Extra calories earned from exercise

Monet35
Monet35 Posts: 4
in Introduce Yourself
What does everyone do with the extra calories you earn from exercise? I usually eat them, but I am wondering if I really need to.

Replies

  • KarenJanine
    KarenJanine Posts: 3,497 Member
    Eat 'em.


    There's already a deficit built into your MFP profile. Provided you set it up to lose 1/2lb / 1lb / 2lb etc. when you joined you can eat back all the exercise cals and should still lose weight.
  • JPZ98
    JPZ98 Posts: 70 Member
    I usually eat all of mine unless I am just really not hungry. I don't force myself to eat them. I have found though that if I am working our hard I am usually hungry enough to eat most of them.
  • mazdauk
    mazdauk Posts: 1,380 Member
    Eat them. (Or drink them:drinker: :wink: ) I don't necessarily eat them the same day I get them, especially if I know I'm going out to dinner or doing a roast at the weekend.
  • BurtHuttz
    BurtHuttz Posts: 3,653 Member
    First, I look at my macros. If I don't have one gram of protein for every pound of body weight, I eat more protein.

    If I do, then I usually have crème fraîche or a pop-tart/ice cream sandwich. Maybe a spotted **** or some blood sausage.

    With love,
    Burt
  • bear73000
    bear73000 Posts: 52 Member
    Do you want to use them because you are really hungry or just in a habit of snaking? If you really need them because you feel run down, I would. If you want to use them just because they are there, leave them. You would be surprised how rewarding it would make you feel.
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  • LorinaLynn
    LorinaLynn Posts: 13,247 Member
    Eat them. That's why they're there.

    It's not a test or conspiracy. You're supposed to eat them. :smile:
  • TotallyNotBillNye
    TotallyNotBillNye Posts: 133
    Now I am not a USDA endorsed dietician by any means, but I would assume that exercise to increase both your cardio threshold and skeletal muscle strength/size. This probably takes away energy from your other organs and body functions, leaving a deficit. A deficit is what you want in order to lose bodyfat, that is a deficit from your current "maintain" requirement. I wouldn't guess that a deficit from your lean body mass requirement would be productive. My best guess is that a deficit from your lean body mass requirement is actually counterproductive. Vast amounts of data prove that a deficit in caloric intake causes the oh so efficient human body to decrease metabolism because there is a system designed
  • TotallyNotBillNye
    TotallyNotBillNye Posts: 133
    to keep the body from starving without a struggle. I can only guess, but seems the bad thing about that is the preservation of bodyfat because of it being the next efficient source of energy. Knowing this, the body sacrifices skeletal muscle for the short term of being in a deficit. Basically, eat for your lean body mass....this is my own opinion though. I could be totally wrong.
  • inspiredjen34
    inspiredjen34 Posts: 63 Member
    I asked myself that same question and told myself to eat if you are hungry but don't eat them to just them. There are days that I have 900 calories left to maybe 60 it just depends on the day.
  • Seanb_us
    Seanb_us Posts: 322 Member
    I have read that we should eat back our exercise calories. My habit is to not pay attention to these calories. I eat them if I am hungry or often I don't eat them. Except, I have, on occasion, done extra exercise in anticipation of a big meal or going out. So, if I know I'm going out for dinner tomorrow and want some latitude on what I eat, I'll work out extra today and extra tomorrow before I go ... and maybe the day after, as well.
  • Alta2000
    Alta2000 Posts: 655 Member
    Try to eat about 60% of your exercise calories and make sure that your net calories do not drop under your BMR.
  • SoDamnHungry
    SoDamnHungry Posts: 6,998 Member
    We eats them, Precious! Then we work out more to so we can eat more.
  • JVazquez11
    JVazquez11 Posts: 19 Member
    I agree with SoDamnHungry work out more so you can eat more! However, if you are not hungry then skip the extra calories but if you are hungry then by all means. Just follow your intuition.
  • Monet35
    Monet35 Posts: 4
    Thanks everyone, great advice!!
  • gpizzy
    gpizzy Posts: 171
    I don't always eat them back, but lately I have been. From experience, it's a terrible habit to get into to see 'how low you can go' ie, get excited about a huge deficit, and then you're not eating enough.
  • runnerchick69
    runnerchick69 Posts: 317 Member
    If you are truly hungry then eat them. Pretty much daily I eat back about half (somedays a little more) of what I burn. It is really a personal thing as I know people who don't eat back any back. I just base mine and how I feel with normally I burn a good amount of calories so I would be starving if I didn't eat some of them back :tongue:
  • laura11503
    laura11503 Posts: 6
    Jilian from the biggest loser said the way you do it is burn more calories than you eat. To lose weight. SO CONFUSING. GRR
  • tryinghard71
    tryinghard71 Posts: 593
    Eat them. (Or drink them:drinker: :wink: ) I don't necessarily eat them the same day I get them, especially if I know I'm going out to dinner or doing a roast at the weekend.


