Am I SUPPOSED to eat those extra allotted calories from exer

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amydcarlson
amydcarlson Posts: 136 Member
in Health and Weight Loss
I'm confused, I know that technically I'm allowed to eat the calories that I earned from exercising, but am I supposed to look at it as my new caloric goal for the day? If I eat the extra calories they reward me with, will I still lose weight? I really don't understand. I want to prime up my metabolism, if that's what that is all about, but I'm not clear on why they even show those calories if we are not supposed to be doing something with them....or I'm just really dense. If anyone gets it, please help me gain some clarity. Thanks!

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  • red01angel
    red01angel Posts: 806 Member
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    This should answer your questions:

    http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/10589-for-those-confused-or-questioning-eating-your-exercise-calo
  • bonnymom
    bonnymom Posts: 107 Member
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    Some people will tell you to eat all your exercise calories, some will say to eat half; either way you will still lose the weight. One thing to keep in mind is to ensure that your NET calories is no less than 1200 - your body needs that much minimum to get the proper nutrients.

    I say, if you are hungry then eat them - all or some. If you not hungry and your net is not less than 1200, then you are fine too! :)
    You may find that some days you want to eat them and some days you won't - mixing it up will keep your body guessing.
  • amydcarlson
    amydcarlson Posts: 136 Member
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    Awesome, Ladies. Thank you so much!
  • msbanana
    msbanana Posts: 793 Member
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    Some people will tell you to eat all your exercise calories, some will say to eat half; either way you will still lose the weight. One thing to keep in mind is to ensure that your NET calories is no less than 1200 - your body needs that much minimum to get the proper nutrients.

    I say, if you are hungry then eat them - all or some. If you not hungry and your net is not less than 1200, then you are fine too! :)
    You may find that some days you want to eat them and some days you won't - mixing it up will keep your body guessing.

    and somedays you want to eat them all and then some of your friends' too... (try to avoid that if you can. :wink: )
  • sweetie89207
    sweetie89207 Posts: 361
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    want to remember this post so i have that link to Bank's page lol...
  • NoAdditives
    NoAdditives Posts: 4,251 Member
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    Yes, you're supposed to eat them. That is how this system is set up. Eating less won't necessarily make you lose weight faster, eating your exercise calories won't make you lose weight slower. I eat all my exercise calories and I lose at least my desired 1 pound per week, sometimes more.
  • marniehodges
    marniehodges Posts: 264
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    Somebody explained it to me this way. This system is set up so that when you input your information, like weight, height, how active you are daily and your exercise goals, it figures out how many calories you will burn in a day if you sat on the couch like a potato and did NOTHING all day long. So if it tells you to eat 1200 calories, you need to do that to LIVE and keep all your organs functioning properly, because amazingly enough you've already burned up calories that day just breathing and sitting on that old couch :tongue: . So, if you exercise a lot and don't eat back some of those calories, you are going to subtract from the number you were given to live healthy. I have a hard time eating all my exercise calories back, but I make as good of an effort as I can to eat a lot of them back. Some days I succeed, some days I don't. It's all a learning curve. When I wasn't I just gained the weight back, probabably because my body was holding on for dear life :laugh: . When I started eating more and doing what my program told me to do I lost 8 lbs in a couple of weeks. I hope this helps. I have my dear friends here to thank for that wisdom. Best of luck to you figuring it all out. Hang in there...you will!
    :flowerforyou:
  • amydcarlson
    amydcarlson Posts: 136 Member
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    Oh, Thank you, everyone! I'm so happy! If I didn't eat those calories some days, I would be a VERY HUNGRY girl! Especially after I go swimming. I am FAMISHED!

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