Just curious…

ashandstuff
ashandstuff Posts: 442 Member
in Food and Nutrition
How many of your exercise calories do you eat back?

I always eat my BMR calories but I work out, at least a little bit, every day. How many of those exercise calories is it better to eat? I eat SOME of them, not definitly not all of them. Hypothetically you could eat them all, right? Honestly, I have no clue.

But is there some sort of recommendation?? Like, 50% of the exercise calories? (If you can, that is.)

I feel like, personally, I am getting enough food most days but I’d like some feedback if that’s ok.

And if you’d just like to throw in your two cents about what YOU do, that’s great too.
:]

Replies

  • AJL437
    AJL437 Posts: 71 Member
    I have MFP set at BMR so I eat them all back.
  • cwolfman13
    cwolfman13 Posts: 41,865 Member
    When I did the MFP method, I ate back about 70 - 80% of what my HRM told me for an aerobic event. This was simply to account for estimation error, otherwise, yes...hypothetically you SHOULD eat them all.

    It's much more difficult with database numbers...there are just a ton of variables and most people substantially overestimate their intensity level when selecting from a database. I eventually got to the point where I could just use a numeric factor of 5-10 multiplied by the number of minutes I worked out to get a relatively good estimate of burn...where a 5 would be a stroll through the park or something and a 10 would be a good 10 minute mile pace on a run. I've found that it's pretty difficult to burn substantially more than 10 calories per minute with sustained activity...to do so requires a very high intensity level which usually can only be maintained for short duration.

    You're never going to get anything exact...just estimate the best you can and always remember that you actually burn far less calories than you would think you would. If you're getting a number from a data base and it seems outlandish, it probably is.

    I ultimately switched to the TDEE method, whereby your estimated exercise burn is just included in your activity level. Once I became really consistent with things, it just made more sense to account for that activity in my activity level and call it a day.
  • TeaBea
    TeaBea Posts: 14,517 Member
    I eat back all my exercise calories because I am older and can't afford to lose any more muscle. I am losing slower, but for me, muscle mass and metabolism are key.

    It does take some trial & error. I use a heart rate monitor for cardio .... so I think my numbers are pretty good. Weight training is so hard to judge though ... I'm conservative there. I seems to be working because I don't feel run down or tired.

    Your BMR is a low number ..... so yes, your should be eating back some of your exercise calories. Try that for a few weeks; if your weight loss stalls... the percent is too high. If you feel sluggish ... the percent is too low.
  • jclark0523
    jclark0523 Posts: 47 Member
    The app is designed for you to get as close to the total number of calories they suggest a day to lose the amount a week you selected. If you stick to that, you will lose mostly fat. If not, you will lose more weight, but a lot of it will be muscle.
  • MinnieInMaine
    MinnieInMaine Posts: 6,400 Member
    My daily calorie goal is set at the BMR for my primary weight goal (may lose another 10-15 once I get there) and on top of that I eat back all the calories my Polar HRM says that I burn during workouts.

    If you are using calorie burned from MFP, they are notoriously overestimated so you may want to try eating back more like 1/2 to 2/3rds of your exercise calories. As TeaBea said though, it is trial and error. If you've only eaten half of them and you're still hungry (real hunger, not just bored) then eat a little more.
  • cyoka13
    cyoka13 Posts: 288 Member
    I switched to the TDEE -10% method because I started work outs that were difficult to track specific calorie burn. I go to judo 2x most weeks, instruct judo 2x most weeks and I am following YOYOG. It is difficult to track the calorie burn of those workouts and I did not trust the calorie burns that MFP gives you.

    I think the problem that some run into with using TDEE is that their activity levels change and they do not adjust for it with their calories. I still track the total time per week that I spend working out so that I can stay consistent with how I calculated my TDEE. There are some days that I go over with cals and some days that I am under. But, I seem to even myself out.
  • ashandstuff
    ashandstuff Posts: 442 Member
    When I did the MFP method, I ate back about 70 - 80% of what my HRM told me for an aerobic event. This was simply to account for estimation error, otherwise, yes...hypothetically you SHOULD eat them all.

    It's much more difficult with database numbers...there are just a ton of variables and most people substantially overestimate their intensity level when selecting from a database. I eventually got to the point where I could just use a numeric factor of 5-10 multiplied by the number of minutes I worked out to get a relatively good estimate of burn...where a 5 would be a stroll through the park or something and a 10 would be a good 10 minute mile pace on a run. I've found that it's pretty difficult to burn substantially more than 10 calories per minute with sustained activity...to do so requires a very high intensity level which usually can only be maintained for short duration.

    You're never going to get anything exact...just estimate the best you can and always remember that you actually burn far less calories than you would think you would. If you're getting a number from a data base and it seems outlandish, it probably is.

    I ultimately switched to the TDEE method, whereby your estimated exercise burn is just included in your activity level. Once I became really consistent with things, it just made more sense to account for that activity in my activity level and call it a day.

    Thanks for all the info! I agree, MFP overestimates exercise calories by A LOT. I usually go by what my Fitbit flex says, since it’s usually a little lower and more realistic for what I do. I hesitate to do the TDEE method since it says over 2,000 calories. That seems like too much food for a person my height and size. But maybe I will give it a try one week. Who knows! :] I guess I will just play around with it all.
  • ashandstuff
    ashandstuff Posts: 442 Member
    I switched to the TDEE -10% method because I started work outs that were difficult to track specific calorie burn. I go to judo 2x most weeks, instruct judo 2x most weeks and I am following YOYOG. It is difficult to track the calorie burn of those workouts and I did not trust the calorie burns that MFP gives you.

    I think the problem that some run into with using TDEE is that their activity levels change and they do not adjust for it with their calories. I still track the total time per week that I spend working out so that I can stay consistent with how I calculated my TDEE. There are some days that I go over with cals and some days that I am under. But, I seem to even myself out.

    Yes, that is the same problem I have with the TDEE and MFP exercise log database. I go by what my Fitbit flex tells me for calorie burns during my running sessions but as far as walking and swimming I just don’t know about that, neither seem accurate. And I do exercise everyday, at least 30 minutes. So I know that an average of 2,500 calories are burned everyday. But, I hesitate to eat by the 10% method of my TDEE (2242) because that comes out to just over 2,000 calories a day. That seems like A LOT of calories for a person trying to lose weight???

    But I will try some things and see how it works out.
  • ashandstuff
    ashandstuff Posts: 442 Member
    My daily calorie goal is set at the BMR for my primary weight goal (may lose another 10-15 once I get there) and on top of that I eat back all the calories my Polar HRM says that I burn during workouts.

    If you are using calorie burned from MFP, they are notoriously overestimated so you may want to try eating back more like 1/2 to 2/3rds of your exercise calories. As TeaBea said though, it is trial and error. If you've only eaten half of them and you're still hungry (real hunger, not just bored) then eat a little more.

    My calorie intake is at my BMR too! :] I always eat that, haha. But I don’t eat back but maybe 25% of my exercise calories on average. And no, I do not go by MFP exercise logs. I use my Fitbit to determine how hard I was really working for my calorie burns (even it overprotects but it’s better than MFP, lol) I’ll admit there are days that I was still hungry and just went without because I was afraid to eat more than 40% of the exercise calories back. Thanks, I will make a better effort to listen to my body when it comes to that. :]

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