WHY DO PEOPLE EAT BACK THEIR EXERCISE CALS?!

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  • AshleyBananas
    AshleyBananas Posts: 62
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    MFP has me eating about a third of what I was eating before I started looking at my calories. There are days where I'm like...want to eat, want to chew, and exercising allows me to do it and still stay within my calorie range. It's a balance. It works for me.
  • jillybeanruns
    jillybeanruns Posts: 1,420 Member
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    I just DO NOT get it!! You spend an hour in the gym working off burning 600 cal and then you just eat them back???
    Why would you eat even a LITTLE back??

    I thought the point was to burn these calories. WHY does MFP then add them to your food?!

    Quite honestly MFP is wrong on this one. As I've stated before, I'm in a medical weight loss clinic and they do NOT want us eating back calories we've burned. Ive never done it and I never will.

    You have 138 pounds to lose. Your case doesn't apply here, neither does your advice.
  • 600racer
    600racer Posts: 149 Member
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    I exercise so I can eat more!
  • mynameiscarrie
    mynameiscarrie Posts: 963 Member
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    LOUD NOISES! I DON'T KNOW WHY WE'RE YELLING!

    but really, 2 lbs a week isn't really a good goal unless you have a lot to lose. MFP sets a deficit for you so that if you eat your calories without working out you'll still lose whatever your goal is set at. eat if your hungry. i lose more if i eat mine back, but that's just me.
  • EmilyOfTheSun
    EmilyOfTheSun Posts: 1,548 Member
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    Obese people feel better knowing they can eat more after they workout and as long as they're still in a caloric deficit it works but it just makes people feel better about eating more for the most part.

    Please look at my pictures, I am definitely not obese . . . this entire sentence is completely nonsensical.

    lol, agreed. most ridiculous statement.
  • AlsDonkBoxSquat
    AlsDonkBoxSquat Posts: 6,128 Member
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    Obese people feel better knowing they can eat more after they workout and as long as they're still in a caloric deficit it works but it just makes people feel better about eating more for the most part.

    Please look at my pictures, I am definitely not obese . . . this entire sentence is completely nonsensical.

    The scariest part about this is his profile says "ISSA Certified Personal Trainer"....... Yikes. :noway:

    As a person who has spent the last few years working in gyms I know some great trainers and I know some crap trainers . . . you can usually tell which one is which within the first conversation.
  • ridge1980
    ridge1980 Posts: 46 Member
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    Here's a great blog that I think helps to understand this:

    http://www.myfitnesspal.com/blog/PrayerofAmity/view/to-all-my-friends-who-are-netting-less-than-1000-calories-and-wondering-why-they-aren-t-losing-weight-399342
  • Pookylou
    Pookylou Posts: 988 Member
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    'cause they're the most tasty calories of all! I am 5 3, a little off my goal weight and had just over 2000 calories today, they were all ace!
  • acpgranberg
    acpgranberg Posts: 137 Member
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    bump
  • formerlynobel
    formerlynobel Posts: 96 Member
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    Then don't eat them back, then. I eat most of mine back, and I'm healthy and fit, under 20% body fat (female). My Fitness Pal already creates the weight-loss deficit for you, so if you're in the green, you're in the green.

    Do what you want based on what you read here, but over time your body will learn to adjust to restriction and then you will never be able to eat again, ha ha.
  • amyhoss
    amyhoss Posts: 414 Member
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    I workout so I can build muscle and endurance. I eat back those calories so I have the energy to work out.

