So confused about eating back your burn off calories

I DO NOT eat my exercise calories. I work hard to burn them, why would I eat them again?

My understanding is that you don't have to eat back your calories, but that you do want to be careful to not net too few calories. I think I saw someone say somewhere that if you net less than 1200, that is when it is problematic and your body starts going into starvation mode. I'm sure that changes based on the individual, but I would say eat back some of them at least, but maybe not all of them.

I thought the idea was to burn more than you are taking in for the weight to come off so I guess I'm just as confused as you are.

I have had some early success by "splitting the difference" with the calories I burn. I have been working out pretty hard and have days where I burn from 650 to 1050 calories. I will typically a bit less than half of those burned calories each day. On the really intense workout days, I end up eating 700-800 calories below my net (1670/day). Other days I'm 300-400 under. On my day off from the workouts, I try to eat close to my limit (which end up being the toughest days). Bottom line...work out regularly and reward yourself for "some" of that work!

I eat when I'm hungry, not really following the MFP "rules" too closely. The days that I exercise I'll be more hungry than the days that I don't. The food diary is a great guideline, though. I use it daily. But, on days where I do my spin class in the morning and my 30 Day Shred DVD at night, MFP would have me eating an insane amount of food. Pretty much double what they suggest I eat on a no exercise day. I'm not going to eat just ot meet that quota. I eat a lot on those days anyway, I'm not looking to starve myself, but I'm not going to eat if I'm not hungry.

Since your daily goal is determined by your weight loss goal (1 or 2 lbs a month, or custom) you are able to eat back the calories you burn and still lose the weight you were aiming for. If you don't eat them back (or eat a portion) you are accelerating your weight loss significantly.

I find the calories burned in some exercises (according to the application) are possibly a bit high. I prefer to be cautious about eating back ALL the calories, because it's nearly impossible to get an exact count in anything you eat or burn.


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Yeah, I guess that is where my problem lies....I only have 15 or so pounds to lose, so if I am to eat only 1200, then burn 300, I am putting my body into starvation mode. Then I started another thread and everyone was saying 1200 was too little to net (anything under 1200 is starvation mode) and up it to 1300. Think I will try that for awhile....see if the pounds come off quicker. Just started the Shred on top of C25K (week 6 baby!) so maybe it will come off a little quicker now that I am building muscle. Ha....was never good at science or math and really alot of this weight loss stuff is just that!

I HATE math! :laugh: But really, it's actually pretty simple when you break it down.

I'll use me as an example.
My BMR = 1569 (go to tools, to figure out your own BMR) This is the amount of energy I burn everyday, if I just lay in bed.
My activity level = sedentary

These two facts give everything we need to figure it out. As I don't have a lot to lose, my body will do well with a moderate loss goal of 1 lb per week. So...

1569 + 391 (activity level) = 1960
This would be my maintenance calories, without purposeful exercise.

MFP then subtracts 500, for my loss goal (3500 cals to lose 1 lb per week, or 500 cals per day)

1960 - 500 = 1460
This is my daily cal goal, which now includes a deficit that allows 1 lb loss per week

If I exercise on top of this, I am burning calories. Which means my body needs more fuel. Basically, think of it as changing my activity level. I am using more energy. So now, to maintain an even deficit for 1 lb per week loss, and avoid losing too much muscle, in addition to fat, I need to add calories.

1460 + 300 cals for exercise = 1760
This gives my body enough fuel to maintain my activity level, but still leaves me at a defict to lose weight at a healthy rate.

Anyway, hope this helps.

Let's see if I can explain this well.

When I go to another web site, I type in that I will work out 1 hr a day 5 days a week, and they give me 1500 calories a day to eat.

Now if I DO the 5 workouts and eat 1500 calories, I will lose my 1-2 pounds a week. If I DON'T exercise I will lose a lot less or for me nothing as I have the slowest metabolism of anyone I know.

On MFP the system takes your numbers and gives you what to eat to lose the 1-2 pounds a week (for me 1/2 pound) whatever you choose. This gives you the calories with no exercise, and your daily work based burn. So for me I get to lose very little per week for 1200 calories. Your body NEEDS macronutrients to survive. SO the 1200 cals of good food should give you this.

