Ok for me to Eat back the calories i've burned?

Ferniand
Ferniand Posts: 9
in Health and Weight Loss
I do cardio for a couple or reasons. To be more healthy , And get rid of my blood circulation problems.

I'm currently on a 1300 calorie diet , today I walked/Jogged for an hour which burned around 300 calories , but I eat them back because i'd just rather eat if im hungry as long as i don't go over my calories...


So is it ok for me to eat back the calories i've burned for the sake of not being hungry and lose motivation?

Replies

  • eamartin
    eamartin Posts: 216 Member
    Yes, You've earned them!
  • MrsPeek
    MrsPeek Posts: 12
    Yes! Sometimes I exercise just so I can eat more! LOL!
  • AmyRhubarb
    AmyRhubarb Posts: 6,890 Member
    Yes - MFP is set up that you are supposed to eat them back! Your daily goal already has you a deficit before exercise, meaning eat to goal, do zero exercise, and you would still lose weight. Adding the exercise creates too larger a deficit, which is not good.
  • eamartin
    eamartin Posts: 216 Member
    Yes! Sometimes I exercise just so I can eat more! LOL!

    lol me too..
  • IRollC30
    IRollC30 Posts: 54 Member
    I do cardio for a couple or reasons. To be more healthy , And get rid of my blood circulation problems.

    I'm currently on a 1300 calorie diet , today I walked/Jogged for an hour which burned around 300 calories , but I eat them back because i'd just rather eat if im hungry as long as i don't go over my calories...


    So is it ok for me to eat back the calories i've burned for the sake of not being hungry and lose motivation?

    When I started doing MFP I would not dare eat my exercise calories back. I did this for about 6 months and then started experiencing serious bouts of fatigue. I have found that if I eat most of my exercise calories back I not only feel better, I'm less likely to binge and my weight loss is more consistent.

    Bottom line - eat back your calories, just don't go over.
  • Tachyonic
    Tachyonic Posts: 64 Member
    If you want to NET 1,300 calories as your goal, meaning that if you exercise off 300 calories, you are then able to add this on, so you'd EAT a total of 1,600 calories, definitely eat back your calories!
  • tonytoo
    tonytoo Posts: 307
    If you *don't* eat back the calories you might find yourself lacking the energy to exercise pretty soon. Eat and enjoy!
  • barb1241
    barb1241 Posts: 324 Member
    Not only is it "okay" but MFP is set up so you are SUPPOSED to eat them back so that your NET is the 1300 or whatever it tells you.

    1300 plus 300 exercise == 1600 calories. You should eat that many At the bottom of your food diary, where it has the macro totals for the day-it shows what you've eaten and what your daily goal is. If you log your exercise, it will increase the goal for the day based on your exercise.

    Hope that helps!
  • GURLEY_GIRL3
    GURLEY_GIRL3 Posts: 347 Member
    I EAT BACK IF IM HUNGRY..IF NOT I DONT. IM NOT GOING TO FORCE MYSELF TO EAT. ANYWAY MOST OF THE TIME IM HUNGRY!! LOL
  • billyboombox
    billyboombox Posts: 9
    Absolutely!!! It is recommended to replace your calories lost with high in protein, low in fat foods... The calories you've burned are from stored fat deposits and the food you should be eating to replace those calories should enable you further to reach your weight loss goals. GO GO GO Lean Proteins, Fruits & Veggies!!!!!!
  • missymakayla
    missymakayla Posts: 309 Member
    I find that if I eat my cal back, i don't loose weight. Everyone is different, It depends on you....
  • trogalicious
    trogalicious Posts: 4,584 Member
    Yes - MFP is set up that you are supposed to eat them back! Your daily goal already has you a deficit before exercise, meaning eat to goal, do zero exercise, and you would still lose weight. Adding the exercise creates too larger a deficit, which is not good.
    this.

    MFP is already at a deficit, and for most folks.. it's not really that accurate.
  • Ferniand
    Ferniand Posts: 9
    Awesome :) , Thanks everyone , Good to hear i can eat lots :D
  • momofthreesons
    momofthreesons Posts: 162 Member
    Yes! Sometimes I exercise just so I can eat more! LOL!
    That's why I do it, well one of the reasons anyway.
  • trogalicious
    trogalicious Posts: 4,584 Member
    also, for an 18 year old that's working out, you're more than likely undereating by a deficit that is too large. You'll lose weight at first, but it'll stop... and you'll wind up with a screwy metabolism.

    http://scoobysworkshop.com/accurate-calorie-calculator/

    go to that site.

    put your information in.

    find out what your BMR/TDEE are supposed to be.
  • DorisInTheDena
    DorisInTheDena Posts: 151 Member
    Typically, I eat back about 1/2. I had to see what worked for me. Experiment and see what works for you.
  • HealthyWarrior
    HealthyWarrior Posts: 394 Member
    Yes! Sometimes I exercise just so I can eat more! LOL!

