To Eat, or Not To Eat....

bcattoes

Exercise is not an effective method to lose weight. You're right, eating back your calories simply cancels out the calories burned. But there are other benefits to exercise that can aid in your weight loss efforts.

The thing that matters most is the diet. Quality is much more important than quantity, but obviously the quantity needs to work out such that a caloric deficit is created. But its easier to create that deficit with better quality foods because they will allow you to feel more energized and less hungry.

This would totally depend on what you were eating before you decided to lose weight. I didn't really adjust my diet at all. I eat the same now as I have for years. The only difference is that I exercise regularly now.

Panda_Path

I am just starting out, but I think I will keep some of my burned exercise calories in a "bank", and at the end of the week have an extra good-tasting but totally horrible-calories wise food to eat. So, my take is to do both :P. I don't walk to burn calories really, but to be active and have a chance to go outside when it isn't too cold. Just do what is best for YOUR body and YOUR lifestyle.

Stacyanne324

MFP is set up for you to eat your exercise calories. There is a lot of evidence to support it. That said I eat mine some days, some days I don't, and some days I eat a portion of them. I always try to net at least 1200 though unless I had a big calorie cheat day really recently.

grinch031

Exercise is not an effective method to lose weight. You're right, eating back your calories simply cancels out the calories burned. But there are other benefits to exercise that can aid in your weight loss efforts.

The thing that matters most is the diet. Quality is much more important than quantity, but obviously the quantity needs to work out such that a caloric deficit is created. But its easier to create that deficit with better quality foods because they will allow you to feel more energized and less hungry.

This would totally depend on what you were eating before you decided to lose weight. I didn't really adjust my diet at all. I eat the same now as I have for years. The only difference is that I exercise regularly now.

If you are overweight and try to use exercise to lose weight without changing the diet or restricting calories, chances are you will simply compensate by eating more and never lose any weight.

http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,1914974-1,00.html

Natley

I'm no expert but have been relatively successful in my lifestyle change so will give my opinion on this.

MFP already factors in a calorie deficit so if you then exercise and burn extra you create too high a deficit which in the long term is bad for your metabolism.

Also please remember that exercise has more benefits that just to burn calories such as building muscle, improving cardio vascular fitness, increased stamina and those fabulous feel good endorphins.

i agree

kyrstensmom

I sometimes eat mine back, but if so, only a percentage because even with a HRM you are only getting an estimate of calories burned. My loss is set to 1/2 lb a week, so if I am off even a little bit with my calorie estimations (both consumed and burned), then I end up not losing at all (which is what I am currently dealing with the past couple of weeks).

shaycat

I think if you ate back all the calories you burned you would never lose any weight. Worse if you eat bad like cookies or fast food, then tried to burn those calories off, I think you would end up gaining, even if you did not go over your "goal"
That is what I found with me, but maybe everyone is different.

mamagooskie

There is no set rule. I listen to my body and how I am feeling, If I am hungry I eat them, if I am not hungry I don't.

JNick77

MFP is set up for you to eat your exercise calories. There is a lot of evidence to support it.

There is also plenty of evidence to not support it. Evidence is in the eye of the beholder or better yet, in the eye of the person(s) supporting the research. Evidence isn't always evidence when it comes to research unfortunately. Too many people conducting research go into biased and do what they need to do to prove they're correct. Businesses do it too...

Find what works best for you.

Edit: One of my favorite nutritionists with a PH.D and significant experience in this field is Dr. John Berardi. He is actually pretty unbiased when he conducts his research and shows results. He most recently tested Intermittent Fasting, which he had been against for a while now. Google him when you have time, he discusses calorie output versus calorie intake too.

MistyNoble1987

Thanks so much for all the input! I will be listening to my body and if I'm hungry, I'll eat them,. If not, I'll let it be. Thanks again for all the good tips and input!

deniserenee_02

http://shouldieatmyexercisecalories.com/

TavistockToad

LOVE it!!!!!!!!!

marianne_s

Hi everyone!

Okay, I have been reading conflicting things on the whole eat your exercise calories or not to thing. My thing is, if we’re meant to eat our calories that we’ve burned off, what is the point of burning them off in the first place?

So, where I stand on it - don’t eat your exercise calories.

Where do you stand?

If you know how MFP works... then you would eat (some of) them back...

Do you understand what is written here?

---

>>> http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/186814-some-mfp-basics

BrendaLee

I eat them if I'm hungry, which I generally am. If I get a day in here and there when I don't need them, I take that as a bonus that helps to balance out the days I eat over my goal.

hbunting86

Exercise boosts your metabolism - therefore it makes sense to eat a proportion back. How much is entirely up to you, and the physiology of your body. If you're hungry and tired, eat.

There are multiple theories on this - do a search on the site and you'll probably get about a trillion hits...

Enjoy reading!

MaximalLife

Hi everyone!

Okay, I have been reading conflicting things on the whole eat your exercise calories or not to thing. My thing is, if we’re meant to eat our calories that we’ve burned off, what is the point of burning them off in the first place?

So, where I stand on it - don’t eat your exercise calories.

Where do you stand?

MFP calculates our total daily calorie intake WITHOUT exercise to lose 1 pound or so per week.
And after we log exercises, our daily calorie limit increases.
Why?
Because MFP telling us to eat our exercise calories.
Large deficits are unhealthy, because while you will lose weight, what's the quality of the weight loss?
In many cases you'll lose lean body mass - MUSCLE - which LOWERS your metabolic rate, making weight loss harder.
These crash diets work well for a season -- and sure enough, the pounds melt away. But when you eat so
few calories, you train your metabolism to slow down. Once the diet is over, you have a body that burns calories more slowly -- and you gain weight.
Be smart.
Exercise well both cardio and resistance, and eat back the calories.
The exercise will RAISE your metabolism and burn more fat at rest.

deadbeatsummer

Listen to your body...
are you hungry? >
No - Don't eat, Yes - Could you fill that hunger with fruit or veg? >
Yes - Go for it!, No - you may be having emotional food cravings for specific foods, hang in there.

funkycamper

I think if you ate back all the calories you burned you would never lose any weight. Worse if you eat bad like cookies or fast food, then tried to burn those calories off, I think you would end up gaining, even if you did not go over your "goal"
That is what I found with me, but maybe everyone is different.

Wow. Not at all what I've found. I eat back my exercise calories but not necessarily on the same day as I zig-zag my calories and have a weekly target, not a daily. I usually eat back most of those calories with a few big splurges throughout the week. And when I splurge, it's usually things like hamburgers, cookies, chips, pie, whatever. I've lost all my weight doing this. Not deprived. Don't even feel like I'm on a diet...well, because it's not a diet. It's a lifestyle change.

estherpab

Bottom line is we deduct a reasonable amount of calories from our TDEE (total daily energy expediture) and for some reason that seems foreign to just about everyone. BMR should be stricken from the nutritional landscape.......it apparently confuses people pretty darn easily.

I agree!

nekolita

Eat back part of the calories :O

*on the fence answer