Will eating those extra "exercise calories" sabotage weight loss?
megbeveridge93
Posts: 238 Member
I'm 5'2" and around 142lbs. I've found that MFP gives me a lot of calories back for exercise even if it's not super strenuous. If I eat those added calories, will it slow down weight loss? Do I need to fill those calories with protein to avoid hindering my progress?
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Replies
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Calorie calculators are just estimates. The best you can do is to start conservatively, eat half or so back and see how you progress after 4-6 weeks then adjust.11
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technically, yes. that's how the website works. but many calorie burns are overestimated so start with half and work your way up. if you do not, you will be eating less than the minimum required for your body (theoretically) which can lead to health issues and a potential for binging6
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If your calorie burn estimates are accurate, no. If they're over-estimates, then it will slow down or even prevent weight loss (depending on how much of an over-estimate they are).
This is why some people start with eating back just a portion and then adjust based on their real life results.
Whatever you decide to do, they don't have to be only or mostly protein. They *can* be, if that is what you want, but fat or carbohydrates are fine too.2 -
Partly it depends on the exercise. I find the running and walking calorie burn fairly accurate, or even a bit under what I actually burn. I eat back all those calories and was able to lose weight steadily and then maintain that loss for over a year. Other people who do other kinds of exercise eat back only 50% of their exercise calories. Try it and see how it works for you. If you are losing weight faster than expected, eat more. If you are losing weight more slowly, than you should, then eat less.
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I am 5ft tall CW: 166 GW: 125 and I have a fitbit sync to myfitnesspal so it gives me anywhere from 300+ calories a day extra I eat 1250-1350 calories a day. 9 times out of 10 I don't eat back any extra calories now on that 1 day that I do eat the calories back it's because we decided to go out to lunch or dinner. also if I have what I call a hunger headache I will get a little snack bag of my kids cookies and a little Gatorade so that is usually my extra calories. with being so short I feel like I have to be so strick on calorie intake.2
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I find that *not* eating back some portion is more likely to sabotage me, b/c I get too hungry. As someone said, it's best to eat back about 50% and see if you lose as expected. If you lose more (over a month-6 weeks), then you can probably eat back a higher % of the exercise calories. If you lose less, then you should eat back fewer than 50%.3
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kksmom1789 wrote: »I am 5ft tall CW: 166 GW: 125 and I have a fitbit sync to myfitnesspal so it gives me anywhere from 300+ calories a day extra I eat 1250-1350 calories a day. 9 times out of 10 I don't eat back any extra calories now on that 1 day that I do eat the calories back it's because we decided to go out to lunch or dinner. also if I have what I call a hunger headache I will get a little snack bag of my kids cookies and a little Gatorade so that is usually my extra calories. with being so short I feel like I have to be so strick on calorie intake.
I agree, it has always seemed harder for me to make any meaningful changes to my weight or how I look because I'm so short it just compacts every pound into such a small area. I have been mostly just eating back part of the calories as needed.1 -
It's a numbers game - CI has to be less than CO in order to lose weight. How you make that happen is entirely up to you. There are lots of ways to be successful.
It won't sabotage anything. It's not like calories are lurking in some dark alley waiting for an unsuspecting person to walk by.
It's no different than finances. If you spend more than you save, you'll lose money. The only real difference is that counting money is far more exact/reliable than is estimating calories.6 -
megbeveridge93 wrote: »kksmom1789 wrote: »I am 5ft tall CW: 166 GW: 125 and I have a fitbit sync to myfitnesspal so it gives me anywhere from 300+ calories a day extra I eat 1250-1350 calories a day. 9 times out of 10 I don't eat back any extra calories now on that 1 day that I do eat the calories back it's because we decided to go out to lunch or dinner. also if I have what I call a hunger headache I will get a little snack bag of my kids cookies and a little Gatorade so that is usually my extra calories. with being so short I feel like I have to be so strick on calorie intake.
I agree, it has always seemed harder for me to make any meaningful changes to my weight or how I look because I'm so short it just compacts every pound into such a small area. I have been mostly just eating back part of the calories as needed.
Think about it more logically, not emotionally. Does that make sense? Does your 125lbs behave differently than someone else's 125lbs? No. How you carry your 125lbs could be different from someone else, but it's still going to respond to things like exercise and diet and calorie balance the same way.7 -
kksmom1789 wrote: »I am 5ft tall CW: 166 GW: 125 and I have a fitbit sync to myfitnesspal so it gives me anywhere from 300+ calories a day extra I eat 1250-1350 calories a day. 9 times out of 10 I don't eat back any extra calories now on that 1 day that I do eat the calories back it's because we decided to go out to lunch or dinner. also if I have what I call a hunger headache I will get a little snack bag of my kids cookies and a little Gatorade so that is usually my extra calories. with being so short I feel like I have to be so strick on calorie intake.
