do you eat all of your calories earned?

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  • clearlyme
    clearlyme Posts: 36
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    So I am seeing that the consensus is to see what works for me! I started exercising full force last week, counting my calories again and have only gone down a pound. Looking back, I don't think I have been eating enough. I don't really feel satisfied and I have cravings because of that. I have also been very tired. So, I'm going to start eating back 50% and try to make better, more filling food choices and see if that works. Thanks for the replies everyone! They really have helped!
  • knitjogread
    knitjogread Posts: 15
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    MFP gives me around 1,600 calories to burn one pound per week. I generally burn between 300-600 from exercise (I use a HRM) and I exercise almost daily. I do generally not like to eat my exercise calories back. I agree that if I burned a ton, I would probably eat some back.
  • MsEndomorph
    MsEndomorph Posts: 604 Member
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    If I'm not going to eat them, I'll just sit on the counch all day and starve instead of busting my hump at the gym...and still starving.
  • rachseby
    rachseby Posts: 285 Member
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    My doc told me not to...she told me that I wouldn't risk going into starvation mode. She said that on 1200 I should be fine, and that not eating calories back after exercising is not like not eating them in the first place...it makes sense to me, and so I am trying to stay b/w 1200 and 1400. My elliptical says that I am burning about 650-700 cals in an hour, and she said that she thought that sounded like too much...so I am afraid to eat all of them back for now..

    I would suggest asking for a referral to a Dietitian, doctors get about 7 total hours of actual training in nutrition and losing weight.

    At 1200, you are already at a deficit, exercising on top of that makes your net calories really low and you will start losing lean muscle mass. I'd be seriously concerned if I received this kind of advice from a health professional.

    That being said yeah 700 calories an hour on the elliptical seems inflated. I usually eat back 80% of my calories from what MFP says.

    The only time you wouldn't eat back your exercise calories is if it was the ONLY way you were creating your caloric deficit.
    I usually go over the 1200 with eating, and I cannot figure out how to calculate the exercise calories. I got a fitbit, but that says that I am burning 1000 w/ my workout!? I go with the elliptical's estimate, which is lower than MFP...
  • l0vedim0
    l0vedim0 Posts: 42 Member
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    I use the calories earned from exercise as a safety buffer. I don't usually eat them all back, but I will eat some.
  • Joehenny
    Joehenny Posts: 1,222 Member
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    No I did not earn those cals, they are apart of what makes up my tdee avg

    When I did it the TDEE way I didn't eat them back of course because we already figured those in. They are talking about the way MFP is set up in this case.

    I am so confused :cry:
  • l0vedim0
    l0vedim0 Posts: 42 Member
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    No I did not earn those cals, they are apart of what makes up my tdee avg

    When I did it the TDEE way I didn't eat them back of course because we already figured those in. They are talking about the way MFP is set up in this case.

    I am so confused :cry:

    What they are saying is that their total calories allowed for the day already includes exercise when they calculated their TDEE. MFP calculates your TDEE, but doesn't include exercise which is why you earn calories for exercise in the food diary.
  • groomchick
    groomchick Posts: 610 Member
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    The question is... How bad do you want it? Nuff said! :)
  • theoriginaljayne
    theoriginaljayne Posts: 562 Member
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    MFP is designed to allow the eating of exercise calories. You'll still be at a caloric deficit after eating them back. Eat and enjoy!
  • Joehenny
    Joehenny Posts: 1,222 Member
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    No I did not earn those cals, they are apart of what makes up my tdee avg

    When I did it the TDEE way I didn't eat them back of course because we already figured those in. They are talking about the way MFP is set up in this case.

    I am so confused :cry:

    What they are saying is that their total calories allowed for the day already includes exercise when they calculated their TDEE. MFP calculates your TDEE, but doesn't include exercise which is why you earn calories for exercise in the food diary.

    Thanks mate
  • scloyd
    scloyd Posts: 327 Member
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    Do people exercise just to eat? Not me. I lost the most weight by not eating all of my exercise calories back. I'll eat maybe half of them back and that's it.

    I lost 80 pounds my first 10 months of MFP and have been maintaining for the past 7 months. This is what works for me and I'll stick with it.
  • Sapporo
    Sapporo Posts: 693 Member
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    No, I already have my calories set at 2000 daily so I don't eat exercise calories back.
  • Aliviuum
    Aliviuum Posts: 67
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    I love food.
    I eat my earned calories :)
  • clearlyme
    clearlyme Posts: 36
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    Do people exercise just to eat? Not me. I lost the most weight by not eating all of my exercise calories back. I'll eat maybe half of them back and that's it.

    I lost 80 pounds my first 10 months of MFP and have been maintaining for the past 7 months. This is what works for me and I'll stick with it.

    I don't exercise to eat. I exercise to make myself stronger and healthier so I can keep up with my 2 year old! lol I also know that anytime I have tracked without exercise, I don't lose. I"ve decided to try and go the way of eating 50% back and see if that gives me a boost. I just looked back at my net calorie intake last week and I wasn't even eating 1200 cal, so I know I need to eat more.
  • clearlyme
    clearlyme Posts: 36
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    I love food.
    I eat my earned calories :)

    Iol...I love food too! I didn't get fat by not loving it.
  • Humanovation
    Humanovation Posts: 52 Member
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    Just starting today, but I plan to eat them all back ... 1300 a day is going to be tough ;-)

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