Confused : exercise calories?

Arilysal

I am so confused by this term : exercise calories. I need veterans here to explain gently to me about this foreign term. My idea of weight loss has always been "workout more then what you take in". But then i read that you need to eat back the exercise calories... does that mean munching on apples and veges?

PinkEnvyx

I seen this a few times myself but don’t really read into it.
I think the focus on anything other then what your own body tells you just does not make since to me anymore. Personal if I feel like I am getting enough food for energy then I am. If I feel weak I eat which never happens I am more likely to feel tired because I ate to much then weak from lack of enough. I can only speak from my own personal experience. I say listen to your body, it will tell you when it needs energy and how much.

Arilysal

thank you so much, i think so too.

hookandy

This is my take on exercise calories. You tell MFP what activity you do in a normal day. I work in an office and sit all day. So I am sedentary.

MFP then calculates the calories you need to power your body and maintain. It then gives you a deficit figure based on your weight lose goal, in my case -1000 calories per day. OK so in my case if I eat 2800 cal a day I should stay the same but if I eat 1800 calories I will project to lose 2lb per week.

So then I go out on a long walk and burn an extra 500 calories. So on this good exercise day I now need 3300 (2800 + 500) to stay still and 2300 to lose 2lb per week.

If you eat the exercise calories back you still have the same deficit figure of -1000, if you dont eat them back you will have a bigger deficit figure.

I am a big bloke so can not comment on the issues of 1200 calories intake as a minimum, but lots of other people will be able to explain that one.

Personally I tend to eat most of mine back. It means I can play rugby or a game of squash and have a beer afterwards and still have calories in my day.

Arilysal

i guess the important thing is that we eat good calories rather then calories from junk food, although i have to say, apples are NOT filling at all... AT ALL. XD