HELP ME

The point is that you have a calorie balance in your body of no lower than 1200 cals. Before you started this, you were just eating, and probably clocking in 2000 or more calories. Now that you are eating and working out, you are possibly working yourself lower than 1200 calories (in your body).

ex. You eat 1500 calories
you work out and burn 700 calories
you are going to need to eat 400 calories to be back at 1200

It will all make sense in time. Just keep at it. I hope I didn't confuse you further!!

I'm really glad you asked this question, because I was just about to post on the same topic. Is there anyone out there who is really knowledgeable about this? I understand that you need to consume your base calories, but is it absolutely necessary to consume the extra calories you get from exercising or is that just considered a bonus to use as you see fit?

You gotta look at it like this. MFP tells me I can eat 1200 calories a day to lose 2lbs a week. That's with no exercise. I go to the gym everyday and I burn on average 700 calories. If I don't eat up those extra calories my body is only getting 500 calories a day and then I won't see any results because my body is starving and hoarding the calories I do give it. It pretty much evens out.

check out the BMR calculator on the tools tab,

MFP sets your calories at a deficit.

Working out gives you a deficit.

2 deficits is going to put your energy expenditure vs calories in too low, causing the starvation mode.

If you really don't want to have to eat your exercise calories, set your daily caloric intake to a maintenance level. Then all your exercise "counts" and you don't have to eat anything back. Unless you are doing some excessively crazy exercise sessions, you should end up ok. This will only work if you exercise all or most days a week.

I have been eating 1200 calories for months. No exercis at first and lost a couple of pounds. Then, I started exercising, and...didn't lose a thing. As you exercise you have to increase the calories you eat so your body doesn't store fat (starvation mode theory). As long as you always have a deficit of 500 calories in the end you should lose about a pound a week. That is a 500 cal deficit total. If you burn a ton of calories during exercise and you save 1000 calories, this isn't always a good thing...particularly if you are REALLY hungry. If you're not hungry don't sweat it. But I have done this before and right around my goal weight I was still intaking 1200 cals and I was starving...not just a plateu, but literally wanted to eat the walls...the kids...it was awful.