Here's why I don't eat back my exercise calories.

DebbieLyn63

I usually do not eat back my exercise calories and I have managed to lose weight and build up muscles. I have "guns" that I never had when I was 271.

WOW! That is quite an accomplishment, 146 lbs lost and your arms look awesome! Congrats on your hard work and success. I hope to look like you when I grow up! :flowerforyou:

CycleGuy9000

This thread is great. I burned at least 15 calories reading it. Ummmm all the hate and discontent aside does anyone really know what the OPs question was? Asking cause I have no clue.

ETA:

Okay I think I figured it out

So. Do you eat back your calories that you burn while exercising? Why or why not? I am interested in opinions on this one and how well eating them back or not works for you.

No. With the workouts I do its impossible to eat back my calories while exercising. I would throw it all up, it would make a mess and would be a waste of food and $$. /End Thread

Gnite Everyone! :drinker:

You gave me an idea for a good point, we all have a different number of exercise calories, some have only 300-1000 exercise calories to eat back but some people like me have 2000 or more and I bet you have more than I do, I know I couldn't eat back 2000 calories or I'd get sick, makes me sick thinking about it so I can see what you're saying.

suziepoo1984

Yes I eat them because I couldn't eat only 1400 calories a day for more than a few days before I lost it and started eating everything in sight.

^^This

MyChocolateDiet

WOW! so this is my very first time with MFP and looking at the Forums - this was the first Thread I seen that interested me. So I opened it up and read the post by deemar54 and thought ok, interesting BUT then I read the first response from adini749 and thought holy heck! that's a pretty rude response! So for what its worth, I actually found the topic interesting - remember I am new and have not seen the, apparently countless other Threads on the same topic. Thanks for the info, but I have to say, I dont think I would ever post a question/topic for fear of being shot down like the author of this topic has been.

does "catattack" as a username just come to you when you are signing up to MFP for the first time? And then you coincidentally just happen to land up in a thread like this.... and then also have you ever heard of this, it's pretty interesting http://www.urbandictionary.com/define.php?term=catfish

iNkedFiTmama

I don't eat mine back but I do allow myself a generally larger daily calorie amount.. as with you OP if I'm hungry though you better believe I'll go over that day eating but its gonna be a healthy choice at least. I'm not at the point where i'm focusing on losing pounds anyway so I don't take calories too seriously.. just track to make sure of my round about range

vickilowell

I do exactly the same as you (and I also believe it helps with the inaccuracies that may occur with counting calories)....I've lost 25 lbs so I'm in total agreement with you.

besaro

do what you want.

allifantastical

this should be fun
*grabs some popcorn*

Right there with you.

SlimJanette

So you say you've read all the controversial threads on MFP, still want to believe what you want to believe (even though that is not using the system the way it is intended) and now you want even more feedback? Were the thousands of threads ALREADY on the subject not enough responses for you?

I don't know why you're even asking the question as you've clearly made up your mind to believe what you want to believe.

Sounds to me like you just created this thread because you wanted to post your justification for not eating your exercise calories back. Way to go?
[/quote]

^^Wow this is a bit harsh don't you think?

sunshyncatra

I tend to eat them back if my net calories goes under 1200, or if I just feel like it

LJSmith1989

WOW! so this is my very first time with MFP and looking at the Forums - this was the first Thread I seen that interested me. So I opened it up and read the post by deemar54 and thought ok, interesting BUT then I read the first response from adini749 and thought holy heck! that's a pretty rude response! So for what its worth, I actually found the topic interesting - remember I am new and have not seen the, apparently countless other Threads on the same topic. Thanks for the info, but I have to say, I dont think I would ever post a question/topic for fear of being shot down like the author of this topic has been.

Haha this has to be the OP with a new name?

diannethegeek

I eat mine back. I was losing weight originally with another site that didn't take my exercise into account. As my weight dropped so did my calorie allowance, until I finally dropped down to 1200-1400 calories a day while exercising 6 days a week. I thought I felt great. I thought I was fine at 1400 calories. I told people that I felt full and not at all fatigued. But I wasn't losing weight. For over two months I didn't lose pounds, ounces, or inches. I tried getting stricter with my calories, making sure I was logging every little bite. I cut out sauces and condiments. I tried pushing myself harder in my workouts. Nothing worked and I was feeling miserable.

Finally, I sought advice on some forums. After all the articles about plateaus I'd read and all the calorie-tracking I'd done, it was the first time anyone had told me that 1200 calories might be too little. I increased my calories to 1500 and started losing again. And that's when I realized how bad I'd been feeling. I'd been grumpy. Lethargic. My workouts had been suffering. I was less active in my day-to-day life. Just 100 extra calories made me feel like a whole new person.

