Saving exercise calories (challenge)

esorcel

I am just finding this challenge, and I would love for us to do this during the upcoming week. I find that if I eat en extra 100 calories past the 1200 calories I am allowed, weight loss is difficult; but if I stay under, I lose weight. This challenge would be great for me.

TeamLeela

Well my official weigh in is tomorrow, but I am down 2.6! that's incredible considering its either 1, zero or a gain! Sure, I'd love to do it again next week. Excluding Thursday, but then right back to counting through next weekend.
Thanks everyone for your participation and support.

SkierElle

Well I burned 3800 calories this week, and lost 2.5 lbs in 6 days!! didn't really touch them except one day, that is if my count is accurate! Also, great job Lotus Flower!!! that is amazing!! you are INSPIRING!!

I am going to do it partially this week, I am going to be burning a lot more than 3500 as I am starting insanity, so I'll probably eat half of the exercise cals.

TeamLeela

good luck starting insanity! let me know how you like it. i am going to do it this week too. I will dip into my exercise calories only if I need to. I want to try to not eat more than half of them on any given day.

kgs0201

wow a lot of you did awesome and had great losses!! i definitely didn't exercise as much as I should have... I'm up for trying again this week (except for Thursday!) and I'm planning to up my exercise again! i don't even come close to the level of exercise some of you are at! slow and steady :-)

Stewie316

If this challenge is still going on next week, I would like to join it. Most days I don't eat until my exercise calories, except on the weekends. Since I'm so close to goal weight, the pounds are starting to come off really slow, so next Monday, I'm going to start a new exercise routine, a modified version of the p90x and I'm not going to eat any of my exercise calories (not even on the weekends), until Christmas.

elainegsd

Leela, you've done a really cool thing here. Instead of asking for some person to tell you what to do, you decided to see for yourself how your body reacts and invited others to join. Way to go!

I can think of three.reasons why people experienced such success.
1. Not eating exercise calories causes a bigger calorie deficit
2. Often we over estimate the number of exercise calories we burn, so if you eat them all back, you are seriously narrowing your deficit or going over on your calories without knowing.
3. Changing up your routine really does work.

Just some calorie-free food for thought. I don't typically eat my exercise calories either.

esorcel

If this challenge is still going on next week, I would like to join it. Most days I don't eat until my exercise calories, except on the weekends. Since I'm so close to goal weight, the pounds are starting to come off really slow, so next Monday, I'm going to start a new exercise routine, a modified version of the p90x and I'm not going to eat any of my exercise calories (not even on the weekends), until Christmas.

I'm in it with you. Although on most days this week, I am trying to keep my calories under 1200, Thanksgiving Day is not at all a guarantee to meet this goal.

Let's start this again next week. I really believe not eating those exercise calories will help with stubborn weight loss.

TeamLeela

I'm still in. I know that this week will be a little more challenging, but I am certainly up for the challenge. Last week, I lost more than I have in over 6 weeks. I hope not to blow it all on thanksgiving. I am going to eat generously on thanksgiving and modestly throughout the weekend. I want to go into December another 2- 3 pounds lighter, that would put me in a really good position for success for the rest of the year.

So I'm looking at calories like money. If I have $12.00 for the whole day (1200 calories), you eat 250 calories (or $2.50) on breakfast, so that leaves me with $9.50 to "spend" on the rest of my snacks and meals. Well what happens when you run out of money (in real life), you don't get to eat! So you learn to spend your money wisely. $2.00 on a candy bar, or $2.00 on 3 ounces of chicken, a half of cup of brown rice and a half of cup of veggies. But what happens if you're still soooo hungry after your $12.00 are spent? You go to the bank and make a withdrawal. Burning 400 calories gives me back (up to) 4 more dollars to spend. But I try not to make withdrawals unless its mandatory!

Kristen, I know what you mean, I didn't exercise as much last week either. I don't think it was really intentional though.

Stewie, thats a long time to go without eating your exercise calories, esp whie doing p90x, so please be careful. When I do double zumba on wednesdays, I usually eat back a few hundred calories so I don't have a headache or dizzy spell.

Elaine- I want to start off by saying, great name! It's my mom's name and my daughter's middle name. You're right about overestimating the number of exercise calories we burn, but also, we UNDERestimate the number of calories we eat. I have a hrm and a digital food scale and I try to keep everything as accurate as possible, but there's always room for error. Thanks for your feedback.

elainegsd

Elaine- I want to start off by saying, great name! It's my mom's name and my daughter's middle name. You're right about overestimating the number of exercise calories we burn, but also, we UNDERestimate the number of calories we eat. I have a hrm and a digital food scale and I try to keep everything as accurate as possible, but there's always room for error. Thanks for your feedback.

