Exercise causing loss of appetite?

peppytwist
peppytwist Posts: 25 Member
in Fitness and Exercise
I have been trying to exercise more lately. I am finding that the more active I am the less I want to eat. I have been doing pretty good staying at or below the calorie goals set by MFP. I rarely feel hungry. On days where I actually exercise I really struggle to eat. I pretty much have to force myself to eat enough that MFP doesn't yell at me with those bold red letters saying I am not eating enough. I just lose my appetite and the thought of eating almost makes me nauseous. I don't understand...I thought that people got more hungry when they exercised, not less. Should I be worried about this? I am not exercising all that much yet, I am starting off really slow and working my way up.

I haven't been entering my exercises most of the time since I don't have any desire to eat back any of the calories burned. I do use my fitbit and that makes some adjustments automatically. Is there a reason to log your exercises if you don't eat back any of the calories burned?

Replies

  • trogalicious
    trogalicious Posts: 4,584 Member
    First off, if you're using the numbers that MFP gave you, that's already at a caloric deficit. You need to eat that amount. The exercise calories too.

    Folks react differently to different stresses put on the body, so I wouldn't necessarily be concerned that you aren't more hungy.
  • bizco
    bizco Posts: 1,949 Member
    It's helpful if you want to use the Reports feature.

    Be careful, don't undereat too much or too often or your metabolism will become messed up.
  • psych0kitty
    psych0kitty Posts: 313
    You can do it one of two ways:
    1. Find your sedentary TDEE and set your calories based on that number, then eat back your exercise calories
    2. Find your active TDEE and eat that much daily

    I prefer to use a TDEE that includes 1-3 hours of light activity a week and subtract 20% to get the number of calories to consume daily.

    Read this thread if you don't know what TDEE is http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/912920-in-place-of-a-road-map-3-2013?hl=in+place+of

    After a brief adjustment period, exercise (cardio, mainly) does act as an appetite suppressant.
  • PandaBandit19
    PandaBandit19 Posts: 56
    Usually my appetite is only suppressed for an hour or so afterwards. But different for different people. Are you drinking enough water, because that may be a reason.
  • Tempe729
    Tempe729 Posts: 270 Member
    I'm the same... whenever I work out I don't feel hungry afterwards.
  • ninerbuff
    ninerbuff Posts: 49,023 Member
    Actually there has been studies done to prove it can reduce food cravings. Here's one:
    In March 2012, a paper published in the Journal of Applied Psychology from California Polytechnic State University found that people who exercised in the study craved less food. The group that had vigorous exercise did not respond to images of food. Similar to the BYU study, only 30 people participated in the research, so this number will have to be expanded in the future.

    But you shouldn't undereat to try to achieve weight loss.


    A.C.E. Certified Personal/Group FitnessTrainer
    IDEA Fitness member
    Kickboxing Certified Instructor
    Been in fitness for 30 years and have studied kinesiology and nutrition
  • bunbunzee44
    bunbunzee44 Posts: 592 Member
    if you can't eat, try having a shake or something.

    I don't know if this is for the same reasons but I feel full as well and eating in the morning has become difficult for me :/
    I even upped my calories and I try to eat it all, but I wish I could eat more in the mornings.
  • meshashesha2012
    meshashesha2012 Posts: 8,329 Member
    leptin and ghrelin are effected by exercise and they control appetite.

    i notice when i do regular HIIT routines i have less of an appetite. just set a timer to remind yourself to eat
  • mandysan
    mandysan Posts: 3
    I do not agree with the last reply to your question. Although he or she has lost 153 pounds. When we carry excess weight we will not be hungry after exercise. Only thin people who have used up their store of energy will get hungry. You have tapped into your fat store and began to burn that up and that's a great thing. MFP is wrong on the amount of calories it says you burn during exercise. I have never worked up a sweat while doing my pool aerobics, but do work it my best. I do not believe I burn 686 calories an hour and there is no way I am going to eat that many calories extra. I believe also they give you to much intake as a goal to reach. I have been a fat girl most of my life and every book I have ever read and that's almost all of them says a female adult should have no more than 1200 to1400 per day. MFP has had me at 2500 at first, which I did not do and now at 1750. That's too much food intake too lose weight. I am not in a hurry, but I am 50, 322 pounds, pretty sedentary normally. I do not know it all, but I have known many sucessful losers and there is no way they lost weight by eating a lot of calories. I use MFP because I enjoy knowing the calories of the food I am eating, my Dr. says to keep track and I enjoy the friends support and supporting others.
  • kabarnes45
    kabarnes45 Posts: 89 Member
    Are you only focused on cardio right now? Cardio makes me lose appetite, but I suspect it is a normal fight/flight reaction to running. That said, any weight training makes me feel like I am starving. Per the above post, this hasn't changed for me with weight loss. I do not think the stored energy (aka the extra cookies I keep on my thighs) really affects the sensation of hunger I feel. Could be different for others though.
  • brit_ks_89
    brit_ks_89 Posts: 433 Member


    I haven't been entering my exercises most of the time since I don't have any desire to eat back any of the calories burned. I do use my fitbit and that makes some adjustments automatically. Is there a reason to log your exercises if you don't eat back any of the calories burned?


