Question for those that have doen this a while

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I've always wondered about exercising and eating the calories you eat

so if I were to burn 800 calories I am 'supposed' to eat 800 more to be healthy? or should I not eat the xtra

Replies

  • AtlantisFish
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    I've always wondered about exercising and eating the calories you eat

    so if I were to burn 800 calories I am 'supposed' to eat 800 more to be healthy? or should I not eat the xtra
  • DjBliss05
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    Yup, you should eat the calories. You don't want your body to go into starvation mode because you aren't eatting enough.

    You might want to check out the newbie thread for more details.

    :flowerforyou:
  • ranhound
    ranhound Posts: 59 Member
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    It doesn't sound right to still eat so much but apparently you have to train your body gradually. Indeed if you just all of the sudden stop or severely reduce your caloric intake, your body doesn't know that you are on a "diet". It doesn't know what a "diet" is. It sees that there is a sudden change and works to keep your status quo. So if one just goes on these little calorie dives they will be teaching the body to hold on to the fat to protect it from the possibility that meals are harder to come by now. It is like an ancient survival mechanism that God programmed into our body. Apparently it is a slow and gradual re-education. I say apparently because I also am a newbie.

    Good Luck!:drinker:
    89050.png
    Created by MyFitnessPal.com - Free Diet Journal
  • Fitness_Chick
    Fitness_Chick Posts: 6,648 Member
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    It doesn't sound right to still eat so much but apparently you have to train your body gradually. Indeed if you just all of the sudden stop or severely reduce your caloric intake, your body doesn't know that you are on a "diet". It doesn't know what a "diet" is. It sees that there is a sudden change and works to keep your status quo. So if one just goes on these little calorie dives they will be teaching the body to hold on to the fat to protect it from the possibility that meals are harder to come by now. It is like an ancient survival mechanism that God programmed into our body. Apparently it is a slow and gradual re-education. I say apparently because I also am a newbie.

    Good Luck!:drinker:
    89050.png
    Created by MyFitnessPal.com - Free Diet Journal
    http://www.myfitnesspal.com/post/new/10589-for-those-confused-or-questioning-eating-your-exercise-calo
  • Fitness_Chick
    Fitness_Chick Posts: 6,648 Member
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    :bigsmile:
  • Fitness_Chick
    Fitness_Chick Posts: 6,648 Member
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    I've always wondered about exercising and eating the calories you eat

    so if I were to burn 800 calories I am 'supposed' to eat 800 more to be healthy? or should I not eat the xtra
    http://www.myfitnesspal.com/post/new/10589-for-those-confused-or-questioning-eating-your-exercise-calo

    Great thread to educate yourself on the importance of eating those excercise calories!
  • may_marie
    may_marie Posts: 667 Member
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    Yes you should BUT

    lets do some maths.,,

    lets say that on a normal day without workout you burn 2000 cal(that called bmr (basal metabolic rate + normal daily activity, you can find that in your goal section of mfp) . that means that by hour you burn (2000/24=about 84) 84 cal/h so, instead on sitting on your couch you decide to go work out, that means that you burn 800 cal in 1 hour, well dont forget that you would have been sitting on your couch burning calories too. so you have to substract 84 from your total,

    i dont eat allllll my calories back ,, i like to round up the numbers as well and always do it to the lowest number,

    mfp doesnt calculate it that way but it makes sense to me since you havent magicaly added an hour to your day

    btw, thanks viviakay for those explainations a while back

    may