My grandmother's name was Elaine, and my mother's middle name is Elaine. Small world! ;-)

I got really tired of weighing and measuring things, so I made it a game. When eating at home, I dish out the portions and THEN weigh/measure them. This helps train my portion control for when I'm eating out, and very often I need to add food to the portion I initially dished once it is weighed/measured (supporting your claim on under-reporting calories consumed), and that makes me feel like I am getting more food to eat.

The fact that this whole calorie thing IS so inexact (are you sure that you got exactly 1/8 of the chicken in that pot of chicken soup, or did you get more of the carrots in your portion?) is what drives me nuts when people freak out at people who eat near the 1200 mark. It isn't like your body is digital, and can tell 1199 from 1200!

esorcel

If this challenge is still going on next week, I would like to join it. Most days I don't eat until my exercise calories, except on the weekends. Since I'm so close to goal weight, the pounds are starting to come off really slow, so next Monday, I'm going to start a new exercise routine, a modified version of the p90x and I'm not going to eat any of my exercise calories (not even on the weekends), until Christmas.

I'm with you on that. It will be 1200 calories dily until Christmas. Your body becomes used to eat that few amount of calories.

TeamLeela

yesterday was a total bust, but I hope to do better today!

TheNewJessieMae

Ok Lee. I'm in again......... when do we start or did we start monday? I'm confused since I haven't done this forever.

TeamLeela

I attempted to start monday, but this week has been a total flop. I am super committed to starting again on Monday. I need more motivation and I don't want to be one of those stastics of people who gain 5 and 8 pounds between Thanksgiving and New Years.

TheNewJessieMae

I attempted to start monday, but this week has been a total flop. I am super committed to starting again on Monday. I need more motivation and I don't want to be one of those stastics of people who gain 5 and 8 pounds between Thanksgiving and New Years.

Ok well I burned 1201 cals today and only used 18 of those!!!!!!
Doing the shred daily I KNOW I will at least have that to log because I am making myself stay on it!!! We'll weigh in again monday and go another week?

esorcel

Ok well I burned 1201 cals today and only used 18 of those!!!!!!
Doing the shred daily I KNOW I will at least have that to log because I am making myself stay on it!!! We'll weigh in again monday and go another week?
[/quote]

Great! I honestly believe that the best for us is to not eat the exercise calories. The results certainly come faster for me that way. I couldn't wait for Monday to start again, so I started today. I regained 2 pounds (only!) from two days of non-stop Thanksgiving eating, and I am anxious to lose those pounds again, and then more.



My Starting weight with this forum: 158 pounds
Have lose 1 pound so far

TeamLeela

Getting rid of all the thanksgiving leftovers so I can be in tune with this challenge again starting tomorrow.

esorcel

Weighed in at 157.4 this morning. I completed my food diary for today. I am ready.

Here is to a challenging, but will certainly be rewarding, week.

TeamLeela

It will be a challenge, but I am up for it. I am trying hard not to touch those exercise calories. Usually when I eat, its because I'm bored or craving something sweet or salty. So I am really trying to discipline myself to eat only when I'm hungry!

Stewie316

I gained 2 pounds from the holidays. There were so many leftovers, I've just been pigging out over the weekend. Today I've been finishing up a little bit of leftovers and only have 200 calories left for dinner, but I'm not that hungry so that's fine.

I weighed in this morning and I was 118.8 pounds. I will not be touching any exercise calories this week and will weigh myself again next Monday. Good luck to everyone.

TeamLeela

I wanted all the leftovers gone by today. But I told my husband if there is anything still lingering on the 1st, its going in the garbage! all the desserts are gone and if I eat some of the other foods in moderation, I can still stay under my calories.

esorcel

Staying under calories can be tough. I find that I lose weight even if I eat 100 more calories. I prefer to stay at 1200 so that my body becomes used to that amount of calories, and in case I come across an additional food item I can't resist. I would still end up way under my exercise calories because I haven't been consuming much calories to begin with.

I am interested in knowing if anyone else is struggling to meet this challenge and what they are doing to keep their caloric intake under 1200 calories. Because I work as a nutritionist, I have some suggestions and I will post them later.

