net calories?

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lilteeraw
lilteeraw Posts: 261
in Health and Weight Loss
I know I know.. so many posts on this. ive even posted recently about it
but ive been trying to research on it and people keep giving different answers.
should i worry about daily calories consumed or NET calories.

say i eat 1900 calories today but workout and burn 600.
1900-600=1300 calories.
is that number too low.
to lose weight what should your net calories be.
or should you just ignore you net and focus on total calls consumed?
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Replies

  • psuLemon
    psuLemon Posts: 38,411 MFP Moderator
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    Maybe just follow the advice we have provided you in your other threads. You are over complicating things.
  • LetsMakeupXtina
    LetsMakeupXtina Posts: 627 Member
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    this confuses me as well =\
  • mishmash73
    mishmash73 Posts: 166 Member
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    This site is set up so that you are to eat back your calories so in the end, you're netting 1200-1500 depending on your settings.
  • lilteeraw
    lilteeraw Posts: 261
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    yes, but i dont know if all that advice is correct.
    because ive looked at other sites and they tell me somthing different.
    i just need to know ALL about net calories and what number to focus on
  • billsica
    billsica Posts: 4,741 Member
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    If you have mfp set for a certain number and you exercise and put that in too.
    If your number is green, eat. If your number is red you are at your daily goal.
  • lilteeraw
    lilteeraw Posts: 261
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    for example.. live strong.com tells me that your net calories should be negative to lose weight..
    while other people are saying to eat back half your exercise calls, and then other people say to eat all and dont net under 1200.
    like why make it so confusing.
    i just need to know that right answer.
  • Sarauk2sf
    Sarauk2sf Posts: 28,072 Member
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    for example.. live strong.com tells me that your net calories should be negative to lose weight..
    while other people are saying to eat back half your exercise calls, and then other people say to eat all and dont net under 1200.
    like why make it so confusing.
    i just need to know that right answer.

    Read this:

    http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/818082-exercise-calories-again-wtf
  • felice03
    felice03 Posts: 2,732 Member
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    Are your profile pics current? If so, I would definately say you do not need to be focusing on loss. I am not trying to be mean, snide, or snarky here...
  • billsica
    billsica Posts: 4,741 Member
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    Don't listen to that other stuff. mfp has already set you at a calorie deficit, its great. all the math is done for you ahead of time.

    You can calculate BMR and TDEE and figure it out too. Just look at your numbers.

    ok so you need 1900 a day, + 600 in exercise

    1900 + 600 = 2500 for today. Don't make this more complex than it has to be, keep it simple.
  • ssl444
    ssl444 Posts: 88 Member
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    Your daily calorie allowance gives you your calorie deficit so you will loose weight if you exercise and burn for example a 100 calories you need to eat those as well as your daily MFP allowance otherwise your metabolism will slow down to much as your body will think you are starving it if you have to big a deficit each day, MFP has done the science bit for you so go with it.
  • mell6355
    mell6355 Posts: 171 Member
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    Plain and simple log everything in (food) and out (exercise) and get to zero for the end of the day!
    Math is Math- leave it simple you want your total at the end of the day to be zero or as close to zero as possible. So add all your food and subtract all of your exercise and get your end number to be really little. I don't eat back all of my exercise calories and I have consistantly lost 2 pounds a week for 4 months. Some days you are over and some you are under. Sometimes I exercise harder and sometimes easier, sometimes I eat really clean and other days I only eat kinda clean. I try to get to zero or close to is everyday and it is working.
  • lilteeraw
    lilteeraw Posts: 261
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    so should i focus on the green number? say i have more calories to eat... its ok to eat them if its green? i wont gain?
  • cmriverside
    cmriverside Posts: 34,130 Member
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    This is awesome. I only see three posts, total.
  • lilteeraw
    lilteeraw Posts: 261
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    now mell is saying my net should be as close to zero as possible
    see this confuses me
  • Angie_Fritts
    Angie_Fritts Posts: 263 Member
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    Well looking at your photos I am a little concerned. You are already thin and are not overweight by any stretch of the imagination. That being said.....if you don't want to gain weight and are using this site to keep you on track, I would suggest set yourself on maintenance and eat back your exercise calories. Do not net below 1200. If you are looking for ONE right answer you are not going to get it. You have to take all the information you get and see what works best for you. It is all trial and error.

    Good Luck!!
  • billsica
    billsica Posts: 4,741 Member
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    so should i focus on the green number? say i have more calories to eat... its ok to eat them if its green? i wont gain?

    YES if you set your goal to maintenance you should not gain. Excluding water weight that will come and go over time. Expect a 5 - 10 pound discrepancy per day.
  • alexbusnello
    alexbusnello Posts: 1,010 Member
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    You remind me of myself. But that's not a good thing. Not this way... = /
  • LetsMakeupXtina
    LetsMakeupXtina Posts: 627 Member
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    Ok I get it :) just wanted to make sure! MFP really does take all the work out of it.. love it!
  • jacksonpt
    jacksonpt Posts: 10,413 Member
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    Read this:
    http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/383956-exercise-calories-explained?hl=exercise+calories+explained


    There is no 1 right answer... it's personal preference. Figure out which method seems to suit you better, then do it.
  • Quasita
    Quasita Posts: 1,530 Member
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    Um, different sites utilize different calculations. MFP and livestrong.org are both places that provide calorie counting applications but they do not total these calories in the same way. You cannot take the parameters for a program on one site and apply them to one on another site.

    MFP is set to the average BMR for a person of your weight and height, and then adjusts that goal depending on what you said you wanted to do. When you exercise, you earn calories, because you are adding calorie burn on top of your BMR. BMR is what you would burn if you just laid in bed and didn't move for any reason... The burn in order to function.

    If MFP sets your daily intake to 1900, that's what you should eat if you do not exercise at all, as it is already adjusted for your requested weight goal. If you work out, you should eat back the calories. The NET should not drop below 1200; that is a dietician standard, as the average person, regardless of size, needs approximately 1200 calories to provide energy for the living functions of their body.

    Livestrong.org could very well be approximating a TDEE. If another site is basing the goals off of an estimated TDEE instead of a BMR, it makes sense that they would recommend a negative number, as that would mean that you would be burning over your eating.

    It is the same concept approached from different directions, but you are going to be 100% confused if you don't read the details of the program they are utilizing.

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