Should you really use the extra calories from exercise?

101hellokittys

honestly? its your call. feeling hungry? eat them back.

stephyj528

DONT EAT EXERCISE CALORIES. while losing weight you are trying to lose weight..and you worked out to burn more not to eat more.........................im no expert but it never helped me lose.

mfpcopine

I am a bit confused about the extra calories you are awarded when you exercise. It is extremely important to eat that many more calories or will you lose more weight if you ignore them? I am set at 1200 calories because I sit at a desk all day. But I do zumba twice a week and walk about thirty minutes the other days. I find it's hard to use up all the calories I am given on a zumba day. Any suggestions? Thank you.

Don't eat them back. If you were training like an Olympic sprinter, maybe. See how you do. If you exercise and lose weight at a furious rate (unlikely) then eat a little more. See how that goes. Adjust.

mmtdjl

Hi,

I just love this program as it helps me stay on track. To answer your question (as a total novice) I only eat the allocated number of calories eg 1200 and take the exercise as an added bonus to loose those unwanted kgs! Hope that I am not leading you up the garden path but that's the way I read the program. All the best! M

rudimae

I started out saying I would not eat back my exercise points. I know my daily calories before exercise is already set with a deficit, but I figured any additional calories burned through exercise would be bonus.

There are some days when I've eaten enough and don't eat all my exercise calories back. But I've descovered that I'm much happier and more able to stick within my limits if I eat the exercise calories back. I don't feel so deprived for one thing. And I think my body is responding better to exercise with more fuel to burn.

I don't eat them back if I'm not hungry, but I do enjoy being able to give myself a small treat if I want and still be within my calories.

manda1978

I'm very skeptical about eating them too. Here in Australia, Michelle Bridges (trainer from The Biggest Loser) has a hugely successful weightloss plan that works on 1200 calories a day, and you exercise off 500 a day and DON"T eat them back.

On the weekends I can burn 650-700 in a 55min run. I may eat 100-200 of those if I'm really hungry but I try not to, otherwise whats the use!

psuLemon

For all those who dont eat back their exercise calories.... track your body fat. When you realize how much muscle you lose instead of fat you might change your tune.

Violetta86

I've been eating back about half the last few weeks and I've stll been loosing weight. I think you need to test out what works for your body - everyone is different. Good luck.

MemphisKitten

I found that if I ate back the calories I "earned" with exercise, I did not lose any weight, and sometimes even gained weight! But I think it varies from person to person. If you can eat them back and still lose a pound a week, then I say go for it! Also, 1200 may not be enough calories for you; I found it was not enough for me, so mine are set at 1400. I would use the tools and find your BMR (Basal Metabolic Rate) and set your calories at that number. Good luck on your journey! :flowerforyou:

mamagooskie

I eat them.....always have and it's served me well. I love food and if I "earn" the right to eat more and still lose weight, why wouldn't I.

CokeBottle84

When I have really intense workouts I'll usually go over my calories because I have morning and evening workouts. On days where I have low intensity workouts I'm usually not hungry enough to eat my extra calories. Not to mention I don't measure my servings, I'm pretty much guessing ounces etc. so I think sometimes I may be over or under the amount I actually had.So most of the time it balances out.

misskristy30

Sorry, I didn't read the other responses.

I have my calorie deficit set to lose approximately 2 lbs/week. I do eat my exercise calories, but I don't always eat all of them. On the days I do turbo kick I burn a ton of calories (1000-1200) and I don't usually eat them all. I do try to eat more throughout the day if I know I'm going to have a high calorie burning workout. For.example, tomorrow evening I'll have turbo kick. So I'll try to eat a higher calorie lunch and snacks. That way I don't have over 1,000 calories left at the end of the day.

misskristy30

Thanks for all your posts. I guess my concern is I am not eating enough and so I won't lose weight. I am still hungry on the 1200 calories. But I am hoping that will get better over time. I really only got serious two weeks ago. I have found it's easier for me to stay between 1300-1500. So I've been eating that much on work out and non work out days. So far not much weight loss. So I figured I would throw it out there to see if maybe it's because I am not eating enough? Or maybe I am eating too much on the non work out days? I just was introduced to protein shakes. Which is actually helping me feel full. Total I've lost about 2.5 lb's in the last week and a half. So I guess that's not bad. Thanks again. I appreciate it!

You said nor much weight loss, but then said in the last week and a half you've lost 2.5 lbs....that's really a good loss for that amount of time.

Also, I think if you're actually hungry you should increase your calories and/or eat some of your exercise calories.

geekyjock76

Here's the deal about calorie deficits and the way MFP works:

You can establish a calorie deficit by: eating less; including or upping exercise; or both.

If you wish to lose 1 lb of body weight per week, MFP automatically deducts 500 calories from your TDEE. It assumes you are only using calorie restriction to create the deficit needed to lose 1 lb per week. So if your TDEE is 1700, then you'll be left with 1200 after the 500 calorie deficit.

Now if you exercise in addition to the above, but want to stay losing the 1 lb per week plan, you must eat back 100% of your exercise calories. If you do not, you are increasing the deficit and will "try" to lose more than 1 lb of body weight per week.

Simply put, a calorie deficit is the sum of calorie restriction and exercise calories. MFP assumes only the deficit from calorie restriction. You need to add exercise calories to stay with the plan set up.

mockchoc

I eat all my exercise calories back and it's working well.

bradp1979

I exercise so that I can eat more!

^^^THIS

If I have a particularly weak day where it is clear that I'm going to overdo it on my calories, I make sure to burn a few hundred at the gym to stay below my limit.

SoDamnHungry

I consider them bonus calories to eat if I want. There's always such a debate on the forums as to whether or not you can/should eat them back that no one could really say. Well, except for every person that thinks they're absolutely right.

Remember, MFP already gives you a deficit to lose weight at a reasonable pace. It might be easier to eat back your exercise calories and just rely on MFP's goals.

Valencia123456

I'd listen to the person who lost the most weight!!

raebels

I always wondered on this one and finally decided that the best option for me was to listen to my body. If I'm still hungry, then I will eat something. If I'm not hungry, then I stay where I am. I beat myself up over this but just can't justify eating just to eat, especially if I'm not hungry.

raebels

Sorry, I didn't read the other responses.

I have my calorie deficit set to lose approximately 2 lbs/week. I do eat my exercise calories, but I don't always eat all of them. On the days I do turbo kick I burn a ton of calories (1000-1200) and I don't usually eat them all. I do try to eat more throughout the day if I know I'm going to have a high calorie burning workout. For.example, tomorrow evening I'll have turbo kick. So I'll try to eat a higher calorie lunch and snacks. That way I don't have over 1,000 calories left at the end of the day.

Good plan I like to do the same on high calorie burn days as well.