Not losing weight? This might be why...

1,200/day works for some people...it works for me and I don't feel like I am restricting myself at all! I have only been really hungry on one occasion, and on that day I simply ate more. I eat pasta regularly, but I also find myself making healthier food choices.

At the same time, I am a 5'3 female. I imagine it is less practical for someone taller and/or male.

That works for you, but to stay on topic, I'm referring to the people who aren't getting the results they want by trying to calculate exactly how many calories they need to eat by calories burned through exercise

i would think a lot people eating 1200 cals per day wouldn't even need exercise to lose weight. A lot of people exercise way more than they need to and\or in an incorrect manner for the goals that they have. Or they don't make themselves specific enough goals in the first place.

I used to use MFP calories but when I started putting my weight into the treadmill and xtrainer, the calories burned showed alot lower then what MFP estimated.

So for now I use what the machine says.
On the xtrainer if I do 10 mins I burn approx 100 calories.
I was on the treadmill today and decided to use the nike app on my iphone and the calories were very close to what it said on the treadmill, but I can't compare exactly cause I only turned on the nike app about 5 mins into my workout.

Best way to not over-eat.... don't eat back your exercise cals!

Which is why you shouldnt be eating exercise calories back anyway, its counterproductive.

If I want to maintain my weight, I'm pretty sure I have to eat enough calories to cover my exercise.

Research shows that certain exercise machines overestimate calories burned. The elliptical is the worst offender with an overestimation of up to 42%!

You can meticulously log your food, but if you are overestimating calories burned, you are bound to plateau. I am 100% convinced this is what caused my last plateau.

I spend, for instance, an hour on that thing during my workouts and in the end, it says I've burned 800 calories. Even though I have it on max resistance, I KNOW this is too good to be true as I am going at a pace that allows me to read while exercising.

Now I subtract 42% from all my elliptical calories and am successfully losing weight.

Worthwhile articles:

http://www.everyfit.com/2011/03/08/true-or-false-elliptical-machines-overestimate-your-calorie-burn

http://abcnews.go.com/GMA/Weekend/exercise-calorie-counters-work/story?id=9966500#.UDImBdAe5UM

TRUTH. Unless a gym is calibrating each and every day (which I've NEVER seen) then the readings are usually exaggerated.

A.C.E. Certified Personal and Group Fitness Trainer
IDEA Fitness member
Kickboxing Certified Instructor
Been in fitness for 28+ years and have studied kinesiology and nutrition

I've noticed in my 1 hour workouts when I vary machines, especially different types of ellipticals, I get varying numbers each time. One machine is way under MFP by 100-150 calories for that 1 hour (so I'll log this). The other is about 100-150 over (and I'll log MFP instead). I tend ot wear my HRM watch only on the treadmill, while doing a dvd at home or running/biking outside. I've found the my HRM is close to the newer treadmills at the gym than the older (indicating they calibration doesn't happen regularly). I also do not really use my exercise calories as part of my daily intake goals. I set myself a range to eat between 1400-1600 a day. Until the last 4-5 months I lost regularly. Now I'm working through a plateau to get the last 40 off. My approach really has had nothing to do with what I'm tracking from workouts but more on varying my workouts and my diet to find a better combination for burning the rest of this excess fat off. I do think that if you are one to eat back exercise calories, that you should log at least 25% less in calories burned from any machine/hrm/mfp listing. None are 100% accurate and we all want that deficit for weightloss. Balance is really the key (IMO). Eating the right balance and portions of protein, carbs and fat with regular and varied exercise. This is what will bring long term results and a healthy life.

MFP also rates about double of my HRM.

Me too & this is the very reason why I don't eat all my exercise calories.

Well, I see your point, and I think it may be true for many people who are already eating too much but if you are exercising for an hour 5x a week and on a 1,200/ calorie intake, I would argue that it is important to eat back at least some of your calories. No nutritionist would recommend less.

The reason no nutritionist would recommend less than 1200 calories is because it is really hard to get the proper amount of nutrients on less than 1200 calories/day. If you are eating a varied 1200 calorie/day diet then you should be getting plenty nutrients but also a multivitamin never hurt either.

Again, it really depends on what you are doing and your goals. If you have athletic goals and are exercising a lot every day, then you really do need to eat some of your calories back. If you are doing light exercise or 20-30 minutes/day, then eating back your calories is not important.

I would say more accurately you need to at least be eating an amount that keeps your body functioning properly and does not lead to metabolism slowing too much.

Which is why you shouldnt be eating exercise calories back anyway, its counterproductive.

strong this.

everything else is broscience

but if i don't have three extra slices of pizza after i work out, i'll go into starvation mode!

I'm not sure what nonsense this is. I eat my pizza between sets. And of course I have an IV running BCAAs during my entire workout.