Extra Calories earned from Exercise
RondaRiggle
Posts: 5 Member
I was wonder what the opinion was for NOT eating the extra calories that you are given for exercise? I generally do NOT eat them but I always keep them in mind if I want something extra that day or if I was out-to-eat one day.
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Doing tdee = dont eat back.
Doing mfp NEAT = eat them back because thats how its supposed to be done to ensure you are eating enough.0 -
My thoughts are...that is the way this particular tool is designed. It's probably not a big deal if you really aren't doing much fitness wise...as you get into fitness though, actually fueling that fitness is very important to improving your fitness as well as recovery. Exercise is good for you...it is also pretty hard on the body and causes the body to need to be repaired...these reparations have an energy (calorie) price tag.
If you're spending a gazillion hours in the gym and burning things up, it's pretty stupid not to eat them back...if you're just going for walks or spending 30-45 minutes on the elliptical or something, probably not a huge deal.
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If I did not I would surely be very hungry and no longer be able to do my long runs.0
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I agree with the comments above that it depends on how much you are doing and also what kind of deficit you start with. MFP is designed to tell you how much you should eat to lose your goal weight without exercise, and then to adjust as you do exercise so that if you exercise you are reaching the same goal with a combination of exercise and calorie cutting. The TDEE method (which I currently do) is designed for people who know they exercise at a particular level, and gives you a goal based on that level of exercise.
What's not smart to do, IMO, is choose an aggressive goal from MFP based on the assumption you aren't exercising (say, 2 lbs/week) and then do hard exercise on top of that. You end up with a more extreme deficit than is recommended and it is counterproductive to the reasons people would be doing hard exercise, making fitness gains. For example, I'm training for a half marathon and I'm pretty confident I would not be making speed or stamina gains to the extent I am if I were not eating appropriately.0 -
I consume 1600/day and dont log exercise calories. If i do go over, I dont fret...0
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MFP gave you a calorie deficit BEFORE exercise. That way people who can't/won't exercise still lose weight.
The reason for eating some* calories back is to keep the deficit from becoming too large. A large deficit, especially if you don't have lots of weight to lose, makes it hard for your body to support lean muscle mass. You want to minimize muscle loss...to reduce your body fat %.
*Some calories - MFP and many machines give inflated estimates. Start with a percent 50-75...and adjust as needed.0 -
Thank you. I think I have a better understanding now. MyFitnessPal gives me 1200 per day based on what I want to accomplish and I exercise everyday with an estimated 280 calories burned.0
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I exercise 7 days a week but I am only walking 3.5 MPH for 35-40 minutes and then I do about 10 minutes of "aerobics" all 7 days as well.0
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MFP gave you a calorie deficit BEFORE exercise. That way people who can't/won't exercise still lose weight.
The reason for eating some* calories back is to keep the deficit from becoming too large. A large deficit, especially if you don't have lots of weight to lose, makes it hard for your body to support lean muscle mass. You want to minimize muscle loss...to reduce your body fat %.
*Some calories - MFP and many machines give inflated estimates. Start with a percent 50-75...and adjust as needed.
IMO start with 100%, because it's much easier to lower calories than it is to raise them (psychologically and possibly physically once you get used to your intake).0 -
RondaRiggle wrote: »I exercise 7 days a week but I am only walking 3.5 MPH for 35-40 minutes and then I do about 10 minutes of "aerobics" all 7 days as well.
I wouldn't be terribly concerned about it at this level of exercise as it's not going to stress that body all that much. Like I said earlier though...it becomes more important as you advance your fitness and start doing more strenuous activities. It is important to understand the relationship between your fitness and your energy requirements...exercise isn't just for burning calories...exercise is for fitness, and fitness needs fuel.
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I rarely eat back my calories. I'm on 1330 daily, and can earn up to 1000 (on a hard day) on exercise. I try to stay within my general allowance and only use my earnt cals for treats or backup if I undercalculate my cals. Not doing too bad... lost 31lbs since july 1st and building muscle nicely. Do 6 days of cardio, two days pump, one day combat and 3 days pilates.0
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You`re not building muscle, especially at only 1300 calories without eating back exercise calories.I rarely eat back my calories. I'm on 1330 daily, and can earn up to 1000 (on a hard day) on exercise. I try to stay within my general allowance and only use my earnt cals for treats or backup if I undercalculate my cals. Not doing too bad... lost 31lbs since july 1st and building muscle nicely. Do 6 days of cardio, two days pump, one day combat and 3 days pilates.