TeamLeela

Well the things that I am trying to do differently is not eat so early in the morning and so late in the evening. I'm trying to eat between 9am and 9pm. then I eat what I call "around the clock" 9,12,3,6,9 I'm trying to eat only when I'm hungry and stop eating when I'm full. I am trying not to eat out of boredom or while watching tv. I still have a problem with snacking "after hours". I am trying to eat more filling foods instead of eating empty calories. More fiber, more water. I would love to hear your suggestions as I am still having a hard time keeping my focus. I do fine all day, but toward the end of the night, I tend to crash and burn!

esorcel

Here are the suggestions for keeping calories low that I have pulled together. The websites are very helpful.

CHOOSE THESE FOODS:

Low-fat or fat-free version of foods
More watery vegetables (lettuce, celery, cucumber) than fruits (see website below to compare calories)
Low-fat veggie dips, and other low-fat or fat-free dressings
Sugar-free version of foods: ex. beverages, snacks, deserts
Whole-grain products to help control appetite (whole-wheat breads, oatmeal, brown rice)
1 slice of bread at a time, or lite breads in which 2 slices is the same as 1 (for sandwich lovers)
Fish or chicken without skin instead of beef or pork
Tofu instead of meat (very low calories with high protein to help with increase metabolism)
Food re-placers such as veggie burgers, smart dogs, veggie cheese
Use cooking sprays
Use herbs


BLOOD SUGAR STABILIZERS THAT HELP TO CONTROL APPETITE:

Whole-grain products instead of white, bleached food products
Soy-milk, almond milk, rice milk, coconut milk, instead of regular cow's milk
Low-sugar, no added sugar, and sugar-free foods and beverages
Use sweeteners such as Agave Nectar, Nutrasweet or other artificial sugars (although their safety is questionable)


NUTRITIONAL CONTENTS OF FRUITS, VEGETABLES, FISH
http://www.fda.gov/Food/LabelingNutrition/FoodLabelingGuidanceRegulatoryInformation/InformationforRestaurantsRetailEstablishments/ucm063367.htm

LOW-CALORIE, LOW-FAT ALTERNATIVE FOODS
http://www.nhlbi.nih.gov/health/public/heart/obesity/lose_wt/lcal_fat.htm


If you have trouble keeping your calories down, snack on more vegetables such as carrots, broccoli or cucumber in order to create more space for the foods you crave


Personally, I like to snack on carrots to combat hunger, and it works!

eorcel

I've been staying under 1200 calories as well, so I will join this group.

esorcel

So far, everything looks good and I'm not starving. Hoping to remain under 1200, or around there by the time I go to bed.

TeamLeela

ok, I thought I was seeing double. You guys names are so close...do you know each other? I hope that's not a dumb question. its almost midnight and my brain has already shut down.
Well I didn't workout today and I was still able to eat under 1200 calories and I don't feel like I am starving. Fiber and water are big factors in that. I am trying not to eat empty calories. I have to make every one of them count. Making a plan the day before really helps me too.

Thanks guys for hanging in there with me! Have a great weekend.

esorcel

ok, I thought I was seeing double. You guys names are so close...do you know each other? I hope that's not a dumb question. its almost midnight and my brain has already shut down.
Well I didn't workout today and I was still able to eat under 1200 calories and I don't feel like I am starving. Fiber and water are big factors in that. I am trying not to eat empty calories. I have to make every one of them count. Making a plan the day before really helps me too.

Thanks guys for hanging in there with me! Have a great weekend.

We are twin sisters, and I am excited my sister has finally joined in. She has been doing a fantastic job losing weight (25 pounds this year!), and I feel this website adds more benefits and support to that.

It's been hard for me to stay under 1200 sometimes, but I wouldn't change my goal for anything. The idea prevents me from overdoing it with large meals. If I indulge in the evening, I'm generally still having a low caloric intake that is sufficient for weight loss (just not as fast).

TeamLeela

that's exactly how I feel. Its just about awareness of what I eat. Am I hungry or just bored? I'll go find something else to occupy my time and then eat about a half an hour later. I wait later in the morning to eat instead of as soon as I wake up. I dont eat if I know I am going to sleep in the next half hour to an hour. So that's what I am taking away from this challenge. Not eating every single morsel of my exercise calories just because I have them. Or because the majority of the members feel "obligated" to eat them. I just listen to my body and try to make healthy choices. So far its been working!

sinbad1971

I have been doing this, this week burnt up about an extra 4500 cals in exercise (mostly just brisk but quite lengthy walks 25 miles in total), foollowing the 1000 cal deficit to lose 2lb a week this week I lost 3.5lb which matches the extra you would expect to lose with an extra 4500 cals per week deficit. Be interesting to see if this slows down over the coming weeks.