    Plus, I love to eat so if I start to feel deprived, I will fall off track.
  • rextcat
    rextcat Posts: 1,408 Member
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    filessharenatorcom_YG6vv_GIF_Collection_of_someone_eating_popcorn-s320x240-181195.gif
  • NewFitKeri
    NewFitKeri Posts: 190 Member
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    So, your body needs to NET 1200 calories. Those 1200 calories includes a deficit. We all have a BMR=Basic Metabolic Rate. This is what your body needs to function while in complete rest. Meaning literally, just to suffice while in say, a coma. Once you figure out what your BMR is, you need to creat a deficit from that. MFP does that for you when you are setting your goals. If it says you need to net 1200 cals to lose "x amount of pounds" then you need to assure to NET that. I'm guessing you are confused about "eating back exercise calories". I will try my best to explain it, it can be confusing at first :). Okay, so say you eat 1200 calories for your day. Then, you workout and burn 300 cals. That then leaves you only "netting" 900 calories. You need to NET 1200, so you have "earned 300 cals from exercising" which you will find at the bottom of your MFP diary when you enter your workouts. That is what they means when they say "earned", meaning you can literally eat those calories back. I'm sure your wondering "but why would I eat those back?! I'm trying to LOSE weight!" You need to eat those back for multiple reasons. First off, your body needs fuel. If you do not fuel your body(particularly while working out) it can go into what is called "starvation mode". When that happens, yuor body freaks out that it is not getting enough food and begins storing food as fat(in fear of not getting enough nutrients). Second, when you "net" 1200 calories as set by MFP, they have created your deficit. So eating back your exercise calories until you reacyh 1200 will STILL put you at a deficit for safe, long lasting weight loss.
  • SoViLicious
    SoViLicious Posts: 2,633 Member
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    I work out 7 days a week. Next week i am going to not work out as much and see what happens.
  • doorki
    doorki Posts: 2,611 Member
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    I've lost 50 lbs but I drink beer with my exercise calories.
  • mrsevanrust
    mrsevanrust Posts: 71
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    Because MFP already creates a deficit for you. You technically don't need to exercise to lose weight. But you do need to fuel your body and not create a too large deficit that can be harmful and dangerous.

    Ummm- best explaination of this question I've seen yet- short and to the point.... Thank you!
  • AlsDonkBoxSquat
    AlsDonkBoxSquat Posts: 6,128 Member
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    I just DO NOT get it!! You spend an hour in the gym working off burning 600 cal and then you just eat them back???
    Why would you eat even a LITTLE back??

    I thought the point was to burn these calories. WHY does MFP then add them to your food?!

    Quite honestly MFP is wrong on this one. As I've stated before, I'm in a medical weight loss clinic and they do NOT want us eating back calories we've burned. Ive never done it and I never will.

    You have 138 pounds to lose. Your case doesn't apply here, neither does your advice.

    This is sort of what I was thinking. With someone who is obese I wouldn't suggest a large deficit + exercise and eating at gross, however there's a little more at play with a person who has more than 100 pounds to lose and someone who needs to widdle off 50. a higher bf% and bmi (although I think bmi is crap) allows for more weight loss in a shorter amount of time safely. It's a little different to tell someone who is 338 pounds with a healthy weight of 200 pounds that they can safely lose 2 pounds a week then to tell someone who is 204 pounds with a healthy weight of 200 pounds that they can safely lose 2 pounds a week.
  • PaveGurl
    PaveGurl Posts: 244 Member
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    Because I know how fuel, physics, biomechanics, and math work.
  • iplayoutside19
    iplayoutside19 Posts: 2,304 Member
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    When I lost the majority of my weight I ate my calories....mostly because I was hungry.
  • OkobojiMomma
    OkobojiMomma Posts: 18
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    So, your body needs to NET 1200 calories. Those 1200 calories includes a deficit. We all have a BMR=Basic Metabolic Rate. This is what your body needs to function while in complete rest. Meaning literally, just to suffice while in say, a coma. Once you figure out what your BMR is, you need to creat a deficit from that. MFP does that for you when you are setting your goals. If it says you need to net 1200 cals to lose "x amount of pounds" then you need to assure to NET that. I'm guessing you are confused about "eating back exercise calories". I will try my best to explain it, it can be confusing at first :). Okay, so say you eat 1200 calories for your day. Then, you workout and burn 300 cals. That then leaves you only "netting" 900 calories. You need to NET 1200, so you have "earned 300 cals from exercising" which you will find at the bottom of your MFP diary when you enter your workouts. That is what they means when they say "earned", meaning you can literally eat those calories back. I'm sure your wondering "but why would I eat those back?! I'm trying to LOSE weight!" You need to eat those back for multiple reasons. First off, your body needs fuel. If you do not fuel your body(particularly while working out) it can go into what is called "starvation mode". When that happens, yuor body freaks out that it is not getting enough food and begins storing food as fat(in fear of not getting enough nutrients). Second, when you "net" 1200 calories as set by MFP, they have created your deficit. So eating back your exercise calories until you reacyh 1200 will STILL put you at a deficit for safe, long lasting weight loss.

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