BMF/MFP and eating back work out calories

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StormyGal8
StormyGal8 Posts: 184 Member
in Health and Weight Loss
I am confused about eating back calories burned by exercise. I know this has been gone over a billion times, but here is my dilemma...

I recently got a BodyMedia Fit (which I am LOVING), and it has my target "calories burned" at 2500 and today I burned 3284 (I wlk for a living, some days more than others), and I put in that i eat 1500 calories a day. MFP is now saying that I am actually -30 net calories because of all my walking today. So what on earth should I be doing? I am thinking I should be eating some back, but how many?

I have only had 1230 calories for today so far, not because I am skimping either...

I am a wee bit lost on this. If I was doing a hardcore work out, and since I am unsure about if it's best to eat back work out calories, I would compromise and eat back 1/2 of them, but this is a HUGE difference!!
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Replies

  • Dagoth
    Dagoth Posts: 172
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    Oh wow, this thread again.
  • Matt_Wilken
    Matt_Wilken Posts: 188
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    Being absent from MFP for about 4 years and then see this thread again brings back memories...bad ones
  • Matt_Wilken
    Matt_Wilken Posts: 188
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    I am confused about eating back calories burned by exercise. I know this has been gone over a billion times, but here is my dilemma...

    I recently got a BodyMedia Fit (which I am LOVING), and it has my target "calories burned" at 2500 and today I burned 3284 (I wlk for a living, some days more than others), and I put in that i eat 1500 calories a day. MFP is now saying that I am actually -30 net calories because of all my walking today. So what on earth should I be doing? I am thinking I should be eating some back, but how many?

    I have only had 1230 calories for today so far, not because I am skimping either...

    I am a wee bit lost on this. If I was doing a hardcore work out, and since I am unsure about if it's best to eat back work out calories, I would compromise and eat back 1/2 of them, but this is a HUGE difference!!

    Eat back all your exercise calories, if you gain weight after three weeks then readjust your cal intake so you start losing. The reason why you eat back your exercise calories is to be consistent with the deficit that MFP has caluclated when setting your goals, thus if you are set to lose 1lb a week which is 3500 cals (500 a day) then it is recommended to eat back your cals so the deficit stay consistent at 500 cals.

    Creating a bigger deficit will speed up your WEIGHTLOSS(Emphasis on weight and not fat) but at the cost of losing precious muscle mass.
  • sandradev1
    sandradev1 Posts: 786 Member
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    I find using MFP calculations far too vague and confusing. I am among the many on here who are using the In Place Of A Road Map created by MFP'er Hellotisdan and also a spreadsheet created by MFP'er Heybales.

    The IPOARM link is
    http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/654536-in-place-of-a-road-map-2-0-revised-7-2-12

    This provides all the information and calculators you need to get your BMR and TDEE and therefore your calorie goal.

    The link to the spreadsheet is
    https://docs.google.com/spreadsheet/ccc?key=0Amt7QBR9-c6MdGVTbGswLUUzUHNVVUlNSW9wZWloeUE

    This enables you to more specifically identify your activities. You will then have the amount of actual calories you need to eat which include your activity. You use custom settings to change MFP and then you don't need to eat your exercise calories back. Easy.
  • StormyGal8
    StormyGal8 Posts: 184 Member
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    Wow...note to self, don't ask questions!

    For anyone who did actually input, thank you for taking the time to do so.
  • VRoseDuda
    VRoseDuda Posts: 129 Member
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    If you have a physical job I would adjust that in to your "lifestyle" because your body is used to that (I do not count anything I do as a regular routine as exercise). For example, my husband works 12 hr days on his feet, retail. (Menards). He walks miles a day but I wouldn't consider that his activity, just his type of lifestyle.
    So you may be over counting your "burn"
    BTW, I only eat half of my calories back usually.
  • BusyRaeNOTBusty
    BusyRaeNOTBusty Posts: 7,166 Member
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    I just started using my BMF synced with MFP. It IS a little confusing.

    MFP is guessing you burn a certain number of calories a day, subtracting a certain amount from that (500 calories if you want to lose a pound a week). IF for whatever reason you burn way more than that your BMF will automatically add "exercise calories" to your MFP. You should probably eat them.