Being petite doesn’t doom you to a low calorie threshold in order to lose or maintain weight and that’s exactly what your FitBit is trying to tell you. It’s telling you that you burn more calories than your stats that you entered into MFP suggests, likely because you chose Sedentary as an activity level when you probably are not - how many steps/day do you typically average?
For what it’s worth, I’m 5’2 and lost my weight (~35 lbs) eating back all my exercise calories Both from when I was logging them here and after I got my FitBit. I lost the weight eating b/w 1600-1900 cals and am now maintaining at around 118 lbs with a TDEE of 2100-2200.
By not ever eating back your calories you risk fatigue and an unsustainable calorie deficit that could cause you to give up before reaching goal.
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I am 5'4 and around 135, which is my goal weight. To lose weight, I can't eat more than say 1300-1400 a day WITH lots of exercise. (Like an hour of running or spin 5-6 days a week.) If I eat the calories that MFP says I burn, I maintain or gain, so even in maintenance, I'm around 1400-1500 a day average. My theory is that over the years, I've become very accustomed to exercise and that while working out keeps me tone (and sane), it probably has nothing to do with my weight. So anyway, I'd take that exercise burn with a huge grain of salt, especially as you are small to begin with.
Oddly enough, if I get in a lot of NON-exercise activity, I do lose weight, even if I eat more and even if I am not even trying. Like going to Disney World and walking all day, or doing a ton of errands (walking around in stores/malls.) It could also be how sedentary people are that determines whether there is a true exercise burn.9 -
Running_and_Coffee wrote: »I am 5'4 and around 135, which is my goal weight. To lose weight, I can't eat more than say 1300-1400 a day WITH lots of exercise. (Like an hour of running or spin 5-6 days a week.) If I eat the calories that MFP says I burn, I maintain or gain, so even in maintenance, I'm around 1400-1500 a day average. My theory is that over the years, I've become very accustomed to exercise and that while working out keeps me tone (and sane), it probably has nothing to do with my weight. So anyway, I'd take that exercise burn with a huge grain of salt, especially as you are small to begin with.
Oddly enough, if I get in a lot of NON-exercise activity, I do lose weight, even if I eat more and even if I am not even trying. Like going to Disney World and walking all day, or doing a ton of errands (walking around in stores/malls.) It could also be how sedentary people are that determines whether there is a true exercise burn.
Could this be to do with the heart rate?
I’ve noticed on my Fitbit that the 'fat burn' range falls into the slightly raised heart rate (ie walking, but not marching etc)
Then a higher heart rate goes to cardio (which is what exercise would fall under)
Then peak hart rate (exercise again)
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While the question has been covered well, I just thought I'd add that you want to make sure you are logging your food accurately. For some, the couple hundred calories they might burn during an hour of exercise may be just the buffer they need to make up for the couple hundred calories that they may be off in their calorie counting. As has been pointed out, the results tell the story.5
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Running_and_Coffee wrote: »I am 5'4 and around 135, which is my goal weight. To lose weight, I can't eat more than say 1300-1400 a day WITH lots of exercise. (Like an hour of running or spin 5-6 days a week.) If I eat the calories that MFP says I burn, I maintain or gain, so even in maintenance, I'm around 1400-1500 a day average. My theory is that over the years, I've become very accustomed to exercise and that while working out keeps me tone (and sane), it probably has nothing to do with my weight. So anyway, I'd take that exercise burn with a huge grain of salt, especially as you are small to begin with.
Oddly enough, if I get in a lot of NON-exercise activity, I do lose weight, even if I eat more and even if I am not even trying. Like going to Disney World and walking all day, or doing a ton of errands (walking around in stores/malls.) It could also be how sedentary people are that determines whether there is a true exercise burn.
Could this be to do with the heart rate?
I’ve noticed on my Fitbit that the 'fat burn' range falls into the slightly raised heart rate (ie walking, but not marching etc)
Then a higher heart rate goes to cardio (which is what exercise would fall under)
Then peak hart rate (exercise again)
My heart rate's a lot lower when it's non-exercise activity so not sure! It can be between 140-180 when running and otherwise the highest it is while say walking is 100. Weird!0 -
Running_and_Coffee wrote: »I am 5'4 and around 135, which is my goal weight. To lose weight, I can't eat more than say 1300-1400 a day WITH lots of exercise. (Like an hour of running or spin 5-6 days a week.) If I eat the calories that MFP says I burn, I maintain or gain, so even in maintenance, I'm around 1400-1500 a day average. My theory is that over the years, I've become very accustomed to exercise and that while working out keeps me tone (and sane), it probably has nothing to do with my weight. So anyway, I'd take that exercise burn with a huge grain of salt, especially as you are small to begin with.