Now I have to EARN my addl 200-300 calories to get to that 1500, for me this is all psychological. I can see what I have left for dinner and I want to exercise to earn the 300 to eat a good dinner.

If you eat 1200 calories, workout for 300, and do not eat them back your body has 900 calories of fuel. Kinda like driving your car on no gas.

I love MFP and the way Mike has this all set up. IMHO we sabotage ourselves on our diets because we haven't eaten enough and beat ourselves to death because we cannot stick to 1000 or 1200 calories........this way I earn my keep! I have bean known to hop on the elliptical machine to earn butter for my roll!! :laugh:

i dont eat mine,its working just fine for me

I don't eat my cals back and here's why:

According to the Harris Benedict equation for calculating calorie needs:

my BMR is

665 + (9.6 x W) + (1.8 x H) - (4.7 x Age) = 1479---My daily calorie expenditure if I laid in the bed all day

W = weight in Kgs

H = Height in cms ( 1 foot = 12 inches, 1 inch = 2.54 cms)

Age = Years

Activity Level:

* Sedentary - none or very little exercise = BMR X 1.2
* Light activity for average of 2 days/week = BMR X 1.375
* Moderate activity level exercising 4 days/week = BMR X 1.5 <---this is me before I join MFP
* High activity levels exercise & sports more than 6 days/week = BMR X 1.7
* Higher activity levels = up to 2 x BMR

My activity level is Moderately active, meaning I work out at least 4 times a week: 1479 x 1.5 = 2218.5 is my calculated daily calorie expenditure.

so I eat 1500-1700 per day for a deficit of 518.5 to 718.5

If I work out as usual, 4 days a week, that should not be seen as "extra" to my normal routine. MFP doesn't distinguish between that. Thus I don't eat back my exercise calories

If I did for example, 2218.5 (my maintenance given my lifestyle) - 1500 (what I ate) = 718.5 calorie deficit....I go to the gym and burn 600 calories( as apart of my normal moderately active lifestyle)....if I ate back my calories...it will bring me up to my maintenance: 1500 (what I ate) + 600 (exercise calories I decided to eat back) = 2100....2218.5-2100 = 118.5...my new deficit.

I used to eat my exercise cals and wondered why I was only losing 2 to 3 lbs a month.

Now I believe you should at back your cals if you have a sedentary lifestyle and you began a new workout routine, but being activity is part of my regular routine so I don't eat them back. Now if I worked out more than what I usually do in a week, then I may want to eat those cals back.

I don't think MFP takes that into account.


I hope this makes sense....

It will work this way, IF you do "your own" calculations this way. But MFP calculations are set up in such a way as to allow for weight loss even if you don't exercise. They did it this way for a reason - so that people who do very little or irregular exercise will still know what their daily cal goal should be and can track their exercise day to day, giving more accurate information.

So, with the way that MFP works, you are not supposed to include your purposeful exercise in your daily activity level. Daily activity level is meant to include what you do on a regular basis for work and daily living like watching tv, walking around the house, doing laundry, and whatever your job entails. Because purposeful exercise - which should challenge you and make you sweat - burns more cals than just walking to the mail box, it should be entered separately. Ideally, we want to use as accurate a measure as possible for those cals, such as a machinge or HRM that take into account age, height, weight, intensity. This also allows you to track your exercise and is intended to account more accurately for how many calories are burned each day, rather than just an estimated average. Also, it's usually pretty motivational for most people to be able to log their exercise each day and get support for doing so.

Ok that makes so much sense to me now. I didn't realize MFP was set-up that way and I like to track my execise for motivation purposes. I just don't like the net cal at the end of the day, because it makes be feel like I should eat them and I really don't think I should.

I know it's hard to get past that common idea "I have to eat less to lose weight so I want to eat as little as possible". But remember that MFP includes a built in deficit for you each day, regardless of exercise. When you choose your loss goal, say 1 lb per week, MFP then subtracts 500 cals from your maintenance cals to give you a deficit.

When you log exercise, MFP then adds in cals so that the 500 cal deficit remains, and stays consistent from day to day. If you don't eat those cals too, you've just made your deficit bigger. Eating those cals keeps your deficit and your weight loss steady and at a healthy rate, to minimize muscle loss.

hottottie11 - while your method is essentially correct, it is NOT the method MFP uses to calculate a goal calorie level. Your method already accounts for your PLANNED exercise, therefore, you DON"T need to eat your exercise calories back, since they're already in your goal. If you ate them, you'd be eating them twice.

