calorie intake and exercise...

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joyfulmommaof2
joyfulmommaof2 Posts: 95 Member
in Health and Weight Loss
Are you supposed to eat all the calories that you burn during a workout? I try but I cant. I feel like if I do... I am way overeating!

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  • jrich1
    jrich1 Posts: 2,408 Member
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    yes you already have a deficit built into your cals, so yes, eat some or most of them back
  • bellanean
    bellanean Posts: 220
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    I try not to eat the calories I worked out but sometimes i do dip into them.
  • Mindful_Trent
    Mindful_Trent Posts: 3,954 Member
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    yes you already have a deficit built into your cals, so yes, eat some or most of them back

    Exactly. Here are some recommended posts for new users that explains this (and some other questions you may have):

    http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/108362-eating-to-fuel-your-body-very-long

    http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/3047-700-calories-a-day-and-not-losing

    http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/6556-the-answers-to-the-questions

    http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/10589-for-those-confused-or-questioning-eating-your-exercise-calo
  • ashlee954
    ashlee954 Posts: 1,112 Member
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    Some people eat them and some don't. I would listen to your body. If you're not hungry then don't force feed yourself. Be careful you are not eating too few calories though. I believe the minimum for men is 1500 and for women 1200.
  • erickirb
    erickirb Posts: 12,293 Member
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    If you are logging exercise calories correctly, yes. This means using a heart rate monitor to monitor caloric burn then back out the calories you would have burned at rest durng that period anyway. (most people burn 1 -1.5 cals per minute at rest so if you workout for 30 minutes and burn 260 calories you would enter 230 (260 - 1x30min) into MFP and eat all of them). If you calcualt caloriec burn differently eat 50% to 80% of them.
  • Mindful_Trent
    Mindful_Trent Posts: 3,954 Member
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    Are you supposed to eat all the calories that you burn during a workout? I try but I cant. I feel like if I do... I am way overeating!

    It might help to think of it like this: The calories MFP gives you is based on NORMAL day to day activities (per the level you set). MFP is already has the deficit needed to lose weight built-in, so If you exercise, you burn more - your body needs more fuel. In theory you could lose weight faster by not eating them, but it's not recommended to lose more than 2 lbs/week due to the stress it puts on your body.
  • sabrinafaith
    sabrinafaith Posts: 607 Member
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    I don't eat all my exercise cals. I always have an extra 400 exercise calls remaining at the end of the day. This works for me though bc I workout so much and I really only need 1500 calories and 110 grams of protein a day to feel satisfied.
  • SheehyCFC
    SheehyCFC Posts: 529 Member
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    In theory, you ARE supposed to take in those calories (that you burnt exercising). But I find it best not to "dip in" too far because I am often over a few calories here or there on other days... over a week it tends to balance out.
  • joyfulmommaof2
    joyfulmommaof2 Posts: 95 Member
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    Thanks everyone for your input. I guess what I am doing now is ok. I do sometimes dip into my workout calories... and I don't want to force myself to eat if I don't want to.

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