Why does my calorie amount increase if I exercise?

shesgrand

Am I supposed to eat the extra calories added to my daily amount? I thought that in order to lose weight you need to stay at the same calorie intake and not increase it? Does it hinder weight loss? How does it work? Can someone please explain this because I don't really get it. Thank you!!

CMmrsfloyd

When you put in your height/weight/etc and then tell MFP what your goal is, if you tell it you want to lose weight, it automatically builds in a deficit to help you meet that weightloss goal without having to do any extra exercise. For example, my maintenance calorie needs are calculated at 1710 calories per day based on my weight and activity level, I told MFP I want to lose 1 lb per week so it has given me a goal of 1210 calories per day. That gives me an automatic 500 calorie deficit each day, which over the course of the week adds up to a 3500 calorie deficit which is exactly what's needed in order for me to lose 1 lb per week, just like I asked MFP to help me accomplish. So, on the days that I exercise, if I burn say 500 calories, MFP automatically ups my goal to 1710. The reason? Well, to lose 1 lb per week, I need 1210 calories per day, but if I exercise then MFP assumes I need extra energy to sustain that added level of activity. So in order to still lose 1 lb per week like I asked, I need to eat more calories or else my 'net' calories (amount consumed minus amount burned through exercise) goes below the 1210 goal that it gave me. I chose 1 lb per week b/c it was the 'recommended' amount, plus as you can see from where I am right now, there really is not *that* much room for me to play with trying to have a much larger deficit to try and lose more weight. MFP will not give you a calorie goal any lower than 1200 per day, that's just the lowest it will tell anyone to go, so my 1 lb per week goal fits in quite nicely with what the system will support anyway. And since my goal is so low (compared to how much I used to eat before joining LOL) I take it as motivation to exercise so that I *can* earn those extra calories - for bigger meals, extra snacks, etc.

Some people religiously eat *all* of their exercise calories, some eat just part of them, some don't eat them at all. Everyone has their reasons and they are quite varied. The way that MFP is set up, the system says that you need to eat those calories b/c you would have been at a deficit before you ever worked out at all. It's quite the debated topic on this site. One reason that people cite in favor of eating the exercise calories is that you don't want to risk losing muscle mass instead of fat in the weightloss process. One reason that people cite in favor of not eating them is that they want to lose weight faster. Everyone has an opinion, it's up to you to decide what you're going to do.

P.S. I've been doing this for a little over 3 months now, and I've *usually* eaten *most* of my exercise calories - sometimes a little bit more, sometimes less depending on the day, and I've lose 23 lbs in those 3 months (from 165 down to 142 so far). Only 17 left to go to get to my ultimate goal. I did start out with a 2 lb per week weightloss goal but eventually revised it to 1 lb per week since it's more realistic for my current stats. So for me, staying fairly close to the MFP recommendations has worked out really well. Once again, everyone has an opinion, that's mine and that's how it's worked for me. I'm not super strict about it, I have days that I am over and days that I am under, but it all averages out in the end to be pretty close to what MFP recommends.

moushtie

Mrsfloyd - I think that post should be required reading for this site

rharris86dc

I'm pretty sure there's a section of the site that explains all this, but here goes:

Your calorie goal that MFP sets is already at a defecit. So if you stuck to that calorie amount, you would lose weight, even without exercise. Granted, it would take much longer.

So when you exercise, you get those calories back so your defecit isn't too big. When exercising to lose weight, you need to eat to fuel your workouts and then help repair and recover.

Not everyone will consume any or all of their exercise calories, and it's a hotly debated topic on the forums. Just find out what works for you, and what is sustainable, and you will be fine.

Good luck!

karinaes

wow.
well, you need calories to expend them. and the reason why your calories increase after you exercise, is so your body doesn't go into starvation mode. if you just slash your calories and exercise ontop of that ... your metabolism will slow down, your body will probably won't be at a healthy/balanced homeostasis, hormones change ...etc. etc.
and your body will lose muscle mass!! AND if you gain weight back
(which you probably will if you are starving your body and bodies can only handle being starved for so long),
the weight will come from fat mass ... as opposed to a good balance of fat & muscle mass..
the body needs tons of GOOD fats, protein and GOOD carbohydrates to repair itself ... especially after working out.

so.. having a huge deficit in calories is BAD for you and WON'T give you nearly as great results as you would if you ate plenty in good/healthy food

ksloop00

There's a lot of debate over this. I personally don't eat my exercise calories back. I agree with you, to lose weight you need to exercise more and eat less. This may be kind of mean, but it makes sense, my dietician said that "Saying it's ok to eat your exercise calories is something fat people say so they feel better about eating more than they should." I totally agree with that statement. Good luck on your weightloss!!

