Weightloss with calorie burn.

Hi everyone, never posted here before. I joined a few months back but didn't start using the app until today.

I have some concerns with that the app is telling me. According to the app with my goal of losing 2lbs a week i should be consuming 1440 calories per day (which I struggle with on the best of days), now today I managed only around 1150. Also I went to the gym and burnt 503 calories (I usually aim for 500-600 per session and go 4 times a week minimum). now the app is deducting calories burnt from calories consumed and telling me to eat more. After completing today's food plan i was shown a message telling me that i was over 700 calories under and needed to eat more.

Now call me stupid but in my head i shouldn't be making up for calories I have lost through exercise. This just doesn't add up to me, surely the idea is that you burn off what you have consumed otherwise you may as well just not go to the gym and put yourself through all that pain.

Also If i had to consume another 700 calories I would be constantly eating which i do not have time to do. I am scared if i eat more I will gain weight especially as I am a polycystic ovary sufferer which makes weightloss difficult.

Also it should be noted I have a very active job, so my calorie burn through work should be pretty high as i am moving about all day, on my feet while lifting, stretching and bending. And through all this diet and exercise my weight has not dropped a single pound in 2 months.

Any Advice? Thanks :)

Replies

  • seehowyousoar
    seehowyousoar Posts: 60 Member
    Do you weigh and measure and log everything you eat consistently?
  • zoevengenz
    zoevengenz Posts: 5
    I do weight myself regularly but i don't log what I eat or measure. I'm starting to make a note of what I eat now but I never did because I am very consistent, I don't snack and i know my calorie intake is pretty much the same every day.
  • diannethegeek
    diannethegeek Posts: 14,776 Member
    If you don't log what you eat or measure your food, then it's very likely that you're eating more than you realize.

    ETA: whether or not to eat back exercise calories is a very common question around here. There are a few well-written explanations on the boards. I really like this post to explain it: http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/818082-exercise-calories-again-wtf
  • zoevengenz
    zoevengenz Posts: 5
    It's not like I never kept track, I would keep a mental note each day so I knew what I was eating there is just no written log. And I do measure my food I meant I don't measure myself with a tape measure.
  • zoevengenz
    zoevengenz Posts: 5
    also thanks for the link, doesnt really answer my questions but I appreciate your time :)
  • seehowyousoar
    seehowyousoar Posts: 60 Member
    I don't think mental track would be enough..
    You need to accurately weigh and measure everything you eat that passes your mouth with a food scale, and log it here in MFP. How else do you know how many calories you're consuming if you're just estimating?

    Here are a few more links
    http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/1080242-a-guide-to-get-you-started-on-your-path-to-sexypants
    http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/1235566-so-you-re-new-here
  • YesIAm17
    YesIAm17 Posts: 817 Member
    You will probably get at least a few more responses either with long winded explanations or links to other threads that contain said long winded explanations... While you would definitely benefit from reading through them here are a few quick bullet points that you may find useful...

    - There are more, and very important, benefits to going to the gym/exercising than burning calories to assist in creating the calorie deficit needed to lose weight. Such as improved cardiovascular health. It's also known to help fight depression and generally increase mood. Other people, or searching, will help you find all the physical and mental benefits if you are interested.

    - It's considered unhealthy to have too large of calorie deficit. If you do not consume enough calories it is hard to get the nutrition your body needs. VLCD (very low calorie diets) are strongly frowned upon around here and should never be undertaken without the supervision of doctor and even then many would argue it is usually a very bad idea. Some would argue your 1150 calories consumed is too low and even moreso after you've burned 500 of that off.

    - If you aren't losing weight you are almost certainly not in a calorie deficit. This could be because you are consuming more than you think and or not burning as much as you think. Weigh and measure and log all of your food and drinks meticulously. Double and triple check and question how many calories you are really burning through exercise. Consider using a different (lower) activity level setting in any calculator or program you are using as your TDEE may be over estimated.

    - Check out the IIFYM calculator at iifym.com ... Personally I go with "Sedentary" and then I manually enter my net calorie goal in MFP and adjust my Macros accordingly.

