"Calories Remaining"

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kerriBB37
kerriBB37 Posts: 967 Member
in Health and Weight Loss
Is anyone else having a problem at the end of the day relating to left over calories? I ate my breakfast, lunch, dinner and snacks and am done for the day. I want to put on my PJ's and watch tv before bed. I usually don't like to eat after 6 or 7. . I worked out today and after I have put in all my stuff, it is saying I have 1080 calories remaining! Do I have to eat these?! Geesh I can't even think about that crap I would have to eat. It just doesn't sit well with me. I recall from weight watchers that you must "eat all your points". .. is it similiar here as well?

Replies

  • Mindful_Trent
    Mindful_Trent Posts: 3,954 Member
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    That's a lot of calories to have leftover. You should be eating at least some of these. An occasional day with this many calories left over is fine, but do it too often and you're going to slow down your metabolism from having such a high deficit.

    Try drinking some milk (I like homemade lattes!), or having a calorie-dense snack like dark chocolate, peanut butter (or other nuts), oatmeal (really yummy with some cinnamon!), etc. In the future, when you know you'll be burning a lot of calories in exercise, try to spread them out and eat a good sized breakfast, lunch, dinner and snacks throughout the day so you don't have a ton leftover at the end.

    Edited to add: it's best to have net calories of 1200 or more. This is your calories eaten minus exercise calories. I peaked at your diary and you haven't even eaten 900 calories today - that's way too few! With your exercise, you don't even have 200 left to fuel your regular body functioning. Work on upping your intake for sure.
  • lastchance2010
    lastchance2010 Posts: 500 Member
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    if i'm not hungry I don't eat them. But i know that if I want a snack or something light I can have it without feeling guilty. so no worries.
  • NoAdditives
    NoAdditives Posts: 4,251 Member
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    Yes, you should be eating those calories. Without being able to see your diary I'm assuming that you've earned a ton of exercise calories. On days you know you'll be burning a lot of cals, try to plan it into your meals. Eat more during the day and you won't have them left over. Or, you could try not burning so many. Also, make sure your activity level is appropriately set in your goals. If you selected Highly Active and aren't physically active in your job, your daily calorie goal is probably too high.
  • francescorkill
    francescorkill Posts: 36
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    I always eat at least my 1200 calories for the day. I usually will not eat any of the calories created from working out etc. The most I go over my 1200 calories is 100 and that's to accommodate the workout hunger I get. So a protein and carb to mix well and fill me up.
  • DancingDreamer
    DancingDreamer Posts: 520
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    personally i think if you're not hungry that eating those calories is rather silly. that being said that is A LOT of calories left over. maybe only eat 200 or so in to them (easy to do). but like i said....if you're not hungry there is no point in over stuffing yourself with food.
  • AbbyLu
    AbbyLu Posts: 29
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    Are you eating ALL of your calories before you put in your workout? Try having a little more lean protein like an extra egg or just the whites in your breakfast, and or a little extra chicken with dinner. You should'nt have that many extra calories left over else your body will go into "starving" mode and it will become harder to loose the weight.
  • DrBorkBork
    DrBorkBork Posts: 4,099 Member
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    A couple of high cal fruits & veggies should help you round out at least half of the remainder (without filling your body with "crap")
  • kerriBB37
    kerriBB37 Posts: 967 Member
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    Not every day is like this but, for example today I had a protein shake for breakfast, wheat thins for snack, turkey sausage and lentils for lunch, oatmeal for snack, then worked out to burn 700 calories then had salmon and veggies for dinner.

    I have chosen sedentary as my activity level b/c I do sit mostly during the day at work.

    I will look into those foods! Maybe I'll have a snack even thought I just ate dinnner an hour ago, lol
  • Mindful_Trent
    Mindful_Trent Posts: 3,954 Member
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    Also - remember that it's a myth that it's not good to eat at night. While it's probably better to avoid anything super heavy right before bed (might cause heartburn), you can eat just about anything at night as long as you give yourself an hour or two for initial digestion. I've had snacks that were the equivalent of a meal (300-500 calories) an hour or two before bed and it doesn't cause any problems.
  • stellarb
    stellarb Posts: 4
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    your BMR is really what's going to tell you how many calories to eat...
    these sites are great for jotting down foods, but they use a very general and vague system to determine you're output and your input calories.
    my advice would be to just track what you eat for about a week and not to worry about what the site says. then, after the week, go back and see if you've lost weight, gained muscle, or lost body fat (or vice versa) and then you should be in a much better position to know what your maintenance calorie level is, your cutting calorie level is, and your bulking level as well. if you don't think you can get enough information from a week of jotting down foods, try two or three and it will be more accurate.
    calories don't work like weight watcher's points. weight watchers has a predetermined formula for most foods, and instead of using a calorie/nutrition profile, they simplify it by using their "points". i've never been a fan of that type of thing, but that's just me and my crazy bodybuilder frame of mind talking. if it works for you, that's all that matters.
    i hope this helped!
  • Mindful_Trent
    Mindful_Trent Posts: 3,954 Member
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    your BMR is really what's going to tell you how many calories to eat...
    these sites are great for jotting down foods, but they use a very general and vague system to determine you're output and your input calories.
    my advice would be to just track what you eat for about a week and not to worry about what the site says. then, after the week, go back and see if you've lost weight, gained muscle, or lost body fat (or vice versa) and then you should be in a much better position to know what your maintenance calorie level is, your cutting calorie level is, and your bulking level as well. if you don't think you can get enough information from a week of jotting down foods, try two or three and it will be more accurate.
    calories don't work like weight watcher's points. weight watchers has a predetermined formula for most foods, and instead of using a calorie/nutrition profile, they simplify it by using their "points". i've never been a fan of that type of thing, but that's just me and my crazy bodybuilder frame of mind talking. if it works for you, that's all that matters.
    i hope this helped!

