Eating Back Exercise Calories

SylviaCherie

There are so many opinions concerning whether it's counterproductive to eat back exercise calories or not. Today I burned 822 calories (according to my fit bit) from one hour of spin class and walking 1.5 miles during lunch (I'm sure this number will adjust itself as the day goes on).
I have mfp set at sedentary with a goal to lose 1.5lbs/week. With that said...her are my stats for today:
1200 - 1462 + 822 = 560
Goal. Food. Exer. Remain.

Would you eat back all your exercise calories or not? Why or why not?

janejellyroll

If your goal comes from MFP, it's given with the intention that you will eat back exercise calories. I'm a strong believer that if one is active, that should be accounted for in some way when deciding how much to eat.

I eat all my exercise calories back.

LivingtheLeanDream

Think about your 1462 cals eaten less 822 exercise that gives you a net cals just over 640 - not enough for your organs to keep healthy never mind give you energy. Eat back at least half those exercise calories and fuel your body, it will thank you for it. MFP is designed that you eat back calories from exercise, the rule of thumb is 50-75% to account for over estimating of the burn and inaccurate food logging.

I are most of mine back, it didn't stop me from losing.

NorthCascades

SylviaCherie wrote: »

There are so many opinions concerning whether it's counterproductive to eat back exercise calories or not.

Perhaps, but the math makes it obvious, there's really no interpretation necessary.

500 calorie deficit
+ 300 calories burned through exercise
- 300 calories eaten to compensate for that exercise
= 500 calorie deficit, which is what you wanted to begin with

Uninformed opinions take a back seat to reality.

cwolfman13

It's not really about "opinion"...it's the way this particular tool is designed to work. Your activity level doesn't include exercise...exercise is additional activity beyond what you stated in your activity level...it would seem obvious to me that activity (particularly more vigorous activity) should be accounted for considering your body's energy (calorie) requirements would go up.

People have issues with this particular methodology because they aren't accurate in what they're logging and they overestimate expenditure with exercise. If you're locked in it works...if your not, it doesn't. Those people say it's counterproductive, but it's only counterproductive because they aren't being accurate with anything.

madirmfp

I, personally, only eat 50-60 percent back (most days). Also when I work out I subtract 20 calories from every 100 I burn. I do that because I know machines that I use at my local gym overestimate calories by 15-30 percent.

threesixten

I would only eat back some to be safe – given Fitbit's range of accuracy/error plus the calories you would have been burning even if you weren't exercising for the hour + lunchtime. As poster above said.. maybe 50-60%?

sijomial

You have picked two tools to help you with your weight loss - would be really strange not to use them as the designers intended.
A bit like buying a screwdriver and then using it like a hammer.....

Also think ahead to maintenance when you get to goal weight, you will need to account for your exercise expenditure then so why not learn the skill now?

Yes I ate all mine back, I did put some effort into verifying they were reasonable estimates - and reasonably accurate is good enough even for someone like me with a heavy exercise routine. Food logging errors are far more likely to be problematic purely because of the relative size of the numbers.

AnvilHead

http://community.myfitnesspal.com/en/discussion/10503681/exercise-calories-do-i-eat-these-a-video-explanation

PAV8888

Eat back. Measure with trending weight app. Adjust.

Nony_Mouse

PAV8888 wrote: »

Eat back. Measure with trending weight app. Adjust.

I think this is the shortest post I've ever seen from you, Pav! And yet spot on, as always

sosteach

I choose not to eat back at this time because I am physically satisfied with what I am eating and I have a lot of weight to lose so for me it makes more sense to skip that option. It is nice to know I have it though if I ever want a second slice of pizza lol.

keygirlus

Agree with madermfp, I eat back exercise calories either to satiation or approx 50%, whichever's lowest. Read a few articles on the accuracy of your favorite machines and trackers, or get estimates from several different sources, and they vary WILDLY. I don't want to sabotage my goals by under- or over-consuming, but would hate to fall prey to someone else's bad or self-serving maths.

sharonwhitehall607

I'm glad I found this post.... it has been a big question for me. I am aiming to eat back 50%.

elisa123gal

Do you want to eat as much as possible as you lose? I've felt that way for long while.. the goal was to be able to eat as much as possible and get to my goal weight, so, I ate them back.

Then..other times, I just wanted the weight gone...so why would i eat back calories i worked to burn off? I'd eat extra if i felt depleated and that i needed it....but didn't buy into the eat them back group.

Then? What about eating under all week to eat a free meal out? I do that all the time too.

Bottom line...do what works for you and your goals.. weigh each week and make sure you're losing..and track which approach makes you lose fastest and do it..

erjones11

I don't eat them back. I see exercise as a bonus for getting me to where I want to be health wise. I know a bunch will say I should eat them back. That I will stall my weight loss, lower my metabolism or worse yet burn what few muscles I have instead of fat.

I feel good and I am losing 1 to 1.5 a week eating slightly less than my target every day. Working out most days. 50 minutes on the bike or elliptical and mild weight lifting, bridges and crunches before and after my cardio.

I feel good and am slowly getting closer and closer to where I want to be.

lucerorojo

I think you should review you activity level. If you are doing that walk daily you are probably NOT sedentary. This is creating an artificially low deficit of only 1200 calories. If you are regularly doing that much activity and you keep it at sedentary I think you should eat back 75%-100% of the exercise calories.

I ate back all my exercise calories up until 2 weeks ago. I started in July 2018 at 237, and as of yesterday I'm 188. So I've lost 49 lbs. half way to my goal. I'm currently set to lose a lb. per week, and my calorie goal is 1550. I started my exercise over a year ago with walking back and forth to work, which I counted and ate back. Little by little I added swimming (only in summer, just got back to that) and 1-2 zumba classes per week. I was eating everything back. I lost weight at the desired rate, until about March. I didn't lose at all in March because it was a stressful busy month and I overate sometimes. In April I lost, but more at .5/.75 rate per week. I decided that since I had been walking 90-110 minutes in my commute for a year that my body was used to it, I was lighter and probably burning fewer calories. I experimented with eating 50% of the calories back, and not counting my commute walking. I do need to add some calories those days when I walk--I'm still expending and I'm hungry. What I've decided to do is to plan around eating 1550 on those days, and if I'm hungry eat a small snack, 100-200 calories at most. .(MFP usually gives me about 400-500 calories for that exercise). When I do a zumba class I am counting it, and I'll eat it all back if I also walk that day, because I get hungry.