Can someone explain this to me?

diaowl
diaowl Posts: 33
in Health and Weight Loss
I'm usually a very active person. I spend hours outside walking and on certain days I even reach 1000+ calories burned. Today, however, I haven't been active at all. Yesterday I walked for around 5 hours with very little stop and today I felt too tired and sore to do anything. I ate over 2500+ calories today mainly because I was bored (and we also had a very delicious cake we made that packed a lot of calories).

I'm not one to worry that much about weight gain since I am very active and can easily shed the pounds if I really wanted to. I'm not really overweight, I weigh around 57 kg at 5'1. Not a whole lot of fat to banish and I'm pretty fit. However, today's binge got me thinking.
Given the fact that I am an active person and for one day I haven't burned a lot of calories, instead ate a LOT, will that have any negative impact? I don't starve. I love food too much to starve myself. Using MFP has helped me eat enough to reach 1200 net calories, so it's all good there. This is just a curiosity of mine. :)

Replies

  • StaciMarie1974
    StaciMarie1974 Posts: 4,138 Member
    1 day will not make or break your future self. Its the overall trend that matters.
  • rsclause
    rsclause Posts: 3,103 Member
    When I go too low on calories I will feel like crap the next day.
  • BusyRaeNOTBusty
    BusyRaeNOTBusty Posts: 7,166 Member
    WHY do you walk for 5 hours a day?


    But no, you probably burn around 2000 calories a day without activity. If you ate 2500, you only at a surplus of 500. If you usually eat 1200, you have a deficit of 800. So the 500 surplus wouldn't even wipe out one day of your usual 800 calorie deficits.
  • TeaBea
    TeaBea Posts: 14,517 Member
    There are people who zig-zag their calories on purpose....banking calories for the weekend...etc. Not to worry about 1 day.

    If you are averaging fewer calories than your TDEE (total daily energy expenditure) ....you lose weight.
  • diaowl
    diaowl Posts: 33
    WHY do you walk for 5 hours a day?

    Because I enjoy walking. Haha. I have a lot of free time since I'm a student, so I'm usually out with a friend walking everywhere in town. It's a very enjoyable way to be active.

    PS: I am on summer vacation at home.
  • spmcavoy1
    spmcavoy1 Posts: 60 Member
    Just like one salad won't make you skinny, one binge day won't make you gain. It's the overall trend. If you're regularly at a defect on equilibrium, you'll lose or maintain. If you're regularly over that equilibrium mark, you'll gain.
  • Kalikel
    Kalikel Posts: 9,603 Member
    I've been at this for a while and have learned that FOR ME, trying to eat up or down to a number is not the way to do it.

    Some days I eat more, some days I eat less. Around period time, OMG, I eat a ton before and next to nothing after.

    It's what my body wants to do, so that's what we (my body and I) do.

    We disagree on peanut butter, which my body always wants because of the taste, but which I allow on rare occasions only. Otherwise, we work together. :)

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