What's the point of exercising?

frb2012

What's the point of exercising if I have to eat back the calories that I burned?

JillyCornwall

To get fit, to tone up & look good, to prevent all sorts of diseases that are associated with people who do not exercise but are overweight..need I go on.....

Blr31977

I rarely eat them back... I work out in the evening and if I ate them back I would be eating all night.

skinnyme125

to keep your blood flowing, to tighten you up and to build muscle so you are not skinny on the outside but fat on the weak on the inside. It is good for you in tons of ways.

jillybeanruns

Did you really just ask that question?

JillyCornwall

I rarely eat them back... I work out in the evening and if I ate them back I would be eating all night.

Hardly a reason, if you know you are going to work out you can spread the calories over the day..no problem!

SaraTonin

Body fat percentage!! And cardiovascular strength, avoiding health problems, and feeling great! A better question - what is the point of losing weight if you're not going to be healthy?

JulieBoBoo

To get fit, to tone up & look good, to prevent all sorts of diseases that are associated with people who do not exercise but are overweight..need I go on.....

I'll go on.. to replace the muscle you lose, to increase your metabolism, to feel strong, to stay young, to have the body you want not weigh what you want ... Anyone want to take over?

LauraLLee

I may log my workouts but I try not to eat the calories I have burned, that way I achieve the weight loss quicker.

gburkhart2

what is the point of losing weight if you're not going to be healthy?

Celo24

What's the point of exercising if I have to eat back the calories that I burned?

Go back and read all the links people gave you in your "what should my net calories be?" thread. Those will answer this question too.

TheKatzMeow77

If you don't eat them back you will lose more weight, just make sure your not eating less than 1200 calories a day that is not healthy, I have lost 100.2 so far on my journey and I rarely eat my calories back (sometimes they sneek in there though lol)

MommyRobot

They say because you need to net-calories in [minus] cal out [to equal] your calorie goal for the day. I don't buy it, but it's really worked for some people on here!

erickirb

so you don't lose muscle as you lose weight
To feel better,
to have more energy
so you are not "skinny fat" thin with high BF%
to become stronger,
to become faster,
need I go on

You eat those cals to give you the energy your body requires from working out. Eating 1300 cals and not working out is the same at eating 1700 cals and burning 400 as 1700-400 = 1300.

barbsus1991

The more lean muscle you have on your body, the faster you burn calories, therefor the more you can eat and still maintain the same loss, and therefor be able to keep it up for a longer period of time! If you want this to be a change in lifestyle and something you can maintain, you need lean muscle.

erickirb

I may log my workouts but I try not to eat the calories I have burned, that way I achieve the weight loss quicker.

quicker is usually not better. What is wrong with just meeting your goal loss/week?

AHealthierRhonda

I rarely eat them back... I work out in the evening and if I ate them back I would be eating all night.

Same here!!! I work out at 6-7:30p.m. I usually end the night with a bowl of cereal or a bowl of icecream after the workout. I view those as my time to cheat cals burned. I never eat them back at all! Normally I eat around 1270 a day and am allowed 1350. On exercise days, when I use my elliptical I burn over 1230 cals! no way I am eating back that many cals! Those are my awesome weight loss days! I only get "yelled at" by MFP when I eat under 1200 cals period. I listen to my body and if I am hungry I will eat, and try for something healthy, though it ain't always the case!

rmhand

exercise to the point of muscle fatigue (your muscles feel tired) tears them down so they come pack stronger and leaner. Eating back the exercise calories is a personal choice and if you are eating them back make sure it is with healthy lower fat foods.

yoghurtand

You don't have to eat back all of them, firstly. Furthermore, exercise builds muscle and muscle uses up more energy than fat does. That means that when you lose weight, not only will you look better overall, as you are more toned, but you will be able to keep the weight off more easily, because you need to eat more to maintain your weight. Exercise is also good for your heart - not everything is about weightloss.

And if you eat 1200 calories, burn 400 and then eat back that 400, you will still lose weight, but you will also have all the nutrients from the extra 400 you ate, but none of the calories (extra vitamins and minerals that are good for you).

wanderingpilgrim

Body fat percentage!! And cardiovascular strength, avoiding health problems, and feeling great! A better question - what is the point of losing weight if you're not going to be healthy?

AMEN!!!! Skinny does not equal healthy!!!

MommyRobot

I may log my workouts but I try not to eat the calories I have burned, that way I achieve the weight loss quicker.

quicker is usually not better. What is wrong with just meeting your goal loss/week?

What's wrong with it if you're doing what you feel is right (exercising and eating healthy) and it's coming off quick?

JenniferO1982

MFP automatically calculates a deficit for you—so not eating back your calories increases the deficit. I suggest eating them back. You need the energy if you are working hard, and it will help prevent your body from going into starvation mode. With only 9 pounds to lose (after losing 81), I find that I CANNOT have less than a 500 calorie deficit, or else my weight loss stalls. So if I exercise, I basically have to eat them back. It wasn't always the case, but certainly it is now.

Hope that helps:)

roxie0920

so you don't lose muscle as you lose weight
To feel better,
to have more energy
so you are not "skinny fat" thin with high BF%
to become stronger,
to become faster,
need I go on

You eat those cals to give you the energy your body requires from working out. Eating 1300 cals and not working out is the same at eating 1700 cals and burning 400 as 1700-400 = 1300.

Do you ever wonder how many times you're going to have to post this same exact information?

choley222

I think the whole subject of eating the calories back is a preference and you have to see what works for you. I never eat my calories back, I never have and never will. I see my doctor on a regular basis and she knows what I am eating and how much I exercise so I am not doing anything she doesn't approve of. I also work with a personal trainer who agrees to lose weight you need to burn more than you are taking in. The point of exercising is many reasons but one of the top is heart health. When you strength train you build lean muscle that burns fat so you will lose weight quicker. Can you lose weight without exercise, yes you can. You will not be toned and you will have loose skin if you have a lot to lose. I would suggest at least something even if it's only 30 minutes a day.

stormieweather

Because skinny fat is not the look I"m going for :glasses:

anubis609

http://shouldieatmyexercisecalories.com

It has been done.

cupcakecarnivore

For heart health, general health overall, lower cholesterol, endorphins, and so you don't end up looking skinny fat with no muscle tone!

rockabyesarojane

Because skinny fat is not the look I"m going for :glasses:

amen!

baghdaddymama

When you exercise your going to be building your muscle, giving yourself endurance and buring off "bad fat and calories" and junk that you have in your body that you don't want to have there in the first place. Then when you go to eat, your going to be changing your lifestyle all together because the things you put "in" your body will be what your body needs to replenish and keep on growing into a more healthier you. Hope this makes sense. Pretty much out with the bad in with the good and grow you go

frb2012

.

shanhawk

Exercise helps you feel good, build lean muscle, it decreases stress and it's good for you. You eat your exercise cals back because your body needs it to function properly!! The more you do the more "fuel" your body needs. You don't have to eat back all of them every day unless you want to...but you should eat back enough to be at a min. of 1200 net cals.