Exercise, HRM, and another "How many calories should I eat?"

katbass

Im a little intimidated to ask this question on the board since A) i have asked before, people get slammed for asking, and C) i know i should already know the answer....but Im wondering/hoping for more input.

According to MFP, I should only eat 1200 calories to lose weight.
Thats not gonna happen, nor do I think it is wise for me to stick to that goal. 1200 cals worked for me in the past, but I gained all 22 lbs back PLUS several more. So that option is out.

According to my BMR and my nutirionist friend, I should be eating 1500 calories to lose weight. Much more reasonable.
My friend said I should eat 1800 if I work out.
Makes sense on most days of the week.
But today, I burned 900+ calories according to my heart rate monitor during two separate workouts. Should I still only eat the 1800 calories? Should I eat half the exercise calories (an extra 450)?? Should i eat all of them back (ugh)?

Also, when I am working out, my heart rate monitor tells me when Im out of my target cardio heart range. I like knowing when I need to work a little harder to get my heart rate up, but I was well above my recommended range today for quite some time. i didnt feel bad or winded...just that I was working out intensely. Should I pay more attention to the target heart range, and try to stay in that zone more often? I dont really feel like Im working out that hard if I try to stay between 132 and 154 for an entire workout.

Again...I KNOW I should probably already know these answers. And I KNOW there are threads out there that explain this exact thing. But Im here asking for personal advice from folks who are willing to help. THANK YOU!!

MissAnjy

You know what? I absolutely DESPISE when people get irritated about the "same question being asked over and over". People shouldn't make anyone feel inferior about asking questions in general. If our kids asked the same question over & over (while trying to learn things in life) would we get pissed off & irritated? No, right?

This is a learning process, & it's not easy. There is a lot of confusion, trial & error, and some people need the reassurance (me included) so quite frankly, anyone who makes you feel like you shouldn't be asking, should just move along. Until you get the clarification you need to fully understand something, ASK AWAY!!!

Having said that.

Since you had such a high calorie burn, I'd try to eat SOME back. It doesn't have to be all. Eat as much as you feel comfortable with. Listen to your body. If you're not hungry, don't force yourself to eat. Maybe try some liquid calories even? Just go by how you feel, ok?

& again, don't let anyone make you feel inferior for asking questions. That's what we're all here for. To learn and grow.

katbass

THANK YOU MissAnjy! As a teacher, I HATE when people are chastised for asking questions. But Ive seen a few threads where people get downright mean, and while I (sort of?) understand the frustration, I wonder why they feel the need to reprimand people who are just looking for support and advice. What else is a message board like this for if we cant seek personalized adivce?
THANK YOU for understanding

Im loving the "listen to your body" advice Now I just need to remember to listen to the "you-want-to-be-skinny,-dont-you?" voice as opposed to the "go-ahead-and-eat-whatever-you-want-you-only-live-once" voice

Now hubby and i are in an discussion over "fat burning" range and "aerobic/cardio" range.....any have thoughts on that?

kerriBB37

I have also posted questions about cals burned and eating them and people get WAY defensive about it! no clue why, I do understand what they say about needing a certain allotment to function, with that said EVERYONE is different! You should stick with what works for you. I think 1200 is a bit extreme, and that is what I am "given" each day. I work out every day and usually I eat most of mine back.

As for the HR, which is why I wanted to message you. .
If you can, I would REALLY suggest taking a heart rate class given at a gym or through a personal trainer. I was lucky in that a trainer I worked out with before started getting really big on Zone training so she let me participate in one of her Saturday sessions. It was about 3 hours full of everything you can think of; spinning, plyo, long distance running, sprints, weight lifting, etc. Literally every 5 minutes she recorded my HR and afterwards was able to put MY HR's into zones.

