to those who DON'T eat back their exercise calories

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mustangurl
mustangurl Posts: 104 Member
in Food and Nutrition
i know everyone has their opinion about this topic but i am looking for people who don't do it. how many calories do you eat a day (not net calories)? do you still see weightloss? most days i burn about 1000 calories and there is NO way i can eat 2500 calories without eating some really bad things. i eat about 5 small meals per day, like today i had a 2 egg omlet with 2oz of ham and low fat cheese with whole grain mini bagel and ff cream cheese. then i had a bowl of kashi shredded wheat (minus the milk), then a ham & turkey sandwich with 3cups of salad & 2tblsp of ff ranch, then i had 1oz of almonds and low sugar oatmeal (apples & cinnamon), for dinner i had 3oz of chuck steak 1/2 c of roasted potatos & 2/3c green beans. oh and i had a whey protein drink. i feel like i am already eating a ton of food and if i eat any more it will be defeating the purpose.
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Replies

  • texastae1010
    texastae1010 Posts: 165
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    I am in the same boat as you I don't have any answer yet but there is no way I can eat 2500 calories a day I am eating between 1000-1300 calories a day..please do not jump down my throat about the 1000 but I believe in giving myself a 200 calorie bump for bad measuring extra seasonings etc that I might not realize is in my food....I am guessing if I weighed 130 and I wasn't burning 1000ish calories a day it would be easier to eat back the calories. I keep reading all of the debates but honestly I think if you have a good chunk to lose like I do that we shouldn't be eating back all of those calories again just my opinion. I am also curious to hear what others have to say though
  • poustotah
    poustotah Posts: 1,121 Member
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    I've never eaten back my calories. When I first started MFP, I was working with a trainer and he had me use this site as a means of tracking what I ate, not calories in, calories out. So I followed his caloric guideline and tracked what I ate. I lost 90 lbs listening to him so it worked for me.
  • Bridgetc140
    Bridgetc140 Posts: 405 Member
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    Wow.............I eat back my calories most of the time and you know why?? Posts like yours make me HUNGRY :)!!!
  • cat3nv
    cat3nv Posts: 389 Member
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    I eat when I am hungry. There is no way I could eat all my calories back unless I made bad food choices. I try to stay at 1200 calories. If I exercise then I eat more.
  • staceyo1211
    staceyo1211 Posts: 163
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    When I first started this journey in Jan, I never ate back ex calories. I ate 1200 a day- period. Then after exercise my net calories would be 800-900. During this time I lost 25 pounds. Now, I sometimes will eat them back. Thats if I want steak and baked potatoes for dinner otherwise I dont. Hope this helps.
  • Mrz_Rich
    Mrz_Rich Posts: 90
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    I eat them if I'm hungry but I refuse to eat them if I'm full! It doesn't make sense to me...I realize it's a very controversial MFP subject but I really think everybody needs to do what works for them. The same diet/exercise program doesn't work for everyone...if it did then everyone would be doing the SAME one with great results. I have a lot of weight to lose and it's highly unlikely that my body will go into starvation mode any time soon...when I get to the point where I'm not losing for awhile then I'll look into eating back my calories. Until then I'll do what works for me.
  • peacemom
    peacemom Posts: 64 Member
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    If I'm hungry, I eat them, if I'm not, I don't. Easy for me. I don't sweat it either way.
  • SouthernAngel
    SouthernAngel Posts: 24
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    My allowance is 1500 a day, and I burn at about 300 - 500 a day on avg. Some days more. I do not eat those calories. Instead, I make sure the 1500 I do eat are healthy and filling. Just my opinion and what works for me. I lose weight a bit quicker this way, as my burn calculations are more each day. I am never hungry, so until I am I will keep doing it that way. Best of luck!
  • fat_beyonce
    fat_beyonce Posts: 133 Member
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    I don't eat most of mine i eat about a third max and it does me no harm, the weight is falling off me:happy: . mind the starvation mode people don't get you for this post though you know what they are like lol
  • CassieLEO
    CassieLEO Posts: 757 Member
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    Wow.............I eat back my calories most of the time and you know why?? Posts like yours make me HUNGRY :)!!!

    Me too!!! I am going to enjoy these 650 extra calories I earned at Zumba tonite!!! (Seeing as I broke my plateau by eating back my exercise calories and losing and all)
  • cobarlo14
    cobarlo14 Posts: 582 Member
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    I do not only because my Nutritionist tells me not too.
    I also have alot of weight to lose - By that I mean 150+ more to go.
    MFP originaly said I should eat 2600 calories when I started but my DR/Nutritionist moved me back to 2000per day in the beginning.

    Maybe a weightloss Dr / Nutritionist can help?

    I try not to think about those extra calories....

