How many calories to eat back?

albertine58

I wouldn't eat back cals from just walking, unless you're eating a really low amount to begin with. If you're having success not eating them back, stick with it. Your calorie burn estimates seem too high, unless you're really overweight which I don't think you are judging from your picture!

I use a FitBit Zip (only $40-50 on Amazon) to track my activity and it's really awesome, especially for walking, running and Zumba which are my favorite ways to move! It motivates me to walk and run more and take the stairs, etc, and the BEST part is that in syncs with MFP and MFP will give you an "exercise calorie adjustment" if you're more active than your profile is set to be. It's a pretty accurate estimate- I've compared it to a lot of things.

I don't eat my exercise cals back (maybe 100 out of 400 if I'm really hungry) but then I have a "high cal" day once a weekend when I go out drinking, so it's basically like I'm eating some of my exercise cals from the week then.

sourgrape_

if your main exercise is walking i suggest to get yourself a fitbit ( i have the zip and it's only 60€)

SoLongAndThanksForAllTheFish

You have to remember all calculations are estimates. You said 4.9 miles was registered at 600 calories...I'd guess thats high but you also didnt say how long it took you, and it depends on how fast you were going and how the calculator gets to those numbers. If its just a multiple of time vs your weight for say "walking 3.5 mph" and you take 2hrs to do 4.9mi, you can see how the numbers are way off and its going to register a lot more calories burnt and you really have to note and modify based on what you actually do. For example, I just did 80 minutes hiking hills carrying 10-20lb load and burned around 1100 calories according to the calculator. But I know I went a little slower this time and walked on the downhill instead of half jogging like I normally do, so I'm not going to eat back all of those calories.

You've already determined 3/4 eaten back calories make you gain weight, then either the calc is off, or you are really more "sedentary" when you clicked "lightly active" or something of the sort. Because you are only walking, not weight training, its also not as crucial to eat back all the calories, so go with 1/2, see if you still lose, then adjust again if not. OR fix your walking calories calculation, it is high.

Also, the next morning is not a good measure, too many factors to consider, including what you ate, how close to sleeping you ate, bowl movement timing, how much you drank, what time in the morning you weighed yourself, how much sleep you got, etc etc etc. Wait a week of eating half calories back and weigh the exact same time on the same day after doing the same activities to see anything useful.

nicoleisback

I find when I use the HRM for walking (which is generally in the cold) it estimates I burn about 20 calories walking 4km (about 2.4miles) which is not right at all.

Today I have walked 8.02km (about 4.9 miles) and both of the programs on my phone have me burning over 600 calories. I know if I ate even 400 of these back, I would be up in weight tomorrow. The most I could get away with would be maybe eating back 200 of these, but that would leave me at about the same weight as today. Does this mean I am only burning 200 calories, or is something else happening? I get that more exercise = more water retention for muscle repair etc, but if the level of exercise is similar every day, I don't understand how this would affect the end result.

Why not just set your activity level to lightly active and then don't count your walking? Those numbers seem way off.

I don't set my activity level to lightly active because I don't always walk (as an example over the last week I have been sick so not walking) and if I say I am lightly active my regular allowance goes up by about 300 calories. If I ate that much extra on a day without exercising, once again my scales go up.

ssm_1972

Try to eat back whole if you are confident enough about your calories burn, even this site also suggest the same I guess. If you are having any doubt on your burned quantities, eat back about 70-80%. On most of the occasions, we underestimate what we eat and overestimate our burn - just remember this

unFATuated

Today I have walked 8.02km (about 4.9 miles) and both of the programs on my phone have me burning over 600 calories. I know if I ate even 400 of these back, I would be up in weight tomorrow.

How often do you weigh yourself? My weight fluctuates daily. For instance, when I weighed on Monday, I was 70.1kg, but if I weighed the following days (same conditions as the Monday weigh-in), I could be anywhere between 71 and 72kg. On the following Monday I am often lower again (showing a loss from the previous week). The last few Mondays have been 70.8kg, 70.3kg and 70.1kg (I have a small deficit as I am about to get married and don't want to lose too much because my dress won't fit!), but each Monday has been down on the last.

My point being, don't weigh every day. Some days you will be up on the scales but as long as on a weekly (or even less) basis you are seeing a downward trend, then you're doing it right!

sijomial

Pick a method of measuring calories burned.
Be consistent.
Adjust as required based on your actual results.

Really doesn't have to be any more complex than that.

Example:
I wear a HRM.
I eat back all my exercise calories.
I custom set my target calories and adjusted until I got the results I wanted over time.

nicoleisback

I wouldn't eat back cals from just walking, unless you're eating a really low amount to begin with. If you're having success not eating them back, stick with it. Your calorie burn estimates seem too high, unless you're really overweight which I don't think you are judging from your picture!

