Why exercise if you eat back the calories?

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  • anasantos61
    anasantos61 Posts: 86 Member
    Bump
  • debrawallin
    debrawallin Posts: 55 Member
    Great response!

    I've always eaten back my exercise calories. I'll tell you why I exercise:
    -for cardiovascular fitness
    -to maintain muscle mass (especially important while I was losing weight)
    -to maintain good bone density
    -to manage my moods and keep me sane (cardio)
    -to learn to do something (running) that I never thought I could do - massive confidence boost
    -because there is a lot of research that indicates that exercise helps ward off all kind of lifestyle-related diseases
    -because it's fun
    -to raise my TDEE (total daily energy expenditure) so that I can eat more. Some people are a bit sniffy about this reason, but having a couple of hundred extra calories a day to consume makes a low calorie diet much more manageable, and enjoyable. I'm not ashamed to say I like to eat.
    -because since I started heavy lifting, my body looks a lot better than it did before, and than it would if I was just doing cardio
    -because it makes me feel strong and able to do physical tasks in every day life (and will hopefully reduce the risk of injury in such tasks)

    There are probably a lot more. The reason I always ate those calories back was because I was following MFP the way it was designed (there are other ways) and to keep my calorie deficit reasonable. I didn't want to lose too much lean mass as I lost weight, and I didn't want to feel tired and lacking in energy. There was a time when my calorie deficit was too large (I always ate back my execise calories but my basic calorie goal was too low) and I felt tired all the time, had dizzy spells and my mood really suffered. I was trying to start running and never had the energy to put the required effort in. That would have been even worse if I hadn't eaten my exercise calories.
  • csheltra26
    csheltra26 Posts: 272 Member
    I find it kind of sad when people say they exercise to eat more. Is eating really that exciting a part of your day that you're willing to exercise just to obtain more food? IMHO, that's the mentality that leads to obesity in the first place.

    Food is fuel for your body. It isn't your friend, your security blanket, your hobby, a reward, your lover or the reason to exist. Exercise is for fitness and feeling strong and healthy, not a gimmick to earn more food.

    Most people over estimate their calorie burn (especially using MFP numbers) to start with and under estimate what they eat so doing 20 minutes of 30DS to earn more food seems really pointless.

    However, those of us that do a 60 min kickboxing class after lifting some heavy weights have burned enough that we can eat those exercise caloires.

    I did that - ate too little and exercised way too much and lost tons of weight. The problem? Once I couldn't keep up the 2+ hours of exercise a day I gained all of the weight back very quickly. Too much of a deficit.

    Figure out your TDEE, less 500 calories a day and that is your golden spot. That should result in a pound a week weight loss. If you could eat more and STILL lose weight, why wouldn't you want to???
  • csheltra26
    csheltra26 Posts: 272 Member
    Sometimes I exercise to eat more, and sometimes I eat more to exercise more. If I didn't eat the way I do, I couldn't lift as heavy or run as hard. If I didn't lift so heavy and run so hard, I couldn't eat the way I do. On different days, I have different priorities.

    I don't think exercising to eat more is sad at all. I love food. Food is supposed to be more than fuel. It's supposed to be pleasurable. Just like clothes are for more than just to keep my body warm, a house is more than just shelter, and sex isn't just for baby-making. :laugh:

    As hard as it would have been at one time for me to believe, exercise can be pleasurable, too. I just got in from a 4 mile trail run in the mud, bouncing down the side of a mountain like a happy little goat. Somewhere between childhood and adulthood, I forgot the sheer JOY that comes from exerting your body. I'm glad I found that joy again. :smile:


    THIS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
  • Maddalen101
    Maddalen101 Posts: 307 Member
    Even a body at rest - no activity at all - is burning calories.
    You need a minimum for maintenance of health.
    If you underfuel yourself, your body will think you're starving.
    Feed your body enough fuel to stay healthy.
    If you exercise, it's OK to eat back those calories, for the extra effort requires more fuel.
  • Guisma
    Guisma Posts: 215
    More muscles burns more fat , atleast i¨ve heard so...
  • wastelander92
    wastelander92 Posts: 25 Member
    Ha! That made my day =)
  • cwells23
    cwells23 Posts: 1 Member
    Because as long as I'm exercising, I'm not consuming calories ;)
  • marinebiologist_girl
    marinebiologist_girl Posts: 300
    Myfitnesspal already creates a deficit for you. For example, a woman my age should net around 2,000 calories to maintain - mfp said to eat 1,200 to lose.

    So if you exercise and burn, say, 600 calories, then you're only eating 600 calories in total, a day, if you eat the full 1,200 to begin with. Which is just under a quarter of the food you would eat to not lose or gain weight. Which is as bad as it sounds.

    So if you eat 1,200 calories, and burn 600 calories, then you have an extra 600 calories of food you can eat to reach 1,200 and continue to lose at a healthy rate.
  • Duck_Puddle
    Duck_Puddle Posts: 3,237 Member
    I find it kind of sad when people say they exercise to eat more. Is eating really that exciting a part of your day that you're willing to exercise just to obtain more food? IMHO, that's the mentality that leads to obesity in the first place.

    Food is fuel for your body. It isn't your friend, your security blanket, your hobby, a reward, your lover or the reason to exist. Exercise is for fitness and feeling strong and healthy, not a gimmick to earn more food.

    It's not about eating being the highlight of my day or anything. Then again, exercise isn't such a horrible chore - why wouldn't I be willing to do to it for such a small reason (never mind the myriad of other reasons stated in my post).

    Food is fuel, and it's nourishment. It is also a huge part of all human cultures, and we have evolved to find physical pleasure in it. There is absolutely nothing wrong with enjoying food. Using it as a "security blanket" or a reason to exist is hugely problematic and psychologically unhealthy. That's not the only way to enjoy food though.

    I enjoy it like I enjoy music, and art, and sitting in the sunshine, and walking the dog. It's a simple, sensory pleasure, and one worth savouring in what can be at times a pretty crappy life. I love sitting down to a plate of grilled salmon and broccoli, or the smell of a freshly baked loaf, or a piece of strong cheese with a glass of red. Am I really to be embarrassed or ashamed of that? I can promise you, none of those things made me obese.

    In the context of calorie counting, having 1500 calories to consume in a day is a lot more manageable than 1300, and 1700 is more manageable than 1400. Having those extra calories isn't jut about fitting in treats, it can also reduce the stress of having to juggle meals and micromanage everything.

    Honestly, I find the notion that food should not be enjoyed to be pretty sad.

    ETA: there are other benefits in getting more food than just enjoyment. The more calories I get, the more easily I find I can hit my macro- and micro-nutrient goals.


    Loved your first post but love this one even more!

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