New to this and abit confused

peeps91
peeps91 Posts: 3
in Health and Weight Loss
Hi Everyone,

I am new to this and have been reading a few posts to try and understand better but I thought the best way to find out would just be to ask.

Im confused about all this discussion of "eating back" calories and net calories and things.

MFP says I should aim for 1200 kcals a week to loose 1-2 pounds a week. I have been logging food on here on and off for a while now but really need to learn how to use it properly.

I exercise almost every day: I walk 3 miles a day to and from work, do the 30 day shred DVD (now on Week 2, Day 2) and also occassionally do Ripped in 30 DVD as a change. I also go to the gym for between 1-1.5 hours, 3 times a week, burning between 300-500kcals each time)

So the question is, why havent I lost any weight? (I have been going to the gym 3 times a week for 2 months noq, doing the shred for 12 days, which in considerable change in my lifestyle habits as I havent exercised before this in about 2 years!! I also have cut out crisps and have drastically changed the meal Im eating - mostly by adding a lot more veggies and salad!)

What Calorie intake should I be aiming for? and do I "eat back" calories after the gym??

Any advice would be greatly appreciated! Thanks,

Replies

  • smcturbo
    smcturbo Posts: 16
    it sounds like you should definitely be eating back your calories. 1200 calories plus working out is dropping you into a zone where you won't lose weight. Your body will think it's starving, since you'll be at net 900 calories for the day. Eat back your calories & see what happens - but the important thing is don't overestimate the calories you've burned!
  • 3laine75
    3laine75 Posts: 3,069 Member
    if you are logging everything accurately (weighing etc.) mabey you are holding onto some water for muscle recovery. i'd def eat back the exercise cals if you're on 1200.
  • peeps91
    peeps91 Posts: 3
    Hi Everyone, I actually put on a kg since starting the shred but I think this is from muscle weight I hope. Ok so the question is: do I eat back ALL the calories I burn? Ie yesterday I went to the gym and burnt 500 kcals (spinning, crosstrainer, treadmill etc) would I then eat these all back?
  • Jerrypeoples
    Jerrypeoples Posts: 1,541 Member
    it may be me but it seems like you arent eating enough.

    looking at your diary you are (i am assuming) scheduled to eat 1200 calories a day. that works out to 400 cals for three main meals.

    it looks like your exercising gives you an additional 240 cals a day.

    there are two schools of thought on how much you should eat.

    heybales has a very comprehensive spreadsheet that you can go over and input your information into, this can be found here http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/717858-spreadsheet-bmr-tdee-and-deficit-calcs-macros-hrm

    the other is eat your recommended calories and not eat back your "earned" this can help you lose weight but can be the wrong kind of weight as your body goes into panic mode if you eat to less and converts muscle to energy instead of fat.
  • chooriyah
    chooriyah Posts: 469 Member
    Hey, welcome to MFP!

    A few thoughts based on what you've said and a peek at your diary:

    - You seem to be making some good choices food-wise, a bit erratic in terms of the total number, but a lot of people are.
    - Are you drinking enough water? I don't see any logged. A lot of people lose quite a lot when they first start just by hitting that water target every day - especially if you have been eating a lot of crisps and other salty things.
    - I didn't lose anything during the 30 day shred, but lost a fair amount (about 7lbs) straight after I finished. Apparently muscles hold on to water to repair themselves, which can cause you to maintain weight.
    - A lot of people on here are going to tell you 1,200 is too low for the relatively little amount of weight you need to lose. I'm not a nutritionist and so can't really say - just warning you that it's coming!
    - Either way, I definitely think you should eat your exercise calories back. Again, opinion is divided, but the general consensus is that your calorie deficit is already figured in, and you should go ahead and eat the ones you've earnt, otherwise you could wear yourself out for your work-out the next day, and potentially do damage to your metabolism
    - Measure yourself. Take photos of yourself. The scale is not everything and you will see changes in your body composition and inches lost when you don't see numbers dropping.
    - Maybe you could consider adjusting your goals to 1/2 lb per week, again seeing as you don't have a huge amount to lose. Might make it less frustrating.
    - Most importantly, just gotta be patient I'm afraid. You've only been on here less than a month. Give it a try for at least six weeks of consistent logging, then reassess.

    Good luck!
  • michaelocampo
    michaelocampo Posts: 108 Member
    What does eating back mean? Ok... I will use general numbers that do not apply to anyone/everyone, but are just for an example:

    Let's say your target is 1200 and you have eaten 1200, but in exercise you burn 400. If you end your day right there, you have not hit your target of 1200, you only hit 800. This is like starvation.

    Let's say your target is 1200 and you have eaten 1600, but in exercise you burn 400. If you end your day right there, you have hit your target of 1200. Accoring to your (and MFP's) calculations, you could possibly lose 1-2 lbs per week.

    Let's say your target is 1200 and you have eaten 1800, but in exercise you burn 400. If you end your day right there, you have not hit your target of 1200, you went over and hit 1400. Accoring to your (and MFP's) calculations, you might not lose 1-2 lbs per week, it could possibly take longer.

    Once that is understood, the next step is to evaluate how long you have been trying. Urine and feces can account for as much 2 lbs, possibly more if you are retaining water (body's natural cycles or maybe high sodium intake). So expecting changes on the scale without taking those into consideration might fudge your numbers. If it has been a while, then logs of food and exercise must be audited for accuracy. If those are correct, see a dietician, nutritionist, or your primary care physician about your digestion or metabolism.
    (Thats about the extent of my experience...)
  • LovinDaNewLiz14
    LovinDaNewLiz14 Posts: 217 Member
    I think it depends on if your hungry or not


    Example I eat about 2100 calories a day, but I burn about 700 leaving my net at about 1400 if I am hungry I will eat back about 50% of what I burned leaving my net for the day at 1700...

