Question about Calories

http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/10589-for-those-confused-or-questioning-eating-your-exercise-calo

I don't think being under 200 is too bad. Are you measuring and weighing everything? I like to give myself a 100-200 calorie buffer at the end of the day because I eyeball most of my foods. That way if I am a little off, I have room in my plan. If you are measuring everything, then try to get as close to the calorie amount as possible.

To answer your question about why to eat back the exercise calories is because MFP puts you at a calorie deficit already. So if you are set at a 500 / day calorie deficit according to MFP then you exercise and burn 500 calories but don't eat them back, you are then at a 1000 calorie deficit. So for example at 1880 calories as a deficit and you burn an additional 500 calories and not eat them, you would actually be only getting 1380 calories. Does that make sense?

Yes, as others have said, you don't want to be below your normal calorie intake for the day. Try inputting the food ahead of time so you know where you are going to be for the day and add some fruit in so you come close or over your calories so when you work out, you'll be ahead of the game. One thing I do want to mention is that I see for dinner you had a pork chop (protein) but then you had mashed potates AND mac/cheese (carbs). Can I make a suggestion and cut out one or the other and have a veggy instead? Also you should be eating protein at every meal. Try staying away from anything that is enriched white flour, white sugar and high fructose corn syrup. Become a label detective and read the ingredients. This will help boost your metabolism and lose weight faster. I always eat something within one hour of waking up and then eat every 2 to 3 hours all day long until 1 hour before sleeping. this keeps my metabolism burning all day long. I guess it works since I've lost 51 lbs since October. If you want check out my food plan at www.myfoodlovers.com.

Christine

I have been on diets before, but never with this determination so when I found this web site I was really excited! I have never counted calories before and didn't even know how to do that, well this site does it for you, so my calorie intake in one day is 1880 but after I add exercises that goes up, I understand that part! Then I was reading on someone elses topic and it said that being under you calories is not good. I have been under since I started by at least 200. I thought this was a good thing considering that i'm not starving myself, and that i'm just not hungery. I have only been doing this for 4 days so could some please help me? Why is being under you calories not good. So to kinda help you understand this is what I ate yesterday:


Breakfast
Apples - Raw, with skin, 1 cup, quartered or chopped 65
Cantaloupe - Fresh Cantaloupe, 1 Cup (177g.) 60
Bananas - Raw, 1 medium (7" to 7-7/8" long) 105
Add Food | Remember Meal 230
Lunch
Aldi - Baby Carrots, 14 carrots 35
Broccoli - Raw, 1 cup, chopped 30
Cucumber - Peeled, raw, 1 cup, pared, chopped 16
Fit & Active (Aldi) - Light String Cheese, 1 piece 60
Add Food | Remember Meal 141
Dinner
Generic - Baked Porkchop, 3 Oz 210
Sweet Baby Ray's - Bbq Sauce, 2 Tbsp 70
Great Value - Macaroni and Cheese, 1 cup prepared 240
Potatoes - Mashed, home-prepared, whole milk and butter added, 1 cup 237
Sister Shubert's - Dinner Yeast Rolls, 1 roll 180
Add Food | Remember Meal 937
Snacks
Austin - Toasty Crackers W/Peanut Butter, 1 Pack (39g) 190
Carvel - Ice Cream Cake, 0.076 of Cake 420 (this is my secret)
Edy's - Slow Chyrbed Light Take the Cake Ice Cream, 1/2 cup 120
Add Food | Remember Meal 730

OK, so my calories intake after exercise was supposed to be 2239 all of that added up to be 2038 which is 201 difference!

and another question why would you want to eat back the calories that you just worked off?
Thanks for readg this I know it is long and thanks in advance for you time and help!!!

I looked at your food intake and noticed you hardly ate any protein. You need more protein. You should eat half of your body weight in grams of protein. Add in some greek yogurt, protein shakes, lean meat, low fat dairy...

Also, this link will explain why you need to eat back your exercise calories

http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/10589-for-those-confused-or-questioning-eating-your-exercise-calo

Keep in mind that very obese individuals may be able to comfortably have a larger deficit than those with lesser amounts to lose. That said...to answer the OP's question:

Not eating your exercise calories is not the way the MFP site is intended to be used. It assigns you a set amount of calories based upon your BMR, age, activity level, current weight and desired goals. It takes a 3500 deficit to lose 1 pound, so if you said 1/2 pound, 1 pound, 1.5 pounds or 2 pounds, MFP will deduct 250/500/750/1000 calories from your calculated maintenance level. The goal is to maintain that deficit, not increase it through exercise. MFP will work even if you never go to the gym!

But, our bodies require MORE energy/fuel (food) when we exercise so MFP adds those calories to your daily goal, but you'll notice that the deficit is still maintained exactly in order for you to meet your goals.

The problem is that if we do not fuel our body adequately, it begins to conserve. This is commonly called the starvation response, but doesn't necessarily mean we're in "starvation mode". What can happen is...our bodies may decide that being awake takes takes more energy than we're giving it, so we get sleepy and tired. We're hungry and eventually that hunger gets the best of us and we binge. Many other cut backs occur, and we end up feeling yucky and fall off the dietary wagon. So we've defeated the purpose of our new, healthy regime! And finally, lets say we DO lose the weight (with great sacrifice) and figure our dieting days are over...so now we can eat normally. Well, our bodies don't know that this isn't just a temporary feast, so they grab all that extra food and store it...as fat...in case we ever decide to deprive it again! And we're right back where we started.

