Adding calories because of exercise

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Pattie74
Pattie74 Posts: 85 Member
in Fitness and Exercise
I'm confused and I'm hoping someone will enlighten me. I'm pretty new here and I don't understand why calories are added on after I enter my exercise. I'm still eating 1200 calories without it, why should I add more? Isn't it better just to stick with the set amount of calories and exercise? Won't that help me lose faster? Thanks.

Replies

  • vim_n_vigor
    vim_n_vigor Posts: 4,089 Member
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    Each body is different, and you will need to experiment to see what works best for you. Some people need to eat back most, if not all of their exercise calories to keep losing, others only need to eat a small portion.
  • EmilyAnn89
    EmilyAnn89 Posts: 564 Member
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    there is a whole thread about it somewhere.

    basically 1200 is already setting you at a deficit. so say you burn 500 calories, you would only be eating 700 calories. it's all about giving your body the fuel it needs to keep you going and keeping your metabolism up.

    EDIT: last year i lost 25 lbs. on this site (binge eating made me gain it all back :cry: ) and i always ate back all of my exercise calories.
  • moeslady305
    moeslady305 Posts: 4 Member
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    I had the same question. I think i am the type that needs to eat more to loose the weight...Go figure.
  • ceschwartz
    ceschwartz Posts: 240 Member
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    Your body needs a certain amount of calories to function properly. Not consuming enough fuel puts stress on your organs and metabolism, which can backfire in the long run.
  • erickirb
    erickirb Posts: 12,293 Member
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    MFP is set up so you lose your goal amount of weight by eating what it tells you to, so 1200 with no exercise in your case, and 1200 plus what ever you burn from exercise. It is all bases on math and in order to lose your goal amount of weight you must eat all of the calories MFP suggests.
  • rice161
    rice161 Posts: 59
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    There will be a lot of healthy debate I'm sure about this topic, but bottom line, for your longer term success, if you're cutting calories AND exercising, you need to still fuel your body. Especially once you reach the 1200 calorie level, your body can go into starvation mode from not getting enough fuel. Doctors will tell you that MFP's way to do this is the safest one. A lot of members on here will tell you they never eat back their calories and feel fine... NOW. Personally, I eat most but not all back. I planned to lose 1.5 lbs per week and it's coming in around 2 lbs consistently so I'm OK with that. Your choice, but listen to your body!
  • Pandorian
    Pandorian Posts: 2,055 MFP Moderator
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    MFP's program is set up so your rate of loss chosen when you signed up (0.5 lbs 1 lb, 1.5 lbs or 2 lbs a week) are taken into account in giving your calorie goal for the day so you can lose the weight even if you don't do ANY exercise.
    With this deficit already factored in the plan is that we eat our exercise calories to keep at the proper deficit size for safe, sustainable rates of loss.
  • chevy88grl
    chevy88grl Posts: 3,937 Member
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    When you put all your information into MFP and it gave you your daily calories needs - it already figured in a deficit. It knows how much you weigh and how much you want to lose in a week -- it took all that info into account when it gave you that number. When you workout and burn calories -- you need to eat those back so you'll be at the original number MFP gave you. Going too low will result in a weight loss stall.

    Let's say that MFP tells you to eat 1500 calories a day. You go to the gym and you burn 500 calories .. well, now you've only consumed 1000 calories (1500-500 burned) and 1000 calories is too low. Eat back the 500 you burned and you're back at the original goal of 1500. I know it seems counterproductive to eat them back, but it isn't. Too few calories will result in your body going into starvation mode and it will hold onto fat stores. You have to fuel the body. Eating = weight loss. This doesn't mean gorge on junk or fast food. But, you DO need to eat.

    Here's how it was explained to me:

    1500 (calorie goal for the day set by MFP) - 500 calories burned by exercise = 1000 +500 eaten back = the original goal of 1500.
  • ande2994
    ande2994 Posts: 136
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    This seems to be a common question. To read some of the past conversations on this topic, select "search" at the top of the Message Boards page.

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