I use a FitBit Zip (only $40-50 on Amazon) to track my activity and it's really awesome, especially for walking, running and Zumba which are my favorite ways to move! It motivates me to walk and run more and take the stairs, etc, and the BEST part is that in syncs with MFP and MFP will give you an "exercise calorie adjustment" if you're more active than your profile is set to be. It's a pretty accurate estimate- I've compared it to a lot of things.

I don't eat my exercise cals back (maybe 100 out of 400 if I'm really hungry) but then I have a "high cal" day once a weekend when I go out drinking, so it's basically like I'm eating some of my exercise cals from the week then.

My calorie burn estimate is about this no matter what program I use to track it or even using online calculators. I am quite overweight (96.7kg or 213.2lbs) and tend to walk at what MFP calls either a brisk or very brisk pace. All of my walking is also done pushing a pram. I have a picture of me in my profile which has a front and side view to give you an idea of how overweight I am.

emmawoolf84

I generally never eat them back

MzzFaith

I tries not to eat any of my calories back, some days I do though

CarynMacD

I need to make a correction to my earlier reply: :blushing:

I've just used my HRM and swam 1750m which took 60 minutes - ave HR 122 - Cal Burn 333 NOT over 400 as I previously stated.

DopeItUp

Assuming accurate calorie burn calculation, all of them. That's how this site works.

I should have explained eating even 3/4 of them back always has me putting on weight...and yes, I make sure I weigh my food

Hence my caveat. You're either overestimating your calorie burn or you're underestimating your food intake (or both). Or your metabolism is suppressed due to a medical issue (highly unlikely). If you're following a sustainable diet (for you) and you're losing a moderate amount of weight consistently then you're right where you want to be. Results always trump calculations.

So how do I attempt to accurately calculate my calories in and out? Obviously weighing my food (which I do) is required, but how do I determine correct exercise calculations? I figured two independent programs would work, but I guess not. I have a HRM which I will use when I go to the gym, but it doesn't accurately measure for low intensity stuff like walking. Any resources?

Personally I find my HRM works just fine for walking according to my results. I burn a little less than 100 calories a mile as a 6'3" male (walking quickly, 4mph). I don't know how much 6-10k is but I'm guessing 3-6 miles? At best you're burning probably 300-600 calories, probably less. That's just MY estimate though, there are too many factors to consider to really get a solid calorie burn number.

Anyway, if you could figure out a way to 100% accurately measure calorie burn you would be a millionaire. Everything is an estimate, use those estimates as a guideline and then monitor actual results. Adjust from there. That's the only way to do it.

I'm speaking from the last 2.5 years of trying to find a way to accurate track calories burned. I wish it were possible but it's all a crap shoot. I just use my HRM for cardio and use MFP's calculation for strength training and it comes out close enough, I lose the amount of weight I expect to lose as long as I stick to my goals. Your results may vary, especially as a newbie.

I find when I use the HRM for walking (which is generally in the cold) it estimates I burn about 20 calories walking 4km (about 2.4miles) which is not right at all.

Today I have walked 8.02km (about 4.9 miles) and both of the programs on my phone have me burning over 600 calories. I know if I ate even 400 of these back, I would be up in weight tomorrow. The most I could get away with would be maybe eating back 200 of these, but that would leave me at about the same weight as today. Does this mean I am only burning 200 calories, or is something else happening? I get that more exercise = more water retention for muscle repair etc, but if the level of exercise is similar every day, I don't understand how this would affect the end result.

I guess I don't expect you to have the answers, I just want to try to understand what is happening

Ahh, I think I see a fatal flaw in your plan. You CANNOT judge a day's performance by the following day's weight. Your weight will naturally fluctuate day-to-day. Furthermore, weight loss is not a linear process. Of course your weight will be up if you eat back your 800 calories. You will have extra weight in your digestive system. You will retain more water due to increased carb and sodium intake. But if you're in a calorie deficit you will still be losing fat. Case in point, I gained 5lbs today over yesterday. I was in a calorie deficit still but I ate a bunch of brownies. All that sugar means increased water retention so I gained a bunch of water weight. It's no big deal, it will be gone in a couple days at most.

Judge your performance by your weekly weight changes - or even better your monthly weight changes.

I'm not saying that you ARE burning 800 calories on your walks, I'm just saying that your methodology needs a little adjusting. Try eating back say...50% of your exercise calories for a month. Compare your weight from the start of the month to the end of the month. Adjust intake from there (losing too fast? Add more calories in. Losing too slowly? Take out some calories). I'd shoot for something like 1lb/week for the amount of weight you have to lose.