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How many calories should I eat back?

Finney88
Finney88 Posts: 46 Member
edited September 2024 in Fitness and Exercise
Just a little advice needed. I burned a little over 650 calories today...do I have to eat back all of them? I sure hope not because, that leaves me with almost 1000 left to eat today.

Replies

  • dez_yaoichan
    dez_yaoichan Posts: 454
    as long as you end with a total of 1200 or more, you don't have to eat them all back. but less then 1200 can send your body into starvation mode and actually make you gain.
  • JennsLosing
    JennsLosing Posts: 1,026
    it depends...if your not wearing a HRM dont eat back all of them, because the machines and MFP over exaggerates calorie burn, by alot, so ive heard.
  • JennsLosing
    JennsLosing Posts: 1,026
    AND i tend to only eat back my calories if im hungry. if im not hungry i dont eat all of them back.
  • kellyscomeback
    kellyscomeback Posts: 1,369 Member
    As much as you can. I try to net around 1200 calories a day. Some days I burn a lot with 2 high intensity workouts but I still make an effort to eat back as many as possible.
  • Clew
    Clew Posts: 910 Member
    The verdict is out on this ... nobody seems to agree on what the right answer is. I try to stick with eating half of them back myself, if I eat any of them...
  • JennyPenny1981
    JennyPenny1981 Posts: 12
    I got a heart rate monitor today and did my workout to see how close to what MFP said and my heart rate monitor. For walking it was within 5 calories. So that isn't bad. I would say to eat about 75 % back. So at 650, 75% would be about 480.
  • Mrs_TrimWaistFatWallet
    Mrs_TrimWaistFatWallet Posts: 486
    Haha eat back what you really feel you need. That seems to work for me. Some days Ill burn 4,000 calories and only eat 2,500. I just don't/can't stuff myself, but I make sure Im getting adequate pro/carb for the day.

    Maybe at the end of the day, look at what you're missing: carb/pro/fat? Then, if you're still hungry or really depleted, thats where you focus on adding back some of them.
  • Danahimself
    Danahimself Posts: 279 Member
    AND i tend to only eat back my calories if im hungry. if im not hungry i dont eat all of them back.

    I would say I do the same
  • Mrs_TrimWaistFatWallet
    Mrs_TrimWaistFatWallet Posts: 486
    Ive never seen a study show that eating less than 1200 makes you gain weight. Not true. As long as you get your basic intake requirements and try to meet pro/carb/fat intake levels, don't worry 'Omg if I dont eat any back Im going to starve and gain weight omg'

    Good luck! :)
    as long as you end with a total of 1200 or more, you don't have to eat them all back. but less then 1200 can send your body into starvation mode and actually make you gain.
  • sorrelduncan
    sorrelduncan Posts: 69 Member
    I don't ever have this problem - I am almost always hungry for all my workout calories. Some days I do an extra work out just to have more calories to eat! Ha!


    SW: 145 - January 2011
    CW: 135
    GW: 120

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  • clean115
    clean115 Posts: 59
    No you don't have to.
    What i would do is eat only what I am hungry for.
    But that's just me, I'm not an expert
  • Nomomush
    Nomomush Posts: 582 Member
    My trainer said NO!!!
This discussion has been closed.

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