So MFP is designed to put us on a carefully calculated deficit so that we don't fail by giving up due to hunger and tiredness, and so that, once we meet our goal, we can return to maintenance calories fairly easily without penalty.

Also, based on the diet you posted, I also see a big lack of protein. Your body needs that, as well as some carbs and heatlhy fats, so try to add some yogurt, peanut butter, almonds, eggs, and (boneless/skinless) chicken breast to your diet.

Thanks SavvyStephy! I have seen you post answers to other questions on this site and you really seem to get this. For some reason, it all just seems a little bit confusing to me at times. I usually stick to 1,200 calories, and I usually burn between 650 to 900 calories. Lately, 900 calories. So is the rule of thumb eat back all of them then, or just half? I guess for example, yesterday I ate 1,571 calories, I burned 833 calories = 738 net calories - 1,446 (BMR) for a total of 708 deficit. Tuesday I didn't have a good day...I ate out (taco's) and had some chocolate. Bad day. But would that equation be ok? See, usually it is around 1,200 though...like yesterday...I ate 1,237 calories, I burned 962 calories = 285 net calories - 1,446 (BMR) for a total of 1,161 deficit. IS this ok? I guess I was just trying to stick to my 1,200 calories a day and work out to feel good. But I was just wasn't sure how many of the exercise calories to eat back. I'm sorry I'm so confused! Thank you in advance for your help! By the way....31 lbs...that is amazing! I've been watching your before and after pictures you have been taking. You look great! flowerforyou:

Thanks SavvyStephy! I have seen you post answers to other questions on this site and you really seem to get this. For some reason, it all just seems a little bit confusing to me at times. I usually stick to 1,200 calories, and I usually burn between 650 to 900 calories. Lately, 900 calories. So is the rule of thumb eat back all of them then, or just half? I guess for example, yesterday I ate 1,571 calories, I burned 833 calories = 738 net calories - 1,446 (BMR) for a total of 708 deficit. Tuesday I didn't have a good day...I ate out (taco's) and had some chocolate. Bad day. But would that equation be ok? See, usually it is around 1,200 though...like yesterday...I ate 1,237 calories, I burned 962 calories = 285 net calories - 1,446 (BMR) for a total of 1,161 deficit. IS this ok? I guess I was just trying to stick to my 1,200 calories a day and work out to feel good. But I was just wasn't sure how many of the exercise calories to eat back. I'm sorry I'm so confused! Thank you in advance for your help! By the way....31 lbs...that is amazing! I've been watching your before and after pictures you have been taking. You look great! flowerforyou:

When you sign up and enter your life style MFP gives you a calorie deficit depending on the info you put in (life style, height, weight, goals, etc). Say that your minimum calorie intake should be 1200 and your deficit is 500 according to your BMR. When you work out and burn 500 calories, your deficit is now 1000 and your intake is only 700. This puts you too low and your body will go into starvation mode and start storing rather than burning fat. You need to eat back your exercise calories so your deficit isn't to large.

Thanks AGAIN SavvyStephy and Thank you to Ivfunandfit for helping explain this to me! I am on day 41 of this website and FINALLY I think it all makes sense! Gesh! That only took awhile! hahaha.

I am finally getting it...they selected 1,200 of my information and if I burn 900, then I'm really eating only 300 to fuel me for the day! GESH! No wonder why I was hungry this week! Anyway, I do have one question....Steph you said that your goal that helped you was to never go below your BMR. Here I was thinking, just don't go over 1,200 calories a day...but I didn't know it mattered how much I burned off. So should that be my new rule of thumb? Try to not go below my BMR for my calories for the day, which is currently 1,446. Of course, that would include working out. I know you said if I don't work out that day, to eat 1,200...but if I do work out, then to just make sure to eat some of that back so I get back up to my BMR of 1,446...so I have enough fuel to get me thru the day? Is that right?

You guys are SO NICE for taking the time to help me! FInally after 41 days I feel like I might understand all this!

Sorry if I confused you with my BMR schpeal at the end there. Please eat 1200 + your exercise cals. Then on an off day eat 1200.

What I was referring to is that BMR is what you burn just sitting / not moving for the entire day. MFP had me set at 1320 as my no exercise day. I decided to up my calories to 1450 (about my BMR) as my minimum for a no exercise day. I have hit a somewhat plateau and thought that I may not be getting enough nutrients or energy. Like I said, I have learned the hard way - by doing it wrong. So I eat my BMR level + my exercise calories when I exercise. I just manually changed my calorie goal to my BMR. I wasn't eating my exercise calories much either because my body got used to not getting enough food. Which showed through my plateau and low hunger levels because of my body conserving energy. I am paying by it now in a plateau which I am working myself out of from eating all my exercise cals and 1450 cals that are set for me. So I eat from 1800 - 2000 calories a day depending on how much I exercise that day. I usually eat my 1450 before dinner even rolls around.

I hope that didn't confuse you more. But you seem to be getting it with 1200. Just eat 1200 + your exercise calories. lol. I didn't mean to make it more confusing for you. Everyone is different and 1200 seems like a magic number, but some people need more and some really small people may need less. It's really about trial and error - there is no magic equation. Just keep an eye on your progress and tweak as you go along.