    EAT YOUR ****ING CALORIES BACK!!!!!!!!!!!

    STOP ****ING STARVING YOURSELF , ****!!!!!

    THAT CAUSES A EATING DISORDER - DO YOU SERIOUSLY WANT TO BE ANOREXIC ..

    GIRL EAT YOUR CALORIES BACK - ADD EXTRA PROTEIN, HEALTHY FATS (AVOCADO, SEEDS, NUTS, NUT BUTTER)..

    YOU WILL SLOW DOWN YOUR WEIGHT LOST AND CAUSE AN EVEN BIGGER ISSUE!!!!

    EAT GIRL EAT!!!!!
  • fitnessmare
    fitnessmare Posts: 117
    I had the exact same thing happen to me! And then I got almost lethargic and felt miserable. I now make it a point to eat 100 or more grams of protein a day... some say don't eat protein bars but at least they are small and give me my protein. I like the Pure Protein ones. I have felt much better since adding protein and it helps me reach my goal... and always eat back at least some of my exercise calories if not all!!

    edit to add that I also have found eating almonds has helped too. They give me a nice light snack with protein and it's easy to just nibble on them one by one rather than tackling a large meal or snack.
  • kkaci5
    kkaci5 Posts: 59 Member
    This is why MFP has been so helpful for me. Every time in the past that I've "dieted" successfully, I've started with exercise, then once exercising is well established I have got to the same place -- feeling good, haven't been hungry. I've equated it to "I'm getting healthier and now I have the willpower to eat less". I'm sure I must have been eating less than 1000 calories a day, but I wasn't logging. EVERY TIME my limbic brain would eventually take over and I would end up eating non-stop, then give up shortly afterwards. Every time.

    I agree with the others -- it's very important to eat what MFP tells you -- you MIGHT want to change your macros to 40-30-30 giving you enough protein. Also important to eat your exercise calories back and only lose the pound a week that you set initially.

    Best of luck :-).
  • fitnessmare
    fitnessmare Posts: 117
    I do not agree with the last reply to your question. Although he or she has lost 153 pounds. When we carry excess weight we will not be hungry after exercise. Only thin people who have used up their store of energy will get hungry. You have tapped into your fat store and began to burn that up and that's a great thing. MFP is wrong on the amount of calories it says you burn during exercise. I have never worked up a sweat while doing my pool aerobics, but do work it my best. I do not believe I burn 686 calories an hour and there is no way I am going to eat that many calories extra. I believe also they give you to much intake as a goal to reach. I have been a fat girl most of my life and every book I have ever read and that's almost all of them says a female adult should have no more than 1200 to1400 per day. MFP has had me at 2500 at first, which I did not do and now at 1750. That's too much food intake too lose weight. I am not in a hurry, but I am 50, 322 pounds, pretty sedentary normally. I do not know it all, but I have known many sucessful losers and there is no way they lost weight by eating a lot of calories. I use MFP because I enjoy knowing the calories of the food I am eating, my Dr. says to keep track and I enjoy the friends support and supporting others.

    Only thin people get hungry? Ummm. No. I'm thin and have trouble getting hungry when I burn 600-1000 calories a day.
  • peppytwist
    peppytwist Posts: 25 Member
    Thank you for all of the great information!

    So it sounds like it is perfectly normal to not want to eat on days where you exercise but it is important to eat back the calories you burn exercising. I guess I need to find some healthy but calorie/protein dense foods that I like to eat. I will start recording all of my exercises too.

    I feel like I eat twice as much food while I am 'dieting.' The healthy foods have so much more volume and I fill up quickly. I rarely feel hungry. I've been told to only eat when you are hungry so adding more food is hard for me even if I do understand why I should.

