Should I Eat Back my Exercise Calories?
Wunderlandz
Posts: 6 Member
Hi, I'm a 5'5 female 19 year old currently at 159 lbs, and I'm trying to get down to 135-140. I set up MyFitnessPal according to my (mostly) sedentary lifestyle, and I have to net around 1200 calories a day to lose 1.3-1.5 lbs per week. I DO get in a lot of cardio/weight training about 4-5 days a week, but am I supposed to eat those exercise calories back so I stay at 1200? I wasn't entirely sure because I've heard mixed thoughts on that suggesting that if I didn't, I would be technically undereating and my weight wouldn't move.
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Replies
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Based on your info, yes... you should be eating them back.
No, it wouldn't be undoing the exercise. MFP calculates a calorie goal that will result in weight loss assuming NO exercise. When you do exercise, it changes the numbers/calculations so you must eat them back to stay on MFP's plan.
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Yes
Eat back 50-75% of them so that you account for the overestimation of MFP/machines1 -
You should eat those calories back, but probably not all of them. The calories burned doing workouts and the calories burned for normal life activities double dip on some of the calories. Also, the calories burned tends to be a little high.1
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ThisBased on your info, yes... you should be eating them back.
No, it wouldn't be undoing the exercise. MFP calculates a calorie goal that will result in weight loss assuming NO exercise. When you do exercise, it changes the numbers/calculations so you must eat them back to stay on MFP's plan.
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When you set up your account on MFP it gives you what your deficit needs to be to meet the weight loss goal you entered, considering you do zero exercise.
When you exercise you are supposed to eat that back to net the goal MFP gave you as that would keep you at the deficit to meet your goal.....along with the ever important needed fuel for your body (especially at your age).
Keep in mind that MFP does overestimate calorie burns, so many start out at eating back 50% and adjusting from there.
Look at it this way..............
At your age/wt/ht and saying that you exercise 4-5 times per week. Your TDEE is probably close to 2300 and BMR closer 1500, so you should be taking in a total caloric intake somewhere between the two (probably close to 1700). If that 1700 minus your exercise nets you in the 1200-1400 range, you're good. As long as your food logging is on point.1 -
If you know how to accurately estimate your burns - sure, go for it.
If you don't....don't.
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i sometimes do, but only if i feel very hungry, listen to your body. if i do feel unusually hungry i will eat 50 -75% of them back.0
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I'm not sure the calories burned estimates are as far off as we all assume they are. I don't have enough data points to be very accurate, but based on what I've seen so far, it has only been 10% off when compared to weight lost.1
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Yes
Eat back 50-75% of them so that you account for the overestimation of MFP/machines
This^
MFP as designed gave you a calorie deficit BEFORE exercise. Eating back calories just gets you back to your original starting place. Keeping a moderate deficit helps your body fuel existing lean muscle. Trying to lose too fast can lead to fat+muscle loss.3 -
Don't eat them back. If you're hungry, use them as a cushion when you can't make it to your next meal. But all the machines overestimate your burned calories, so I do what I can do always stick around my actual calories in, even when i burn 3-400 a day through exercise.
If you're trying to bulk up, it's a different story.2 -
RibStabsHeart wrote: »Don't eat them back. If you're hungry, use them as a cushion when you can't make it to your next meal. But all the machines overestimate your burned calories, so I do what I can do always stick around my actual calories in, even when i burn 3-400 a day through exercise.
If you're trying to bulk up, it's a different story.
So, you're saying our 19 year old OP here should aim to net possibly 700-900 calories per day.....even though their TDEE is around 2300 and BMR around 1500?
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YES. 1200 is low to start with even without exercise.
dont listen to ppl telling you to 'oh just starve yourself and eat them back when you slip'. They are basically saying it will be less worse when you develop an eating disorder and you start binge eating. just don't do it.6 -
To eat in a caloric deficit and exercise for health. You do not need to exercise more to lose weight nor do you need to eat better. For good health sure.karryjakson wrote: »The only long term and healthy way to lose weight is to eat better and get more exercise.
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RibStabsHeart wrote: »Don't eat them back. If you're hungry, use them as a cushion when you can't make it to your next meal. But all the machines overestimate your burned calories, so I do what I can do always stick around my actual calories in, even when i burn 3-400 a day through exercise.
If you're trying to bulk up, it's a different story.
Because eating 800 to 900 calories daily is healthy for OP?! I personally find that the estimates I get from cardio (jogging, zumba, treadmill, elliptical) is not that far off for me. So even eating back 50% to 75% of calories would be much better than not eating any back.