    ^^^^^^ This ^^^^^^

    If I am hungry I eat them. If I am not then I don't. Listen to your body. But I agree with the above. If I bank some that is calories I can be over on another day.
  • tryinghard71
    tryinghard71 Posts: 593
    Jilian from the biggest loser said the way you do it is burn more calories than you eat. To lose weight. SO CONFUSING. GRR

    You are already set at a deficit by MFP. So if you just sit on the couch all day then you are still burning more than you eat if you are logging calories correctly. If you work out you have created and even bigger deficit and can eat them back. The key is to net 1200 calories. Not gross but net! :)
  • ThisGirl2013
    ThisGirl2013 Posts: 220 Member
    If I eat back anything, it is just a small amount and because I need to fuel my body after the workout.
    Or, I workout BECAUSE I ate a ton that day and needed to kinda balance it all out ;)
  • cmriverside
    cmriverside Posts: 34,416 Member
    Jilian from the biggest loser said the way you do it is burn more calories than you eat. To lose weight. SO CONFUSING. GRR

    You are already set at a deficit by MFP. So if you just sit on the couch all day then you are still burning more than you eat if you are logging calories correctly. If you work out you have created and even bigger deficit and can eat them back. The key is to net 1200 calories. Not gross but net! :)

    Yes, and Jillian uses BodyMedia or some such tracking device on her clients. They don't create a bigger deficit than is healthy. You have to take things in context. JM does not propose creating a negative deficit for anyone. Read all of her stuff, don't just grab onto one sentence.

    Here, OP read these:

    http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/819055-setting-your-calorie-and-macro-targets

    http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/186814-some-mfp-basics

    http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/61706-guide-to-calorie-deficits

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



    http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/912920-in-place-of-a-road-map-3-2013


    http://www.myfitnesspal.com/groups/home/3817-eat-more-to-weigh-less <<~~~~ This would be a good group to join, or at least read through the topiocs.
  • LorinaLynn
    LorinaLynn Posts: 13,247 Member
    Jilian from the biggest loser said the way you do it is burn more calories than you eat. To lose weight. SO CONFUSING. GRR

    Yes, and don't forget that your body is constantly burning calories. She's not saying you need to burn more than you eat through exercise alone.

    Click on the "apps" button near the top, then find the "BMR" calculator. Or just click here: http://www.myfitnesspal.com/tools/bmr-calculator

    That's the amount of calories your body burns just by being alive. Just your heart beating and lungs breathing and spleen... spleening. The minute you get out of bed, you're burning more calories than that. How many more depends on how active you are throughout the day and with exercise.
  • mrsTravo9112
    mrsTravo9112 Posts: 66 Member
    I am in week 10 of TurboFire by Beachbody & i love it! So, that is how i arrived at the amount of calories I should eat a day & that's what I placed in MFP... So my workout is already included in that total of calories to have for the da... I don't eat any extra that MPF adds, unless I am killer hungry. - which does happen & I don't feel guilty for it either.
  • millermail
    millermail Posts: 3
    I never eat them back. If I have gone through the trouble of working out and burning them off, I do not eat them back. I am 5'1" tall and have lost 23 of the 30 pounds I need to lose since January 1. I wouldn't have done that if I ate them back.
  • GamerLady
    GamerLady Posts: 359 Member
    I don't eat them back either.
  • metacognition
    metacognition Posts: 626 Member
    I eat some of them back if it's a cardio day and only if I haven't challenged myself (example: steady state jogging for an hour).

    I eat a lot before the cardio, and less in the evening.

    If I am weight training hard that day, I eat my exercise calories and likely a couple hundred more. I space out some big meals a couple hours before and after weights.
  • AimeeJoe31415
    AimeeJoe31415 Posts: 3
    I think I love you!


    That is an awesome response!
  • Alta2000
    Alta2000 Posts: 655 Member
    I eat some of them back if it's a cardio day and only if I haven't challenged myself (example: steady state jogging for an hour).

    I eat a lot before the cardio, and less in the evening.

    If I am weight training hard that day, I eat my exercise calories and likely a couple hundred more. I space out some big meals a couple hours before and after weights.

    This.

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