Eating exercise calories

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alyshaSkinny
alyshaSkinny Posts: 5
in Goal: Maintaining Weight
Do I eat exercise calories or do I leave them alone if I'm on a 1200 cal wight loss plan??

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  • Graelwyn75
    Graelwyn75 Posts: 4,404 Member
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    This is the section for those wishing to maintain their weight, not lose weight.
  • Barbellarella_
    Barbellarella_ Posts: 454 Member
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    MFP is designed with your deficit already factored in. That being said, it can often overestimate your burn. Most people feel safe eating 50-75% of them back, give or take.
  • TeaBea
    TeaBea Posts: 14,517 Member
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    Do I eat exercise calories or do I leave them alone if I'm on a 1200 cal wight loss plan??

    To lose weight you eat 1200 + earned exercise calories. MFP gave you your deficit before exercise. That way people who can't/won't exercise still lose weight.

    2 things....MFP is generous with calorie burn estiamtes. But 1200 is MFP's lowest default minimum. So even eating 100% = you will still lose weight.

    Some may recommend not eating calories back. Calories earned are fuel for your workouts, and you need to eat enough to keep lean muscle too. Losing too fast makes it hard for your body to support existing muscle. You may lose more than just fat.
  • tmauck4472
    tmauck4472 Posts: 1,783 Member
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    When I started out I never ate my exercise calories back...now I can't stop eating them and I'm not losing at all. You may have different results. Find out if it works for you. I'm also pretty close to goal and have been doing this for two years.
  • delazouche
    delazouche Posts: 55 Member
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    When I started out I never ate my exercise calories back...now I can't stop eating them and I'm not losing at all. You may have different results. Find out if it works for you. I'm also pretty close to goal and have been doing this for two years.
    Same here. I was following my weight-loss doc's advice to never eat them back for months and saw better results. I also wasn't exercising 6 days a week like I am now though and wasn't as hungry. Currently I'm trying to eat as little back as I can handle, and making sure when I do eat them back, it's in the form of a protein-rich or otherwise especially healthy snack.
  • dunnodunno
    dunnodunno Posts: 2,290 Member
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    When I started out I never ate my exercise calories back...now I can't stop eating them and I'm not losing at all. You may have different results. Find out if it works for you. I'm also pretty close to goal and have been doing this for two years.

    Did you measure your food on a food scale?

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