Confused about Calories

AmberA219
AmberA219 Posts: 27 Member
in Health and Weight Loss
I have been reading the forums and I'm getting confused because it seems there is a lot of contradicting information about eating exercise calories This is taken from the Newbies thread:
What I see on my food log are the calories I received at sign up (based on my projected exercise) and the calories I supposedly earned from today’s exercise (that match my projection at sign up) again included as bonus calories or 2,087 even though I didn't exercise any differently than what I projected.

When I initially signed up I ate to the higher number and gained weight instead of losing it but after I analyzed the sign up procedure and read all the notes I decided to just eat the base calories given but not the higher number based on my daily activity because there was no change to what I had forecasted. Since that change I have consistently lost 1.9lbs a week close enough to my targeted number for me.

And this is taken from another thread:
On our website (MyFitnessPal), when you enter your goals, there is a prebuilt deficit designed to keep you in the "normal" metabolic functionality while still burning more calories then you take in. This goal DOES NOT INCLUDE exercise until you enter it. If you enter exercise into your daily plan, the site automatically adjusts your total caloric needs to stay within that normal range (in other words, just put your exercise in, don't worry about doing any additional calculations). Not eating exercise calories can bring you outside that range and (if done over an extended period of days or weeks) will gradually send your body into survival mode, making it harder (but not impossible) to continue to lose weight.

So now I'm really confused on how many calories I should be eating. My BMR is 1509 and I want to lose a pound and a half a week so MFP says my net calories should be 1290. If I eat about 1500 calories and exercise to burn 300 will I lose that pound and a half? I've only been doing this for a week, but in that week I've gained 3 pounds! What am I doing wrong?

Replies

  • Broejen
    Broejen Posts: 414 Member
    Do not net below your BMR so eat at least 1500 + any exercise calories. Watch for sodium intake as well.
  • rachel_hml
    rachel_hml Posts: 12
    Myfitnesspal says my goal calories is 1340 to lose 1 1/2 lbs a week. On days I exercise, my fitnesspal changes how many calories I have left to eat to a higher number of calories. I still only eat 1340 though. I've been successful losing weight.
  • crazy4fids
    crazy4fids Posts: 173
    If you go with the target calories that MFP gives you, then you should eat back a least a portion of your earned exercise calories. If you consistently eat below your BMR, you run the risk of slowing down your metabolism.

    If you don't exercise, then you stick with what your target calories are.
  • AmberA219
    AmberA219 Posts: 27 Member
    I've been eating the higher calories and I've gained weight so I think I'm just going to stick with the lower number from now on. I've been exercising a lot and drinking way more water than I used to, could the weight I've gained be muscle or water weight?
  • Broejen
    Broejen Posts: 414 Member
    Was today your first weigh in day? You went way over on sodium yesterday so that could account for a good amount of water weight.
  • stephies411
    stephies411 Posts: 1
    I too am a little confused. It says I am not eating enough calories, but I max out sugars/fat/carbs etc. I do get close to my 1200, but never go over. I need help with where to get these calories from without going over on the other areas. It also says my projected weight loss, but after two weeks I have lost nothing. My body has always been severely resistant to weight loss, but I am getting a little frustrated. Is there a section with recipe suggestions? Any thoughts would be appreciated.
    THANKS
  • Mads1997
    Mads1997 Posts: 1,494 Member
    The way MFP is set up, is for you to log and eat your exercise calories back. If you notice it gives you a baseline amount of calories then when you add exercise you should see you daily calorie goal increase. There has already been a deficit built into your baseline calories. If you don't eat those exercise calories back it can cause you to stall out and not lose at all as the deficit will be too large.

    Some members are not aware of exactly how MFP is set up therefore do not eat exercise calories back. Some members THINK if they don't eat those calories back they will lose weight quicker.

    Start eating them back and give it a few months for your body to adjust if such time comes and you stop losing then perhaps re evaluate eating all your exercise calories back. I lost the majority of my 20kilos following MFP and eating my exercise calories back.
  • jadedjade24
    jadedjade24 Posts: 127
    Everyone is different. Every BODY is different, what works for me may not work for you. But...this is what I do:

    I try and eat raw foods (fruits, veggies, nuts) and non-processed foods. Processed foods are made by taking out all the nutrients that are hard for your body to break down, and therefore the food becomes easier to digest but is also filled with studd we don't need and a lot of empty calories. Hence why when you eat McDonalds or Burger King you get hungry an hour or so later, there is nothing there for you to hold onto.