I outlined the easy how-to of NEAT and exercise calories above. I highly recommend doing this method to prevent stalls in the coming future or over-dependence on exercise and eventual burn-out.
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grimmeanor wrote: »If I did not I would surely be very hungry and no longer be able to do my long runs.
Agree. I go back and forth, sometimes I eat them back and other times no. But if I don't eat them back there is definitely no long run happening!! I can manage a short run without eating them back (about 5K) but it's not usually a very good one.
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Just to clear up my own confusion....if mfp sets my goal at 1200 a day because I want to lose 1.5-2lbs a week then after I exercise and calculate all of my food should the NET be close to 0 or close to 1200?
For example, yesterday on my screen it says FOOD 1591-EXERCISE 790 =NET 801. That would mean I only ate 801 calories? I know that isn't enough to be healthy.0 -
kandi21785 wrote: »Just to clear up my own confusion....if mfp sets my goal at 1200 a day because I want to lose 1.5-2lbs a week then after I exercise and calculate all of my food should the NET be close to 0 or close to 1200?
For example, yesterday on my screen it says FOOD 1591-EXERCISE 790 =NET 801. That would mean I only ate 801 calories? I know that isn't enough to be healthy.
Your NET should equal your goal. However, depending on how your determining how many calories you burned, you might not want to eat them all back.0 -
RondaRiggle wrote: »I was wonder what the opinion was for NOT eating the extra calories that you are given for exercise? I generally do NOT eat them but I always keep them in mind if I want something extra that day or if I was out-to-eat one day.
I never eat back any of my exercise calories. I feel like it's pointless because I'm just undoing what I did that day.0 -
loribethrice wrote: »RondaRiggle wrote: »I was wonder what the opinion was for NOT eating the extra calories that you are given for exercise? I generally do NOT eat them but I always keep them in mind if I want something extra that day or if I was out-to-eat one day.
I never eat back any of my exercise calories. I feel like it's pointless because I'm just undoing what I did that day.
MFP has a deficit already built in so that you lose weight without exercise. If you exercise, to keep the same deficit you have to eat back the calories burned. If you don't, then you just make the deficit larger.
Example:
MFP estimated daily burn before exercise: 2000
you want to lose 1lb per week: -500
Goal given : 1500 calories
Exercise burn : 400 calories
MFP estimated daily burn with exercise: 2400
lose 1lb per week: -500
New goal: 1900 calories or NET of 1500 calories
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^^^^^^Doing tdee = dont eat back.
Doing mfp NEAT = eat them back because thats how its supposed to be done to ensure you are eating enough.
(*) THIS (*)
MFP is designed with your daily deficit already built in.
EAT BACK THOSE CALORIES!
This site works to maintain that 1 pound per week goal for weight loss. MFP supports steady, safe and lasting results. When we crash diet and lose weight too fast, our metabolism can stifle. Yes, you'll lose weight, but what kind of loss will it be?
You'll lose too much muscle which further slows metabolism. and once you finally reach your weight goal...guess what? You look and feel bad, and the weight starts piling back on in most cases. Don't be that person.
Remember, this is not a race.
GOOD LUCK!
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loribethrice wrote: »I never eat back any of my exercise calories. I feel like it's pointless because I'm just undoing what I did that day.
No, it's not undoing anything. MFP uses a model that creates a deficit based on your non-exercise activity thermogenesis (NEAT). When I started, I told MFP that I was a 44-year-old male, 5' 10" tall, who weighed 214.8 pounds, was moderately active outside of exercise, and wanted to lose 1.5 pounds a week. Based on that data, MFP gave me a calorie target of something like 1470 calories a day, i.e. a 750-calorie daily deficit.
If I then exercise for an hour on top of that and burn 500 more calories, my daily deficit has ballooned to 1250. That's a lot! Too much, in fact, if I exercise that much on a regular basis, as I do.
Hence, by eating back* the exercise calories, I am not "undoing" my exercise; I am ensuring that my daily deficit is reasonable. If you don't eat back exercise calories, and your exercise calorie estimates are reasonably accurate**, then you risk running an unreasonably high deficit and not getting the fuel and nutrients your body needs to stay healthy.***
* "Eating back" is misleading. I prefer to think of it as "replenishing" energy expended in exercise beyond my normal daily deficit.