    Definitely have done this a handful of times lol
  • dmeyers1969
    dmeyers1969 Posts: 130 Member
    yup. eat them back
  • nvpixie
    nvpixie Posts: 483 Member
    If you're hungry, eat them. If you're not, don't. Sometimes I do. Sometimes I don't...lol
  • DanikaAtkins
    DanikaAtkins Posts: 1
    I've only been able to make real progress by NOT eating back the calories I've burned. Lately, I haven't been logging my exercise at all. Even though I use a heart rate monitor, it's not 100% accurate and does not take into account my BMR. An accurate representation would be calories burned minus my BMR for the hour. The calculators that MFP offers are a good estimate, but are DEFINITELY not accurate. At the end of the day, I decided not to make myself crazy and just skip it altogether.

    However, if I go over by a few calories I don't beat myself up. I tend to feel better when I do not eat my calories back. That's just me.
  • jacksonpt
    jacksonpt Posts: 10,413 Member
    *sigh* I should really set it up so I can easily copy and paste this answer into the 100s of these exercise calorie posts...


    The answer is that it depends.

    When you calculated your daily calorie goal, did you factor in exercise to the activity setting? If so, then no you do not need/should not eat them back. This is the way most TDEE calculators work.

    If you did not factor in exercise to the calculation, then yes you should eat them back. This is the way most BMR calculators work, and how most people use MFP.

    On a side note, using a little common sense... at 1300 cals, you should probably be eating them back regardless.
  • SanteMulberry
    SanteMulberry Posts: 3,202 Member
    It is probably a good idea to NET 1,200 calories, even if it makes you lose a tiny bit slower (and a lot of people say you will lose faster!) it is better to be on the safe side. Making those calories nourishing ones is an extra bonus for your body's well-being. :smile:
  • FrnkLft
    FrnkLft Posts: 1,821 Member
    Yes, I did, and I lost weight at exactly the rate I intended. Lost a total of 18 lbs that way.
  • ZyheeMoongazer
    ZyheeMoongazer Posts: 343 Member
    YES, eat them. That is how MFP is designed.

    If you find that you are struggling to eat back all your calories due to a heavy workout with a large burn. Consider adding more calorie dense foods. The "I'm not hungry" excuse for under eating doesn't fly IMO.
  • sijomial
    sijomial Posts: 19,809 Member
    1300 is VERY low for an 18 year old male....

    If you have set your weekly loss for 2lbs a week please consider changing to the recommended 1lb a week loss.
    By the way I lost my weight at 1700 cals a day and eating back my calories - I'm in my fifties.

    The best way to lose weight is to be at a small deficit so you lose slowly and conserve your muscle mass.
  • llkilgore
    llkilgore Posts: 1,169 Member
    I find that if I eat my cal back, i don't loose weight. Everyone is different, It depends on you....

    If your diary is accurate then it's no surprise that you don't lose if you eat back exercise calories. You average several hundred calories short of 1200 calories and your body is doing its best to adapt.

    OP, that's not a hole you want to dig for yourself. Do yourself a favor and eat back your exercise calories.
  • jacksonpt
    jacksonpt Posts: 10,413 Member
    I find that if I eat my cal back, i don't loose weight. Everyone is different, It depends on you....

    Then there is something wrong with your logging/estimating. It's not the method that's flawed, it's the execution.
  • erinsueburns
    erinsueburns Posts: 865 Member
    For the people who don't lose when eating their exercise calories, there are usually only a couple of things that can go wrong. Either you aren't accurate in logging your food (either you aren't weighing or you are picking inaccurate entries), or you are inaccurately logging exercise and/or logging activities of daily living as exercise.

    Otherwise the vast majority of people do quite well using the eat your exercise calories back method when using a reasonable and sustainable goal loss per week.
  • carrieous
    carrieous Posts: 1,024 Member
    yes that is the whole point
  • justal313
    justal313 Posts: 1,375 Member
    I exercise to have calories to eat back. I generally leave 50-200 calories unspent to accomodate for bad calorie counts and other unseen errors. But yes, as others have said, it's not only OK its how the site works..

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