    TeaBea Posts: 14,517 Member
    edited February 2016
    Nuke_64 wrote: »
    Yes. If you burn a reasonable amount, you are putting yourself in a higher than expected deficit. Encouraging people not to eat back exercise calories could be encouraging a VLCD, depending on their normal calorie goal. As there are a lot of women hear shooting for 1200 calories and men, 1500, that would include a lot of people.

    How do you know your calorie burn is actually accurate? That is the whole reason why I don't eat back my exercise calories.

    Because zero is closer?

    I eat a reasonable estimation of exercise calories back. This is how MFP is designed. I feel that my number is reasonable because it fits with my weekly weight loss goals. If my weight were gradually going up I would eat less. If my weight is decreasing too fast, I would eat more. Just adjust as necessary.

    The reason I eat calories back.....a reasonable deficit helps my body support existing lean muscle mass. Faster weight loss doesn't lower your body fat percent by as much as moderate paced weight loss does.
  • Azdak
    Azdak Posts: 8,281 Member
    I wait until I'm finished, otherwise I get peanut butter on the treadmill.
  • snowflake930
    snowflake930 Posts: 2,188 Member
    edited February 2016
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  • Osiris275
    Osiris275 Posts: 228 Member
    No because I always think it's overestimated. I eat around 25-50% of my exercise calories.
  • beemerphile1
    beemerphile1 Posts: 1,710 Member
    Some days I do, some days I don't, and some days I eat them all plus more. Why?
  • MommyMeggo
    MommyMeggo Posts: 1,222 Member
    edited February 2016
    Nah. I dont log or track exercise.

    Edit: I use TDEE method. Much easier.
  • williams969
    williams969 Posts: 2,528 Member
    Azdak wrote: »
    I wait until I'm finished, otherwise I get peanut butter on the treadmill.

    Lol, I've been known to eat while on my walks. And to the OP, yes, I eat my exercise calories. I did during weightloss, I did through maintenance and bulk, and I continue to do so for this cut.

    To those who eat none (because they don't trust the numbers), finding a better estimate is better than potential malnourishment and under fueling your training. Clearly, a body in motion burns more than sitting, so zero burn eaten back is the wrong answer.
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