    Best of luck to you both :)
  • annadilynn
    annadilynn Posts: 84
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    I am older, which means I have a EVEN slower metabolism than I use to...which was crawling to begin with...When I started MFP, I told myself I was gonna keep it realistic...I see people on here that are exercising NONSTOP...there is no way I will be able to do that ....for the rest of my life!...I am exercising but realistically...so my calorie intake is realistic as well...I eat good for me food that I like and healthy porportions...I know my calories goals are low, but I am not hungry...ever...I have occasional cravings and sometimes give into them...a little...but i am losing weight...not fast but going down just the same...I am starting to feel better and look better and i am not starving or ALWAYS exercising...some times i eat the exercise calories, sometimes i dont...i only eat when i am hungry and i dont eat till i am gorged....i eat sensibly...I think i am doing good...dont know, just know how i feel and what the scale says...
  • mcool666
    mcool666 Posts: 2
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    well who knows really but my opinion and what I do is:

    I try to eat at least 1200,as that's what this says we must do. Although my mom's says she is only allowed 1200, so that's weird one calorie to little,god help you, one to much shame on you, really?

    Then I add 1/3 of what i burn off, burn 1000 = must eat 1500 at least.

    Were did you two see that you had to eat all of it back? obviously that would make you lose nothing as you burned nothing.
  • MyaPapaya75
    MyaPapaya75 Posts: 3,143 Member
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    I dont eat them never have ...I started on Dr supervised 1000 calories daily.....but now I average on my own 1000-1500 daily give or take.. I never take into account what I have worked off exercise, housework, carrying baby around etc...I look at portion sizes and really try to stick to them if it says 2 cookies per serving then thats what I have. No more half a pack etc..lol..Ive found measuring and reading portion sizes is all I really need to do to stay accountable....this is what works for me so I go with it...if i calculated exercise I would fail because I would be counting things like getting the mail as exercise ..lol I do better when set caloric intake
  • ewhitis
    ewhitis Posts: 132
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    It seems counterproductive to me to exercise so hard to help lose weight, then just add those calories back on. It is nice on days when I want to splurge a little without going totally crazy though.
  • alexbowser
    alexbowser Posts: 322
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    Losing weight is different for everyone, if you can't eat them all back don't.

    I lose a lot more weight when I exercise a lot and eat constantly, so I eat most of my exercise calories.
  • hjsyndrome
    hjsyndrome Posts: 215
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    I dont eat all of my exercise calries everytime. If I am not hungry, I am not going to force myself to eat. I know you are supposed to plan out your day, but I dont have that kind of time. That is a bad excuse, but I think I do alright without eating them all. Of course, I dont have much to lose so that may be a factor.

    I have no idea your schedule or anything, but maybe plan out meals a week in advance that you know will eat up calories. What type of workouts are doing? Are you doing 2000 calories of exercise a day that is completely cardio? strength training? a little of both? Do you feel slugish when doing your workouts? Do you lose entergy? How long have you been keeping a 1000-1300 calorie diet and doing a 1000-1500 exercise routine? I know you should try to eat as much as you can, but dont have a gallon of chocolate ice cream a day to make up those calories - LOL
    MMMMM choc ice cream. *smack myself* Ok, I'm back.

    Mostly do what works for you. If doing what you are doing right now is not working, then mix it up. Start by lowering your exercise routine. Plan on more healthier snack s throughout the day. Mix it up.

    Are you losing weight with your plan?
  • Windi38
    Windi38 Posts: 164 Member
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    I don't eat all mine back, but I do eat most of them. Frankly, I don't worry about it a whole lot.

    Here's the thing, those numbers are estimates. Unless you are weighing/measuring your food and being very careful about what you eat so you can log it accurately, they are going to be off. Same with your exercise calories. Unless you have a good quality heart rate monitor, you don't know if those pre-set numbers are accurate for you. I've read countless post where people have found they burn either a lot more or a lot less than the pre-set numbers. And a few who say it's very accurate.

    If you are feeling fine, have energy, and don't feel run down or tired or hungry all the time, chances are you are doing just fine. If you are losing weight pretty steadily and haven't suddenly stopped, you are probably doing just fine.


    So don't stress over it.
  • daloverlyme
    daloverlyme Posts: 583 Member
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    I try to eat enough to get alteast half of them back. I'm so afraid of going into starvation mode and gaining it all back. Didn't do so good today though. Almost 1000 under goal. Not good! I say eat what you can to stay on target with your calories allowed for the day, but don't kill yourself to do it. Have fun with those extra calories. I call them my slip up calories... a buffer just in case I eat something not so good. :)
  • elliecolorado
    elliecolorado Posts: 1,040
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    I spent the first month I was on this site not eating them back and only lost 3lbs in a month. The second month I was on here I ate them back and only lost 2lbs in a month. Since then I eat back about 1/3-1/2 of them and have been losing about 3lbs a week consistently. Total (not NET) calories I consume a day is from 1200 - 1600. I only eat 1200 calories if I'm not exercising that day. When I exercise most days I burn between 800 - 1000 calories and on those days I eat up to 400 extra calories. It's been working for me so for now I am sticking with that, but I know that I will probably have to readjust a little when I get closer to my goal. I personally don't believe that there is a 'one size fits all' way to lose weight and sometimes you just need to experiment a little to see what works for you.

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