    - If you are absolutely certain all of these things are calculated and logged correctly then you should discuss it with your doctor as it may indicate an underlying medical condition affecting your metabolism.
  • zoevengenz
    zoevengenz Posts: 5
    Yup I am sure everything is correct. I have also seen a doctor which does not help because I know from experience that if everything they tell you doesn't work they automatically assume you are lying and wont help any further. As I have said I have polycystic ovary syndrome, it does effect metabolism. Anyway the moral to my story is, don't ask for help everyone assumes you are lying about what you eat/burn.
  • KylaDenay
    KylaDenay Posts: 1,585 Member
    also thanks for the link, doesnt really answer my questions but I appreciate your time :)

    The link given actually does answer your question.

    Basically if you are using MFP's method to lose weight, you are to eat back at least 50%-75% of your calories back. With MFP it tells you your NET calories. You should never go below 1200 NET calories. If you are eating 1200 calories and burn 500 through work out, then you only really ate 700 calories for that day. Not enough to fuel your body. Therefore with the MFP method you would eat back your exercise calories so that you are at or above 1200 calories NET.

    If you do not prefer to eat your exercise calories back than you might want to find out your TDEE and follow that method to lose weight.

    Also the whole point of MFP is to log and track food and exercise calories. If you are not tracking your food, then you really have no idea how many calories you are eating.

    Edit: for correction in spelling
  • YesIAm17
    YesIAm17 Posts: 817 Member
    Yup I am sure everything is correct. I have also seen a doctor which does not help because I know from experience that if everything they tell you doesn't work they automatically assume you are lying and wont help any further. As I have said I have polycystic ovary syndrome, it does effect metabolism. Anyway the moral to my story is, don't ask for help everyone assumes you are lying about what you eat/burn.

    It doesn't have to mean that you're lying, we're all human and make mistakes right?

    What did you eat yesterday? How many calories? How many carbs? How much fat? How much protein? How much sodium? How much fiber?

    How much did your breakfast weigh?

    How much water did you drink?

    What has your average per day, per week, and per month, of all of these been for the last 2 months wherein you didn't experience any weight loss?

    All rhetorical of course. But if you don't have all of this information in your diary then you don't really know, you're just guessing.

    I don't know much about the condition you have affecting your metabolism but if it is slowing it down then your TDEE is not what any tool says it is, in which case then you know for sure you do not have that correct. Perhaps try a lower activity level setting as suggested. You can also search the forums as there already are plenty of threads discussing weight loss with your specific condition.

    Hope that helps.
  • kgeyser
    kgeyser Posts: 22,505 Member
    Now call me stupid but in my head i shouldn't be making up for calories I have lost through exercise. This just doesn't add up to me, surely the idea is that you burn off what you have consumed otherwise you may as well just not go to the gym and put yourself through all that pain.

    You're stupid. :tongue: The MFP calorie goal already includes a deficit without exercise. Meaning if you just ate those calories and didn't exercise, you would lose your calorie goal per week. You are supposed to eat some or all of your exercise calories back in order to properly fuel your workouts. Exercise is for fitness. If you are not willing to give your body the fuel it needs to get stronger, faster, more agile, with greater endurance and flexibility, you're pretty much wasting your time working out.

    You lose weight by eating fewer calories than you burn. You're not supposed to exercise to burn off whatever calories you eat during the day. Your body burns upwards of 1000 calories per day just by existing in a coma anyway, so you don't need to go wild with the exercise.

    Your calorie goal is far too low, and unless you are 75lbs or more overweight, your 2 lb per week goal is far too aggressive. Try setting it for a 1 lb per week loss and eat back a portion of your exercise calories. Weigh/measure and log all of your food and drink. Drink plenty of water. Talk to your doctor about losing weight and PCOS - I know some users here with PCOS have reported that a low carb diet has been helpful for them, however weight loss is still very slow.
  • seehowyousoar
    seehowyousoar Posts: 60 Member
    No one's saying you're lying. I'm just trying to help you the only way that I can.
    The reason why I said it'd be a better idea to log everything in MFP is because that way, you can look back at your diary and see what you need to fix, or change, or etc. You can track your progress for the week or month or etc. It just makes things much easier, is all.

    If you're absolutely sure about everything you're eating anyway, then you probably need to give it more time.
    I don't know a lot about PCOS, but I have seen people around this site say that they have it and have lost weight. It probably just takes a little longer for you since your TDEE is probably lower, but it will come.

    Take measurements instead of looking at the scale, is what I recommend. If you have less weight to lose, it will take longer to see it on the scale.