Oddly enough, if I get in a lot of NON-exercise activity, I do lose weight, even if I eat more and even if I am not even trying. Like going to Disney World and walking all day, or doing a ton of errands (walking around in stores/malls.) It could also be how sedentary people are that determines whether there is a true exercise burn.
I'd bet dollars to donuts that it has to do with estimates and variations rather than something fundamentally different about you vs how MFP works. That's not to say that it is for sure or that you should discount your experience... but for others reading the thread... 99% of the time, it's about the estimates, not about the fundamentals.8 -
WinoGelato wrote: »kksmom1789 wrote: »I am 5ft tall CW: 166 GW: 125 and I have a fitbit sync to myfitnesspal so it gives me anywhere from 300+ calories a day extra I eat 1250-1350 calories a day. 9 times out of 10 I don't eat back any extra calories now on that 1 day that I do eat the calories back it's because we decided to go out to lunch or dinner. also if I have what I call a hunger headache I will get a little snack bag of my kids cookies and a little Gatorade so that is usually my extra calories. with being so short I feel like I have to be so strick on calorie intake.
Being petite doesn’t doom you to a low calorie threshold in order to lose or maintain weight and that’s exactly what your FitBit is trying to tell you. It’s telling you that you burn more calories than your stats that you entered into MFP suggests, likely because you chose Sedentary as an activity level when you probably are not - how many steps/day do you typically average?
For what it’s worth, I’m 5’2 and lost my weight (~35 lbs) eating back all my exercise calories Both from when I was logging them here and after I got my FitBit. I lost the weight eating b/w 1600-1900 cals and am now maintaining at around 118 lbs with a TDEE of 2100-2200.
By not ever eating back your calories you risk fatigue and an unsustainable calorie deficit that could cause you to give up before reaching goal.
@WinoGelato I did put myself as Sedentary for both MFP and Fitbit because for the most part I am I don't go to the gym or have an exercise routine at home I just try to get as many steps as possible my step goal is 6k I have been trying the last few weeks to increase my step goal to 8k Fitbit has my average steps as 9k so I guess I am doing something right lol.0 -
MFP uses the NEAT method (Non-Exercise Activity Thermogenesis), and as such this system is designed for exercise calories to be eaten back. However, many consider the burns given by MFP to be inflated and only eat a percentage, such as 50%, back. Others, however, are able to lose weight while eating 100% of their exercise calories.
http://community.myfitnesspal.com/en/discussion/818082/exercise-calories-again-wtf/p12 -
Running_and_Coffee wrote: »I am 5'4 and around 135, which is my goal weight. To lose weight, I can't eat more than say 1300-1400 a day WITH lots of exercise. (Like an hour of running or spin 5-6 days a week.) If I eat the calories that MFP says I burn, I maintain or gain, so even in maintenance, I'm around 1400-1500 a day average. My theory is that over the years, I've become very accustomed to exercise and that while working out keeps me tone (and sane), it probably has nothing to do with my weight. So anyway, I'd take that exercise burn with a huge grain of salt, especially as you are small to begin with.
Oddly enough, if I get in a lot of NON-exercise activity, I do lose weight, even if I eat more and even if I am not even trying. Like going to Disney World and walking all day, or doing a ton of errands (walking around in stores/malls.) It could also be how sedentary people are that determines whether there is a true exercise burn.
Could this be to do with the heart rate?
I’ve noticed on my Fitbit that the 'fat burn' range falls into the slightly raised heart rate (ie walking, but not marching etc)
Then a higher heart rate goes to cardio (which is what exercise would fall under)
Then peak hart rate (exercise again)
The "fat burn" heart rate range is irrelevant to weight loss. Only the total calorie burn of the activity matters, not how fast your heart is beating, and not what the name of the heart rate zone is. They call it the "fat burn" range because (theoretically) a higher percentage of calories burned in the moment come from fat. But if you're in a calorie deficit overall, eventually fat calories get burned to make up the deficit/shortfall, even if it doesn't happen at the moment of the activity. It may even happen while you're asleep, and burning fewer calories per minute than at any other time of the day.