For an example,
for ME, my max HR was 200
75-80% was 165-180 bpm (cardio zone)
65-75% was 155-165 (fat burning zone)
45-55% was 150-155
active recovery was 128

my zones were
1) 114-124
2) 124-143
3) 143-156
4) 156-169
5)169-179
6) 179-190

basically I am to warm up in zones 1 and 2 and spend a large majority of my cardio in zone 3, I was encouraged to work out 20 minutes in zone 4 and try and touch 5 and 6 a handfull of times during the workouts. This was HARD but for me I learned certain activities that got my HR sky high, for me it was plyometrics. Sprints was a close 2. She said that no matter how long you have to spend at the gym you can get an intense, beneficial workout. Sometimes if I only have 20 or 30 minutes during the day I will try and stay in zone 4 the whole time so i sweat my *kitten* off. Her fave thing to say was, it doesn't matter how long it takes you to get to your daily goal, just get there! For a long time she told me to burn 500 cals a day at the gym in CARDIO and then lift weights 2-3 times with her.

All in all it was so helpful to find out what worked for ME while I was at the gym.

Hope that helped!

katbass

Thank you SOO Much, KerriBB! I have never heard of a class like that, but Im hoping my friend/nutritionist can help me out It sounds like a great way to personalize a program to my exact needs/body/shape. Didnt even know that option existed, so thanks for giving me something to look into!

sk4399

You know what? I absolutely DESPISE when people get irritated about the "same question being asked over and over". People shouldn't make anyone feel inferior about asking questions in general. If our kids asked the same question over & over (while trying to learn things in life) would we get pissed off & irritated? No, right?

This is a learning process, & it's not easy. There is a lot of confusion, trial & error, and some people need the reassurance (me included) so quite frankly, anyone who makes you feel like you shouldn't be asking, should just move along. Until you get the clarification you need to fully understand something, ASK AWAY!!!

Having said that.

Since you had such a high calorie burn, I'd try to eat SOME back. It doesn't have to be all. Eat as much as you feel comfortable with. Listen to your body. If you're not hungry, don't force yourself to eat. Maybe try some liquid calories even? Just go by how you feel, ok?

& again, don't let anyone make you feel inferior for asking questions. That's what we're all here for. To learn and grow.

Very nicely said : )

liscar

I set my calorie intake at 1200 and then I adjust that based on my calories burned during my work outs --- if nothing else, it seems to motivate me to work out when I don't feel like it, because I'm hungry and 1200 calories goes pretty quick - if I can have a good work out I can have more to eat. Seems to be working that way for me -- I've lost 8 pounds and I'm not starving. I can't agree more with "we are each different".

katbass

I set my calorie intake at 1200 and then I adjust that based on my calories burned during my work outs --- if nothing else, it seems to motivate me to work out when I don't feel like it, because I'm hungry and 1200 calories goes pretty quick - if I can have a good work out I can have more to eat. Seems to be working that way for me -- I've lost 8 pounds and I'm not starving. I can't agree more with "we are each different".

Thats what I did in the past. It worked...I lose 22 lbs....but it wasnt a real lifestyle change for me, so I gained the 22 lbs back quickly, and added another 10-ish pounds on top

amysambora

Never be afraid to ask questions! I too get frustrated when people get slammed for asking questions such as these. We haven't ALL been doing this forever! I think it's a GOOD thing there are so many people coming on board that are new to healthy living and WANT to know this stuff! We shouldn't be pushing them away!

OK, now I've had my little rant - as far as the calorie thing goes, my best advice would be to listen to your body. Make sure your meals are as healthy and balanced as you can make them, and that you include lots of protein and complex carbs to support your intense workouts. If you know you've fed your body well and you're still hungry - EAT. It would be one thing if you'd used up your 1200 calories on bread and chips, but if you've kept it wholesome and you're still hungry, listen to what your body is telling you and refuel When it comes to eating your exercise calories, there's no magic amount you should or shouldn't eat. A lot of people eat half because that's enough to keep them full, and at the same time, not so much that they feel they've overdone it.

I think your frame of mind is awesome. You know you could lose the 22lb again by sticking to the 1200, but instead you've chosen a healthy, sustainable lifestyle change. I just know you will start to see results and be really successful!