"Earned Calories" Confusion

MyChocolateDiet
MyChocolateDiet Posts: 22,281 Member
in Health and Weight Loss
Okay so I know we are not supposed to eat under 1200 calories because it's possible to go into the dreaded "starvation mode". However, when one earns calories by working out MUST one eat those calories to avoid coming in under calories and prevent the same problem or is it okay to stick with the original 1200 or more calorie plan?

I ask for two reasons,

1) shows like Biggest Loser show people working out quite a lot with a low calorie intake and not eating their calories they would have earned if they input them here.
2) Also the slim fast plan (which I'm on) recommends exercising while on their plan and it's a 1200 calorie plan. This makes me think I don't NEED to eat those caloried I've "earned" but they are just there if I feel hungry and want them?

Does this sound right? Or am I in danger of going into "starvation mode" if I don't eat those earned calories.

Replies

  • lvickrey
    lvickrey Posts: 2
    BUMP
  • mfclingan
    mfclingan Posts: 158 Member
    I am by no means an expert. But in my experience it all depends on the person. I have a friend that eats a good many (at least half) of her earned calories and she loses well. I don't lose as well if I eat my earned calories. Each of us is totally unique.....play with it and figure out what works best for you! :-)
  • pikachuFL
    pikachuFL Posts: 75 Member
    Personally, I use some of the calories I earn by exercising to supplement my diet. I don't feel like I have to squeeze out every calorie but it's nice to know there is some extra there if I need it. If at the end of the day you're satisfied with what you've eaten and feel like you don't need more, you don't have to spend the calories you earned from exercise. On the other hand, if what you want for the day costs more calories/fat/protein than what you have, you can exercise more to earn it. :)
  • eddamyts
    eddamyts Posts: 26 Member
    I wonder that myself. I think common sense rules and if you listen to your body (hungry vs not hungry), I don't think you'll go into starvation mode by falling short of your calories.
  • mmddwechanged
    mmddwechanged Posts: 1,687 Member
    How many calories a day do you plan to eat?
    Are you new here?
  • zazu22
    zazu22 Posts: 29
    Yes you HAVE to eat some of the calories or you wont lose at all....I started on this website thinking if i eat 1200 calories and worked out 30 min a day id lose weight so quit but i ended up staying at my weight and sometimes going over what i orignially was! I started to worry then I asked people on here and what i got out of it all is you HAVE to eat atleast half the calories of what you burn otherwise you only eat like 500 calories a day which is so so so unhealthy......two weeks ago i started eating 1200 calories going to the gym (burning about 700 calories) and coming home and eating 300-400 more calories and so far Ive lost 6 pounds since then!!! :D and I dont feel like im as hungry anymore lol sometimes i actually find it hard to eat 300-400 more calories (cause i eat alot of veggies) but its going AWESOME! Add me Id love to help you succeed!! :D Hope that helped
  • MsCarlalalala
    MsCarlalalala Posts: 90
    I personally don't eat mine. I stick to the 1200 calories a day. It's sort of comforting to know they are there, but no use them. Weird I know.
  • Sarauk2sf
    Sarauk2sf Posts: 28,072 Member
    http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/818082-exercise-calories-again-wtf
  • neverstray
    neverstray Posts: 3,845 Member
    I keep meaning to write a blog about this so I can just do a link instead of writing a whole new response every time.

    I'm going to make this easy. Yes, in general, you should eat back your exercise calories. i'm too lazy to say why, because I type this out almost every day,.
  • Melo1966
    Melo1966 Posts: 881 Member
    Low cal diets like Biggest Loser are designed to be short term. After 90 days then you are to eat at maintenance to reset your metabolism and then if you need to lose more than you go lower again, rinse, repeat. If you want to go long term at losing then you need to up the calories to at least net of 1,400-1,600 based on bmr and can go longer this way without stalling or hurting your metabolism.
  • ubermensch13
    ubermensch13 Posts: 824 Member
    1. You aren't going to go into "starvation mode" by eating under 1200 calories, that only happens to people who have little to no body fat and don't consume enough calories.
    2. YOU ARE more likely to binge because you body is going to be operating on a calorie deficit under what it needs to operate when you are in a Coma.
    3. Your energy levels and strength can be effected by eating so little, which can hinder your overall progress.
    4. You can burn off more muscle than fat, and thereby hinder your metabolism, AND make you what we call "skinny fat".
    5. This style of eating at a very low calorie level is not sustainable over the long run, which is why people operate on larger calorie goals, with exercise. They aren't only looking to lose weight, but keep it off.
  • pastryari
    pastryari Posts: 8,646 Member
    1) shows like Biggest Loser show people working out quite a lot with a low calorie intake and not eating their calories they would have earned if they input them here.

    Please only watch this show for entertainment purposes. They are promoting extremely unhealthy ways to lose a very large amount of weight in a very short amount of time.

    [/quote]
    2) Also the slim fast plan (which I'm on) recommends exercising while on their plan and it's a 1200 calorie plan. This makes me think I don't NEED to eat those caloried I've "earned" but they are just there if I feel hungry and want them?

