Do I eat exercise calories?

ljbhill

Hi All,

I need some advice... Do you eat your exercise calories when zig zagging? My set calorie intake for weight loss is 1200 calories.

So here's what zig zagging will look like for me-

Monday- 1000
Tuesday- 1400
Wednesday-1000

And so on... BUT... Do I eat my exercise calories? Usually I do. Is it the same when zig zagging? So for example-

Monday- 1000 (+100 calories from exercising)= 1100
Tuesday- 1400 (+200 calories from exercising)= 1600

Any advice would be appreciated!

jah1165

im curious about this also

jfinnivan

I always eat half my exercise calories.

ajbeans

I assume you would, yes, because even with zigzagging, you're shooting for a *net* calorie goal, not a fixed one.

katkins3

bump

JennLifts

because it has you doing 1000 on 2 or more days, that's quite low, so i would definitely eat them back.

skinnylove00

YES EAT ALL YOUR EXERCISE CALORIES haha i am tired of people asking this! its in the faqs of mfp!

amandakoorime

Many people say different things. When I was on Weight Watchers, I was told conflicting information as well.

When you eat your exercise calories you may still loose weight. When you don't eat, you may end up loosing more weight than before.

I guess it comes down to whatever you prefer. If you like the extra calories, have fun, eat them. Or you can let them sit there and see if you loose more.

Note: I try not to eat any of mine. I find, for me, it helps me keep a consitant lose considering what I try to eat.

erickirb

Hi All,

I need some advice... Do you eat your exercise calories when zig zagging? My set calorie intake for weight loss is 1200 calories.

So here's what zig zagging will look like for me-

Monday- 1000
Tuesday- 1400
Wednesday-1000

And so on... BUT... Do I eat my exercise calories? Usually I do. Is it the same when zig zagging? So for example-

Monday- 1000 (+100 calories from exercising)= 1100
Tuesday- 1400 (+200 calories from exercising)= 1600

Any advice would be appreciated!

If you don't eat them than your intake should be set higher i.e. 1400 on low days, 1800 on your high day. But where you are set low for your zig zag, I would definitely eat them (or most of them) back.

morganadk2_deleted

http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/10589-for-those-confused-or-questioning-eating-your-exercise-calo

MzMiller1215

If your minimum calories per day is 1200, you should not go under that when zig zagging. Also, when you exercise, your body needs those calories in order to function properly. You will find that the greater deficiency in calories you eat under your minimum, the slower you will lose weight. When I exercise, I eat about half of the exercise calories I earn and I have consistently lost 1 pound per week.

DeadZip2010

YES, AND SPREAD THE WORD. the formula MFP uses is based on NET calories. so if you DONT EAT what you burn, you MIGHT NOT BE EATING ENOUGH. then your metabolism slows and your body DOESNT BURN AS WELL and STARTS TO STORE CALORIES.

you dont have to eat them all back, but i try my best to eat back most of them.

RachelSRoach1

I rarely eat mine back and I average 1200 calories a day.

spyro88

I would eat them, but that's because I don't like to be hungry, and there is no way I would cope on 900 calories (your net for a 1000 day where you exercise).

I've found I need a net of at least 1,250 to feel comfortable, and I don't see the point in starving as this is not a diet, it's a lifestyle change

welloiledmachine

The only problem with eating back your exercise calories is that those numbers might be off. I don't think it's a good idea to zig-zag with only 1000 calories, but that's mho. If you are already losing weight and have a good idea that your work out calories are pretty accurate, then I'd eat back those calories or at least half of them. You will be able to tell after a week if what you are doing is working. If you are set to lose 1 pound a week then your average daily caloric deficit will be around 500. Of course, I'm not a zig-zagger so this info might not be relevant.

dltacderas

What is zigzagging?

ljbhill

YES EAT ALL YOUR EXERCISE CALORIES haha i am tired of people asking this! its in the faqs of mfp!