Eating enough to bring her back to her NET goal or above 1200 NET would be appropriate.
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I think the closer you are to average, whatever that is (average height, average weight, working out at an average intensity), the more likely estimates of any sort (MPF, websites, etc) will be fairly correct.
As for Rib's advice above... I disagree.0 -
Yes, you should eat back some of your exercise calories.2
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Wunderlandz wrote: »I DO get in a lot of cardio/weight training about 4-5 days a week, but am I supposed to eat those exercise calories back so I stay at 1200?
If you are doing that much cardio, you should consider setting your MFP profile to "lightly active" and eat the higher calories it gives you, but don't eat back exercise calories. Otherwise, yes you should eat back your exercise calories.
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Yes. Absolutely. You need those calories to fuel your workouts. Dipping below 1200 calories is not safe. If you don't eat back exercise calories at this level and say you burn 300 calories working out, then that takes you below a healthy calorie intake.2
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Do whatever works for you guys, this seems to work out for me. I eat my recommended 1350 a day and burn between 250-300 on the days when I work out. I always eat around 1350, and when I go out to eat, I generally eat back a chunk of my exercise calories. Likewise, If I'm hungry between meals, I eat! The main difference for me is that I don't force myself to eat more food at the end of the day if I'm not hungry.
Personally, I have a hard time believing that the 300 cals it says I'm burning on the treadmill and stationary bike are actually 300 calories worth eating back. I don't have a fitbit or similar device to calculate the true amount of calories that I'm expending each day, so I err on the side of caution and make sure that I'm sticking to the caloric goal that I set for myself.
(A final note: MFP suggested I go down to 1250 when I hit my last milestone. I can't do that comfortably, so I'm sticking where I was at previously and incorporating more cardio and weights.)1 -
RibStabsHeart wrote: »Do whatever works for you guys, this seems to work out for me. I eat my recommended 1350 a day and burn between 250-300 on the days when I work out. I always eat around 1350, but I don't force myself to eat more food at the end of the day if I'm not hungry. If I'm hungry between meals, I eat! But I have a hard time believing that the 300 cals it says I'm burning on the treadmill and bike are truly 300, and I don't have a fitbit or similar device to calculate the true amount of calories that I'm expending each day, so I err on the side of caution and make sure that I'm actually taking in the caloric goal that I set for myself.
MFP suggested I go down to 1250 when I hit my last milestone. I can't do that comfortably, so I'm sticking where I'm at and incorporating more cardio and weights.
wow....
What's your BMR....like 1700 calories?
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What the??RibStabsHeart wrote: »Do whatever works for you guys, this seems to work out for me. I eat my recommended 1350 a day and burn between 250-300 on the days when I work out. I always eat around 1350, but I don't force myself to eat more food at the end of the day if I'm not hungry. If I'm hungry between meals, I eat! But I have a hard time believing that the 300 cals it says I'm burning on the treadmill and bike are truly 300, and I don't have a fitbit or similar device to calculate the true amount of calories that I'm expending each day, so I err on the side of caution and make sure that I'm actually taking in the caloric goal that I set for myself.
MFP suggested I go down to 1250 when I hit my last milestone. I can't do that comfortably, so I'm sticking where I'm at and incorporating more cardio and weights.
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RibStabsHeart wrote: »Do whatever works for you guys, this seems to work out for me. I eat my recommended 1350 a day and burn between 250-300 on the days when I work out. I always eat around 1350, and when I go out to eat, I generally eat back a chunk of my exercise calories. Likewise, If I'm hungry between meals, I eat! The main difference for me is that I don't force myself to eat more food at the end of the day if I'm not hungry.
Personally, I have a hard time believing that the 300 cals it says I'm burning on the treadmill and stationary bike are actually 300 calories worth eating back. I don't have a fitbit or similar device to calculate the true amount of calories that I'm expending each day, so I err on the side of caution and make sure that I'm sticking to the caloric goal that I set for myself.
(A final note: MFP suggested I go down to 1250 when I hit my last milestone. I can't do that comfortably, so I'm sticking where I was at previously and incorporating more cardio and weights.)
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Pretty much -- 1790 according to MFP. Work a desk job, so "sedentary" is me.
wow....
What's your BMR....like 1700 calories?