    Slimfast needs the numbers so they can sell. They don't care if it's unhealthy as long as people drop weight and tell their friends about it. People aren't going to go around telling their friends that they gained all the weight back because they stopped drinking those drinks.
  • omma_to_3
    omma_to_3 Posts: 3,265 Member
    Don't use the Biggest Loser for anything but entertainment value. Most of those people do unhealthy things to lose, and gain the weight back after the show.

    There are lots of opinions on whether you should eat them back, and if so, how many to eat? I use an HRM to track my cardio calories burned, I subtract my BMR from that number, and eat that amount back. It's working well for me. Would I lose faster if I didn't? Yes, but I like to eat. I know I wouldn't have stuck with this so long if I didn't get a tangible reward for my workouts. On my heavy workout days, I've eaten up to 2400 calories to net my 1200 (I ran for 2.5 hours that day in my half marathon training). It makes this sustainable in the long term. And frankly, it's WAY more fun to have room to treat yourself.
  • nharder1
    nharder1 Posts: 110 Member
    I eat the majority of mine back
  • cwolfman13
    cwolfman13 Posts: 41,865 Member
    Simply put, you should NET somewhere at or at least relatively close to your BMR. If you are on a 1,200 calorie plan and you are also exercising...say burning 500 calories in a session....your net calories are now 1,200-500=700 calories net. THIS IS A VERY BAD THING and can be very dangerous if done for long periods of time. Unless you have a serious medical condition, 700 net calories in a day is nowhere close to your BMR...1,200 is slightly under for most people on that plan and should be the bare minimum NET on a 1,200 calorie diet...this is why MFP will never suggest netting anything below this.

    People who are extremely overweight...morbidly obese, etc can get away with eating below their BMR for longer than others. Pretty much everyone has to reset their metabolism at some point, which means that while you may start off losing more faster, eventually you stall...have to up your calories to maintain for a period and then go back down to continue using. This is metabolic stall. People who do this for long periods of time risk damage to internal organs among other health complications and often end up with severe eating disorders and an unhealthy relationship with food.
  • blakenz
    blakenz Posts: 3
    I'd say it depends largely on the rest of your diet and your current weight and weight loss goals.

    For the biggest loser contestant rapid weight loss and a massive calorie deficit should be the goal.

    For someone else with less weight to lose, I'd say you should eat back most of those calories until you are at about a 500cal deficit, this will help prevent: excessive muscle loss, mental fatigue, lack of sustainability, lack of enjoyment of life.
  • niknak2308
    niknak2308 Posts: 315 Member
    MFP already figures in a deficit to give you weight loss over the week. If you work out and don't eat them back you create a bigger deficit which is normally well below the amount of cals you need a day to simply survive, let alone be healthy and go about your daily activities.

    Sure sometimes going under by a bit is fine but on the whole I'd recommend eating the vast majority back.

    At the end of the day, MFP is trying to promote a healthy appetite with regular exercise - exercise more and you get to eat more - win/win.
  • Km0714
    Km0714 Posts: 62 Member
    some days i eat mine back some days i don't. It really depends how hungry i am, if i eat foods that aren't necessarily high calorie foods but are high in protein and in fiber i won't feel hungry enough to even eat all 1200. I have heard however that it is recommended that you eat at least SOME of your exercise calories back.

    feel free to add me!
  • MyChocolateDiet
    MyChocolateDiet Posts: 22,281 Member
    1) shows like Biggest Loser show people working out quite a lot with a low calorie intake and not eating their calories they would have earned if they input them here.

    Please only watch this show for entertainment purposes. They are promoting extremely unhealthy ways to lose a very large amount of weight in a very short amount of time.
    2) Also the slim fast plan (which I'm on) recommends exercising while on their plan and it's a 1200 calorie plan. This makes me think I don't NEED to eat those caloried I've "earned" but they are just there if I feel hungry and want them?

    Slimfast needs the numbers so they can sell. They don't care if it's unhealthy as long as people drop weight and tell their friends about it. People aren't going to go around telling their friends that they gained all the weight back because they stopped drinking those drinks.
    [/quote]

    well actually in the past when I did slim fast after having a baby, it worked and I stayed thin until an injury 13 years later? I only mention it because it worked for me. I stopped drinking the drinks within 5 months of starting them because i was at goal weight and stayed that way for all those years, but then I'm not really the biggest person to begin with.
  • mayamagallanes
    mayamagallanes Posts: 85 Member
    I was told by my doctor to be on a 1200 calorie diet. At first I would eat about 800 of those a day and burn off 600+. Now that I am a few weeks in I eat 1200 AT LEAST and exercise the same maybe more since ive added swimming. I dont eat back ALL of my calories but I do eat something afterwards just to hold me till morning. last night I had a bagel with cream cheese, mustard and roast beef. If im not hungry I dont eat anything but usually I am so I do :} Ive lost about 10lbs in 2.5 weeks.I dont think there is ONE way to do things, just do what works best for you!!
  • bluebug2013
    bluebug2013 Posts: 8 Member
    You need to eat the calories you earned.

    I tried Weight Watcher years ago where they give you a few extra points for exercise. Due to the amount of exercise I started doing I found that the extra points were not enough and started feeling terrible. I came off the diet.

    While lots of diet plans tell you do be more active they don't expect you to start walking 4-5 miles a day plus doing an exercise class.

    I ended up having to use a tape measure rather than the scales as I built up muscle, stopped losing weight and actually got 3 dress sizes smaller.

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