Net Calories

Yes even after the workouts. You should eat your exercise calories back. If not your net calories for the day will be extremely low. Some don't like to eat them all so they eat back half and it works for them. There are some that don't eat them at all like I used to and my body stalled and wouldn't drop any fat.

Now I always eat my calories back after a workout and I am losing 2 lbs a week steadily. It seems weird but it works!

Your goal is to have your NET and GOAL numbers match at the end of the day. Your goal number already figures in a deficit for you.

As a guy your minimum NET number should be 1500.

My nutritionist told me that you should only add more calories to your day if you work out for more than an hour and then you should only add a snack of 100-150 calories. You might be able to add a little more because you are male, but you shouldn't add too many more calories.

Nutritionists and other meal planners/planning tools usually assume workouts in addition to regular physical activity. So for example, if you go find a meal plan at like Women's health- the TOTAL calorie base they will aim for is 1500-1700 BUT they will give you a 1/2hr-40 min work out - 250-400 calories or more 2-5 times a week which staggers your calorie intake between 1100 and 1500 - keeping you out of starvation mode and losing weight as long as you stick to the plan- both diet and workout.

MFP assumes no other physical activity other than daily life. This is great in that it you will lose even without working out. It is confusing though, for most who don't understand why they are "eating back" exercise cals. On MFP, you START with a 12-1300 or so calorie in take, so if you work out you need to eat your exercise calories to still be eating the same amount as on a general nutrition plan.

Does that make sense?

If your goal is to lose weight, then don't eat back calories burned from exercise. Listen to your body however and if it tells you it needs more fuel, then you have a cushion in your calorie bank and can feed it.

As you can tell, not everyone is on the same page with this. My bias is that if folks on the Biggest Loser aren't eating back their calories, why would I?

Bottom line, if you're not sure, try both approaches and see which one is a better fit for your health goals!

Oh! I forgot The Biggest Loser has all the answers of right perfectness. Cuz if they do it on TV, it must be so.

Not eating back your calories, if you are calculating correctly, will most likely stall your weightloss, and is definitely not healthy for your body. Many people "don't eat back" their cals but are over estimating food or over estimating their calorie burn, so their loss works out steadily because it evens out. But if you look at the boards there are constantly people who ask "why am I not losing?" and they are eating 1000, 900, or even 6-700 net calories a day. Your body will think there is a threat of starvation and store any excess food you give it. So if you eat 700 cals for 2 week and go out 1 night and eat 2000 calories, your body will hoarde this, thinking it needs it.


People on the Biggest Loser are morbidly obese- when you weigh more the rules apply a little differentlythen when you are in a typical weightloss scenario of Average Joe wants to Drop 20 or 30 lbs. Not eating your calories back, on the MFP system, is a method of starvation and malnutrition. It is NOT healthy and NOT recommended. When you started there were a bunch of links highlighted for beginners explaining (with scientific studies as back up) why you should be eating a minimum amount of NET calories a day. Here are a couple:
http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/3047-700-calories-a-day-and-not-losing
http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/10589-for-those-confused-or-questioning-eating-your-exercise-calo
http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/6556-the-answers-to-the-questions
http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/9433-expectations

To the OP, I'm sorry to keep hopping on the answer train with my long winded answers, but I've been doing this for 6 months. Through my experience and that of those around me I've found that if you are patient, consistent and healthy you will find that the overall life style of calorie deficit is much easier to maintain and much more permenant in the long run. Fueling your body properly is important. Just like most anything else- moderation is key.