    I agree the site is general - but the OP has eaten less than 900 calories today, and has burned over 700 in exercise. She's not eating enough. Really, BMR is NOT something most people need to worry about - it's their normal daily calories burned (that's BMR plus normal daily activities), exercise calories, and their food consumption. MFP is a pretty good way to estimate your and track their needs. While it may work for you, most people on MFP should not be approaching it from a bodybuilder viewpoint.
  • TateFTW
    TateFTW Posts: 658 Member
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    Not every day is like this but, for example today I had a protein shake for breakfast, wheat thins for snack, turkey sausage and lentils for lunch, oatmeal for snack, then worked out to burn 700 calories then had salmon and veggies for dinner.

    I have chosen sedentary as my activity level b/c I do sit mostly during the day at work.

    I will look into those foods! Maybe I'll have a snack even thought I just ate dinnner an hour ago, lol

    1. You need to make your diary public if you really want advice.

    2. The "calories burned" estimator here is very generous. I usually put in only 2/3 of the actual time I do an exercise, with the only exception being circuit training, because I do it very intensely.

    3. You need to EAT MORE. When I was bulking (eating to add muscle) I was eating 3500 calories a day to complement my hour in the gym. A protein shake is not a meal, and wheat thins are not a snack. A protein shake AND wheat thins are MAYBE enough for a single snack.

    There are a few ways to get more calories into your diet. The best way is to get more fat. Whole milk, olive oil, and natural peanut butter are all amazing ways to add a shot of calories to a meal. Use whole milk and add a serving of natural peanut butter to your protein shake and like magic, you've added 300+ calories to your intake (it tastes freaking good too). I've even heard of people puting olive oil into protein shakes. Yes, bodybuilders are crazy.

    If you like eggs, then eat some, and don't you dare throw out the yolk. That's where all the nutrients and fats are.

    Start adding cheese to things. Again, easy way to add calories without stuffing yourself.

    If you add food to every single meal, starting right at breakfast, you'll be able to get the calories you need.
  • kerriBB37
    kerriBB37 Posts: 967 Member
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    I thought it was public.

    I wear a heart rate monitor for every work out, I trust it.

    I will try and add snacks like you suggested. However when you've been 200# and are a small-boned, 5'8" female it's hard to wrap your head around the concept of "eating to lose!" just sayin. .
  • lisamaria63
    lisamaria63 Posts: 49
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    I was wondering the same thing... I just finished exercising AND eating for the day but after exercising I have something like 400 more calories.. Well if I was to eat that, wouldn't it defeats the purpose of exercising. To me don't exercise and I won't have to eat more food.. It's weird.. YES I will continue to exercise. I'm just saying.. Hmmm?
  • TateFTW
    TateFTW Posts: 658 Member
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    I thought it was public.

    I wear a heart rate monitor for every work out, I trust it.

    I will try and add snacks like you suggested. However when you've been 200# and are a small-boned, 5'8" female it's hard to wrap your head around the concept of "eating to lose!" just sayin. .

    My bad, it is public.

    Yeah, you definitely need to start eating. After exercise, you're leaving your body about 300 calories a day to survive. I know you aren't hungry. That's because your metabolism has slowed big time. You need to get your goal calories every single day for about a month to get things going again. Yes, you'll probably gain a few lbs, it's NOT fat, just water weight as your body gets used to a higher intake. After a month if you need to have a day every now and then when you under-eat, it won't be a big deal, but for every day you have to under-eat, you need to have a day where you go over your goal.

    My wife was stuck at 117 for months. She was busting her butt at the gym and couldn't drop a lb. When she started logging, she realized she was eating about 700 calories a day. Once she started eating 1200 calories and at least attempting to eat her exercise calories, she started losing almost immediately. If you've been eating this way for a while, then please give it time. Your body has grown used to starving and needs to right itself. You should start getting your appetite back as well, which will help you meet your goals.

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