Should I eat my burned calories?

smruggles

They have me set at 1200 calories only! I am 5'2 and weigh 147. I want to get down to atleast 120. I eat back most of my calories BECAUSE my calorie set is already low. If I burn 500 calories that day by working out and I didn't eat most of them back, that would mean that I actually only took in 700 calories! If my calorie intake was set at 1500, I probably wouldn't eat them back. 1200 calories is not much to work with though lol. MFP is very generous with what it thinks you burned during a workout. I bought a HRM and I love it! It tells me exactly how many calories my body burned during a workout. Which is usually a little lower than what MFP says.

THIS!! hahaha. I only have 1200 cals a day, too... and it's almost like skipping a meal to meet that goal... I always eat SOME of my workout cals.

And I write down specifically what the elliptical, etc says I burn.

foxro

I don't. I do log the exercise tho. I feel the same as you. Why eat back what you just burned??

Wow, does anyone actually look at the way MFP is set up??? You are already in a deficit without exercise!! You need to fuel your body and make sure you don't go into an unhealthy deficit, that's why you need to eat back what you burned.

This works for me, MFP put me into a 500 calorie deficit and I'm losing weight. Sometimes I eat back 50% of what I burned but the good old weight is still negative AOK

caitlyn30

I dont. but they are there if i go over. I have a fitbit, and that logs my exercise for me. I just hook up my fitbit at the end of the day.

SylentZee

I usually don't but then again I eat most of my calories so I don't really have a need to. I say if you're hungry and want to snack, go for it.

Lconsla

If I'm hungry after working out I'll have a small snack. IF i eat back any of my calories it's very very little. I usually burn about 700 calories if I do the whole Jillian Michaels BFBM. There's no way i'm hungry enough to eat back that many calories.

ChristyRunStarr

If you search this topic, it's been answered many times.

Exactly, it's kinda like what came first-the chicken or the egg :grumble:

To each their own honestly

bcutler06

I don't. I do log the exercise tho. I feel the same as you. Why eat back what you just burned??

Wow, does anyone actually look at the way MFP is set up??? You are already in a deficit without exercise!! You need to fuel your body and make sure you don't go into an unhealthy deficit, that's why you need to eat back what you burned.

I have to agree - The MFP formula has accounted for your goal. So if you want to lose 2lbs a week, it puts you at a calorie deficit of 7,000 per week. If that means you should eat 1500 NET calories a day, and you burn 500 in a workout, you MUST replenish and achieve the full 1500. Otherwise, your body will weaken over time, you will do poorer workouts, and get less benefit. It ain't rocket science - just fat loss. There are a ton of articles about this sort of thing - I suggest some serious reading of authorized and knowledgable sources. Don't rely on the myriad "experts" on posting boards who all have their $0.02 to add - including me. You have no idea which of us has the right info. Do real research.

sujenwujen

YES!!!! You should be looking at your NET calories for the day. If you don't eat back at least SOME of those calories, then your body is going to go into starvation mode, and you'll start LOSING MUSCLE instead of fat. Your MUSCLES need those calories!

Now granted, I've had days when I've burned SO MANY calories, that it just wasn't feasible to eat back everything. But that's why MFP also gives you a weekly chart to look at. Indeed, I usually eat more the day AFTER a big workout than the day OF the big workout. So, if I go for a super long run on Saturday, my net calories may be low, but then I go way over on Sunday. But my weekly net calories are where they should be.

Net calories, people. Net calories. Use the MFP tools to find your basal metabolic rate (BMR) and/or go to another BMR calculator to double-check the numbers. And yes, I agree that MFP sometimes overestimates your calorie burn. A heart rate monitor will give you a better count. (Although, I've also found that sometimes the MFP estimate is right on the money! Depends on the exercise, and depends on how hard you're working on a particular day.)

sujenwujen

Don't rely on the myriad "experts" on posting boards who all have their $0.02 to add - including me. You have no idea which of us has the right info. Do real research.

I think I you.

wowooo

Ok. I have read this over and over but for some reason the way you just explained it made the most sense. Thanks!!! I always wondered why they added your exercise calories with your not yet consumed daily calorie intake. I had no idea you was suppose to consume them as well. Feel so much better thanks. I will try eating them, but my workouts are they only way I can keep from gaining weight and when lucky losing weight. I really don't see it working but I will try.

wowooo

:flowerforyou:

action_figure

So what if you're "only" at 500 or 700 taken in? Are you tired, lethargic, sweaty, lightheaded or dizzy? If not, then your body is actually pulling the caloric energy you need out of your fat stores. You still get the 1200 calories worth of nutrients, vitamins, minerals, carbs, etc. Everything else is just energy. Use the energy you stored.

action_figure

There's no such thing as "starvation mode" until you're actually, you know, STARVING. That's less than 5% body fat, in case you haven't actually read the data on the Minnesota experience.

action_figure

Yeah but what if you have 2 - 25 pound tires of fat around your belly? Does your body just ignore that fuel source?

Excellent reply.

AllAboutThatTreble

I eat them back, but only ~50-75% of them because MFP overestimates calories burned.

