Eating Calories Earned From Exercise

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JRRCLR
JRRCLR Posts: 353
in Health and Weight Loss
I'm sure this has been asked many times...but do you eat your calories you earned from exercise? And if so, how often, every day? Today I had to cause supper had more calories than expected, but I don't think I want to make that a habit.

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  • meggonkgonk
    meggonkgonk Posts: 2,066 Member
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    There is a number on your home page: labelled Net Calories. Make sure to eat enough of your exercise calories to make that number AT LEAST 1200
  • mizliz1981
    mizliz1981 Posts: 39
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    I eat some. If I know that we are going to have a high calorie meal on the weekend I make sure that I work out to help balance it out. At first I needed to eat them all because I still felt hungary but now my stomach has adjusted to eating less and I don't feel like I need to eat them. I also eat enough so that I am not going into the starvation mode.
  • mariemarrero
    mariemarrero Posts: 7
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    I try not to eat the calories that I earned from exercise. Since it takes 3500 to lose or gain a pound, I use the extra calories that I've gained towards my count for losing weight. I'm on a 1200 calorie a day diet, I usually don't use all those calories, if I have 100 left from my normal calorie count I add it to my gained calories from exercise and when that number adds up to 3500 I know that I have lost a pound. When I compare that to my weight recorded on my scale those numbers usually coincide.

    Hope that helps!
  • Dakota1235
    Dakota1235 Posts: 12
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    In short, yes, eat your exercise calories, there are lots of people on here who have gone in depth as to why you should eat the calories, do a search, you'll find it all.

    MFP builds in enough of a deficit to lose your desired amount of weight per week when it gives you your calories.

    For example: I burn roughly 2100 calories if I literally laid in bed all day. (basal metabolic rate or BMR). I am also very sedentary (desk job) so I don't burn many extra calories throughout the day. So for me to lose about a pound a week (which is the RECOMMENDED healthy rate of weight loss), MFP sets my calorie allowance at 1600 calories per day, making my deficit 500 calories per day X 7 days per week = 3500 calories= 1 pound/week. If I then add an exercise in where I burn 350 calories, it will add those to my allowed 1600 calories which equals 1950 total allowed calories. I am STILL at a deficit of 500 calories per day meaning I'll lose my pound a week.

    Not eating exercise calories, makes that deficit even bigger. That does not necessarily mean larger weight loss, it could mean stalling out your weight loss, and failing to provide your body with adequate nutrition. You didn't gain weight overnight, and it's not gonna come off overnight. Slow and steady wins the race. In addition it's good to make small changes, as they are more likely to be sustainable long term.
  • erzille
    erzille Posts: 524 Member
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    If you choose not to eat the calories, I read on a post somewhere you can try to drink V8. I just invested in some V8 Splash this past weekend, for those days where I am under...
  • downtome
    downtome Posts: 529 Member
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    Yes, they say you should eat them but a lot of poeple don't! I myself will sometimes eat them but I try not to, or I will sometimes eat only half of them. If I know I will be over on my calories for the day, I will definately get a workout in to cover my overage but I try to stay under as best as I can. What I'm confused about is that if you eat lets say 1500 calories for the day and you exercise, why would you want to eat them back, I mean isn't it a good thing that you have burned some of that 1500 to lose weight a little faster?! It's a bit confusing but I keep reading the post and learning a little more each time. Good luck.

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