Hard time eating back calories burned

mayamagallanes

I have a question! I am having a hard time eating back the calories I burn. During the day I usually eat about 800 calories and I burn off about 600+. I know your sposed to be eating back the calories but yesterday with my food and exercise I had alomst 1000 calories to eat back. Any suggestions??? I am NOT trying to eat a low amout of calories and or exercise a lot but its getting confusing/hard lol

auddii

I know everyone hates to hear it, but we didn't get fat eating incredibly low calorie; we know how to consume large amounts of calories. It should not be hard to add calories to your day. Snack on cheese, peanut butter, avacado, almonds, cook with olive oil, add some snacks through out the day, etc.

LoraF83

Add a little more food to each meal. Don't use low-fat products. Cook with olive oil and butter. Put peanut butter on an apple.


Definitely eat all your calories and your exercise calories.

orangelobster

3 egg cheese omelette, bacon, hash browns, fruit salad, big glass of orange juice, ice cream on apple pie for dessert.
Problem solved.

aliciab307

WOW, not sure how you're functioning but when I exercise and don't eat enough I have a bad headache, anywho, you definitely need to eat more if you're taking in 800 cals then burning off 600 calories. Might as well only eat 200 calories a day and not exercise!

If you know you're exercising that day and have a rough estimate of calories burned then plan ahead and eat some foods before working out and after. I used to wait until after I worked out to eat back my calories but it seemed impossible and very hard, esp since I wasn't really hungry. Now I plan my day out with those calories included and don't have to worry about it.

aliciab307

I know everyone hates to hear it, but we didn't get fat eating incredibly low calorie; we know how to consume large amounts of calories. It should not be hard to add calories to your day. Snack on cheese, peanut butter, avacado, almonds, cook with olive oil, add some snacks through out the day, etc.

Very true!

mayamagallanes

Unfortunately, I dont like eggs at all! But last night I did a bad thing and went out to get a chicken fried steak scramble (no eggs) Im pretty sure I ate back all of my calories :} Its just hard for me to eat them all back usually. I dont want to lose weight the unhealthy way so Im trying to figure this out!! I honestly dont feel that hungry at all and I dont want to stuff myself!!

imhungry2012

What are you doing that is burning 600 calories?

aliciab307

a simple peanut butter sandwich w/ 2tbsp and whole grain bread is roughly 300+ calories (110 cals/slice + 190 cals-PB), easy way to up your calories without stuffing your face

atucker0821

What are you doing that is burning 600 calories?

i had planned to ask the same thing. i know MFP estimates a ridiculous high number when i have put in exercise before that the machine just didn't give me (based on my heart rate)...make sure those calories burned are correct before eating them all back!

Rachlmale

You seriously are depriving yourself and eating far too little. The way you are eating is not a sustainable way of life. You do not need to starve yourself to lose weight. Even if you claim you are not hungry, the little you are eating is not enough.

You did not become overweight by struggling to eat calories so other than deliberately eating too little you know how to eat more!

mayamagallanes

Treadmill, Elliptical and Bicycle.I am also adding Zumba into my weekly schedule. I dont feel like im doing a lot of exercise or "pushing" myself too hard, well actually I really cant anyway because of my injured hip. I never get too tired or fatigued either. Like I said, I am NOT trying to starve myself!! I am asking for suggestions and if anyone else is going through this what they do to help themselvs. I KNOW something isnt right thats why I am trying to ask for help!

frood

Here's a BMR calculator. http://www.bmi-calculator.net/bmr-calculator/

You really shouldn't eat a total less than that number per day. If I was only eating 800 calories per day, I'd be biting people.

KristysLosing

I don't understand how people can eat so little. I've been doing MFP for a year and a half...and what I ate for breakfast today is almost your calorie intake for the whole day. Much larger breakfast than normal, but if that was all I could eat all day? I'd be the world's biggest b*tch! lol I'm sure you can find something extra to eat. A handful of nuts? A bowl of cereal? I have a hard time believing anyone would feel full after eating so little all day. Good luck!

evdenapoli

I just don't get it. If I eat back my excersize calories.. how do I create the deficit for weight loss?

Rachlmale

I just don't get it. If I eat back my excersize calories.. how do I create the deficit for weight loss?

MFP has already given you a deficit, unless you think 1,200 is a maintain calorie intake?

frood

I just don't get it. If I eat back my excersize calories.. how do I create the deficit for weight loss?

The deficit is built in when you say you want to "lose x lbs per week."

wlkumpf

eat back at least half.
Try reading Burn the FAt Feed the Muscle. Think of your body like a furnace, if you hardly ever feed it or give it "plastic" or things that don't burn well or hot you will not go through your calories, you need to feed it often and feed it enough to get it fired up!!!
Your body will lose weight and build muscle better when you eat the proper range for yourself, it is trial and error and a week with no loss or a slight gain is not a failure, it is feedback! Try to do things the right way to keep the fat off and learn the way your body works.

cwolfman13

Here's a BMR calculator. http://www.bmi-calculator.net/bmr-calculator/

You really shouldn't eat a total less than that number per day. If I was only eating 800 calories per day, I'd be biting people.

This ^^^^...and that should be net. You need to, minimally, net to your BMR to be healthy. Eating significantly below your BMR for an extended period of time will stall your metabolism amongst a host of other issues which are very dangerous. If you net between your BMR and your TDEE you will lose weight in a healthy way.

Honestly, you don't need the exercise to lose the weight. You do realize that if MFP has you set up at 1,200 calories, there's already a deficit built into that number correct? That is the bare minimum you should be NETTING to. If you can't even net to your BMR (you say you're only eating 800 calories per day) then you honestly have no business exercising at all. If you exercise and are burning the kind of calories you say you are burning, you need to understand how to properly fuel your body.

geekyjock76

You insist that you aren't trying to eat so little and exercise excessively but that is exactly what you are doing. 800 calories is likely a 50% deficit, if not more, even if you were sedentary. You keep doing this and you won't have your periods, which should be an obvious sign to you that this isn't sustainable and you need to drastically curtail physical activity and start eating a bit more.

__RANDY__

Every time I see a I can't eat this many calories :sad: Wahhhhhhhhhhhh:sad:

I just shake my head and wonder how did you get here.