Exercise Calories - do you eat them?

I usually eat most of them back, they are freaking delicious! And then I have more energy to workout the next day.

^^^^^ This for me too.

If you burn 900 of the 1200 calories you're allowed, then you've only had 300 calories. At the end of the day, you're supposed to have retained 1200 calories so your body can adequately perform its normal bodily functions. So if you've burned 900 of your 1200, then you need to put that 900 back. That's a lot to be missing. I don't have that problem; my problem is staying within the 1280 I'm allowed, because if exceed my calorie count I may or may not work out. :laugh:

This website helps me gauge myself so I know what I have left, and so that i don't feel guilty if I didn't work out but did stay within my calorie allotment. I do walk, mind you, but sometimes the eat/exercise balance race gets a little hectic...

Yeah, I'd say your plateau is likely caused by not eating enough on a regular basis. I would slowly work your way up to eating close to goal maintenance + exercise calories and then drop your calorie goal to an MFP recommended deficit (so up to about 1600 calories + exercise, then drop to maybe 1300+exercise). I know it seems counter intuitive and you will gain a bit initially, but your metabolism needs to come out of emergency mode where it's trying to save anything it can in case food gets any scarcer.

Personally, before reading anyone else's response I will tell you that when I first started I ate my exercise calories, I thought if I was working them off what is the hurt in eating them. Of course I still got results at first because even eating my workout calories I was still eating less than what I was before I started MFP. I lost about 20 pounds and then stopped. The scale wouldnt budge and I didnt know what I was doing wrong. I started either not logging my exercise or if I did I just wouldnt eat them and let me tell you, I felt 100% better and I started losing again.

If you feel compelled to eat those calories maybe give yourself one day to eat your exercise calories.

Nopeeeeeeeeeeeeeee i never will whats the point in exersizing if you just eat your calories back if your eating really low calories like 1000 to 1200 it may be fine, but even then its tricky, If your eating like 1500 -1600 u should deff not eat them backk!1

Don't say never. I can't tell you how many people think this and then when they get to their weight goal and realize that they don't have the body they want, their minds changed.


OP, if you want a lean and tight body, you have to fuel your muscles to sustain themselves. Otherwise you will just lose a lot of muscle and be flabby. Also, with very little to lose, you should be aiming for 1/2 lb per week. Additionally, if you are regularly exercising, why don't you include your exercise in your lifestyle factor. If you workout 5-6 days a week, make your account moderate. Then you don't have to chase exercise calories. I will say, the majority of the women on this board that I have helped, are successfully losing at 1700-2100 calories and many of them stopped seeing success quickly at 1200-1500. I will leave you the below thread that expands on why you should eat back exercise calories. Besides, if you are going to follow a program, you might as well actually follow it based on it's design and MFP has you eat back exercise calories.



http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/729141-exercise-calories-to-eat-or-not-to-eat-results?hl=exercise+calories+psulemon&page=1#posts-10742097

My lifestyle is set to sedentary (I sit in front of a computer 8 hours a day!), for a 1lb a week loss I need to eat 1270 calories - I call this my basic. But, because I'm set at sedentary, for every bit of additional activity I need more energy intake! I track my exercise calories and eat them all back, anything else I do (housework, school run walk) I don't worry about tracking.

Yup I try to eat it more or less. just bigger portions or some shakes on the days I exercise more.

I Eat 3000+ calories a day so that I can net somewere between 1400-1700, its awesome. The only thing I find a little difficult is making sure that i am eating 3000+ healthy, clean, benefical calories, and not just filling the calorie void with junk.

TDEE .. total daily energy expenditure

Sometimes I do, and sometimes I dont

All depends if my little stomach is making noises or not....If not.....Nah!!!!

Eat above your BMR and below your TDEE. If you don't know what that means, do your homework. Google is your friend

I 2nd that!

Here is why you must eat -

Your brain
Your lungs
Your heart
Your liver
Your kidneys
Your pancreas
Your veins
Your skin
Your immune system
Your speech
Your hearing
Your wanting to change the channels on the tv
Your not being able to find the controller
Your crossing the floor to try to figure out how to do it from the screen
Your accusing your wife/husband/partner of hiding the controls
Your walking on the remote in bare feet
Your loud cursing
Your eventually changing the channels on the tv
Anything else I left out

..... this all takes fuel to run. Like a car engine needs petrol, diesel or electricity when it is in motion, 'uman beans (us) need a minimum amount of calories to function. Except we need it all the time, not just when we are hopping around the front room in agony cos we stepped on the sharp edged remote with our little tootsies.

If you exercise, you use up your cals that your body needs to keep the engine running so you have to eat those to keep you in peak condition. So eating your engine ticking over level + your exercise cals burned keeps your body in tip-top condition and makes you fitter too. WIN.

I currently eat about 2000+ cals a day and lose 2lbs a week.
My ticking over level is 1280 and I exercise another 700-1000 cals on top of that which I enjoy every mouthful of eating back.

You need to work around with the figures and find out what works for you.

Some have to eat more protein to keep them fuller for longer.
Some have to eat more carbs as they already have very active lives outside of exercising to lose the weight.
Some have to take a serious look at their sodium levels

Personally, during my TOM, I take my weightloss goal down to 1/1.5lbs per week because I get so hungry. Works for me and I keep on losing.

Read the motivation stories in the motivation forum for the 'how I did it' accounts. They tell a consistent story of eating back your exercise cals.

This is a great post on how (and why) to work out your TDEE (total daily energy expenditure
http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/654536-in-place-of-a-road-map-2-0-revised-7-2-12)

This is a great calculator to help you workout what you should be eating:
http://www.1percentedge.com/ifcalc/

Some days I do some days I don't.