Eat back your exercise calories?

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crystalfisher89
crystalfisher89 Posts: 196 Member
in Food and Nutrition
I have a question I've been pondering for a few days now... Here's the background to my question...In the past, I normally NEVER eat back my calories from exercising. Mainly because when i first started MFP, I didn't start losing weight until after I stopped eating back the calories. For about the last month and a half I've been stuck at the same weight and then this week, I suddenly dropped 2lbs, while I was working out and eating my caloric intake, I also did eat back part of my calories.

So the question is, do you eat back your calories, part, or none at all? What are your typical results for weight loss if any? I also want to know if I was accidentally putting my body into starvation by not eating my calories back.

I know this also depends on how you eat, which I do eat very healthy and avoid fast food like the plague unless it is the only food possible (usually travel and even then I try to stick to healthier things). I also about 10-15 to my goal weight. I say 10-15 because I am not sure if I can lose 15 without losing muscle as well to hit that weight, which I will not do. I like my sprinter/soccer legs somedays.

Thanks!! Also, feel free to friend me if you'd like.

Replies

  • Stephen_L
    Stephen_L Posts: 7 Member
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    I ea back my spent calories... maybe that's why I made tiny little weight reduction after past few weeks.
  • cjsacto
    cjsacto Posts: 1,421 Member
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    I eat back all my exercise calories. This puts me right at the recommended 20% below my TDEE (total daily energy expenditure) most days.

    What I mean is, MFP gives me 1200 calories. I generally burn about 500, so eat about 1700+ calories per day.

    My BMR (basal metabolic rate) is a little over 1500 calories. My TDEE is a little over 2100 calories. Most recommendations say to eat no fewer calories than 20% below your TDEE (for me, 1700+ and I have been thinking I am underestimating my activity level). To get a very basic idea of what your TDEE is, look at the Goals tab of MFP. The number for calories burned through daily activity is roughly your TDEE but there are more math-heavy ways to figure it.

    Another way to figure out how many calories to eat: http://scoobysworkshop.com/calorie-calculator/

    I am losing weight. When I wasn't eating back most of my exercise calories, I lost for the first two weeks then plateaued.
  • crystalfisher89
    crystalfisher89 Posts: 196 Member
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    Oh man, I just went to a calculator online and that could very well be why I have plateaued in my weight loss even though I am close to goal. My TDEE is 2502.

    Thanks for the heads up! I will make an effort to each more and let myself enjoy an extra helping of healthy food if I so desire. I the only problem is I am not used to eating much anymore. I'll have to change that. :)
  • cjsacto
    cjsacto Posts: 1,421 Member
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    As I understand it, when you're that close to goal it can be very tough and you might have to tweak your calories a few times. (Wish I'd been there but I'm not talking from personal experience. :ohwell: )

    Within MFP, I've seen the advice to set your goal weight loss to .5 lb per week instead of 1 or 2 when you are close to goal, so that gives you more calories, too. But if you've figured your TDEE that's a more precise way to do it. Try to eat maybe 10% - 15% below that. (20% below TDEE might be too much of a deficit if you are so close to goal weight but read up about it, I'm not an expert.)

    In your original post you asked about starvation mode. There's a lot of debate about that, what it really entails, but I think the evidence is pretty compelling that too few calories really can slow your metabolism in the long run. To be honest, I think I should up my calories a little bit as well because I based my TDEE on "lightly active" and I actually exercise 6-7 days per week. I've been planning to bump up my daily net goal when I get to the halfway point. We're all still just trying to get it right.

    Congrats on great progress and on the "sprinter legs" - keep that lean body mass! :flowerforyou:
  • AnvilHead
    AnvilHead Posts: 18,344 Member
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    Great discussion by SideSteal about it here:

    http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/818082-exercise-calories-again-wtf
  • taso42
    taso42 Posts: 8,980 Member
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    Great discussion by SideSteal about it here:

    http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/818082-exercise-calories-again-wtf

    Indeed, and here is another great thread from that group:
    http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/819055-setting-your-calorie-and-macro-targets

    Wherein you will find the explanation of when to "eat exercise calories back" (the MFP-approach) vs when to not (the TDEE-approach).
  • Hbazzell
    Hbazzell Posts: 899 Member
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    Thank you for explaining those acronyms! I was so lost on the forums!
    I eat back all my exercise calories. This puts me right at the recommended 20% below my TDEE (total daily energy expenditure) most days.

    What I mean is, MFP gives me 1200 calories. I generally burn about 500, so eat about 1700+ calories per day.

    My BMR (basal metabolic rate) is a little over 1500 calories. My TDEE is a little over 2100 calories. Most recommendations say to eat no fewer calories than 20% below your TDEE (for me, 1700+ and I have been thinking I am underestimating my activity level). To get a very basic idea of what your TDEE is, look at the Goals tab of MFP. The number for calories burned through daily activity is roughly your TDEE but there are more math-heavy ways to figure it.

    Another way to figure out how many calories to eat: http://scoobysworkshop.com/calorie-calculator/

    I am losing weight. When I wasn't eating back most of my exercise calories, I lost for the first two weeks then plateaued.
  • srm1960
    srm1960 Posts: 281 Member
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    :huh: bump
  • _daydream3r
    _daydream3r Posts: 2
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    I always eat back all my excercise calories but not all of them, that way I'm giving my body more nutrition but am still remaining under my calorie intake

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