    I have my goal set to lose 2 pounds a week since I have over 100 pounds I should lose. So far I have been averaging about a pound a week loss though. I guess my metabolism doesn't follow the same equation as MFP! :) Oh well, I am content with a pound a week loss as long as it keeps coming off.
  • ninerbuff
    ninerbuff Posts: 49,023 Member
    I do not agree with the last reply to your question. Although he or she has lost 153 pounds. When we carry excess weight we will not be hungry after exercise. Only thin people who have used up their store of energy will get hungry. You have tapped into your fat store and began to burn that up and that's a great thing. MFP is wrong on the amount of calories it says you burn during exercise. I have never worked up a sweat while doing my pool aerobics, but do work it my best. I do not believe I burn 686 calories an hour and there is no way I am going to eat that many calories extra. I believe also they give you to much intake as a goal to reach. I have been a fat girl most of my life and every book I have ever read and that's almost all of them says a female adult should have no more than 1200 to1400 per day. MFP has had me at 2500 at first, which I did not do and now at 1750. That's too much food intake too lose weight. I am not in a hurry, but I am 50, 322 pounds, pretty sedentary normally. I do not know it all, but I have known many sucessful losers and there is no way they lost weight by eating a lot of calories. I use MFP because I enjoy knowing the calories of the food I am eating, my Dr. says to keep track and I enjoy the friends support and supporting others.
    Just to say that NO ONE sweats in a pool. The water is too cool to allow body heat to rise high enough. And at your weight with vigorous exercise 686 is an achievable calorie burn. At 190 I can burn 350 in 30 minutes of moderate exercise.

    A.C.E. Certified Personal/Group FitnessTrainer
    IDEA Fitness member
    Kickboxing Certified Instructor
    Been in fitness for 30 years and have studied kinesiology and nutrition
  • TR0berts
    TR0berts Posts: 7,739 Member
    Never mind - I wasn't sure how the fitbit worked. A little research later, and I have nothing of value to add.
  • CyberEd312
    CyberEd312 Posts: 3,536 Member
    I do not agree with the last reply to your question. Although he or she has lost 153 pounds. When we carry excess weight we will not be hungry after exercise. Only thin people who have used up their store of energy will get hungry. You have tapped into your fat store and began to burn that up and that's a great thing. MFP is wrong on the amount of calories it says you burn during exercise. I have never worked up a sweat while doing my pool aerobics, but do work it my best. I do not believe I burn 686 calories an hour and there is no way I am going to eat that many calories extra. I believe also they give you to much intake as a goal to reach. I have been a fat girl most of my life and every book I have ever read and that's almost all of them says a female adult should have no more than 1200 to1400 per day. MFP has had me at 2500 at first, which I did not do and now at 1750. That's too much food intake too lose weight. I am not in a hurry, but I am 50, 322 pounds, pretty sedentary normally. I do not know it all, but I have known many sucessful losers and there is no way they lost weight by eating a lot of calories. I use MFP because I enjoy knowing the calories of the food I am eating, my Dr. says to keep track and I enjoy the friends support and supporting others.

    I really have to disagree on most of these statements... Maybe for some this would be the case but in my experience definitely not.... I have severely bad knee's so I have been swimming laps in the pool for some time now and our Pool at the YMCA is normally right at 80 degree's. Little cool when you first get in but by the time I hit my 2nd lap I am already warmed up and by the time I am on lap 5, I am sweating (yes sweating). I wear my Polar FT60 to monitor my heart rate and currently I am burning 12-14 calories a minute so on average 700-800 calories in an hour... I normally swim 2 miles (72 laps) or 2 hours... When I first started on this journey at 560 lbs. I was put on a 2500 calorie a day meal plan back then I could not walk but within a week was put in the therapy pool to use water displacement to be able to stand long enough to exercise... As my weight loss progressed I upped my calorie intake (it never decreased) I eat my exercise calories back (85% of then leaving 15% for error in logging and whatnot) so today (down 300+ pounds) on non exercise days I eat 3000 calories a day and on workout days it is 4000.... this journey for me was a total lifestyle change so I have never been in a hurry for anything weight loss related. This is the rest of my life so I am in no hurry to get to the end of it... lol..... I do think MFP's calculator for exercise are off and I would recommend using a Heart rate monitor during your cardio training to get a better idea of calories burned... I do not think they are the end all be all but they do help, atleast they have for me... As far as appetite, I would guess everyone is different when it comes to this... I have never come home from a workout and not been famished...... Best of Luck to you.......
  • Mouse_Potato
    Mouse_Potato Posts: 1,513 Member
    I find high intensity cardio may kill my appetite on the day I do it, but it comes back the next day and it brings friends. My body wants those calories!
  • ThisGirl2013
    ThisGirl2013 Posts: 220 Member
    This is my case too
    However, I was a big emotional eater and exercise and correct nutrition helps me feel better mentally, which decreases my need or want to eat more
    Our bodies are sustained with GOOD, healthy food and exercise which I think truly is the reason behind the loss
    I still eat but there are days where I am completely satisfied and feeling amazing on even less than 1K of calories! That is not the norm of course but in the end it all balances out and I listen to my body.
    I eat more protein, too so yeah, once you have a good diet and exercise agenda, you're golden!
  • Rose_bee
    Rose_bee Posts: 226 Member
    If I have a super-strenuous high-intensity workout, then I'm not hungry for several hours afterwards.

    But I usually end up exercising as soon as I get home from work. This usually results in my 'dinner' being a few hours later than usual, and being very light.

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