Calories in vs Calories burned

ecrtne
ecrtne Posts: 7
in Health and Weight Loss
I have my calorie count set for 1290. Every time I workout it gives me a higher percentage of calories I can eat. I would like help in understanding. I have researched and thought calories in should be as much as calories burned. Why is it giving more calories to eat when I burn a few?:huh:

Replies

  • SezxyStef
    SezxyStef Posts: 15,267 Member
    The calories you are given by MFP already have a built in deficet for you to lose weight.

    any added exercise is bonus food to eat to help fuel your next workout.

    The easiest way to understand is this...to maintain my weight personally without exercise I can eat 1755 calories so MFP would give me 1255 to lose 1lb a week..then if I exercise lets say bike ride that burns 500 calories I would be at 755 calories and one should not go under 1200 so I get to eat those 500 calories to get me back up to the 1255 MFP gave me to lose weight.

    It could be ice cream, beer, a banana, strawberries etc...

    Your body burns calories at rest =BMR, and then it burns calories through regular Daily activity=NEAT and that is the number that MFP uses to calculate your deficet...
  • diannethegeek
    diannethegeek Posts: 14,776 Member
    I have my calorie count set for 1290. Every time I workout it gives me a higher percentage of calories I can eat. I would like help in understanding. I have researched and thought calories in should be as much as calories burned. Why is it giving more calories to eat when I burn a few?:huh:

    When people say that you need to eat fewer calories than you burn, you have to factor in all of the calories your body uses just keeping your organs alive (your BMR) as well as all the calories you use in day-to-day activities like brushing your teeth and going to work (your NEAT).

    Find a TDEE calculator to get an estimate of how many calories your body uses in a day. This is the number you need to eat less than, not the amount of calories you burn through exercise.
  • ecrtne
    ecrtne Posts: 7
    Ok...I will look up all that info. I was missing ALOT (and I thought I knew everything) What is MFP? Are the BMR and NEAT automatically figured in to the total?
  • SezxyStef
    SezxyStef Posts: 15,267 Member
    Ok...I will look up all that info. I was missing ALOT (and I thought I knew everything) What is MFP? Are the BMR and NEAT automatically figured in to the total?

    MFP=My fitness pal...:smile:

    NEAT is the method used by MFP to calculate the calories they give you to lose weigh...NEAT = Non-exercise activity thermogenesis so BMR (Basal metobollic rate+regular daily non exercise activity)
  • ecrtne
    ecrtne Posts: 7
    Oh my gosh, THANK YOU so much. Sometimes I just need it broke down to elementary.
  • ecrtne
    ecrtne Posts: 7
    Oh my gosh, THANK YOU so much. Sometimes I just need it broke down to elementary.
  • pennyllayne
    pennyllayne Posts: 265
    In addition to the above, calories burned through exercise can't simply be added to your total and eaten. You have to take into account the calories you would have burned at rest. E.g. if your body burns 1500 cals a day at rest (just through regular bodily functions) and then let's say it needs another 300 cals for your normal daily activities that's 1,800 cals to maintain your weight. If you then go and cycle for 2 hours and burn off 800 calories you can't add 800 calories to your total and assume you can then eat 2,600 cals and maintain your weight. Your daily calorie target of 1800 cals is over a period of 24 hours, but if you add all 800 cals on top you are essentially working out how many cals you need in a 26 hour period. Does that make sense? So for those 2 hours you spent cycling you may have otherwise burnt around 120 cals sitting watching tv, so you have to subtract that 120 cals from the 800 to get you actual EXTRA calorie burn for the day. Therefore if you want to maintain, you can eat 2,600 cals-120= 2,480. If you eat the 2,600 you will be in a calorie surplus of 120 cals.

    Hope that helped :)
  • cwolfman13
    cwolfman13 Posts: 41,865 Member
    Ok...I will look up all that info. I was missing ALOT (and I thought I knew everything) What is MFP? Are the BMR and NEAT automatically figured in to the total?

    Your BMR is your Basal Metabolic Rate...these are the calories you "burn" just being alive...you burn calories 24/7 even if you were to sleep all day. Your BMR calories represent the greatest portion of your daily calorie requirements. Your NEAT is you Non Exercise Activity Thermogenesis...these are the calories you "burn" with day to day living...crawling out of bed, brushing your teeth, walking around, cooking, cleaning, etc.

    When MFP figures your calorie goal it is doing so based on statistical averages of someone of similar stats...your age, sex, height, weight, and activity level. MFP uses the NEAT method so this means that your calorie goal is based on your basal calories and your NEAT activity...exercise is extra and is logged after the fact which is why you get those calories to eat back. If you selected to maintain, MFP would give you an estimate of your required calories based on your stats (as noted above) to do so...to lose 1 Lb per week, MFP will knock off 500 calories from that...to lose 2 Lbs per week, MFP will knock off 1000 calories per day from that NEAT maintenance number.

    Here's what the math looks like using my numbers (keep in mind that none of this is "exact"...it's all an estimate...but I've been doing this for awhile and I've found the following numbers to prove out pretty well.

    1780 (BMR) + 520 (NEAT) = 2,300 Non Exercise Maintenance Calories. 2,300 - 500 = 1,800 calories to lose 1 Lb per week. Now I know exercise is good for me...so let's say I go for a nice 15 mile bike ride and burn 500 calories doing so and log that. MFP will now up my calorie goal to 1800 + 500 = 2,300 calories...BUT, I still have that 500 calorie deficit because my NEAT maintenance number would also be bumped by those same 500 exercise calories (2,300 + 500 = 2,800 new maintenance number) and 2,800 - 2,300 = 500 calorie deficit still.

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