    Anyway, when I exercise (today I burned 711 calories doing 60 minutes of Hip Hop Sweat) and it gives me the new number, I eat back SOME, but not all of the calories. I always leave about 500 or so left over, and that is mainly due to I just can't eat that much since I work out later in the evening. But I ALWAYS eat at least 1200-1460 GROSS calories (1460 being my base), not NET. This works for me, I have lost almost 20 lbs this way. For you it may be different. Basically, experiment. This is what I had to do to find the thing that worked best for me. Everyone is going to have a different opinion on what is 'right' and how this 'site works' and what the 'wrong way' to do anything is, but ultimately is boils down to what works best for you and your needs, and the needs of your body.

    Hope any of this helped...
  • AmberA219
    AmberA219 Posts: 27 Member
    I've weighed myself several times this week, and I've watched my weight go up steadily until today when I am now 3 pounds heavier. I'm afraid to continue on like I have been, exercising and then eating most of my calories, for fear that I keep gaining weight. I guess I'll keep eating my base calories and try to eat at least half of my exercise calories. I don't want to lose motivation, but if I keep gaining weight then I'm not sure what I'll do. I've been exercising (yoga, bike riding, and situps mainly) and I've stayed under my calories every day this week. Is it normal to gain weight at first?
  • Broejen
    Broejen Posts: 414 Member
    You were above your sodium on 3 of the 7 days so I bet that's what it is. Just make sure you net above 1500, maybe even 1600 and you should be fine in the long run. I was at 1200 calories for 4 months and lost 27lbs, but then plateaued and have only lost 7lbs since Christmas! Eating low calories may look like it's working, but it won't forever, for most people anyway. The last 3 days I've netted an average of 1825 calories and I've lost 2.8lbs.
  • AmberA219
    AmberA219 Posts: 27 Member
    Well, I just changed my goals to lose 1 pound a week instead of 1 1/2 and it wants me to net 1580 so that means I have to eat almost 1900 calories a day if I exercise? That seems way too high! I feel I'll definitely gain weight if i eat that much a day.
  • Broejen
    Broejen Posts: 414 Member
    Depends on how much you exercise. Your weight may change initially, but give it time. There should be no way you'd gain weight on only 1600 a day. Like I said, I've been netting 1800 a day and losing. Give it at least a month before you go lower, which I still highly do not recommend.
  • savithny
    savithny Posts: 1,200 Member
    When you sign up, MFP asks about your activity level other than exercise.

    If you include your regular, always-do-it-no-matter-what exercises in your estimate of your activity level, then you don't log exercise. It's already included, and you don't need to count it again.

    If you only included your daily activity like work, playing with kids, housework? Then you log your exercise. MFP gives you more calories for the day.

    It sounds like you included your fitness activities in your activity level. Wich means that not eating your exercise calories back is the right math to do.

    People who set themselves down as "sedentary" should log their exercise to gain the calories that reflect your true activity.
  • Mads1997
    Mads1997 Posts: 1,494 Member
    The above is wrong. The activity level does not include exercise. The activity level is your daily chores doing shopping, working. etc etc. You should be eating back your exercise calories whatever you set your level at if you are following MFP
  • savithny
    savithny Posts: 1,200 Member
    The above is wrong. The activity level does not include exercise. The activity level is your daily chores doing shopping, working. etc etc. You should be eating back your exercise calories whatever you set your level at if you are following MFP

    No, if you say "Oh, MFP, I jog every day after work, so I'm moderately active," then YOU chose to include that activity, despite the instructions from the MFP profile process.

    I've seen many, many people say that they *did* include their regular activity in deciding what activity level to pick. People who do that don't get to eat back exercise calories. You only eat back calories from things you didn't include in figuring out your regular activity level.
  • AmberA219
    AmberA219 Posts: 27 Member
    When I made my goals I chose lightly active since I stand on my feet at work and move around a bit. I did not include my exercise with my daily activity. I did say that I planned on exercising 60 minutes a day 5 days a week.

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