May be a silly question

emrd68105
emrd68105 Posts: 16
edited September 23 in Food and Nutrition
When you record your food intake mfp tells you how many calories you have left for the day. Okay I get that. But now that I put in my excersize routine it minus' the calories I burn and then tells me I have that much more to eat...........is that right? Say I burn 550 calories, is that how much more I have to eat in a day?

Replies

  • MaryBachert
    MaryBachert Posts: 66 Member
    Yes, you get those extra calories to eat. so enjoy! :)
  • luv2ash
    luv2ash Posts: 1,903 Member
    only if you choose to eat them---this is a great big controversy on these boards---it goes on forever.
  • ajbeans
    ajbeans Posts: 2,857 Member
    You don't *have* to as long as your net intake is still above 1200. So depending on what your original goal is, you may be able to get away without eating them. BUT, you will still lose if you eat all those calories, so I say, eat 'em up!
  • MissAnjy
    MissAnjy Posts: 2,480 Member
    if your starting goal is 1200 and you burn 550 then yes, you need to eat them to make your NET calories 1200 at the end of the day, otherwise, you're essentially starving.
  • skinnyme125
    skinnyme125 Posts: 396 Member
    if you eat just your max amount of calories a day you should be losing weight, if you exercise (which helps to speed up your matabolism) then you are burning too many calories to stay above having your body go into starvation mode (which slows you matavolism down) so you need to eat those calories to keep above that starvation mode.
  • Pisces42
    Pisces42 Posts: 12
    If you figure that 3500 calories = 1 pound of fat. Then you really should not eat more because you have the extra calories from exercise. If you want to lose eg. 2 lbs per week then you would need to -1000 calories per day to equal out to 7000 calories which is (3500 x 2 ) = 2 lbs. based on 7 days.

    I thought it was confusing but not that I "finally" understand the "calories in, exercise out" . It MAKES SENSE!!!!

    Hope that helps. Good luck.
    Christine :bigsmile:
  • tiffsNEWlife
    tiffsNEWlife Posts: 145
    This is a huge issue on these boards. You will get "yes" eat all thos calories, "no" don't eat those, or "eat some of them". Personally I feel this is totally up to you. I got some really good advise from a personal trainer that I thought was wonderful.
    "Your body does not go into starvation mode immediately. It takes at least 3 to 4 days of eating under 1200 calories and exercising like a maniac. Try eating back all of your exercise calories every 3 to 4 days to keep it from going into starvation mode" Along those lines :smile:

    Pretty much listen to your body!
  • lisawest
    lisawest Posts: 798 Member
    Try reading this thread:

    http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/10589-for-those-confused-or-questioning-eating-your-exercise-calo

    It explains it pretty well. If you still have questions, check out some of the other threads posted inside this thread:

    http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/23912-links-in-mfp-you-want-to-read-again-and-again
  • forthefab5
    forthefab5 Posts: 187 Member
    This is a huge issue on these boards. You will get "yes" eat all thos calories, "no" don't eat those, or "eat some of them". Personally I feel this is totally up to you. I got some really good advise from a personal trainer that I thought was wonderful.
    "Your body does not go into starvation mode immediately. It takes at least 3 to 4 days of eating under 1200 calories and exercising like a maniac. Try eating back all of your exercise calories every 3 to 4 days to keep it from going into starvation mode" Along those lines :smile:

    Pretty much listen to your body!

    I like the way this is explained! I usually stick to 1200 or below even if I exercise but I do allow myself to eat up to my exercise calories if needed :)
  • silvereyes01
    silvereyes01 Posts: 49 Member
    I personally don't eat back the calories I burned. I feel it's a waste of my time working my butt off just to simply put those calories right back in my body. Everyone has what works best for them
  • emrd68105
    emrd68105 Posts: 16
    Thank you all! I think I'm getting the hang of it :-/
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