NET calories? Help please!

xheatherwright
xheatherwright Posts: 19 Member
in Health and Weight Loss
I'm so confused by net calories! Someone help please. I don't want to be eating too little calories (after exercising etc)!!!

My goal calories for a day are 1,640 (MFP set that for me when I changed some goals recently).

Currently, after breakfast, lunch, some snacks and exercising for 1 hour I'm on 376 (net) and 825 (food). I still have dinner to go, and possibly some more snacks?

What should my NET actually be at? Should I be netting the 1,640?!?!?

Help please! I don't want to be putting myself into "starvation mode" and slowing down my metabolism, or losing any weight too fast!!!

Replies

  • dynamitegalxo
    dynamitegalxo Posts: 299 Member
    You're correct, you want to net your goal! Ideally, you shouldn't net less than 1,200 calories a day. Basically, the idea is to eat back (most of) the calories you burn off when you exercise. MFP has already figured the reduction in calories you need to lose weight into your 1,640 goal. If you eat that 1,640 but burn too many off at the gym, you're not giving your body enough to live on. Most people suggest eating a portion of burned exercise calories back since the machines at the gym or even a heart rate monitor are never totally accurate in terms of telling you what you actually burned and you don't want to end up over eating, even with good intentions.

    Basically:
    Eat 1800
    Burn 300
    Net 1500 for your body to live on the rest of the day (these are just rough numbers for ease of math, but you get the idea)

    Hope that helps clear some of it up, good luck!
  • xheatherwright
    xheatherwright Posts: 19 Member
    Okay thanks heaps! Yeah that has pretty much cleared it up.
    So ideally i'll be netting my goal, but if I don't, as long as i'm at 1,200 (at least) i should be fine?
  • broscientist
    broscientist Posts: 102 Member
    When you were setting up the new goal, did you set your activity level to sedentary?

    If you are going to count your exercise calories, most likely "sedentary" is the right setting.
  • xheatherwright
    xheatherwright Posts: 19 Member
    No I didn't have it set to sedentary! But I just set it to that and it took my calories goal to 1,440!
    Thanks
  • billthekill
    billthekill Posts: 90
    The "reason" for setting it on "sedentary" is so you won't "Double Dip".


    Example:
    If you set you exercise 3x a week, some people will consider this lightly active. MFP will automatically account for this and add more calories to your diet. If you then add-in exercise activity it will give you more calories to eat but, it already accounted for those extra calories.

    If you want to set it at lightly active or whatever, you may do so, but, it should be your activity level not including exercise.
  • xheatherwright
    xheatherwright Posts: 19 Member
    Ok awesome! Thanks so much for explaining :)

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