    I do it so I won't binge or basically strave...so listen to your body if you don' won't to then don't, but if your hungry eat about1/2 of it back:)
  • Emsnewstart
    Emsnewstart Posts: 1
    Hi, I'm also new to this and found it all a bit confusing to begin with too but I think I've now got it sussed out. The way it is set up seems to give you the calories you need to consume to be healthy and loose weight at a steady rate, taking account of whatever exercise you told it you would be doing and how much weight you wanted to lose per week when you entered all your details. So if you burn extra calories through exercise you are able to eat them back, it shows you these at the bottom of your food diary. If you burn off too many of your calories you won't be giving your body enough energy to cope and it will cling onto whatever fat stores it's got to avoid going into starvation (self preservation mode!) so it might be wise to eat at least some of the extra you've earned back to keep your body healthy, particularly with a low calorie intake to start with. I usually eat some of the extra calories I've earned back though not all of them.

    It might be worth checking that you were accurate in the exercise you told the app you were going to be doing and let it recalculate and also you will be building and toning muscle doing all that exercise which can add weight (but not fat!!). Have you tried measuring your body to see if you are losing inches even when you don't see weight loss, it makes me feel better to see my waist is shrinking even if it doesn't always show on the scales!

    Hope that helps!
  • lesleychev
    lesleychev Posts: 56 Member
    Hi All

    I'm quite new to this to and this thread has been useful in pinpointing where I may be going wrong thanks for getting it started.

    Time to rethink my diet I think I know I've lost an inch or two but the weight moved a bit to start with but is now going the wrong way :-(.
  • tillybeth72
    tillybeth72 Posts: 12 Member
    this is exactly what happened to me!! I started working out in january and still attend the gym 3 times a week for 1.5 hours and do cardio burning around 500 cals. i was also doing 30 day shred or davina power of 3 to tone up the remaining 3 days and lost nothing at the end of week 5 i was eating back my excercise cals as it gets so confusng on here with people saying you must eat back but for me it was obviously not working. I now stick 1500 cals and dont eat my excercise cals and lost 2 pounds in the first week. Wish i did that 5 weeks ago, would probably be half a stone lighter by now!! i suppose its trial and error, what ever works best for you! good luck
  • rjmudlax13
    rjmudlax13 Posts: 900 Member
    Just to warn you. You are going to hear a lot of contradicting opinions on this forum. One person will say you are eating too little, while another will not. Then you will get borderline rude people saying things like "1 lb of fat equals 1 lb of muscle!!!!!! ahhhhh society is collapsing!!!!" (WTF?!?) and "starvation mode is a myth," etc. etc.

    My advice is to take bits and pieces of what people say and try to formulate your own method. There are some people who know what they are talking about, but it's tough to figure out what’s "true" when there are so many different opinions. If you are serious about learning about nutrition, go see a nutritionist. If that's not an option, just try different things and see what works for you.

    My opinion is that you should eat back most of your workout calories. I know it sounds weird, but that is what has worked for me. MFP has a calorie deficit built in for you. In theory you should be netting the same amount of calories every day. So whatever MFP sets for you at the beginning of the day is what your net calories should equal at the end. Of course, this is not a perfect world, so you may have low net calories one day and high another day. This happens to everyone. Just keep going.
  • Jerrypeoples
    Jerrypeoples Posts: 1,541 Member
    Just to warn you. You are going to hear a lot of contradicting opinions on this forum. One person will say you are eating too little, while another will not. Then you will get borderline rude people saying things like "1 lb of fat equals 1 lb of muscle!!!!!! ahhhhh society is collapsing!!!!" (WTF?!?) and "starvation mode is a myth," etc. etc.

    My advice is to take bits and pieces of what people say and try to formulate your own method. There are some people who know what they are talking about, but it's tough to figure out what’s "true" when there are so many different opinions. If you are serious about learning about nutrition, go see a nutritionist. If that's not an option, just try different things and see what works for you.

    My opinion is that you should eat back most of your workout calories. I know it sounds weird, but that is what has worked for me. MFP has a calorie deficit built in for you. In theory you should be netting the same amount of calories every day. So whatever MFP sets for you at the beginning of the day is what your net calories should equal at the end. Of course, this is not a perfect world, so you may have low net calories one day and high another day. This happens to everyone. Just keep going.

    while some may argue the whole eat back thing i will 100% agree with you about the finding out what works for your body. not many have the same genetic makeup and what works for one may not work for another.

    i lost my weight by following the calorie suggestion and not eating back my workout calories. some say thats good some say thats bad, but it is what worked for me.

    it wont happen over night and the key is to stick to it. dont get discouraged because you have a week or two where you gain or stay the same. for me it took 30+ years to put on the weight that i did, it isnt just going to come off after 3 weeks of exercising.
  • WithWhatsLeft
    WithWhatsLeft Posts: 196 Member
    I'm still figuring this out too, but I found this thread very helpful: http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/654536-in-place-of-a-road-map-2-0-revised-7-2-12
  • rjmudlax13
    rjmudlax13 Posts: 900 Member
    sorry for double posting

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