Can i eat back the calories from exercising ??

lyndad84
lyndad84 Posts: 4
in Health and Weight Loss
Hi guys ,
Im new to this site and my allowance is 1200 calories a day , I also exercise which gives me about another 400 calories a day ..
Am I allowed to use these calories ?? :happy:

Replies

  • now_or_never12
    now_or_never12 Posts: 849 Member
    Yup, eat them, that's why it is added to your daily calories.

    Ensure you are getting the proper amount though. Be truthful of your intensity level and time when using MFP estimates. Best bet is to get a proper heart rate monitor to ensure your calories are calculated correctly.

    If using MFP numbers for calories burned, I would suggest either lowering them a bit (When I used MFP for the calories burned numbers I reduced the number before it was added by about 100 cals) or only eating 1/2 to 2/3 of them back as this website estiamtes high for burned cals.
  • Erica27511
    Erica27511 Posts: 490 Member
    Best bet is to get a proper heart rate monitor to ensure your calories are calculated correctly.

    This times a million
  • pastryari
    pastryari Posts: 8,646 Member
    Yes!! Eat those babies!!!
  • beckajw
    beckajw Posts: 1,728 Member
    Yes, you can. MFP is set up to give you a deficit even if you eat back all your exercise calories.
  • akjmart2002
    akjmart2002 Posts: 263 Member
    Yes. Eat your exercise calories. Your body needs fuel.
  • ShaunMc1968
    ShaunMc1968 Posts: 204
    Yep, eat them wisely. Also use a good HRM. I just did 40 mins of casual cycling and MFP give me a reading of 255 Calories but my HRM with my profile and heart count + mileage worked out about 180 calories.
  • heybales
    heybales Posts: 18,842 Member
    Hi guys ,
    Im new to this site and my allowance is 1200 calories a day , I also exercise which gives me about another 400 calories a day ..
    Am I allowed to use these calories ?? :happy:

    Sure.
    And since the daily goal is likely too big of a deficit, go ahead and eat whatever MFP estimates the workout to burn.
    Good balance that way.
  • Laura8603
    Laura8603 Posts: 590 Member
    What are your goals? Are you trying to lose? Generally I do not eat back my exercise calories.
  • Onesnap
    Onesnap Posts: 2,819 Member
    In the past I've found an HRM gives a higher calorie burn (for me personally) than what is listed on the cardio machine. An HRM with a chest strap is the way to go (most accurate reading).
  • Onesnap
    Onesnap Posts: 2,819 Member
    What are your goals? Are you trying to lose? Generally I do not eat back my exercise calories.

    If I did not eat back mine I'd be trying to fuel my healthy body with only 760 calories for the day. Every person is different.
  • sdrawkcabynot
    sdrawkcabynot Posts: 462 Member
    I workout with a Polar FT4 HRM... depending on how intense my workouts are - i try to eat back all or at least half. I also supplement with my protein shakes using almond milk and fruit for added calories.
  • Onesnap
    Onesnap Posts: 2,819 Member
    Also, here's some recent forum posts on this topic. Since you are new to the program I figured they would be great resources for you. This topic is often debated (hotly debated) on here and there's some helpful hints in each of these:

    http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/679755-eating-back-calories-and-the-built-in-deficit?hl=eating+back+calories#posts-9919174

    http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/679755-eating-back-calories-and-the-built-in-deficit?hl=eating+back+calories#posts-9919174

    http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/678864-mfp-bmr-fitbit-and-eating-back-calories?hl=eating+back+calories#posts-9902584

    http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/656574-eating-back-calories-help?hl=eating+back+calories#posts-9529409

    http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/644157-eating-back-calories?hl=eating+back+calories#posts-9329108
  • lyndad84
    lyndad84 Posts: 4
    Wow your all so helpful.. thanks :) ..Ill be sure to get one of those heart monitors to see exactly how many calories Im burning ..
  • Illona88
    Illona88 Posts: 903 Member
    Yes!! Eat those babies!!!

    Don't eat babies, that's considered cannibalism.

    But yes. Eat back your exercise calories, to keep your energy and metabolism up.
  • FrugalMomsRock75
    FrugalMomsRock75 Posts: 698 Member
    Yup, eat them, that's why it is added to your daily calories.

    Ensure you are getting the proper amount though. Be truthful of your intensity level and time when using MFP estimates. Best bet is to get a proper heart rate monitor to ensure your calories are calculated correctly.

    If using MFP numbers for calories burned, I would suggest either lowering them a bit (When I used MFP for the calories burned numbers I reduced the number before it was added by about 100 cals) or only eating 1/2 to 2/3 of them back as this website estiamtes high for burned cals.

