Do you eat back the calories you exercise off?

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LCFlo
LCFlo Posts: 13 Member
in Health and Weight Loss
I'm on a 1200 calorie diet (5'0 female here) but I find I'm typically eating around 1600-1800 calories. I exercise them all off through my job, pilates, and running, but I've read people saying that myfitnesspal overestimates the amount you burn. Should I be trying to keep below 1200 even though I'm fairly active?
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  • Lilly_the_Hillbilly
    Lilly_the_Hillbilly Posts: 914 Member
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    I eat back most of my calories from working out. I usually leave about 100 or so though for margin of error on both my part (estimated burns and potential weighing errors) and MFP part (general assessment of burns cannot accurately tell you what you are actually burning ).

    I've lost 21 kilos following that format.
  • pamcris
    pamcris Posts: 47 Member
    edited November 2014
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    Sometimes I do and sometimes I don't. I tend to eat at least half of my workout calories back since I burn around 800 calories per workout.

    And yes mfp overestimates the amount you burn. I am a SAHM of two toddlers and spend a great part of my day chasing after them, picking up stuff from all over the house and lifting them. According to that I would have fit at least in the "light" lifestyle, but according to my Jawbone UP, I am barely reaching the calories I need to be in the sedentary one (workout aside of course).
  • cookmtn
    cookmtn Posts: 156 Member
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    I eat half my exercise calories back but most of my exercise is badminton, not steady state. I see you do pilates, not necessarily steady state, I would think. I would start out eating at least half back and see how you feel and how fast you lose. If you lose too fast, not good( counter intuitive, I know, but muscle loss is not what you want), if you start to feel run down, hair loss, brittle nails, want to binge like crazy every few days, you probably need to up your calories. It's all about what is sustainable, healthy, and gets you results.
  • gabrielleelliott90
    gabrielleelliott90 Posts: 854 Member
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    I eat my tdee calories- 1615. I don't eat back exercise calories. I think I was told to just log it as 1 or 2 calories when I exercise, but I don't bother.
  • gabrielleelliott90
    gabrielleelliott90 Posts: 854 Member
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    And no, always make sure you are netting 1200 calories.
  • meltedsno
    meltedsno Posts: 208 Member
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    I don't eat back my exercise calories but know that they are there if I need them. Last night was my first "real" meal in over 18 months... by "real" I mean that I had a hamburger on a bun with bleu cheese crumbles, cheddar cheese and onion rings. This meal was the most I've eaten in one sitting (okay 2 sittings as I saved 1/4 of the burger which I could not eat -- in the "old" days, I'd have devoured that and looked for more).... It was a scary moment for me to do this, but I also know that I had 18 months of exercise calories saved up to enjoy this... and that I did!
  • JessRaddatz
    JessRaddatz Posts: 204 Member
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    I do not eat my exercise calories back, but I have also had my Dr. tell me I don't have to. I eat between 1300 and 1500 calories a day and burn at least 500 calories (the calories are based on my BodyMedia armband, so I know they are not being over estimated). So, I net way less than 1200 calories a day. I do have about 70 pounds to lose, though so maybe that's why she says there is no need to eat my exercise calories back.

  • Kalikel
    Kalikel Posts: 9,626 Member
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    If what you're doing is working, why change?

    It is the exceedingly rare day that I eat back all the calories. But if I'm especially hungry, I will.

    You have to find what works for you. What works for others doesn't really matter, KWIM?
  • llUndecidedll
    llUndecidedll Posts: 724 Member
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    I used to, but after 'black Friday' I'm trying something different now.

    I usually guesstimate my exercise calories and eat all of them back. It has worked for me, but now starting today, I will eat my exercise calories back once a week.

    I have to keep changing things so I'll stay on track. My methods have worked for me so far.