I upped them again to 1600 and kept losing. I bought a HRM and started tracking my exercise here and eating back my earned calories. And I kept losing. And I was feeling better every day. My endurance increased. My speed went up. I could lift more. I started to like the shape of my body for the first time in my life. I'll keep eating my exercise calories. I don't intend to go back to the person I was without them.

cwolfman13

I have been reading lot of controversy on why one should or should not eat back their exercise calories. I have also been reading the entire spectrum of response, from those who believe if one does not eat back their exercise calories they will shrivel up into nothing and blow away as dust particles in the wind to those who believe that eating back your exercise calories will cause you to not lose any weight at all.


Here's my take. I MOSTLY elect not to eat mine back. *gasp* (cue the waste away to dust crowd here.) However, before that bunch starts spraying me with sealant to keep me together before the next wind comes, allow me to elaborate. If I have a particularly brutal workout, and I am ravenously hungry that day then sure, you can bet your bottom dollar that I will eat back and not feel bad about it in the least. Most days, this doesn't happen. I am actually less hungry on days I have especially trying workouts than on my rest days. Now, on days where I run/walk/use the elliptical or stationary bike for 30-45 minutes I will not eat my calories back. I tend to believe MFP overestimates caloric burn in cardiovascular exercise and I feel like eating them back at the point where the calculated burn is somewhere around 500, or less that eating them back could be counteractive to what I'm trying to do. I honestly believe that if one is hungry then one should eat. Starvation is not necessary when making a lifestyle change.

So. Do you eat back your calories that you burn while exercising? Why or why not? I am interested in opinions on this one and how well eating them back or not works for you.

It's not really controversial when you understand what method of calorie counting you're using and how to use whatever tool you're using properly. Saying there's a controversy is like saying, there's some kind of controversy in RE to whether you use a hammer to drive screws...there is no controversy...it's just that you don't have a clue what you're doing or how to use this tool..do't worry, you're not alone...many like you which is why there is this perceived controversy. Just lots of ignorance...no real controversy.

stacyemmynik

I used to almost always eat most of my exercise calories..hell sometimes I'd have to take an extra walk or something because I ate over my calories..

Then I changed my diet big time and now I barely eating my 1200 cals before exercise..granted if I am particularly hungry that day I can eat mfp out of house and home in regards to cals but here lately that's just not happening..hell yesterday I had Mcdonald's for dinner even and I had 110 cals to spare from my original 1200 before exercise.

RockinTerri

Well ya see that is probably not going to happen being this is a public forum and I have to say I don't think she was being rude or a jerk. This topic comes up on here several times a day and always is answered the same way.... If you follow the MFP method then you should be eating back a large portion of your exercise calories. Your deficit is created already the eating of the exercise calories is to fuel your body for the workout you are demanding of it to do... I do not rely on MFP or machine for my constant state cardio, i prefer to use a Polar FT60 HRM to track my calories and yes I have been eating back my exercise calories since I started but to each their own..... Best of Luck.....

I don't always trust the calories burned of MFP, but input the calories from my gym's machine or calorie lists I've obtained from other sources. For one's I cannot count that way, I eat back between 50-75% of my exercise calories (with the occasional splurge)

jofjltncb6

WOW! so this is my very first time with MFP and looking at the Forums - this was the first Thread I seen that interested me. So I opened it up and read the post by deemar54 and thought ok, interesting BUT then I read the first response from adini749 and thought holy heck! that's a pretty rude response! So for what its worth, I actually found the topic interesting - remember I am new and have not seen the, apparently countless other Threads on the same topic. Thanks for the info, but I have to say, I dont think I would ever post a question/topic for fear of being shot down like the author of this topic has been.

does "catattack" as a username just come to you when you are signing up to MFP for the first time? And then you coincidentally just happen to land up in a thread like this.... and then also have you ever heard of this, it's pretty interesting http://www.urbandictionary.com/define.php?term=catfish

You must have missed the part where she said it was her "very first time with MFP"...

...and "remember I am new"...

Seems legit.

jofjltncb6

I used to almost always eat most of my exercise calories..hell sometimes I'd have to take an extra walk or something because I ate over my calories..

Then I changed my diet big time and now I barely eating my 1200 cals before exercise..granted if I am particularly hungry that day I can eat mfp out of house and home in regards to cals but here lately that's just not happening..hell yesterday I had Mcdonald's for dinner even and I had 110 cals to spare from my original 1200 before exercise.

I know it isn't the topic of this thread...

...but...

...you say this like it's a good thing. It almost certainly isn't. Seems like evidence that your metabolism may have slowed. Also, to ensure proper nutrition, you'll want to be extra careful about the nutrient density of the food you eat since you're eating so very little of it (assuming you don't use the obvious solution to the problem which is to increase your intake).

tryclyn

I don't, because I prefer to average anywhere between my BMR and my TDEE for the week. Works for me.

Achrya

When I followed the MFP method I ate my calories back.

Because that's how the website works.

3foldchord

I do not eat my exorcise calories back because.... I use my TDEE -13% set at moderate activity level. M caloric needs for 3-5 hours of exercise are included in that number. I do eat back calories once I get to 5 hours and I am hungry.