(Endurance athletes may care about the "fat burn" zone because it has an impact on their fueling strategies during training and competition - what to eat when, to fuel the best possible performance. Despite what the breathlessly trendy blogs say, regular people trying to lose weight don't need to care about the "fat burn" zone.)
IMO, the likelier explanation is that for most of us, our exercise burn in smaller than our daily-life-activities calorie burn (the part of our non-exercise burn that is neither exercise not basal metabolic rate (BMR)). If we dramatically increase our daily-life activity (by walking all day at Disney or something), that can burn a surprising number of extra calories.
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Running_and_Coffee wrote: »I am 5'4 and around 135, which is my goal weight. To lose weight, I can't eat more than say 1300-1400 a day WITH lots of exercise. (Like an hour of running or spin 5-6 days a week.) If I eat the calories that MFP says I burn, I maintain or gain, so even in maintenance, I'm around 1400-1500 a day average. My theory is that over the years, I've become very accustomed to exercise and that while working out keeps me tone (and sane), it probably has nothing to do with my weight. So anyway, I'd take that exercise burn with a huge grain of salt, especially as you are small to begin with.
Oddly enough, if I get in a lot of NON-exercise activity, I do lose weight, even if I eat more and even if I am not even trying. Like going to Disney World and walking all day, or doing a ton of errands (walking around in stores/malls.) It could also be how sedentary people are that determines whether there is a true exercise burn.
I don't think so.
I'm 5'5" and around 134, and have also been active for years. When I'm logging accurately, my weight loss rate reflects my exercise. It's just that my exercise burn - especially now that I'm relatively thin (le sigh
) rather than obese - is a pretty darned small number, even for an hour of something vigorous (I spin or row for about an hour 6 days a week, myself).
Everybody's experience is different, so I'm not saying your observations about your experience are incorrect for you. What I'm saying is that they don't necessarily generalize to others. I've always eaten all my exercise calories, and that's been fine, all through losing 50+ pounds loss and for a couple of years of maintenance.
How sedentary someone is determines daily life activity burn. Exercise determines exercise calorie burn. For a large fraction of people, probably a majority, daily life activity burn is a bigger number than exercise calorie burn.6 -
Everything you eat slows down weight loss compared to not eating it. Speed of loss is not the only issue or the most important issue. The most important issue is developing and maintaining healthy lifestyle and eating program. So losing weight at an appropriate rate and fueling all your activity appropriately is the criteria that should be used. Eating back the correct amount of exercise calories is part of that.
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At this point, I don't even enter my exercise or activity. It's hard enough making myself log my food. Therefore, I eat no exercise calories back.10
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2snakeswoman wrote: »At this point, I don't even enter my exercise or activity. It's hard enough making myself log my food. Therefore, I eat no exercise calories back.
Depending on what type of exercise you’re doing, and what your base calorie intake is, this can be a recipe for disaster. By ignoring your exercise calories you risk under fueling your activity, risking fatigue, burn out, etc.8 -
I've started eating them all back some days, a percentage some days, and sometimes none depending on hunger. It seems to be working just fine! I think I just overthink everything at this point because it's been so long since I saw numbers I liked on the scale. I don't want to mess it up!1
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WinoGelato wrote: »2snakeswoman wrote: »At this point, I don't even enter my exercise or activity. It's hard enough making myself log my food. Therefore, I eat no exercise calories back.
Depending on what type of exercise you’re doing, and what your base calorie intake is, this can be a recipe for disaster. By ignoring your exercise calories you risk under fueling your activity, risking fatigue, burn out, etc.
Thanks for the feedback. I put my base as lightly active, and I think that's pretty accurate most days. I'll definitely pay attention to how I'm feeling.0 -
2snakeswoman wrote: »WinoGelato wrote: »2snakeswoman wrote: »At this point, I don't even enter my exercise or activity. It's hard enough making myself log my food. Therefore, I eat no exercise calories back.
Depending on what type of exercise you’re doing, and what your base calorie intake is, this can be a recipe for disaster. By ignoring your exercise calories you risk under fueling your activity, risking fatigue, burn out, etc.
Thanks for the feedback. I put my base as lightly active, and I think that's pretty accurate most days. I'll definitely pay attention to how I'm feeling.
This made me curious, so I went and played with the numbers.
Change from sedentary to lightly active gave me an added 270 calories. This will vary by individual, but just checking.
So that's 1,890 more for the week.
I'm running (treadmill as it's too smokey outside) right now ~5 times a week, 5KM per run. So that's an extra 2000 calories burned.
Now all this is for a ~200lb male, so your numbers will vary, but it doesn't seem like a bad approach.
Basically, you are doing a TDEE estimate.2
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