Eating Back Calories w/ Extreme Exercise

charcharhaver

I've seen some threads on this forum about eating back exercise calories, and some about healthy minimum net calories, etc. But I haven't been able to find one that deals with people doing extreme training/exercise programs. I'm having trouble swallowing (literally and figuratively) how many calories I have to eat to maintain.

I don't have a heart rate monitor so I DO take these calculations with a grain of salt. They are calculated w/ MFP and some other apps and online calculators:

Light exercise day (2 day/wk) = burning 400 cal/day
Medium exercise day (2 day/wk) = burning 1000 cal/day
Intense exercise day (1 day/wk) = burning 2000 cal/day
Total = 4800 cal/wk

I had my RMR tested and it came out to 1300 calories. Figure in my normal daily activity level (not including exercise), and I need to consume about 1600 cal/day just to maintain my current weight. Figure in those extra ~685 cal/day burned from exercise, and I need close to 2300 cal/day to maintain.

Sometimes I throw in an additional intense workout on the 6th day, so that's 6800 cal/wk, brining my daily maintenance needs up to nearly 2600 calories!

I honestly just can't fathom eating back as many calories I'm supposedly burning. Physically or psychologically. I'm stuffed when I eat just 2000 cal/day. Sometimes on my intense days, 2000 calories is easy. But on those light days, I can barely get to 1800 calories. So I'm constantly in weekly deficit. The idea of forcing myself to get to 2300 calories per day is mentally and physically daunting. I really don't want to gain weight or lose weight, and I most importantly don't want to lose fitness or endurance.

What have people done to get over those physical and psychological barriers? I'm looking for any sort of advice, from meditation to therapy to nutritional supplements.

CyberEd312

I have been in maintenance for the past year and I consume 4000-4200 calories a day and have no problem hitting that mark... Twice a day I have a 1/2 cup of Almonds and a glass of 1% chocolate milk and those to very small snacks total 1360 calories alone... If you incorporate more calories dense foods you will have no problem hitting any caloric intake you set... On a side note you may want to invest in a HRM to get a better estimate of calories burned.... Best of Luck

3dogsrunning

What is an intense exercise day for you? What are you doing in general?

I tend to do one long run a week that can rack up calories. I usually have a "splurge" day on that day or spread it out over a day or two.

ETA - I'm really not getting what you mean about the calories. Can you lay out what your weekly exercise looks like?

ThickMcRunFast

I don't know your stats, but those calorie burns seem off. I ran 20 miles this morning and didn't burn 2000 calories. I would also suggest getting a HRM. Its only an estimate, but it is usually a better one than what MFP gives you.

Other than that, nutrient dense foods get you there. Make a protein smoothie, but throw in a banana and some peanut butter. Add avocado to things. Munch on almonds or cashews. I have no problems packing away the occasional 3000-4000 calorie day.

DancingMoosie

Your diary is closed, so its hard to give specific advice. Generally, I would say to make sure everything you eat is the full-fat version and calorie dense. Some examples: full-fat dairy, avocados, nuts and nut butters, oils and butter, whole-grains, chicken with skin, fish with skin, nicely marbled steak.

charcharhaver

@3dogsrunning & @vpetryshyn: My intense exercise days includes 3 hours of cycling at 18-19mph average pace with hill repeats and/or sprint intervals in the morning, followed by a 30-45 minutes easy run in the evening. So pretty intense. The medium day is half that. The light day is a quarter.

I eat gels and bars when I'm on the bike. Breakfast is a mix of whole grains, eggs, full fat dairy, nuts/seeds, and sometimes fruit. Snacks are things like a whole avocado, peanut butter and bananas, almonds, cheese, greek yogurt. Basically fats and protein. Lunch is soup or salad and a sandwich. Dinner is typically pasta or rice, piles of vegetables prepared with olive oil, sometimes cheeses, always a side of a protein rich legume. Dessert is usually oatmeal or cereal with fruit and nuts and honey.

@EdDavenport Thanks for sharing your experience. I'm not surrounded by people who exercise nearly as much as I do, so I always feel like I'm eating waaaay too much in comparison. I know it's wrong to feel that way, but that feeling combined with just physically not being able to eat as much as I know I should, get's me in my deficit. I'm a vegetarian and avoid sugars... but that almond trick sounds great!

evileen99

I have a hard time eating LESS than 2000 calories, so I have no advice.