MFP calculates your goal WITHOUT factoring in exercise. It only asks for your average activity level - not your gym time. The goal MFP gives you is to lose weight WITHOUT exercising. If you exercise, you will use even more calories, and could end up at too low a level for adequate nutrition. That's why many people recommend to eat your exercise calories. Otherwise, if you work out hard, you could end up with WAY too big a deficit. The key to eating back exercise calories is to make sure you're eating good, nutritious calories. Gym time is not an excuse to eat a gallon of ice cream! The intent is to replenish vital nutrients used up in the gym while still maintaining the deficit needed for weight loss - HEALTHY weight loss.

Yes, if you don't eat your exercise cals, you'll probably lose weight faster - for a while. Most people eventually plateau and the weight loss stalls. Meanwhile, you've put yourself in danger of malnutrition - not good.

And, yes, the people on Biggest Loser don't do it this way. But, they are morbidly obese to start with, and people with that high a percentage of body fat can sustain MUCH higher calorie deficits than can the average person without damaging their metabolisms. So forget BL- it's a reality show, not real life.

Another thing to keep in mind is that all this assumes you're estimating your daily exercise calories and activity level and food calories PERFECTLY. Of course, that's never the case. Even the best heart rate monitor has some error. And even if you weigh your food, no food database is perfectly accurate all the time. That's why many people get by just fine by only eating a percentage of their exercise calories. A lot of factors can affect the bottom line.

I usually recommend that people start by following the guidelines MFP gives you. Give it a month, and then see if your weight loss is meeting your desired goals. If not, then you can consider adjusting it. Too many people are too hasty and don't give the program time to work. Your body needs a few weeks to get used to a new eating and exercise plan. Hope this helps clear it up a little.

hottottie11 - while your method is essentially correct, it is NOT the method MFP uses to calculate a goal calorie level. Your method already accounts for your PLANNED exercise, therefore, you DON"T need to eat your exercise calories back, since they're already in your goal. If you ate them, you'd be eating them twice.

MFP calculates your goal WITHOUT factoring in exercise. It only asks for your average activity level - not your gym time. The goal MFP gives you is to lose weight WITHOUT exercising. If you exercise, you will use even more calories, and could end up at too low a level for adequate nutrition. That's why many people recommend to eat your exercise calories. Otherwise, if you work out hard, you could end up with WAY too big a deficit. The key to eating back exercise calories is to make sure you're eating good, nutritious calories. Gym time is not an excuse to eat a gallon of ice cream! The intent is to replenish vital nutrients used up in the gym while still maintaining the deficit needed for weight loss - HEALTHY weight loss.

Yes, if you don't eat your exercise cals, you'll probably lose weight faster - for a while. Most people eventually plateau and the weight loss stalls. Meanwhile, you've put yourself in danger of malnutrition - not good.

And, yes, the people on Biggest Loser don't do it this way. But, they are morbidly obese to start with, and people with that high a percentage of body fat can sustain MUCH higher calorie deficits than can the average person without damaging their metabolisms. So forget BL- it's a reality show, not real life.

Another thing to keep in mind is that all this assumes you're estimating your daily exercise calories and activity level and food calories PERFECTLY. Of course, that's never the case. Even the best heart rate monitor has some error. And even if you weigh your food, no food database is perfectly accurate all the time. That's why many people get by just fine by only eating a percentage of their exercise calories. A lot of factors can affect the bottom line.

I usually recommend that people start by following the guidelines MFP gives you. Give it a month, and then see if your weight loss is meeting your desired goals. If not, then you can consider adjusting it. Too many people are too hasty and don't give the program time to work. Your body needs a few weeks to get used to a new eating and exercise plan. Hope this helps clear it up a little.

Thank you so much for this understanding lol...I was killin myself trying to figure out why I was losing so little weight lol

Ladyhawk - I didn't mean to steal your thunder! You posted while I was typing mine, and I ended up saying the same thing. You said it a lot more succonctly, though!

Haha, no problem. You brought up several helpful points I didn't get into. Well said. :flowerforyou: