New and Confused...?!?!?!

DisneyDoll
DisneyDoll Posts: 8
edited September 19 in Health and Weight Loss
Ok so I joined MFP a few days ago and I'm entering my diet and exercise journal and that I can figure out...so here's my question:

How does MFP work???

I mean...I'm not understanding how to use this calorie counter on my profile...what's up with the adding back the calories that I burned during exercise...am I missing something???

When I check how many calories I have left for the day...it's more than my baseline...why???

Can someone please HELP!!! :mad: :angry: :noway: :explode: :noway: :angry: :mad:

Replies

  • DisneyDoll
    DisneyDoll Posts: 8
    Ok so I joined MFP a few days ago and I'm entering my diet and exercise journal and that I can figure out...so here's my question:

    How does MFP work???

    I mean...I'm not understanding how to use this calorie counter on my profile...what's up with the adding back the calories that I burned during exercise...am I missing something???

    When I check how many calories I have left for the day...it's more than my baseline...why???

    Can someone please HELP!!! :mad: :angry: :noway: :explode: :noway: :angry: :mad:
  • AJCM
    AJCM Posts: 2,169 Member
    Here is a simply version of the math.

    1 pound of fat = 3500 calories
    Therefore to burn one pound off your body, you have to create a deficit of 3500 calories.

    A 150 lb woman burns around 1800 calories in an active day. If I want to stay the same, I eat 1800 cals. If I want to lose one pound a week, I need to eat 1300 calories (save 500 calories a day, lose 1 pound per week... 500 x 7 days = 3500).

    If I want to lose 1 lb per week, I eat 1300 calories per day. If I exericse, and I burn an additional 500 calories, I would now lose 2 lbs per week. So you can either keep that 1000 calorie deficit, OR you can eat those exercise calories, keeping your deficit at 500 calories per day, and lose 1 lb per week.

    If you set your goal to be 1 lb per week here on MFP, then it will compute how many calories you need to eat to lose 1lb. When you add exericse, it gets totalled onto your food sheet. Make sense?

    Does that make sense? Was your question more complex than that?
  • Anna_Banana
    Anna_Banana Posts: 2,939 Member
    Okay, the exercise calories are added to your total alotted calories. The base calories is figured on your regular daily activities. Then when you exercise you burn more calories than with out exercising so you need to consume more. The exercising isn't done just to burn calories it's to tone your body and build up some cardio and strengthen your heart.

    Hope this helps
  • chipper15173
    chipper15173 Posts: 3,981 Member
    welcome: i just bumped a thread call "important links for newbies" check that out. it will explain allllllot of things about this great site.
    again welcome.
    chipper
  • DisneyDoll
    DisneyDoll Posts: 8
    Thank you so much for all your help.

    Especially AJCM for putting it in "dummiese" for me (don't know how to do the quote thing yet...lol)

    Thanks again!!!
  • AJCM
    AJCM Posts: 2,169 Member
    Thank you so much for all your help.

    Especially AJCM for putting it in "dummiese" for me (don't know how to do the quote thing yet...lol)

    Thanks again!!!

    No problem! I never know how basic to make it - for example, my hubby (who has two degrees and a graduate degree), whose never had a pound to lose in his life had no idea about the whole 3500 calories = a pound thing, whereas I had known that since I was a young dieter in my teens! Argh!
    :flowerforyou:
  • beckybubbles
    beckybubbles Posts: 36 Member
    Here is a simply version of the math.

    1 pound of fat = 3500 calories
    Therefore to burn one pound off your body, you have to create a deficit of 3500 calories.

    A 150 lb woman burns around 1800 calories in an active day. If I want to stay the same, I eat 1800 cals. If I want to lose one pound a week, I need to eat 1300 calories (save 500 calories a day, lose 1 pound per week... 500 x 7 days = 3500).

    If I want to lose 1 lb per week, I eat 1300 calories per day. If I exericse, and I burn an additional 500 calories, I would now lose 2 lbs per week. So you can either keep that 1000 calorie deficit, OR you can eat those exercise calories, keeping your deficit at 500 calories per day, and lose 1 lb per week.

    If you set your goal to be 1 lb per week here on MFP, then it will compute how many calories you need to eat to lose 1lb. When you add exericse, it gets totalled onto your food sheet. Make sense?

    Does that make sense? Was your question more complex than that?

    Question. Would you really lose 2 lbs per week since exercising puts your total calories for the day at 800. Isn't that too low and it shuts your metabolism down b/c your body thinks its starving yourself?

    I thought you were never to go under your BMR.

    I get confused about this too with how much to eat and burn to lose.
  • Anna_Banana
    Anna_Banana Posts: 2,939 Member

    Question. Would you really lose 2 lbs per week since exercising puts your total calories for the day at 800. Isn't that too low and it shuts your metabolism down b/c your body thinks its starving yourself?

    I thought you were never to go under your BMR.

    I get confused about this too with how much to eat and burn to lose.

    Great question. And I would guess you are right.

    Your best bet is to set up your goals. Make sure to log your exercise and your food and then at the end of the day makesure you don't have any calories left over. Sometimes if I have 200 (or so) left at the end of the day I will eat some PB with and apple or some cheese and a V-8
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