Do I have to consume all my extra exercise calories?

Fitnesschica

Hello,
I'm just starting to try to be more consistant with my exercise and eating again but I have continued to run. Sometimes I do go over my calories but I try to stay close most days. Most days I do have a few left over but I figure I can have a little extra snack on the weekend? I love my popcorn on the weekend (canola oil home popped). My real problem comes in when I have a long run (I run long distance, I like to cross train with cycling-eliptical-weights etc. I'm trying to get better with that this month) for example I ran 17 miles this past Sat. I obviously gained tons of calories to consume. I have breakfast (oatmeal, skim milk) and I do consume while on my run (GU-Chomps, Sports jelly beans, a few pretzels, a couple of orange slices and maybe a power bar etc.) After I have another more filling breakfast (veggies, egg whites, whole wheat toast, coffee or splurge on a waffle) I will still have lunch and dinner and even some snacks. I still will have a good amount of calories left over, sometimes 1,200. Right now I'm running long miles but that will eventually go down. I want to loose about 10lbs. What do I do??? I hope someone can help.
Thanks!

NoAdditives

The short answer is that you're supposed to eat your exercise calories. It's especially important on days when you have high calorie burns. Your body needs a certain amount of calories every day in order to function properly and still burn fat. It's never good to get significantly less than you need, even if it's just one day.