LorinaLynn

The amount you *say* you're going to exercise when you fill out your profile doesn't get factored into your calorie goal unless and until you *do* the exercise. That way, you'll lose weight whether you do what you say you're going to do, or not.

I've personally always used at least most of the calories earned from exercise, and I'm thrilled beyond words at my results. This is the only time I've ever successfully lost weight, and I know it's because in past attempts, I wasn't eating nearly enough.

karinaes

you need to see what your BMR is.. which is basically the bare minimum of calories you need a day to survive
(if you didn't do any type of exercise, not even daily activity)
mine is 1200 calories.. and i'm 123.5 at 5' 3.5" ..

karinaes

There's a lot of debate over this. I personally don't eat my exercise calories back. I agree with you, to lose weight you need to exercise more and eat less. This may be kind of mean, but it makes sense, my dietician said that "Saying it's ok to eat your exercise calories is something fat people say so they feel better about eating more than they should." I totally agree with that statement. Good luck on your weightloss!!

i'm no where near fat and i eat my calories back.. most of them anyway.

bizco

MFP has a built-in calorie deficit whether you exercise or not. So if you log exercise on any given day you need to eat the earned (extra) calories to maintain the same calorie deficit.

See the link below, it will help you.

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

In addition, click on the link in my signature "links you want to read again and again."

CMmrsfloyd

Mrsfloyd - I think that post should be required reading for this site

That's very nice of you to say. :-)

suzieduh

When you put in your height/weight/etc and then tell MFP what your goal is, if you tell it you want to lose weight, it automatically builds in a deficit to help you meet that weightloss goal without having to do any extra exercise. For example, my maintenance calorie needs are calculated at 1710 calories per day based on my weight and activity level, I told MFP I want to lose 1 lb per week so it has given me a goal of 1210 calories per day. That gives me an automatic 500 calorie deficit each day, which over the course of the week adds up to a 3500 calorie deficit which is exactly what's needed in order for me to lose 1 lb per week, just like I asked MFP to help me accomplish. So, on the days that I exercise, if I burn say 500 calories, MFP automatically ups my goal to 1710. The reason? Well, to lose 1 lb per week, I need 1210 calories per day, but if I exercise then MFP assumes I need extra energy to sustain that added level of activity. So in order to still lose 1 lb per week like I asked, I need to eat more calories or else my 'net' calories (amount consumed minus amount burned through exercise) goes below the 1210 goal that it gave me. I chose 1 lb per week b/c it was the 'recommended' amount, plus as you can see from where I am right now, there really is not *that* much room for me to play with trying to have a much larger deficit to try and lose more weight. MFP will not give you a calorie goal any lower than 1200 per day, that's just the lowest it will tell anyone to go, so my 1 lb per week goal fits in quite nicely with what the system will support anyway. And since my goal is so low (compared to how much I used to eat before joining LOL) I take it as motivation to exercise so that I *can* earn those extra calories - for bigger meals, extra snacks, etc.

Some people religiously eat *all* of their exercise calories, some eat just part of them, some don't eat them at all. Everyone has their reasons and they are quite varied. The way that MFP is set up, the system says that you need to eat those calories b/c you would have been at a deficit before you ever worked out at all. It's quite the debated topic on this site. One reason that people cite in favor of eating the exercise calories is that you don't want to risk losing muscle mass instead of fat in the weightloss process. One reason that people cite in favor of not eating them is that they want to lose weight faster. Everyone has an opinion, it's up to you to decide what you're going to do.

P.S. I've been doing this for a little over 3 months now, and I've *usually* eaten *most* of my exercise calories - sometimes a little bit more, sometimes less depending on the day, and I've lose 23 lbs in those 3 months (from 165 down to 142 so far). Only 17 left to go to get to my ultimate goal. So for me, staying fairly close to the MFP recommendations has worked out really well. Once again, everyone has an opinion, that's mine and that's how it's worked for me. I'm not super strict about it, I have days that I am over and days that I am under, but it all averages out in the end to be pretty close to what MFP recommends.

That is simply the best answer I have heard on this topic.

3dogsrunning

There's a lot of debate over this. I personally don't eat my exercise calories back. I agree with you, to lose weight you need to exercise more and eat less. This may be kind of mean, but it makes sense, my dietician said that "Saying it's ok to eat your exercise calories is something fat people say so they feel better about eating more than they should." I totally agree with that statement. Good luck on your weightloss!!

