now i get the exercise calories…

elisa123gal
elisa123gal Posts: 4,324 Member
in Health and Weight Loss
After being on here for a while I've read so much debate over the exercise calories on mfp. How they are estimated too high..only eat half..don't eat them at all… eat them all back.

I just read about "after burn" yesterday for the first time. I didn't realize that when you do cardio for at least 30 minutes…and even one hoour…not only do you burn calories doing that..but for the next 24 hours you burn more calories than if you didn't do the excercise.

So..that is why mfp estimates those exercise calories high..they are including the after burn affect.

Now, I am more motivated than ever to do my cadio every morning…

here is the link to read if you're interested

http://scoobysworkshop.com/afterburner-effect-melts-away-fat/

Replies

  • aisherrasher
    aisherrasher Posts: 3
    I wouldn't base that information on one dubious post. I've read many articles about after burn and it only happens with heavy weights.

    Mfp is notoriously over high for calculating calories done exercising. It's good for food though.
  • SideSteel
    SideSteel Posts: 11,068 Member
    This effect (EPOC) doesn't have anything to do with whether or not to eat back exercise calories.

    Please read this thread:
    http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/818082-exercise-calories-again-wtf
  • Liftng4Lis
    Liftng4Lis Posts: 15,151 Member
    I've read many articles saying you get increased after burn with weights as well, thus I do both!
  • cassique
    cassique Posts: 164 Member
    http://www.acsm.org/about-acsm/media-room/news-releases/2011/09/01/vigorous-exercise-burns-calories-for-14-hours-after-exercise

    This article shows the after burn effect of 45 minutes of intense cardio in a controlled study lasted 14 hours. So heavy weights may not necessarily be the only type of work out to cause after burn. However I doubt my 30 minute jog at 6mph does much anymore now that he feels easy to do. Time to in increase intensity.
  • MelodyandBarbells
    MelodyandBarbells Posts: 7,724 Member
    OP I suppose you'll draw your own conclusions after eating back the calories for some time. Also although we should log our food accurately, eating only a portion of the exercise calories could help offset some inaccuracies on logging
  • WalkingAlong
    WalkingAlong Posts: 4,926 Member
    EPOC is generally considered pretty insignificant these days, I think.

    https://www.nsca.com/Education/Articles/Hot-Topic-Role-of-EPOC-in-Weight-Loss/
  • elisa123gal
    elisa123gal Posts: 4,324 Member
    there are so many theories on this forum…i guess because differen things work for different people. the only thing we can do is stick to a plan and then change it it doesn't work.

    I just found the read interesting and thought maybe that after burn is why mfp calculates exercise calories so high.
  • MelodyandBarbells
    MelodyandBarbells Posts: 7,724 Member
    there are so many theories on this forum…i guess because differen things work for different people. the only thing we can do is stick to a plan and then change it it doesn't work.

    I just found the read interesting and thought maybe that after burn is why mfp calculates exercise calories so high.

    I don't know how they calculate it, but at the very least we know that no two people will put in the same effort for the same exercise. For example, MFP has all my favorite Les mills classes in the database. The only times I come really close to, or beat their estimate (per my HRM), it's been balls to the wall from start to finish of the class and I'm completely wiped out. Other days, I generally have to adjust the MFP number down. So I suppose another guess is they're listing the maximum or high side of calories that could be burned if you fully expended the described effort

    Another thing I don't know if it was mentioned here is that you've got your gross calories burned during the exercise time and also calories that you would have burned sitting around doing nothing. Many suspect the MFP # is gross, not net, which would be less your doing nothing calories burned
  • RangedLunatic
    RangedLunatic Posts: 49 Member
    Gross not net would really make sense. Now that I'm using a fitbit as well, I have something to compare to. Fitbit thinks I'm burning more calories on a run than MFP does, but it thinks I'm using less on a stroll. The effect of not deducting the resting metabolism rate would be most noticeable on slow exercises.
  • ahoier
    ahoier Posts: 312 Member
    Muscle and Weight Training has a similar affect......actually, it is said that weight training has a great "after effect" than cardio......granted, I love my cardio, to open my lungs wide open, etc..lol. But the biggest thing with the calorie burn on MFP, your HRMs, and of course, the machines at the gym, you gotta take these numbers with a grain of salt.....they are typically over-estimated calories burned.....and this is why when I do cardio, I will take the average of my HRM, the elliptical/treadmill/stepper, and the value MFP states......and divide that huge number (usually, in the 1000 range.....) by 3......like in elementary math class ;) I now have an "average" of all 3 calorie burns, and will log that into MFP......

    Keep in mind, I very rarely eat my MFP calorie burn! LOL. I'm just not hungry......and I weigh everything lol.

Categories