Those who eat back exercise calories?

awise19

I usually burn between 300-700 cals during exercise. If I am on the high end I DO NOT eat all of them back. More like half. I try to always get over the 1200 cal goal (sometimes I fail that when I work my two jobs and have no time to work out and only an hour to eat). I always try to end the day with a defecit of 100-300 cals (unless I don't work out sometimes I got over the 1200 but only by a little bit and sometimes I stay under but only by a tiny bit). I have lost 70 lbs, have crazy amounts of energy and feel amazing.

If you are exercising you want to eat to ensure that you have energy. Listen to your body. If you try to start not eating those cals back, you will most likely realize you are going to be fatigued. Food is fuel.

Fragilebird24

Like most people have already said, MFP has a habit of overestimating exercise calories. I personally do not own an HRM (I wish I did!) so I'm always weary about eating back all of my exercise calories. For me, days when I exercise it's much easier for me to make healthy choices, therefore I normally don't have an issue. It's the days that I don't exercise that eating more calories than I'm allowed becomes an issue. You're calories should already be set at a deficit so you should be losing weight whether you eat them back or not! Good luck!

echofm1

I've always eaten back most of my exercise calories, the whole time I've been losing. Now if you feel full and still have extra calories at the end of the day, then don't eat them back. However, there's no reason to starve yourself if you had a great workout and your stomach is growling. Your deficit is built in, even without exercise, so you'll still lose weight.

farniente8

I eat back my calories, or at least 95% of them. I like that I can have cake, cookies, ice cream and pizza (okay, not all on the same day!) as long as I am willing to do something in return. So far I have lost over 27 pounds in 90 days and continue to lose steadily. My goal is always to net 1200 calories, but with exercise that usually means I'm eating between 1400-1700 a day. Feel free to friend me if you would like to check out my food/ exercise diary.

Also, now that it's become a habit I love to exercise just for the way it makes me feel. It may have started as a way to eat that hot fudge sundae, but it's become a part of my daily routine and the benefits to every part of my life are amazing!

dsimmons107

The concept of eating calories back is confusing. The goal is not to eat back or not eat back the calories. The goal is to eat the right amount of calories for your body’s needs.
If you eat more than you need your body will store the extra. That becomes fat. If you eat less and your body needs more it will use what it has stored. What I found difficult was figuring how many calories my body uses each day. That should consider all activities including sleep. After a little effort I concluded that my body burns about 1660 calories a day. That is if I do nothing but normal activity with no exercise. That means that I need to eat at least 1660 just to maintain my weight and normal function of my internal organs. If you do not eat enough your body does not have enough energy to power all of your internal organs. It has to decide which organs get priority. That is why under eating is not a good thing over long periods of time.
Now if I add exercise and continue to eat 1660 calories each day I lose weight. I lose because my body uses stored energy. Now the concern is what kind of weight am I losing? If you are exercising and losing weight are you losing muscle or fat? We wish it would be just fat. It is usually fat and muscle. The goal here is to lose fat and gain muscle. This is the very difficult part. It is very difficult to just lose fat and adding muscle takes lots of effort. This is what makes it so difficult as you get closer to your goal weight. You don’t want to be, as some call it, skinny fat.
Now with exercise I set my goal at burning a minimum of 2800 calories a day. That means as long as I hit my goal of burning 2800 calories each day I can eat up 2800 calories and not gain weight. If I want to lose I just need to stay below the 2800. Depending on how fast I want to lose I decide how much below the 2800 I should be. I originally I was 500 – 800 below. My goal was 1.5 to 2 pounds a week.
When you are stuck don’t just look at weight. Look also at body measurements. Your body will change shape as fat goes away and muscle develops. You have to take into account the none scale victories. They are just as important.

Leaping_Lemur

I eat them all back. Sometimes I go over. I've lost 21 pounds since joining MFP four months ago. Over the same time period I've lost 2.8 inches off my waist, three inches off my navel, 1.8 off my thighs and a half inch off both my chest (armpits) and calves. I went from trousers with a 38 inch waist (relaxed fit, getting kinda tight) to 36 inch straight leg trousers that are currently a little loose. I realized last night at the mall that I can fit into 34 inch pants, though I have big endomorphic thighs so I'm going to put off buying any for a while, till my 36s are a bit looser in the legs.

jaysull21

MFP sets a "net" calorie amount at a deficit for you to lose X per week. For some of us whose activity level is sedentary, it is very easy to eat back your calories and still lose weight. Most of my weight came off in the summer when I was eating back all my calories, but exercising every single day. I think I may have even gone over most days, to be honest, but I was changing my lifestyle from sedentary to active.

Remembering that the goal is net is big, IMO.

Southernb3lle

<---My progress as of this spring is in the profile photo. I eat back most my calories..all depending on if im hungry or not. Of course, exercise plays a big part. The before photo was from last year.