As for "doing it wrong," it's working just fine for me. I eat mostly whole foods, fruit, eggs, and lean protein, and that's helped me drop about 30 lbs this year. Do what works for you, I'm just answering the OP's question in regards to what's been working for me.1 -
Eating that few of calories, of course it's working. Too put that in perspective though, I lost 75lbs in 8 months on 2K per day.1
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Some people think that because that gravel road with huge craters does actually get them to their destination, it must be either the only way or the best way.
Never mind the damage it causes going that route.
Oh look, there's a paved highway right over there! Nope, this is working so far, staying on it. Where are all these chip dings coming from ....6 -
I'm literally doing exactly what this site tells me to do in terms of my intake. I also eat back my calories when I'm hungry or when I go out to eat. I don't get what's with all this resistance I'm getting here -- I wasn't even exercising regularly until about 3.5 months ago.
With a resting BMR of 1800, I can't eat 2k calories a day and lose 2.5 pounds a week (rough estimate of 80 lb loss in 8 months) without spending way too much time exercising and probably injuring myself. I'm very happy that it works for you, but I just don't see how that would be possible for me.0 -
My doctor & dietician told me not to eat exercise calories, and as a general rule I don't.
Eat 10x your healthy goal weight in cal, ignore exercise calories most of the time, and eventually you'll get there.
Going by BMI, 115 - 145 is a healthy weight range. http://www.shapeup.org/bmi/bmi6.pdfI'm a 5'5 female 19 year old currently at 159 lbs, and I'm trying to get down to 135-140
So your goal is reasonable.
Losing so fast is not reasonable when you only have 20 lb to lose.I have to net around 1200 calories a day to lose 1.3-1.5 lbs per week
0.5 lb per week would be realistic, certainly no more than 1 lb, and that's going to take a lot of work.
Adjust your goal so MFP thinks you'll lose 0.5 lb per week, ignore exercise calories, and it will work out fine.
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RibStabsHeart wrote: »I'm literally doing exactly what this site tells me to do in terms of my intake. I also eat back my calories when I'm hungry or when I go out to eat. I don't get what's with all this resistance I'm getting here -- I wasn't even exercising regularly until about 3.5 months ago.
With a resting BMR of 1800, I can't eat 2k calories a day and lose 2.5 pounds a week (rough estimate of 80 lb loss in 8 months) without spending way too much time exercising and probably injuring myself. I'm very happy that it works for you, but I just don't see how that would be possible for me.
Well, you are in control of what MFP tells you actually.
Your selection of activity level, honest or not.
Your selection of weight loss goal, wise or not.
Your using the tool correctly, With good, neutral, or negative effects.
BMR is lower than resting metabolism, it's the deep sleep burn actually.
If you got out of bed, you burned more than that. If you ate in bed, you burned more than that. Shoot, if you woke up, you burned more than that.
With that little to lose, ya, you should have problems losing 2.5 lbs weekly, because it's a bad idea, unless you don't care what the weight is exactly. And feel like repeating this again next year, easier to gain, harder to lose.
Reasonable at this point to minimize the muscle mass loss that happens anyway during a diet would be 1/2 lb weekly.
And with even an estimated sedentary TDEE of 2240, than ya eating 1990 would be slow, but safer going.
Then you could let exercise create extra deficit when you actually do it.
Many ways to skin a cat. Or is that kick a cat. No matter, they always come back.
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wunderlandz is 19, so you make sense she should be careful to not lose too much each week. How about when you are 57? I am the same size as her, only I started at 147 and want to go down to 136. According to my bathroom scale, I have so far lost 2lb a week in 3 weeks. I that dangerous for me too?0
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Itisneeded wrote: »wunderlandz is 19, so you make sense she should be careful to not lose too much each week. How about when you are 57? I am the same size as her, only I started at 147 and want to go down to 136. According to my bathroom scale, I have so far lost 2lb a week in 3 weeks. I that dangerous for me too?
If just started a diet, I'm actually surprised you didn't have more water weight drop than that.
Almost everyone will if truly going from maintenance eating to eating less, and especially when logging it and making other changes, like sodium.
Unless you've been mighty sedentary up to this point in life, in which case you might not have that much muscle or muscle stores of glycogen with attached water, that's what drops when you first start a diet.
You also could have started exercising, and actually gained some water weight as part of inflammation, while you lost glycogen stores and some fat too.
Week 3 and out is what matters, but ya, better to aim for 1/2 lb weekly at this point, you really can't afford to lose any muscle mass, you'd have real issues building it back. Plus the slow down to metabolism requiring eating even less to lose and maintain would probably suck.2
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