Net Calorie Confusion!

Hopefully I can help a little. If you are starting at the 1200 mark, that would be the # of calories you should take in per day without the addition of exercise. If you are averaging 300-700 of exercise per day, then you would need to eat 1500-1900 calories per day. The reason this isn't contradictory is because the intitial 1200 calorie number already factors in the amount of weight loss you've programmed as your goal. Be careful when adding in your exercise #'s, as sometimes the number of calroies burned as higher than they should be. I use this rule of thumb, always overestimate the number of calories in food, and underestimate the number of calories burned during exercise.

Let me know if you have any questions or if I wasn't clear enough.

Hopefully I can help a little. If you are starting at the 1200 mark, that would be the # of calories you should take in per day without the addition of exercise. If you are averaging 300-700 of exercise per day, then you would need to eat 1500-1900 calories per day. The reason this isn't contradictory is because the intitial 1200 calorie number already factors in the amount of weight loss you've programmed as your goal. Be careful when adding in your exercise #'s, as sometimes the number of calroies burned as higher than they should be. I use this rule of thumb, always overestimate the number of calories in food, and underestimate the number of calories burned during exercise.

Let me know if you have any questions or if I wasn't clear enough.

This!

Also, I would take another look at your numbers. I have a feeling that 1200 calories is too little. Based on your tracker, you don't have much to lose, so your calorie deficit has to be minimal. The less you have to lose, the less body fat your body has the ability to draw from. So this requires more calories in order to provide you energy in order to prevent muscle catabolization (converting energy from muscles). It's fat we all want to lose, not weight. Muscle is what gives you a lean tight body. So your goal should be to optimize fat loss. This means, heavy weight training and a small deficit (as noted below). Now, if you have a regular gym schedule, I suggest including exercise as part of your lifestyle (moderately active vs sedentary) as you don' t have to worry about net calories nor eat back exercise calories. This method also allows you to feed your body on rest days (which there should be 1-2 of these as rest and recovery is immensely important).



If you have 75+ lbs to lose 2 lbs/week is ideal,
If you have 40-75 lbs to lose 1.5 lbs/week is ideal,
If you have 25-40 lbs to lose 1 lbs/week is ideal,
If you have 15 -25 lbs to lose 0.5 to 1.0 lbs/week is ideal, and
If you have less than 15 lbs to lose 0.5 lbs/week is ideal.

Thanks for that. I've read all these posts and now understand NET a bit more :-)

It's just "net". It doesn't need to be capitalized.

Alright so now I understand that I need to eat them back, but I was wondering also what is the point of exercising if you way it all back then?

Thank you for all your answers!!

You seriously don't know that exercise is good for your health?

Alright so now I understand that I need to eat them back, but I was wondering also what is the point of exercising if you way it all back then?

Thank you for all your answers!!

Geez, you've gotten a couple rude answers.

Aside from the obvious fitness gained from exercise...so you can eat more food! 1200 calories a day isn't very much. If you exercise and eat back your calories, you get to eat way more food, while still losing at the same level. It makes it so much more sustainable, both while losing, and while maintaining when you're done losing.

Lots of people will tell you not to eat your exercise calories back...but would those same people advice you to consume only 600 calories a day with no exercise? Not likely. That's what you'd be doing if you ate at 1200, and then exercised 600 away.

Sorry to jump in on your post, but I wondered if anyone knew if you could effectively 'bank' those extra calories burned from exercise and use them up elsewhere in the week - I.e at the weekend?

Does anyone calorie shift?

I hope it's okay to ask these (most of them) nice people for clarification...but of all the threads dealing with this question, most smart answers are here. (and I'm glad that you can 'ignore' some uses...some ARE rude)

Given the equation for the number of calories:

# of Cals to Keep Current Weight = (current weight * 10) - 200

..I have to eat 1,700 calories. So, for effective weight loss, I have to consume AT LEAST 1,530 (# of Calories * 0.9 OR 10% less).

However, when I set my account to allow only 1,530 calories...and I burn approx. 800 calories in the morning (cardio, bike and elliptical)...this gives me approx. 2,330 calories to consume.

SO...my question is this....should I consume 2,330 calories?

PS:

I've tried eating them...no weight loss after several months....tried leaving them....no weight loss (been doing that since September)

Why don't you post your height weight and workout routine. We can run the numbers. I don't agree with your equation though. If you are active it's generally weight x 12 (10 if sedentary)