OH, and I use the TDEE method

andijean31

I eat back most if not all of my exercise calories. I think I average around 1,500 calories today, but I usually burn 300, making my net almost exactly 1,200. I've been doing it this way since starting MFP in April and I've lost 33 pounds on MFP, 40 total since January.

beeblebrox82

I'll let my ticker speak for itself. Eat your exercise calories. But make an effort to validate and accurately count your exercise calories.

cwolfman13

Hello
I'm just kind of confused and I know this is a touchy subject on here. I would like to actually see results from people who eat back the calories burned from exercise. The reason being because I feel like I am sabotaging myself on the days that I do it but then if I don't I feel like I'm eating too little and that may be why I'm not losing weight... Idk... I've lost 50lbs and I wish I kept a diary back when I lost most of it so I would know exactly how because now that the scale isn't moving it's driving me crazy not knowing what I did so differently back then...


Anyone who eats back your calories and lost weight please tell me how much you eat and how much you lost.

I'm 6 ft tall
Sw 250
Cw 202 (the last 2lbs before 200 keep fluctuating!! Grr)
Gw 175
And the scale just won't move! !

Any help here!?!

Using this tool as designed...



to...



I'm 35 Lbs difference in these two pictures...

The biggest thing people have issues with is underestimating intake and overestimating burn. If you're getting your burn from a database, it is likely very inflated...you need to account for estimation error. I always ate back about 80% of what my HRM said I burned for an aerobic event. I also compared my estimates to other databases and formulas out there to see if I was getting a pretty good estimate give or take.

Also, you need to weigh and measure out your foods and be consistent in logging...just guestimating portions and whatnot has shown to be about 20 - 30% error..most people vastly overestimate their consumption. You also have to remember that all of these calculators are just good starting points...you have to make real world adjustments based on real world results. You may also want to have some blood work done to see if you have any medical conditions or vitamin deficiencies that can hinder weight loss.

This tool gives you a calorie goal that already includes a weight loss deficit from an estimated maintenance level of calories. When you do your activity level, you do NOT include any exercise...just your day to day stuff. You don't get credit for any exercise with MFP until you actually do it which is why you are then allotted more calories to eat. Other calculators include an estimate of your exercise up front in the weight loss formula...they include an estimate of those calories in your activity level...thus, with other calculators that activity is accounted for already and you wouldn't eat them back...but as I said, with MFP they are accounted for after the fact. This is to encourage people who are otherwise sedentary to not only get their diets in order, but get off their *kitten* and get their fitness on.

mazmataz

The biggest thing people have issues with is underestimating intake and overestimating burn

^This is most definitaley the number one cause of people taking on this kind of lifestyle and it 'not working, IMO anyway.

I usually don't eat them back...the reason being is that I can be an angel all week and then a proper demon at the weekends, so I like to 'save' them to cushion my weekends - and also to account for the above, inaccuracy in intake and burn. Also the reasons I aim for 200 calories short of my TDEE-20% each day.

Having said that, last night I had a major attack of the munchies and luckily I had my 350 exercise calories AND my 200 cushion to back me up...doesn't happen too often these days, but when it does it's nice to have that safety net.

My advice? Work your exercise calories into your life however you feel works for your lifestyle!

aklove907

It really depends on how hungry I am that day. Sometimes I won't eat any, sometimes maybe half and sometimes almost all of them.

This is the exact way I am thinking of it. Some days I am hungrier than others, and I don't want to eat too little. I have been on a mission for just three weeks and have lost 11lbs. I will do my weigh in tomorrow morning and see what I have dropped this week. All in all, it's important to find out what works for you. Do NOT starve yourself, and if you have ate enough, you have ate enough. If one day you don't eat back those calories, fine. I am finding that that way of doing things is working great for me! We are all different though!

With your weight not dropping anymore, maybe change up your exercise. Or do an extra walk in the evenings. . . Anything in addition to what you normally do might be the extra push your body needs! You have got this in the bag! Congrats on your loss so far!

elleloch

I eat them back.

I am 5'3. Started at 140 and netted at 1200 calories (and it sucked) for six months and currently weigh about 120. I am running a very small deficit right now to lose a little extra fat.

Eating is the best, I don't think there is any reason people shouldn't be eating their exercise calories. Trust the process, it works.

contingencyplan

The calorie goal MFP set for you already has a deficit built in. If you eat back your exercise calories that deficit is still there. The exercise you do is not to promote weight loss but other health benefits. The deficit alone is what handles the weight loss.

BusyRaeNOTBusty

The time period when I was most successful I was netting 2000 calories a day, eating all my exercise calories. I lost 12lbs in about five months. I'm 5'9" and went from 161 to 149.

aNewYear123

I am not doing TDEE. My exercise is inconsistent, so I cannot include it in my activity level. Therefore, my activity level is set to sedentary and I eat back most of my exercise calories.

Had I included my exercise in my activity level or if I was doing TDEE then I would not be eating them back.

On the other hand, you have lost more weight so far than I have, so you must be doing something right.:happy:

BrandNewFabulousMe

every last one, its the only reason I exercise.

That's how I feel!

BrandNewFabulousMe

The calorie goal MFP set for you already has a deficit built in. If you eat back your exercise calories that deficit is still there. The exercise you do is not to promote weight loss but other health benefits. The deficit alone is what handles the weight loss.

never thought about it that way! it does have a deficit so may as well eat them back. I guess it could work by eating maintenance cals and exercising but not eating those back right

BrandNewFabulousMe

If you've set your calorie limit at a deficit to start with, then eat back your workout cals. You're still in deficit. Its the deficit that will generate weight loss, not the exercise. If you've set your cals at maintenance level, then don't eat back the cals burned, as this creates the deficit and generates the weight loss.