    If you burned 3200 today and only ate 1200 that's a 2000 calorie deficit, probably "too big".
  • ubermensch13
    ubermensch13 Posts: 824 Member
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    it isn't about not asking questions, it is about not being lazy and searching the treads first to see if your question has already been asked before, which many have. If not, then ask away, but a little leg work and you'll find your answer without creating the same post we've all see a million times.
  • CnocNaCu
    CnocNaCu Posts: 536 Member
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    it isn't about not asking questions, it is about not being lazy and searching the treads first to see if your question has already been asked before, which many have. If not, then ask away, but a little leg work and you'll find your answer without creating the same post we've all see a million times.

    If you've seen posts like this a million times, why do you still read them?
    For the New Year I wish that people would be a bit more patient and understanding.
    Do you speak German, btw? Then you know what an Uebermensch is? You're definitely not.
  • mtfr810
    mtfr810 Posts: 136 Member
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    Ask questions! Some who is less than thrilled with you asking an "old" question and vocal about it isn't very supportive. I don't eat back and calories that were burned for and regular activities such as work. If I do exercise then I might use that as a reward to have say a glass of wine, but I still keep those extra workout calories mostly as unused.
  • elisa123gal
    elisa123gal Posts: 4,306 Member
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    I don't mind the question..and there are differing opinions on that one anyway. The ones that are arrogant about it..have figured it out...and know what works for them..and they forget what it is like to be new.
  • Bobby__Clerici
    Bobby__Clerici Posts: 741 Member
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    MFP is set up to eat them back.
    Not everybody uses MFP the same, so you must decide. I enjoy the notion of eating back exercise calories, because it gives me flexibility.
    If I goof and eat more than I should, more exercise can offset the mistake,
    Again, it's all up to you.
    At day's end, MFP is set up to make it easy for a consistent deficit and net calorie intake for steady, safe and lasting weight loss.
    EAT THEM BACK...and enjoy!
    The reason people hate this topic is that some folks here do not follow the MFP recommendations.
    And both camps yammer back and forth like clucking hens laying eggs.
    You do what you want.
    Good Luck!
  • SideSteel
    SideSteel Posts: 11,068 Member
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    I would eat back a portion of them. The only reason I wouldn't eat back all of them would be that exercise expenditure tends to be over-stated.

    That being said, here is an explanation:
    http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/818082-exercise-calories-again-wtf
  • jkestens63
    jkestens63 Posts: 1,164 Member
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    it isn't about not asking questions, it is about not being lazy and searching the treads first to see if your question has already been asked before, which many have. If not, then ask away, but a little leg work and you'll find your answer without creating the same post we've all see a million times.

    If you've seen posts like this a million times, why do you still read them?
    For the New Year I wish that people would be a bit more patient and understanding.
    Do you speak German, btw? Then you know what an Uebermensch is? You're definitely not.
    ^this^

    If I see a thread I don't like I don't open it or exit quietly. Nice job calling someone looking for help lazy. Sometimes the old threads are too numerous to sift through or not specific enough to the question. Or maybe some of us like the actual interaction of asking a question and getting answers.
  • BarbellCowgirl
    BarbellCowgirl Posts: 1,271 Member
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    I think most are misinterpreting the OPs question.
    What I decided to do is to look at my average TDEE from the past month as recorded by my BMF and set MFP calories at a 20% cut from that. So some days I will have a much bigger deficit than other days, but it averages out. The great thing about the BMF is that you know what your TDEE really is rather than just a rough calculation. Hope that helps!
  • Janelle173
    Janelle173 Posts: 396 Member
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    it isn't about not asking questions, it is about not being lazy and searching the treads first to see if your question has already been asked before, which many have. If not, then ask away, but a little leg work and you'll find your answer without creating the same post we've all see a million times.

    Rude! Not helpful! Glad you have time to come onto a thread that you have such a large amount of annoyance from just to be rude to someone, who is asking for assistance.

    Some people may not have as much free time as you...Maybe they are like me- I do research all the time for my classes, and sometimes, in a rush, or as a last resort, would just like to interact with the MFP community on a topic and get their quick responses, even if it has been hashed out to the freaking moon and back. Also, ANNOYING is having to wade through the billion threads about this topic to find the answer you are looking for...OP has a kind of specific question not just about eating back calories in general.

