Does anyone eat the calories that they are allotted from exe

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risefromruin
risefromruin Posts: 483 Member
in Food and Nutrition
I've been using MFP for quite awhile but I've never actually figured this out. If you're trying to actively lose weight, should you not eat the extra calories that MFP adds to your daily allotment after you record your exercise?
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  • acullen31
    acullen31 Posts: 87 Member
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    Well everyone says something different but I feel like you shouldnt if you are trying to loose weight. Why eat the calories that you burn?!?
  • cherryburton
    cherryburton Posts: 18 Member
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    I'm not sure, I've wondered this. I guess so long as you've eaten a sensible amount you could choose not to eat them? You don't want to go too low on the calories though. Not very helpful, am interested to see what other people say about this...
  • BECav0602
    BECav0602 Posts: 200 Member
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    You should since MFP already calculates a calorie deficit when you set your goals. Ex)I want to lose 1lb a week. MFP has already calculated in the 500 calorie deficit needed to lose 1lb a week. If I work out and burn 500 calories I am at a 1000 calorie deficit for the day. You don't have to eat them all back but be sure to stay at or above 1200 NET Calories. If you don't your body will eventually go into starvation mode and hang on to fat. Hope this helps!
  • thecanface
    thecanface Posts: 1,180 Member
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    my friend sent this to me once... it made so much sense...

    http://shouldieatmyexercisecalories.com/
  • jrueckert
    jrueckert Posts: 355 Member
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    Please search this topic in the forums. There are WAY TOO many about this subject already...
  • Dahlface13
    Dahlface13 Posts: 65 Member
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    My personal strategy is to net no less than 1200 a day. Some days I eat all my calories and don't exercise so that's around 1400. Today I was going to be short a few calories then I added in a 30 day shred routine so I plan on snagging a single serving cup of skinny cow ice cream as a treat and to get me back up to 1200. But, as long as you are healthy about it, to each their own!
  • bethrs
    bethrs Posts: 664 Member
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    People do it both ways.

    The reason MFP gives them back is MFP sets you up with a deficit in your calories to reach your weight loss goal WITHOUT exercise. So when you exercise you increase that deficit. That will mean you will lose more weight OR you can eat those back and stay on track for the goal you set.

    My only real advice is to try to shoot for a reasonable net calories each day (what you consumed- exercise). A nice number is usually 1200 but that doesn't work for everyone. Most likely a net of 200-500 is going to be too low for most folks. JMO.

    HTH.
  • vayax
    vayax Posts: 152 Member
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    I think it depends on how much calories you are bunring during exercise. This is what has worked for me: if I burn 250+/- I don't eat the extra calories.... If I burn more than 400 I eat around half of them, otherwise you are creating too much of a deficit.
  • theMightyAnt
    theMightyAnt Posts: 75
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    Edit: Re-reading I was a little unclear, let me clarify.

    In theory you should. I asked a friend who is a nutritionist and personal trainer, she suggests to her clients to eat AT THE VERY LEAST half back eg:
    1600 daily cals, 800 burned on exercise. Eat half that back to get 2000+cals.
    You could get very hungry otherwise and lower your metabolism which in turn will make it harder to burn the fat.

    As mentioned above MFP already calculates the loss you are aiming for. Without factoring in exercise. Therefore you absolutely MUST eat some back (I know initially you will lose weight without doing this but this is temporary and one of the of the major causes of plateau's and as well as being unhealthy makes you work a lot harder than you need to to lose weight, you don't want that do you?

    Often people only get past this plateau and start dropping weight quickly again when they raise their calorie intake, which I know seems completely illogical until you find all the science behind it. More info on that here (this is the best post I have seen)
    http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/10589-for-those-confused-or-questioning-eating-your-exercise-calo
  • JMCade
    JMCade Posts: 389 Member
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    Absolutely! I always do! If you exercise, you need to re-fuel because you deplete your nutrients. 1200 cals a day and no exercise at all will even allow you to lose weight. if you don't eat them back, your body may go into starvation mode and hold onto all your weight. Eating right and exercising will boost your metabolism and make you burn more fat.
  • KG706
    KG706 Posts: 6
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    Brandilee81's explanation is right on.

