Why doesn't MFP add calories at all for strength training?

bad_dog_ny

I do cardio everyday for about 47 minutes. The only real indication I have of calories burned is that given by the machine I use. I'm sure everybody would be different so that is a very rough estimate. I am concerned because I have not been logging exercise, and often don't even eat my full allotment of calories for the day. I don't want to create a situation where I sabotage my metabolism. Every other day I also do strength training. How come it asks me for the exercise, the sets, the reps, and the weight... but does not even attempt to add a calorie value to that? I have decided that on days only do cardio I will try to eat back half of those calories. On days I do cardio and strength, I will try to eat back all of the cardio calories. Does that make any sense to anyone? When I do strength I do a full body workout. Not a lot but I do push the limit of what I can move. I do a double circuit, first chest, back and legs, two sets each including calves... then biceps, triceps and shoulders for two sets each. I mean it's quite a bit of exercise must add some calorie deficit. Any ideas on how I should handle this? My weight loss has slowed and I'm very concerned about sabotaging my metabolism, but I could also be adding muscle as I'm losing fat. My pants certainly seem looser, lol, even if my weight is not moving down as fast.

malibu927

Search for strength training under cardio to get a calorie burn estimate. I wouldn't eat back all the calories it gives you for that at least, since it doesn't know sets/reps/rest time/loading and deloading time/etc.

nowine4me

I log and eat back calories from cardio, but not weight lifting. I log it under strength training, but just to track progress.

JeromeBarry1

Weight lifting is anaerobic. It does not burn a lot of calories while you're doing it. The point of weight lifting is to do progressively heavier lifts and repeatedly cycle your muscle groups through soreness and healing which is the process of increasing muscle mass. That, indeed, is the point of lifting weights. The bigger muscles burn more energy 24/7, which is captured by a TDEE calculator when it knows your weight and body fat percentage.

The Non-Exercise Activity Thermogenesis method used uniquely by myfitnesspal to recommend calorie consumption should be recognized as a method for the rest of us, while the passionate few who pump and resemble iron do best with the TDEE tools on several other web sites.

Chieflrg

bad_dog_ny wrote: »

I do cardio everyday for about 47 minutes. The only real indication I have of calories burned is that given by the machine I use. I'm sure everybody would be different so that is a very rough estimate. I am concerned because I have not been logging exercise, and often don't even eat my full allotment of calories for the day. I don't want to create a situation where I sabotage my metabolism. Every other day I also do strength training. How come it asks me for the exercise, the sets, the reps, and the weight... but does not even attempt to add a calorie value to that? I have decided that on days only do cardio I will try to eat back half of those calories. On days I do cardio and strength, I will try to eat back all of the cardio calories. Does that make any sense to anyone? When I do strength I do a full body workout. Not a lot but I do push the limit of what I can move. I do a double circuit, first chest, back and legs, two sets each including calves... then biceps, triceps and shoulders for two sets each. I mean it's quite a bit of exercise must add some calorie deficit. Any ideas on how I should handle this? My weight loss has slowed and I'm very concerned about sabotaging my metabolism, but I could also be adding muscle as I'm losing fat. My pants certainly seem looser, lol, even if my weight is not moving down as fast.

The best indication is your weight change.

It's more of a log of what you did. It's nearly impossible to know how many calories you burned lifting since the body adapts to lifting weights. It's really not that much calories regardless.

Weight will come off fast at first because it's mostly water weight. You shouldn't expect the same loss because weight loss is not linear.

When lifting the body will retain water weight for repair of muscles so it's not unusual for weight to flutuate depending on the frequency/recovery/intensity of lifting weights.

You are not adding muscle while losing fat.

TimothyFish

While lifting weights does burn calories, it is a fairly small number for most people and hard to calculate for heavy lifters. The information provided would help with part of that, but it doesn't include such things as setting up the equipment, which may also require some weight lifting, or none at all if someone else is doing it for the person lifting weights. Personally, I treat it like MFP does. I pay attention the calories burned for cardio and I ignore those burned lifting weights. At some point, the calories I burn lifting weights will show up on the bathroom scale and I can adjust based on what I see there.