^ right there

admegamo

every last one, its the only reason I exercise.

And there are times when I'll a little more.

ajanderson84

I've done both.

Early on in my efforts, I set my level to total couch potato, and was struggling to walk at 2.5mph for half an hour. Staying under calories then was hard. I saw a doctor, who assisted me with diet and fitness plans, and also provided a prescription for Phentermine. (Appetite suppressant drug). After that I changed WHAT I was eating, and how often... although I was staying under calories most of the time before, it was much easier to do now. After a month on the meds, I got taken off them, and was able to stay under my calorie limits easily.

I ended up changing my levels since I now work in retail. I'm set to lightly active, I am also set to lose 2lbs a week. My baseline for calorie intake is now at 1500. Most days I don't go over this at all, and it is now much easier for me to stay under it... but if I'm out for dinner, or extremely busy and eat something "quick" I'll go ahead and eat it anyways. If it puts me into calories I burned, oh well. Once in a while isn't gonna set me back majorly. But, I generally as a rule try to stay under my inital 1500 calories, simply, because in my mind, anything burned beyond my deficit helps me reach my goal all the faster.

However, I will not let myself feel hungry. If I still need to eat something I will, calories be damned. I just try to stick to eating things that are filling but lower in calories. Most of the time I eat Cantaloupe or Grapes to feel full. Hope that helps.

cwolfman13

I usually don't eat them back...the reason being is that I can be an angel all week and then a proper demon at the weekends, so I like to 'save' them to cushion my weekends - and also to account for the above, inaccuracy in intake and burn. Also the reasons I aim for 200 calories short of my TDEE-20% each day.

If you're doing TDEE - 20% you wouldn't eat back exercise calories because an estimate of them is included in your TDEE upfront when you set your activity level. With MFP, exercise is accounted for on the back end after you do it and log it...this is why you get extra calories and eat them back with MFP...you have to understand what method you're using. Failure to understand your method will result in it "not working"

runfatmanrun

Yep, I have and will continue to eat back all my exercise calories. Lost all my weight (85 pounds) by doing just that. I did just like others have mentioned. I set my cal limit at a deficit and then ate what I "earned". And I still eat what I earn.

Collier78

It really depends on how hungry I am that day. Sometimes I won't eat any, sometimes maybe half and sometimes almost all of them.

^^This^^

I not only try to eat back my exercise calories but any calories I burn nursing my 6 month old as well. I run (10K training app) three nights a week, do strength training 3 nights a week and use the 7th day as a complete rest day. I might take a walk with the dog, but nothing more strenuous. I'm losing steadily and noticing the decline when I weigh in about every other week. I am not seeing big losses, but I attribute that to the strength training.

smc864

Because MFP usually over estimates the calories burned I eat about half of my exercise calories back. It's working for me!

lucan07

I eat back any that I feel the need to, I refuse to eat anything just for the sake of eating it, (along with the steroids thats how I got here) most days I eat between 50-60% back sometimes more depending how much cardio I do.

I have lost 27 lbs in 9 weeks and am far fitter and healthier.

cwolfman13

The calorie goal MFP set for you already has a deficit built in. If you eat back your exercise calories that deficit is still there. The exercise you do is not to promote weight loss but other health benefits. The deficit alone is what handles the weight loss.

never thought about it that way! it does have a deficit so may as well eat them back. I guess it could work by eating maintenance cals and exercising but not eating those back right

Correct, but it is far more efficient to establish a dietary calorie deficit than try to build one with exercise, particularly if you're trying to lose a considerable amount of weight. Things happen and you miss exercise sessions...also, 3500 calories per week to lose just 1 Lb per week would require a burn of about 583 calories per day 6 days per week...that's quite a load really and again you're going to have to deal with things coming up, injury, illness, etc. Most people who attempt to create a deficit with exercise ultimately fail because that level of exercise is not really sustainable for most day in and day out for weeks and months and years on end. However, this is exactly how I do it when I just try to drop a couple of vanity pounds and a point of two in BF.

blocklear1

I have been on MFP for about 2 months now. I have lost 27 pounds to date. I have my setting at sedentary because I have an office job where I basically sit most of the day. However I did purchase a "Fit Bit Flex" Calorie counter. It works great. I do eat most of my exercise calories back on most days but usually leave some in the bank. I find that the Fitbit makes me want to exercise more because it does allow me to eat a little more. Without burning the additional calories my daily allowance typically isn't enough for me to not feel hungry. So I enjoy the fact that I get to eat a little more from exercising it feels almost like a reward for getting a little extra work in. On those days (rare) that I completely miss exercise, I find it a little tougher to stay in the calorie budget. But like I said, I like to keep at least an extra 100-200 calories in the bank for anything that may be slightly off in my calorie count. So far it has worked great and I am making this a life plan. Good luck!

progressnotperfection84

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