    I eat some. If I have a particularly intense workout, generally my allotted calories just don't cut it for me. But, then some days I don't touch them. It depends. Or, if I have a situation when I know in advance I want to treat myself, I try to bank some exercise calories so I don't go too far over. I'm still losing - generally a 1.5 - 2 pounds a week and that is fine with me.
  • sechere710
    sechere710 Posts: 8
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    I usually eat those extra calories through some form of protein because your muscles need those nutrients to help recover. I know that it is all about creating a calorie-deficit but it doesn't hurt to eat some of those calories back. Remember what they give you to start the day is the calorie MINIMUM your body needs to run basic metabolic processes. Exercising only increases those needs so it's fine to incorporate that.
  • bethdris
    bethdris Posts: 1,090 Member
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    I've been on here for almost 3 months and have yet to eat back any exercise calories. That has worked until now. Well I may have to change that. My net is usually under 1000 a day. Not b/c I do it on purpose, its b/c I eat about 1100 a day and exercise. I usually burn about 500 or so calories a day. This week I'm on a plateau, so I gotta change something up.
  • AshleyAN2011
    AshleyAN2011 Posts: 10
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    There is soo Much controversy on this topic it is plain ridiculous..
    I was researching this for a while and found a good point to both sides.
    Here is what i came up with based on everyone's comments, internet research and talking to a trainer.
    If you have a higher BMI and are quite a ways away from your goal weight you DO NOT need to eat back your exercise calories. It's okay to eat back some of them if you had a high calorie burning workout and burned like 800 calories. But when you do eat some of them back.. eat them back with energizing foods that are healthy for you to fuel your body back up from your workout.

    If your BMI and body fat percentage is higher, your body can tolerate a higher calorie deficit. However once you have started getting within the last 40 or so lbs towards your goal weight you might start to plateau (meaning just staying the same weight) When or of this occurs.. you should exercise a little bit more and also fuel your body with more HEALTHY calories. I have only been on here for about 2 weeks and I was wondering the same thing...

    Also.. a friend of mine is a trainer and he says as females we need to keep our net calories at about 1100-1200 calories a day. other wise we will crash, it might not be right away but it will happen eventually..

    So no don't eat them back at first and yes eat them back later...

    I am no expert but this is what i have collected overall, and i hope it helps you out..
  • up2me2lose20
    up2me2lose20 Posts: 360 Member
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    Like the others said...there have been oodles of posts on this and the opinion varies. It's important to remember, though, that MFP already creates a calorie deficit into your allowed calories for the day. Think of it like a hole in the ground...the hole is your calorie deficit...you exercise and dig a bigger hole...you need to fuel up again for the hole not to collapse. Ok, maybe that only makes sense ro me. But I try to eat my exercise calories. At least within a 100 cals or so. If I don't, I am hungry. I lost 32lbs in 5 months, though, so something must have worked for me. Now that I'm trying to maintain rather than lose, it's been harder to eat that many calories. But I still do try -- but with good clean foods for the most part, and not junk or "diet" food.
  • risefromruin
    risefromruin Posts: 483 Member
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    Thank you for all the input! I think I shall just continue what I've been doing...eating the calories back if I'm hungry! No hunger...no food. :)
  • jofjltncb6
    jofjltncb6 Posts: 34,415 Member
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    MFP already builds in a deficit into your daily calories. To not eat back exercise calories creates an even bigger, and a potentially problematic deficit. For anyone to suggest that you shouldn't eat back at least a conservative estimate of your additional exercise calories is "wrong" and tells me they don't understand how the MFP model works.
  • CrankMeUp
    CrankMeUp Posts: 2,860 Member
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    MFP already builds in a deficit into your daily calories. To not eat back exercise calories creates an even bigger, and a potentially problematic deficit. For anyone to suggest that you shouldn't eat back at least a conservative estimate of your additional exercise calories is "wrong" and tells me they don't understand how the MFP model works.

    ^this
  • PikaKnight
    PikaKnight Posts: 34,971 Member
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    MFP already builds in a deficit into your daily calories. To not eat back exercise calories creates an even bigger, and a potentially problematic deficit. For anyone to suggest that you shouldn't eat back at least a conservative estimate of your additional exercise calories is "wrong" and tells me they don't understand how the MFP model works.

    ^This. And the MFP model can be found on your goals page. It is designed for its users to eat back their exercise calories.
  • billsica
    billsica Posts: 4,741 Member
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    I've been on here for almost 3 months and have yet to eat back any exercise calories. That has worked until now. Well I may have to change that. My net is usually under 1000 a day. Not b/c I do it on purpose, its b/c I eat about 1100 a day and exercise. I usually burn about 500 or so calories a day. This week I'm on a plateau, so I gotta change something up.

    I believe the term you are looking for is starving yourself.

    You need to be accurate with your logging and your workouts in all this. nothing is going to be 100% so you have to just kinda go with it. Scale and HRM can help.

    MFP makes it real easy too. If your number is green, eat. Red, stop.

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