  • MSeel1984
    MSeel1984 Posts: 2,297 Member
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    Yes. Not 100% I mean days I run I seem to be SUPER hungry. So if I run 11 miles I usually eat back like 80% of them.
    I've managed to maintain my weight loss that way, not that I'm looking to lose a bunch.
  • kr1stadee
    kr1stadee Posts: 1,774 Member
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    leeanncflood wrote: »
    I'm on a 1200 calorie diet (5'0 female here) but I find I'm typically eating around 1600-1800 calories. I exercise them all off through my job, pilates, and running, but I've read people saying that myfitnesspal overestimates the amount you burn. Should I be trying to keep below 1200 even though I'm fairly active?

    Are you counting your activity at work as exercise? If so, then you should bump up your activity level.
    Are you losing weight? Yes? Keep going. No? Unless you're wearing a HRM, then you should eat back 1/2 (ish) .. MFP does tend to overestimate some things.

    MFP has a deficit built in already., so you'd lose weight even if you didn't exercise. Diet = weight loss. Exercise = health.

  • AnthonyThrashD
    AnthonyThrashD Posts: 306 Member
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    sigh, some times I eat back more calories than exercise off :'(
  • kittykatfarquhar
    kittykatfarquhar Posts: 2
    edited November 2014
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    It doesn't really matter if you eat back the exercise calories or not but you should always have a NET calories at the end of the day of at least 1200, this is what your body needs to function. Any less and your body slowly goes into starvation mode and your metabolism slows down. I've been on MFP for 154 days and have stuck to this method and have lost 13kg so far. Consistency is key in keeping your metabolism up and losing weight
  • AestheticStar
    AestheticStar Posts: 447 Member
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    Definitely have to eat 1,200, even if you aren't active, or your body goes into starvation mode. I usually eat back about 400-500 of my exercise calories, 'cause I don't tend to burn a lot.
  • Sued0nim
    Sued0nim Posts: 17,456 Member
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    It depends how you estimate them. When I was using MFP I ate back 50% of the estimate their exercise database gave me

    Now I use a fitbit flex - I am set to sedentary and let the fitbit update my cals with my daily movements and waking activity

    I also wear a heart rate monitor when doing workouts at gym or exercise classes and I log that separately putting in the actual calorie burn - I'm currently trying to work out how accurate this is so I may yet cut the calories by 25% just to make sure it's more accurate

    This all gives me a great rolling estimate of my TDEE averaged over months on the fitbit app that I plan to use when I finally get to maintenance
  • cronus70
    cronus70 Posts: 189 Member
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    I rarely eat back all my exercise calories, although importantly i listen to my body and if it's telling me it wants food i will eat a bit more into my exercise calories.
    Typically i do intense cardio 5 day's a week, an hour at a time burning roughly 1000kcal (HRM) plus i also do 2/3 days of body weight resistance strength training as well to maintain muscle mass and increase strength.
    Since January this year (pre MFP) when i started being serious about losing weight i have lost a total of 76Lb, so it's certainly working for me.
  • funchords
    funchords Posts: 413 Member
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    If you are losing weight as fast as predicted, then MFP is not overestimating anything. The MET calculations used by MFP are averages based on population studies. By definition, an average overestimate the calories for half of the population and underestimates for the other half. This is also true of your TDEE calculation from which your 1200 comes from. The real number for the individual you is something a little more or less.
  • funchords
    funchords Posts: 413 Member
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    Generally I eat back all of my exercise calories. 66 lbs. lost in 121 days.
  • kerrilucko
    kerrilucko Posts: 3,852 Member
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    I sometimes do. But I work out in the evenings so often I'm just ready for bed after and I don't want to eat.
  • malibu927
    malibu927 Posts: 17,565 Member
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    AestheticStar wrote: »
    Definitely have to eat 1,200, even if you aren't active, or your body goes into starvation mode. I usually eat back about 400-500 of my exercise calories, 'cause I don't tend to burn a lot.

    There is no starvation mode.

    Since almost all of my activity is through Fitbit, I try to eat back all but about 50-100 calories.

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