Exercise Calories - Take 'em or leave 'em?

reesielee

I am sure many of you have noticed when you log exercise, MyFitnessPal automatically adds those calories to your daily allowance, indicating that you can eat those calories you just burned. There is no way to disable this function - so you can either compensate for those calories by eating a little bit more, or save those calories for extra weight loss. The important calorie amount to pay attention to is the "goal" on the left side of the equation. Research shows that people who do NOT compensate, or don't eat their exercise calories, lose more weight than people who do. However, if you feel hungry and need a little extra fuel to get through the day - go for it! As always, email or text with any questions or issues.

Teresa

Squirrelly2

Thanks, T, it is always tempting to look at the right side of the equation -- it stands out and is, well, easier. Will try to ignore that siren song.

aimlee93

I'm going to try and ignore the "bonus" calories too. But it's a nice safety net to have on the weekends when it's a lot harder to keep to a healthy routine schedule (being off work, socializing = harder to stick to calorie budget..) And also a motivation to still work out on the weekends!

melaniebarber519

Hi Teresa, My calorie count is substantially lower using the app than what you recommended. Only 1200! Which should I be using?

mcamp3210

Once I spoke to you about it I just stopped looking at the equation !