I am sorry, but some days I burn over 1000 calories. If my maintainance rate is 1950 and MPF sets me up for a 500 calorie deficit of 1450, after burning those 1000 calories, that leaves my body 450 calories, far too low. That isn't making me feel better about eating more than I should, it is being healthy. If I continue not eating at least some of those calories, I am not going to be able to continue to do that type of activity.
Then again, my focus is on feeding my body and being healthy more than losing weight as fast as possible.


PS - just because some people have a few pounds to lose, doesn't make them "fat".

ETA- I agree with the others, one of those first answers, the long one, answered best.

rharris86dc

There's a lot of debate over this. I personally don't eat my exercise calories back. I agree with you, to lose weight you need to exercise more and eat less. This may be kind of mean, but it makes sense, my dietician said that "Saying it's ok to eat your exercise calories is something fat people say so they feel better about eating more than they should." I totally agree with that statement. Good luck on your weightloss!!

I don't think you or your dietician understand how this site works, then.

CMmrsfloyd

There's a lot of debate over this. I personally don't eat my exercise calories back. I agree with you, to lose weight you need to exercise more and eat less. This may be kind of mean, but it makes sense, my dietician said that "Saying it's ok to eat your exercise calories is something fat people say so they feel better about eating more than they should." I totally agree with that statement. Good luck on your weightloss!!

I don't think you or your dietician understand how this site works, then.

That is definitely an issue some people sometimes run into with their trainers, dr's, nutritionists, dieticians, etc. There are other weightloss websites/programs out there that operate differently than MFP - they give you a calorie number 'maximum' and then want you to exercise to burn off extra calories. MFP gives you a calorie goal that is more of a 'minimum' or target to get as close to as possible, it automatically builds in the deficit so that when you exercise, you have truly 'earned' the ability to eat those extra calories and still stay on target with the goals you have set. It sort of does things a bit backwards of what some other sites/programs do it, so that exercise is not actually *necessary* for weightloss - you could just go about your normal daily activities and stick to your calorie goal and you would lose weight without ever stepping into a gym or lacing up running shoes. The MFP goal is basically a 'here's what you need to eat if you're not going to bother exercising' goal. If you exercise, MFP is like 'Wow, great work! You actually exercised even though you don't have to to meet your goals! As a reward, how about you go eat a snack?' LOL

CMmrsfloyd

You guys are too nice. :-D Other people can probably explain it better than me, but I've been reading those responses for awhile now and that's the best I could come up with right now. :-)

inspiration345

If fat people are exercising that in itself is great. After that even if they eat their exercise calories back and not lose any weight they will still be way healthier than a person who keeps their weight low by dieting only.

bizco

There's a lot of debate over this. I personally don't eat my exercise calories back. I agree with you, to lose weight you need to exercise more and eat less. This may be kind of mean, but it makes sense, my dietician said that "Saying it's ok to eat your exercise calories is something fat people say so they feel better about eating more than they should." I totally agree with that statement. Good luck on your weightloss!!

This is a portion from the link in my signature "a guide to calorie deficits"

And to everyone who has a trainer that doesn't agree with eating your exercise calories. I also submit this: In 90% of the cases (and I have talked to a LOT of trainers about this exact topic) they actually DO agree with this method, you just explained it wrong.
Just saying to a trainer "should I eat my exercise calories?" isn't enough, you have to explain to them that MFP already generates a deficit prior to any exercise, therefore the deficit will remain whether you exercise or not. Once you give them that idea, and you are relatively sure they understand the concept then I'll bet they change their tune.

Sidesteal

. This may be kind of mean, but it makes sense, my dietician said that "Saying it's ok to eat your exercise calories is something fat people say so they feel better about eating more than they should."

Almost all other maintenace calorie estimation tools are exercise-inclusive. In other words, MFP is somewhat different in that you manually track exercise calories with the assumption that you're eating them back.

I'm willing to bet that your dietician is not aware of how MFP excludes exercise from maintenance levels. Outside of MFP calcs, your dietician is most likely correct. However, using MFP's recommendations for intake and then NOT eating back at least a portion of exercise cals, is horrible advice for anyone concerned with long term success, and overall health.

teacherspet1

MRSFLOYD..........A GREAT BIG BRITISH THANKYOU TO YOU...........YOU HAVE CLEARED THAT PROBLEM UP AND IN PLAIN ENGLISH TOO !!!:bigsmile: :bigsmile: :bigsmile:
HATS OFF TO YOU MATE !!:drinker:

michelledruss

Great answer Mrs. Floyd, I try to eat most of my exercise calories back too. I am on 1200 calories a day without working out which leaves me no room for a meal if I am hungry - so exercising is a great way for me to have substantial satisfying meals.

shesgrand

Wow! that was a fabulously understandable and clear explanation, Thank you for taking the time to explain.