Eating back exercise calories... does it work?

LOVE the MFP way of eating my exercise calories back, nothing has ever motivated me to workout as much as I have been on this system. I have my activity set as lightly active - it was sedentary at first but I found I was losing weight faster than what I set my goals to and I was feeling hungry, so I figured I must be more active during the day to day than I thought. It's been working great for me - I'm almost to my goal now!

I eat them back too - and have lost 52lbs so far so as with others it defiinitely works! The only reason it might not seem to be working is if you under estimate weights of foods that you eat and over estimate the calories that you've burned in your exercise.

I have also been known to have been tempted by something at work and not managed to exercise enough to 'earn' it back during my day or plan... so have marched on the spot or done some other form of exercise until I have made up for it!

I've done that - the boss arranged for the canteen to make yummy cakes and cookies for everyone, so it would have been rude not to indulge:laugh: I just did more workout when I got home

I've been mulling this question over as I'm quite new to the site. I'm trying not to eat them back at the moment because I am extremely sedentary and although I'm exercising 4-5 days a week, it's very low-impact exercise, so it's not like I need fuel to replace what was lost doing aerobics or jogging.
I do see them as a bit of flexibility though if I do fancy a treat or a little pick-me-up.

I've always eaten them back (either by using the MFP method or the TDEE - 20% method) and it's worked. If you think about it, it SHOULD work!

The only problem with it is that I'm never sure how accurate the calorie burns are. When I was logging exercise I tended to try to underestimate a little. It's probably not necessary to do this as you'll still have a deficit on MFP even if you overestimate exercise calories, by, say, 100.

But apart from that, MFP is designed so that you eat back exercise calories. I think that if you're using the MFP system, it's best to log them, eat them back, and look at weight loss over a few weeks to see if it's coming off at the rate it's supposed to.

Thanks for all the responses Makes me feel a bit better about eating most of them back. I just see a lot of people who are using TDEE/not eating exercise calories and wondered if there was anyone using MFP the way it was designed to be used! (Not that other ways aren't valid - it's whatever works for you I guess.)

Yes, there are lots of people using the MFP method. TDEE is simpler for some and kind of a buzz topic right now on the forums.

It does work. I have had slow but sure success with eating exercise cals back. Like some others here, if I have an event on at the weekend I will eat less back to store some up. As long as it averages out over the week I do lost weight.

Yes it does work for a lot people. It worked for me. I lost my weight using MFP settings. I started at 1500 which was to lose 1 pound a week but at first the weight was a lot quicker. I ate all my exercises and even upped my calories as I got closer to my weight goal while continuing eating exercise calories. I am now maintaining at 2500 (up from 2200). My maintenance calories are based on my TDEE number which already includes exercise so I just eat my TDEE number and be done with it.

TDEE method works for. There is no way on this earth I can eat 1670 calories..what MFP recommends (then 500 calorie burn during my workout) so 2170. So I keep it at my TDEE-20 % and eat at 2258. I feel human. I also realized when I first started I used the MFP method I lost muscle mass----because I was lifting heavy and not eating enough Protein...that's just me though....

I eat them all back. *eyes ticker* Seems to be working.

i eat some of them back but not all

i use it as a buffer on days when i am at friends and know there will be cake involved

i eat more calories on a daily basis than MFP has me on and adjust it as there is a big difference between that and my TDEE

i do exercise a lot and have become a bit of a pool junkie being in there for at least 6 hours a week pool running with weights. i am not sure about the accuracy of the the exercise database on here and would rather be under than risk being over

rightly or wrongly for me it works and i feel fantastic

Now Ive read this Im confuse arrgghh..........some days I eat them all back some days I only eat 1/2. I do 30dshred & 30day squat & sometimes walk & have only losted 1kg its been a month but have losted 39.9cm in measurements total. Now Im wondering if thats why the scale hasnt moved because Ive eaten cals back confuse??

If you're not losing weight then you're not in a calorie deficit. I'd look more closely at how accurately and honestly you're logging rather than because you are eating back exercise cals.

Again, it's not the method that's broken, it's your execution of the method.

I agree you have to be honest with yourself when logging calories or you will only be hurting yourself!

I've lost 34lbs in 40 days and most days I do not even come close to my calorie limit after exercise. At this point what would be the benefit ?

Depends on the person, but for most it's things like healthy weight loss and long term sustainability.

I've lost 34lbs in 40 days and most days I do not even come close to my calorie limit after exercise. At this point what would be the benefit ?

Depends on the person, but for most it's things like healthy weight loss and long term sustainability.

Its the difference between "dieting" and making a health lifestyle change. The more normal you eat (which exercise allows) and the more you ingrain exercise into your life, the more likely you will sustain weight loss. If you are drastically short of your calorie goal each day, its difficult to sustain the loss over time.

There are some great articles and research studies about how the body adjusts to diet, weight loss, and why sustaining weight loss is so difficult. One research study about sustaining weight loss over long the term (for people who lost 30+lbs) found that someone who loses 40lbs to get to 180, their body actually uses 10-15% less calories in a day to maintain that weight than someone who has been 180 for years. They pointed to this as one of the primary factors in weight gain after significant weight loss. Just another thing to consider on your approach...

Always eat back my exercise calories, I exercise sometimes just for the purpose of eating something later.

For example...tonight, I'm making puerto rican rice and beans and fried plantains (about 1400-1500 calories)...the reason why most puerto rican women have many curves. So...when I leave work, I'm going for a nice 7-8 mile run so I have an extra 1000 calories in the bank to keep myself on goal.

Regarding if it works or not...please reference below! Hit triple digits last week.

Congratulations!!! I went to Puerto Rico for my 20 wedding anniversary! What a beautiful place!! Loved the fried plaintains!! I would run for that meal too!!

you will still lose weight, if your sticking to your daily calorie allowance