eating back calories!?

Weight loss is around 80-90% diet and the rest exercise. I don't understand why your goal is only 1250 though. According to your ticker you have a lot of weight to lose. As you get smaller your body needs less calories. At 1250 you really have nowhere to go. Are you weighing all your solid food and measuring your liquids? And counting every calorie (coffee creamer, those little tastes while cooking, certain flavorings)?

You're probably wondering what this has to do with your question. Well when you add exercise, preferably some resistance training along with cardio, you need to fuel your body so you don't lose lean body mass (muscle). If you don't eat back at least part of those calories then over time you might develop issues like hair loss, no energy, etc.

To know how many calories to eat back you need to know exactly what you're eating and what you're burning. MFP over estimates your calories burned for exercise as do most gym machines. Eventually you will want to invest in a heart rate monitor.

You want to avoid eating more than you think and not burning as much as you think.

I agree with people saying youre eating too little. Aim for 2000 calories at least, youll still lose a good amount per month, maybe 6-7 pounds at least.

You are eating way too little calories and thats bad news for your body. Seriously starving your body (even if you don't feel hungry) is just setting yourself into another disordered eating pattern like the one that got you to 300lbs.

Add healthy calories ideally from good fats or veggies or healthy carbs. Suggestions add an avocado to your salad or eggs, back a yam or make sweet potato fries, add in some good wild caught seafood so your are getting in healthy nutrients your joints need.

I am 235lbs and my daily calorie goal is 1635 before workouts and thats to loose weight.

You need to eat back calories because otherwise your deficit will become too big and you might lose more lean body mass. You want to lose fat, not muscle. Make sure you eat enough protein as well. I recommend eating back 80% of your exercise calories, because I find they're usually overestimated. Unless you have a heart monitor.

I'm fairly new here and have seen varying opinions about this. I find MFP's method is kind of bad for me personally. If I see that I have 400 calories that I *could* eat back. then it becomes this game of rationalization in my head. Like, "You have 400 calories you could play with. That's a Kit Kat bar. Or two." Then I decided I'd just eat back half of my exercise calories. After two weeks, I only lost one pound. A bit slow for me. So now I am adjusting. If I am really hungry. I'll eat some of my exercise calories back. But if I am not, I don't.

As long as you are still consuming a good amount for your body weight thats okay but 1200 calories for a 300lb person is too little. Also one pound in two weeks is not slow its normal. Don't rush your weight loss.

i think 1500 would be better, and i don't want to make to many suggestions because it seems like things are working for you.

but my life got easier when i started believing more in the calories in and out model then 'ice cream and potato chips make you fat' mentality.

You really can eat want you want and as long as you hit your calories goals, still lose weight.

I always felt that eating a 'junk food' snack here and there would make me binge. when i finally embraced it, cravings for food went down dramatically, and i didn't feel so much like a socal pyria and office parties and family parties.

It touched me that you said you didn't have much money and had to limit your food choices amoungst what is available. i just don't want to you sit there starving (don't know thats the case) if you really didn't have to. otherwise i would have kept my mouth shut.

my plan is basically just get the protein i need ( a huge debate but i shoot for a gram per lbs body weight) and i don't so much care where the rest of the calories come from as long as i'm at or under my goal

I agree with everyone you're eating way to little. I eat at least 1650 a day n have lost pretty much 10lbs a month.