It's like this: I want to NET 1620 calories. On the day I don't workout, I eat only 1620 calories. But when I do workout I burn anywhere between 200-400 calories. So 1620 - 400 = 1220, but that's not what I want to net. So adding the 400 back makes my calorie goal for my workout days 2020 because at the end of the day after exercising, my NET is still 1620.

I used another website that allowed me to track my food and exercise, but it didn't have this concept. I consistently ate between 1300 - 1500 calories while doing Insanity, and lost the weight pretty quickly (~21 pounds from middle of November to January). But then I plateaued. I had no energy to workout and wasn't losing anymore weight and was getting frustrated. I've recently discovered MFP and after reading the forums and finding out about TDEE and all that, I adjusted my diet and so far have lost 2 pounds.

Of course, everyone's body is different, but this is what is working for me.

alikat2986

I don't. I don't record the exercise as calories burned either. I just treat it like a food diary.

^^^^This^^^^

I'm going to go ahead and agree with ^this^

foleyshirley

Way back when I was your age we never even THOUGHT about eating back exercise calories. We lost weight. We didn't starve to death and we didn't die horribly malnourished. Sometimes I think everything has to be so over thought. Eat less. Exercise. Lose weight. Pretty simple.

I'm with you. Maybe if you are under 40, you can eat your exercise calories. The rules change as you age and you have to find out what works. Eating back mine erases my workout. And I'm NOT going to erase my hard work. Yeah, maybe I'd still lose.....an ounce a week. And that's not for me. I'd rather lose 1 to 1.5 pounds/week. Some weeks that doesn't even happen. So I will not eat my exercise calories. I called them 'banked' so I don't get suicidal when I do have a weak day and cheat! like we all do....

I'm 48 and I eat mine back. 48 pounds gone.

bobbystrongarm

I know this is an older topic but it came up on a google search of mine.


How is this even a debate anymore? If you aren't eating back the calories burnt and your diet is already set up for a daily calorie deficit you are effectively crash dieting. This a staple of any diet plan, sports nutrition book, and I would go as far to say any rational realistic diet.

You are severely limiting your potential training like this. You will slow down progression, hit fitness plateaus, and neglect any earned muscle growth.

If your goal is to be that skinny guy/girl with a flabby butt, a pot belly, and twigs for limbs by all means continue training like this.

If your goal is to not only lose fat but become stronger amd increase your overall fitness not being in a severe calorie deficit is of extreme importance.

How many calories to eat back is a tricky question though. Using MFP can grossly over estimate or under estinate your calories. Get a Heart rate monitor, it makes a huge difference.

I was using digifit to calculate my calories before I bought a HRM. A 5 mile hike I frequent said I was burning ~400cal. I thought this was fishy because this hike tales me about an hour and has nearly 1000ft of elevation changes and I jog a lot of, sometimes even sprint the ~20% grade hills. I was feeling like crap eating back the calories on a very strict diet following a 40%/30%/30% calorie break down. (Protein/fat/carbs.). This was with myfitnesspal setup for me to lose 2lbs a week. I got a HRM and it turns out on days I'm not even runming sprints I'm burning 1200+ calories in a bit over a hour. I started eating these back still following a 40/30/30 diet and I'm losing weight faster and feel stronger. Every time out I'm going faster, burning more calories per minute, and pushing myself harder and harder yet. Not only have I lost alnost 13lbs this month I've gained just shy of 5lbs of LBM. This is all due to proper nutrition and giving my body the fuel it needs for my grueling work outs. Once I got my calories in check and my macros aligned my body ate it up like a sponge. Got to love newb gains.

My suggestion to anyone who is considering not eating the calories back is train harder. Your body will force you down the right path. You need to eat enough energy or you will crash hard if you are truly pushing yourself.

Always strive to do better and work harder. Your body needs the right amount of energy to accomplish this.

TeaBea

Yeah but what if you have 2 - 25 pound tires of fat around your belly? Does your body just ignore that fuel source?

Excellent reply.

Excellent? ...... yes and no. This is true if you are very overweight .... then, you are protected from muscle loss.

However, when you have more moderate weight loss goals...... your body is not protected. It does not get 100% of vital nutrients from stored fat. This is when you're body will ignore fueling existing muscle mass and worry about your heart, lungs, kidneys .... the more important stuff comes first.

Kirstyep

I did a week where I ate back the calories I burnt - and lost around 1.5 pounds.

I also did a week where I didn't eat back my burned calories - and lost a little over 3 pounds.

So if you don't eat back the calories - you may lose weight faster, but as I'm sure you are aware - this is an unhealthy way to lose weight, and you are sure to put it back on when you are not calorie counting.

So now I eat at least half of my burned calories - think of the long term benefits rather than the quick fix.

chilly1470

I like to use the burned factor as a cushion if I go over at any point, which I have not done yet. It is kind of like a safety net. It is nice to have if one day you want to cheat a little and have that piece of pie or cake. I do not try to eat any of them back, but keep my intake number as my reference and do all I can to stick to it. At 379 pounds I need to stick to my guns for a while, haha.