if I exercise that means I can consume more calories, right?

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slamb3rt
slamb3rt Posts: 2 Member
edited January 31 in Fitness and Exercise
Ok so this might be a really stupid question...but here goes.

My goal for calories per day is 1200. Say I burned 100 calories doing some sort of exercise. Does that mean I can now consume 1300 this day?

I've been doing just that but when I complete my log for the day it tells me that if I continue like this then in 5 weeks I'll weigh XXX. But it's a higher number than my goal weight.

Does that mean regardless of the exercise that I'm doing, I should stick to the 1200 per day? Completely ignore the whole net calories thing?

Replies

  • FrankiesSaysRelax
    FrankiesSaysRelax Posts: 403 Member
    You should eat back your calories from working out. However, if you are just using MFP estimations and not a heart rate monitor I would only eat about 50% back since you don't really know what you're burning. You can definitely eat more than 1200 calories and still lose weight, so I would recommend calculating your TDEE and eating 20% less than that. You won't be starving the entire time you're doing this and that alone will make it easier to continue on this process and sustain the weight loss. Just my 2 cents.
  • ninerbuff
    ninerbuff Posts: 49,352 Member
    Depends on how you set your parameters for activity. Personally I go with TDEE and reduce from there.

    A.C.E. Certified Personal/Group FitnessTrainer
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  • stefa711
    stefa711 Posts: 196 Member
    You're correct. You want to "net" 1200.
  • catfive1
    catfive1 Posts: 529 Member
    Are you logging your exercise? I ignore the 5 week numbers as they never seem to be correct.
  • wibutterflymagic
    wibutterflymagic Posts: 788 Member
    Yes, you are correct. Your 1200 is a base number without exercise and already includes a deficit to lose weight. You should eat back your exercise calories so you don't fall below the 1200.
  • slamb3rt
    slamb3rt Posts: 2 Member
    Thanks everyone!

    I think i will ignore the 5 week deal, too. I am logging my exercise...

    Also, I calculated TDEE-I'd never even heard of this ! Subtracting 20% it says I should be around 1800. Obviously I prefer that number over 1200.00

    It's been about 4 days and I haven't felt like i'm starving with the 1200 goal, but I am active pretty much daily and have been able to balance out extra calories with exercise. I might be closer to 1800 on some days net.
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