I *NEED* exercise to stay under my calorie goal = good/bad?

itecson

I'm wondering if I should start ignoring my "earned extra calories" - my eating habits tend to stay pretty constant and they don't scale 1:1 with exercise, which is why I'm afraid. If I don't have enough time in the day to put in enough exercise I'll most definitely go over. Thoughts?

LabRat529

If I understand you correctly... you're basically creating a calorie deficit using exercise? And on the days you don't exercise, you don't have a deficit? That particular approach works well for some, not so well for others. Are you losing weight? Are you happy with your progress? If the answer to both is "yes", then I say, "keep doing what you're doing".

It's really what you're comfortable with. The main goal is to have a chronic calorie deficit, but there's nothing wrong with being over on some days and under on others so long as you average out over the long run as eating less than you burn... and while it may seem like blasphemy on MFP forums, you don't *have* to eat back your exercise calories as long as you're getting adequate nutrition and not running a gianormous calorie deficit.

Hope that helps.

secretlobster

Occasionally not "eating back" calories burned is not a big deal.

However, if the lifestyle you've chosen causes you stress rather than relieves it, then I would suggest you try to find another method of eating or exercise that works for you instead of against you. It shouldn't anguish you to (generally) eat less on days you're sedentary, and more on days when you are active. Most of us find that we need to change our eating habits in order to be healthier, so I wonder why you are so adamant about keeping your eating habits the same. It doesn't give you any room for variation.

If you're going to eat the same exact amount every day, regardless of exercise, then you should focus on WEEKLY caloric goals rather than daily.

UponThisRock

If you generally eat how you ate yesterday, I don't think you have much to worry about.