I know but I wanted to clarify when zig zagging. Like I posted... usually I do eat them but when zig zagging I will already be eating 200 calories OVER my limit on some days and than to eat my exercise calories on top of that... well it just seems like I'd be going over too much. I want to double check! :laugh:

time2runnn

I would, especially on your low days. Food is fuel, you wouldn't expect to get far on an empty gas tank, right? And if it helps any, as an example in my case, I discovered that when I had huge burns and didn't eat enough of my exercise calories back I had smaller losses-- not greater losses last month. This month I'm making an extra effort to keep my net as close to my daily goal and striking a better balance with my workouts. As a result the weight is starting to come back off steadily again. Good luck to you!

kapeluza

"K, this will be long. Please read it if you are confused. Disclaimer: I am not a dietician or a doctor, just a successful loser and maintainer, who has consulted both doctors and dieticians.

Question #1:

Should I eat all my calories?

Yes. MFP is already figuring a deficit for you to lose weight. This deficit is based on what you need to eat based on your everyday activity, not counting exercise. In the end, it's all about "net calories" (you can view yours under reports)

Example: you need to eat 2,000 calories to maintain your current weight (random number)
MFP will tell you to eat 1,500 to lose one pound per week (500x7=3500=one pound loss).

Let's say you exercise, and burn 500 additional calories.
UH-OH, now you are at a 1,000 calorie a day deficit. You need 2,000 calories to maintian, are already restricted to 1500, so now your net calories are a 1,000 a day. This is starvation central. Your body, which is very good at keeping you alive, will store and save calories. You WILL stop losing weight. You WILL want to throw your scale out the window.

Eat your exercise calories. At least eat most of them.

Question #2:
I'm eating 1200 calories, I feel like crap and I'm not losing weight. What gives?

Answer:
Run, don't walk, to "tools" and use the BMR calculator. Please, please, please, eat at least your BMR calories every day. You might lose weight more slowly, but you will still lose, and you will not longer feel a sudden urge to fall over every time you do, well, anything.

Question #3:
I'm doing "everything right" and the scale won't move.

Answer #1: The scale is the devil. Step away from the scale. Buy a tape measure, notice how your clothes are (probably) fitting better. Muscle is more dense than fat, and takes up less space on your body. More muscle on your body will make the scale freeze or (gasp) move upward.

Answer #2: You're not being honest. In order for this to work, you must record every morsel of food that goes in your body. Also, if you ride a stationary bike for 30 minutes and barely break a sweat and can still chatter on your cell phone (OK, that's my personal gym pet peeve) then you're probably not working "vigorously". Don't overestimate your exercise calories. (this was a big mistake I made in the past.)

Answer #3: Your body might be re-adjusting. How you feel is the most important mark of progress. It's very easy to fixate on numbers, but feeling better really should be its own reward.

Question #4:
So, if I'm eating my exercise calories, what's the point of exercise?

Answer: (warning: extremely opinionated answer ahead)
You don't. You can lose weight through diet alone. But, then you will be skinny and flabby. Is a model skinnier than me? OH, YES! Is she healthier than me? probably NOT. She couldn't survive the hour-long spin class that I take three times a week. Trust me. Her skin is a mess, she smokes, and she looks like crap in person. (this is a generalization. I don't hate models, but this is their lifestyle. . .I used to be a "dresser" at shows, and I saw a lot of "behind the scenes" stuff.

Does that help? Please say it does.flowerforyou"

ljbhill

Thanks for all your feedback. Deep breath and here I go!

Just ate a skinny cow ice-cream so that I could get to 1500 cals (eating back my 100 cals from exercise today).

1500 cals. Wow. Feels like such a lot (without the guilt) but I'll give this zig zagging a go!

Tomorrow aiming for 1100 cals and if I exercise, I'll eat more.

Wish me luck!

dltacderas

Good points!!!! Thankss!

e1izab3th2

I always eat extra calories. When I did WW, I always at flex points and activity points too and if I was actually follwing the program I always lost weight.