    This. If using mfp numbers, a better estimation that I've found for myself on MOST things is to use about 75% of the total and consume them back to get as close to 0 as possible in the calories remaining spot. :)


    (I do it differently now, though--I changed my calories to my TDEE-15%, so I don't eat them back unless I'm extra hungry).
  • ladybarometer
    ladybarometer Posts: 205 Member
    I eat half most days to account for any miscalculations.
  • FrugalMomsRock75
    FrugalMomsRock75 Posts: 698 Member
    What are your goals? Are you trying to lose? Generally I do not eat back my exercise calories.

    If I did not eat back mine I'd be trying to fuel my healthy body with only 760 calories for the day. Every person is different.
    To a degree, we're different... however, every one of us needs fuel to do what we expect our bodies to do... Regardless of our goals. You can not expect your body with a BMR of 1700 to keep healthy while exercising if you are only giving it 1200 calories worth of fuel. Period. Just like you can not expect a car to go 300 miles on a gallon of gas. If you want your body to work efficiently, fuel it!
  • tvanhooser
    tvanhooser Posts: 326 Member
    You can and alot of people on here will tell you you are harming your body if you don't. But as with anything, just because you CAN doesn't mean you SHOULD. You have to experiment with what works for your body as even MFP has a disclaimer stating that recommendations are just estimates and everyone's body responds differently. Personally, I start with a recommendation for 1200 calories. Then I exercise and it generally tells me I am allowed 1600-2000ish calories depending on what I did that day. However, I have experimented and if I go much over 1400ish calorie intake my weight loss stops or even reverses no matter what exercise I have done. So I try to keep my intake in that vicinity so I can keep moving toward my goals. I am not a scientist or expert to explain all the science behind it nor do I really care....I just found what works for my metabolism and personal body factors without causing me to feel ill, dizzy, fatigued or unduly hungry and I'm going with it. I kind of figure that it doesn't make sense that I eat more now than all calculators I've tried tell me will be my maintenance level (1500) once I reach my goal weight, either. So experiment and see what works for you. That's my advice -- I like to keep things simple and not just take every recommendation at face value since for every rec, there's an opposing opinion or recommendation so I believe in examining it for myself. As a friend of mine recently stated, most any weight loss plan will work eventually if you just stick to it long enough. So you just have to find your comfort level that is something you can sustain long term and keep at it. Good luck!
  • avocado12
    avocado12 Posts: 197 Member
    Everyone has different opinions on this, but I choose not to.
  • doogie52
    doogie52 Posts: 53
    Yes!! Eat those babies!!!

    Don't eat babies, that's considered cannibalism.

    Only fat bast&*d can eat those babies...
  • muffinattack
    muffinattack Posts: 16 Member
    You should eat some of them back, but if you feel full at the end of the day but still haven't eaten back some of the calories you've burned off then don't force yourself to. I usually only eat back a little if any, but if I feel hungry I eat back more. Listen to your body.
  • SenshiV
    SenshiV Posts: 131 Member
    Well as you can see, mostly agree you should eat them :).

    So only considerations are, eat them wisely, not junk foods if possible, also, if you are always meeting your calorie goal, feel no remorse eating those back, if you think one day or the other yo go over your goals well, you can let them be one day to compensate IMO.

    Good luck! And welcome.
  • munchlaxx
    munchlaxx Posts: 102 Member
    Everyone's body is different. If you're hungry, eat them back. If not, don't worry about it unless you start having issues.
  • healthyme20124lyfe
    healthyme20124lyfe Posts: 1 Member
    That's a good question and I do agree with laura to not eat them back, but like most have said, everyone is different so do what's best for you in the end. In my own experience, eating the calories back on made me seem to maintain, and my overall goal is to lose so just see what works for you.
  • oOMusicBabii
    oOMusicBabii Posts: 494
    Eat them up (or at least half) it helps greatly.
  • JenniBaby85
    JenniBaby85 Posts: 855 Member
    YEAH! I do, and lost 23 pounds since I started :smile: .

    There are also a lot of options for exercising on mfp, make sure you use them! Like "Cleaning, light moderate effort" Or "Cleaning vigorous" "Cooking and food preparation" and so on. So add them in with your regular workout, if you do all of it! Make sure to be honest.
  • Timmmy40
    Timmmy40 Posts: 152 Member
    Yes, eat the calories back. I would suggest not eating all of them back. There is a magical number that you will find that you can eat and burn and lose weight. I leave about 1000 calories remaining everyday, or I try to. I usually burn about 1200 - 1500 extra at the gym each day. If you do not eat some of them back you will not lose weight. Your body will go into starvation mode. You have to fuel the furnace to keep it burning. Keep up the good work. :happy:

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