** Many estimates are inflated, though. At my current weight of 152 pounds, if I go out for an hour-long bicycle ride on flat terrain at 17 mph, I burn around 500 calories according to my Garmin Edge 800 cycle computer, which matches pretty closely with my weight loss records. But MFP's database estimates that I have burned nearly 800 calories. That's almost 160% of what I actually burned. That's why many people "eat back" only a fraction of what MFP estimates.
*** You can do it over a longer period than a day, though. I aim for a weekly deficit. Some days my daily deficit is 0, others it's closer to 1000. There have been a few days over the last 2 years when my daily calorie count is negative - those would be days I spent the whole day on my bike, and while I might have eaten 3500 calories, I burned 4000 or more. I made up for those days, though, by eating a lot more the day or two before and after the ride.0 -
loribethrice wrote: »RondaRiggle wrote: »I was wonder what the opinion was for NOT eating the extra calories that you are given for exercise? I generally do NOT eat them but I always keep them in mind if I want something extra that day or if I was out-to-eat one day.
I never eat back any of my exercise calories. I feel like it's pointless because I'm just undoing what I did that day.
The way MFP is set up is so you can lose weight without exercising. It already gives you a calorie deficit. When you exercise, that deficit grows and you want to bring it back to where you're supposed to be so you don't lose too fast/lose muscle.0 -
kandi21785 wrote: »Just to clear up my own confusion....if mfp sets my goal at 1200 a day because I want to lose 1.5-2lbs a week then after I exercise and calculate all of my food should the NET be close to 0 or close to 1200?
For example, yesterday on my screen it says FOOD 1591-EXERCISE 790 =NET 801. That would mean I only ate 801 calories? I know that isn't enough to be healthy.
Here's a screencap from my own diary showing you how it should be done. My goal this week was at 2400 (diet break, eating at maintenance), so 2400 + 306= 2706, which is that day's new goal. I usually eat 100% cals back but this week I've sometimes just not felt like eating the last little bit because it's a PITA to find something with so few cals haha
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thank you 0
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Unless you're having trouble getting through whatever exercise you're doing, you don't need to worry about eating back exercise calories.
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I struggle with "eating back" my calories. I can barely make the 1200 on some days. So, I make sure to eat the recommended 1200 at least and consider the rest padding. But, I'm probably burning less than 500 in exercise a day since I mainly walk/hike at an average of 3.5-5 miles a day.
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Unless you're having trouble getting through whatever exercise you're doing, you don't need to worry about eating back exercise calories.
NEAT method = non-exercise activity thermogenesis. Unless the activity is VERY light, e.g. burning 50 calories, the calories should be eaten back.
If doing TDEE, total daily energy expenditure, you do not eat back calories because they are already included into your daily intake.
So yes, anyone doing NEAT should be concerned with eating back at a minimum 50% of their logged exercise calories.0 -
Keep in mind that MFP bases its daily calorie goal off of estimated RMR but the exercise calories are based off of the MET number for the activity. This results in double dipping, not to mention that the estimated calories burned per activity tends to be inaccurate. So, don't eat back everything you burned, but you do need to eat back some of it. Watch you weight for a couple or three weeks. If you're consistently losing more than you expected to, then increase the amount you are eating back.0
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How do you figure TDEE?0
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summerhaze71 wrote: »How do you figure TDEE?
for TDEE (calorie needs with exercise included), using a calculator will help you get a starting estimate. I like health-calc.com and exrx.net because both work for calculating TDEE and NEAT, so if someone wants to switch methods they can easily do so with the same tool.
On these websites you'd average your weekly exercise into your daily estimate. So e.g. you do moderate exercise for 30 mins 4x a week, that's on average 17 minutes. So you'd put that into the moderate section. Then 8hrs sleep, maybe 6hrs standing on average (e.g. 8hr 5x a week, then almost no standing on weekends, averages to ~6hrs a day), etc. If this gave you a maintenance estimate of 2200 calories, then deduct 10% (0.5lbs/week), 15% (0.75lbs/week) or 20% (1lb/week) - these are all estimated loss rates of course! Whatever % you choose will give you the calorie goal to work with that includes weekly exercise, adn you'd monitor and adjust as needed.0 -
What you're essentially saying is you're netting 300 calories a day. That is not good.I rarely eat back my calories. I'm on 1330 daily, and can earn up to 1000 (on a hard day) on exercise. I try to stay within my general allowance and only use my earnt cals for treats or backup if I undercalculate my cals. Not doing too bad... lost 31lbs since july 1st and building muscle nicely. Do 6 days of cardio, two days pump, one day combat and 3 days pilates.
You aren't building muscle because of your deficit.
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