    Happy freaking New Year Meany McMeanerton!!

    OP-I am sorry you had to deal with ^^^^ I hope that some of the other, more helpful members answered your question.

    I specifically am in the midst of deciding whether to really eat back my calories. I may do as another poster said and drink a glass of wine from time to time, but I think I am going to see how it goes not eating back all my calories for a while.

    Good luck! <3
  • StormyGal8
    StormyGal8 Posts: 184 Member
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    Thank you to everyone who had something supportive to say. That is why I like this site! For those who feel it's their place to be judgmental or close minded, I wish that I felt I was as perfect as you must feel you are, to not feel the need to ask questions!!

    As it stands I happen to have very little free time right now. I am currently working 6 days a week, sometimes 12 hours a day, and adding on a 50 minute commute each way to work. This is not typical, but a co-worker just lost her husband of 43 years, and by covering as many of her shifts as possible, it relieves the stress of her feeling as though she needs to rush back to work in her grief. Thanks for assuming I am lazy.
  • 1stday13
    1stday13 Posts: 433 Member
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    Hey, I have same question. Thanks for asking it. I deleted exercise goals because I do not like them adding in extra calories to my "my calories available" it is too confusing to me. Plus I thought part of the reason of exercise was to burn calories to lose weight. doesn't adding them to calories available defeat the purpose. I am still confused. And shame on reply's of " Here we go again" or asked so many times. Just don't reply. Some of us didn't get to see 'all those answers" I still didn't get a clear answer from anyone :huh:
  • rfsatar
    rfsatar Posts: 599 Member
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    I am confused about eating back calories burned by exercise. I know this has been gone over a billion times, but here is my dilemma...

    I recently got a BodyMedia Fit (which I am LOVING), and it has my target "calories burned" at 2500 and today I burned 3284 (I wlk for a living, some days more than others), and I put in that i eat 1500 calories a day. MFP is now saying that I am actually -30 net calories because of all my walking today. So what on earth should I be doing? I am thinking I should be eating some back, but how many?

    I have only had 1230 calories for today so far, not because I am skimping either...

    I am a wee bit lost on this. If I was doing a hardcore work out, and since I am unsure about if it's best to eat back work out calories, I would compromise and eat back 1/2 of them, but this is a HUGE difference!!

    What you have hit upon is one of the issues with the application integrations here in MFP.
    I don't have a BMF but I have a Fitbit - here's what I do and it may help you out.
    When you set up in MFP - did you set your day job activity to More active than sedentary? If you walk a lot in your job it should be set at a higher level.
    Because MFP gives you a calorie goal with your deficit built in, it needs to know if you are more active .

    I gain about half a meals worth of additional "adjusted" calories from FitBit which obviously reduce my NET cals taken in ... So what I did was worked out my Total Daily Energy Expenditure (TDEE) ... I then worked out a 15-20% deficit and I eat back SOME but not all of my exercise cals to hit that mark.
    It's been working for me but purely because when I set up in here, I went for Sedentary as I am a writer and desk bound almost all the day.
    When I worked out my TDEE I put in the amount of exercise I do ... And the combination has worked out so far.

    Hope that helps a little
  • sijomial
    sijomial Posts: 19,811 Member
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    Hey, I have same question. Thanks for asking it. I deleted exercise goals because I do not like them adding in extra calories to my "my calories available" it is too confusing to me. Plus I thought part of the reason of exercise was to burn calories to lose weight. doesn't adding them to calories available defeat the purpose. I am still confused. And shame on reply's of " Here we go again" or asked so many times. Just don't reply. Some of us didn't get to see 'all those answers" I still didn't get a clear answer from anyone :huh:

    Re-read Bobby_Cleric's answer above - it explains exactly how MFP is designed to be used. He also mentions that people use the site in different ways (e.g. the roadmap/TDEE minus a percentage). "Exercise goals" in your settings doesn't amend the numbers at all - it's the lifestyle activity level that helps sets your target. Key thing to remember is that your target calories already includes the deficit needed to lose weight steadily. Eating back your exercise calories just means you will be at a steady deficit. Exercise should be seen as a benefit for your health rather than a way to burn off calories.

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