Should I Be Eating Back Exercise Calories?

Substances
Substances Posts: 120 Member
edited December 2024 in Health and Weight Loss
I keep hearing mixed things about this.
"Yes, you should because of this overrated thing called starvation mode, or more reasonably, your metabolism slowing down,"
or
"No, you shouldn't, because this is weight loss, HURR DURR, calorie deficit, you filthy peasant."

So, yesterday I ate 1200 calories, and I'm rounding because I'm too lazy to go back and do the math. My exercise was 600 calories, again with the rounding, bringing me to a net of roughly 600.

This sounds too low, but if you look at my diary ( it's viewable by all ) you can plainly see what I've been eating, and I was terribly full. However, I forced my way through some snacks because it just seemed too low.

It's hard for me to eat a lot, but exercise is easy and something I dearly enjoy.
The question is, can I do this, a friend mentioned that our bodies can tell the difference between starving and calories subtracted from exercise, or should I find some way to take in more calories because I've exercised half of them away?

Replies

  • Pebble321
    Pebble321 Posts: 6,423 Member
    www.shouldieatmyexercisecalories.com

    (Hint: the answer is yes - if you are using MFP to calculate calories. If you are using another system, they usually already include exercise calories so you don't have to add them back in).
  • dglynch222
    dglynch222 Posts: 2
    I prefer not to track my exercise on MFP, so I am obviously not able to add my exercise calories back in directly. But I do set my daily calorie target much higher than MFP recommends, so that basically makes up for it. Some days I get more exercise than others, but I don't worry about it. For me, eating the same amount of food every day is very important for being able to stick to the program.

    In the end, as long as your long-term progress meets your goals, you can use this website however you wish.
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