Do you eat back your exercise calories at LIGHTLY ACTIVE?

myfitnesspaller
myfitnesspaller Posts: 74 Member
in Health and Weight Loss
Do you eat back your exercise calories at LIGHTLY ACTIVE or is that only for sedentary?

Replies

  • BinaryPulsar
    BinaryPulsar Posts: 8,927 Member
    Yes, you do eat back exercise calories at lightly active.
  • myfitnesspaller
    myfitnesspaller Posts: 74 Member
    awesome..thanks for the answer. I thought it was only for sedentary.
  • whierd
    whierd Posts: 14,025 Member
    As a rule of thumb, if you are at sedentary, eat back roughly 50% as MFP tends to overestimate a bit.
  • myfitnesspaller
    myfitnesspaller Posts: 74 Member
    As a rule of thumb, if you are at sedentary, eat back roughly 50% as MFP tends to overestimate a bit.

    and for lightly active?

    I use endomondo for my calories during exercise.
  • bajoyba
    bajoyba Posts: 1,153 Member
    When you choose an activity level, you should select one that reflects what your normal day looks like. If you don't exercise regularly or have a sporadic workout schedule, it's probably best to select the activity level that represents what your day is like without exercise. Most people aren't truly sedentary. If you're up taking care of children, doing regular household chores, shopping, etc., "lighly active" is probably the right choice. However, if you work a very physical job, "moderate" may be a better fit.

    Whichever activity level you choose, as long as you don't include deliberate exercise in your selection, you should eat your exercise calories back.
  • whierd
    whierd Posts: 14,025 Member
    As a rule of thumb, if you are at sedentary, eat back roughly 50% as MFP tends to overestimate a bit.

    and for lightly active?

    I use endomondo for my calories during exercise.

    If you set it for Lightly Active, then anything outside of your "normal" lightly active activities you should eat back 50% of that.
  • TheRealParisLove
    TheRealParisLove Posts: 1,907 Member
    Your body will tell you if you need more. If you feel unreasonably hungry, and are only eating back 50%, just try eating back more.

    I'm very active, and I eat back almost all my exercise calories. I want to preserve my lean body mass, and not eating enough will harm my muscle cells.
  • myfitnesspaller
    myfitnesspaller Posts: 74 Member
    I understand now. thanks y'all!

    I do house chores, and do go grocery shopping etc.

    I think sedentary is not the right activity level..that should be the person who basically sits all day long.
    A person cooks meals should be considered lightly meal.
  • whierd
    whierd Posts: 14,025 Member
    I understand now. thanks y'all!

    I do house chores, and do go grocery shopping etc.

    I think sedentary is not the right activity level..that should be the person who basically sits all day long.
    A person cooks meals should be considered lightly meal.

    Yes, very few people are truly sedentary. People who are couch potatoes with office jobs are sedentary.
  • whierd
    whierd Posts: 14,025 Member
    Your body will tell you if you need more. If you feel unreasonably hungry, and are only eating back 50%, just try eating back more.

    I'm very active, and I eat back almost all my exercise calories. I want to preserve my lean body mass, and not eating enough will harm my muscle cells.

    I disagree with the "listen to your body" advice. There is a reason why most of us got fat, and it was listening to our bodies and overeating. If I listened to my body, I would devour a large pizza for dinner every day.

    That being said, if you find yourself hungry everyday with your calorie goal, then you may be undereating and need to calculate your TDEE. If you're eating a reasonable deficit below your TDEE, then maybe you need to reevaluate your food choices and choose less calorie dense foods.
  • TemikaThompson
    TemikaThompson Posts: 222 Member
    Your body will tell you if you need more. If you feel unreasonably hungry, and are only eating back 50%, just try eating back more.

    I'm very active, and I eat back almost all my exercise calories. I want to preserve my lean body mass, and not eating enough will harm my muscle cells.

    I disagree with the "listen to your body" advice. There is a reason why most of us got fat, and it was listening to our bodies and overeating. If I listened to my body, I would devour a large pizza for dinner every day.


    That being said, if you find yourself hungry everyday with your calorie goal, then you may be undereating and need to calculate your TDEE. If you're eating a reasonable deficit below your TDEE, then maybe you need to reevaluate your food choices and choose less calorie dense foods.

    ^^^^^^^ This^^^^^^^^good advice

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