Eat exercise calories when full already?

forJupiter

Hey guys,

So I've got a basic question. I've eaten 4 meals today 1000 calories, burned 400 at the gym and have a net of 600. I honestly am very satisfied with my meals and am not hungry or tired. But I can easily stuff my face with another 200 calories to fufill the 1200 calorie minimum requirements for the day but eating another 600 in the next hour or two to meet my exercise calories plus the 200 to meet he daily requirement just seems impossible to me. Not to mention - why would I eat if I'm full? This has happened to me before and I was wondering what you all have done in this instance and if this is detrimental to my work?

Thanks!

xraychick77

dont eat them..its not a rule that you must eat them..but a myth and personal preference.

if you are full dont force feed yourself..your body tells you what it needs

Celo24

Don't force feed yourself. This late, you can't really do anything. What you do need to do in the future is plan ahead. When you know you are going to work out, eat more throughout the day so you don't run into this problem. It IS important to eat your exercise calories in order to give your body the fuel it needs to function properly on a daily basis. If you have additional questions about why eating those calories is so important, read the links in my signature. Good luck!

AllyV0621

agreed. if your body is saying you're full then theres no way you'd go into "starvation mode"

jamielise2

Having the occasional day where your calories are lower or higher will not hurt you. Just don't make it a habit and you'll be fine.

forJupiter

Awesome thanks you guys. I felt silly wondering this.

Rodneymc4

I had the same dilemma. I listened to the advice given about eating back exercise calories...so I tried it. I found that eating food when I was not hungry caused me to lose weight at a slower pace than I had been losing before I started eating food for the sake of reaching a number. Rarely, am I hungry enough to eat the amount of food suggested by MFP. I work out a lot (six days a week) at a high intensity for 90 minutes or more. My body will tell me when it needs or wants more food than I am providing. I rarely eat the suggested calories earned from exercise, so I over compensate my protein intake just to ensure that I am getting enough protein to continue building muscle. If you look at my food diary you will see that I don't reach my daily goal, but exceed my protein recommendation. I'm losing weight, retaining muscle and getting stronger with my heavy lifting.

I think it's trial and error. I suggest you experiment with both ways and do whatever satisfies your weight lost goals. I tried both ways and I'm going with eating when my body says, "feed me".

pandafoo

I agree with JamieLise, an occasional day being under or over will not make a difference in the long run. But if you're consistently eating way below 1200 and exercising a lot, then your body might hold onto fat more easily... and start burning muscle. so even if you lose weight, more of the loss may come from muscle than if you'd eaten enough for your body to function well. rodney brings up an interesting point in compensating for being under his calorie goal by eating more protein to continue building muscle. it's something to consider.

listening to your body's cues for hunger is good to do. but hunger is an interesting thing. initially, when we drop our caloric intake by a lot, we will feel enormous hunger pangs because we're not used to it. but as our body adjusts to the new calorie level, our stomach will shrink so it will take less food for us to feel full. conversely, once we raise our calorie intake by a lot, initially we may feel stuffed and uncomfortable, but as our stomach stretches out, we will need more food to feel full.

while i generally agree with not eating if you're not hungry, i also believe it's more important for our bodies to get enough fuel. so if you look at your nutritional intake and notice a trend of being way under the recommended 1200 calories (and maybe a dietician can help you evaluate your diet), it might be worthwhile to consider eating an extra snack throughout the day, even if you're not feeling hungry. then over time as your body and stomach adjust to the higher caloric intake, you will naturally want to eat more to feel satisfied. just some food for thought. it's always nice to see the scale go down, and quickly of course! however, i think it's more important to do it in a healthy manner while minimizing the loss of lean muscle mass. i would want that for you and everyone here.