What do you do at the end of the day if under cal?

Options
13»

Replies

  • cwolfman13
    cwolfman13 Posts: 41,876 Member
    edited February 2015
    Options
    meritage4 wrote: »
    LOL you do not need to eat all your exercise calories back as MFP usually WAY OVER estimates them. Always eat your regualr daily allottment. Some folksactually log their workouts as 1 calorie to avoid this problem.. I don't and eat back some of my exercise calories-just not all.

    Actually most people who are logging 1 calorie are doing so because they use the TDEE method which accounts for exercise in the activity level and includes and estimate of exercise burn in the calorie goal already...

    Fueling your fitness is kind of important...
  • PrimalGirl
    PrimalGirl Posts: 148 Member
    Options
    mnewell0293 wrote: »
    joejward95 wrote: »
    If I've reached the end of the day and have cals left and im not hungry I just don't eat. Don't worry, you're not going to die by being under some days, even if it is by 700 on a 1400 diet. The human body is very resilient, we're designed to be able to go for decent periods with little/no food.

    Thanks - makes me feel better....I was going crazy thinking I will not lose if I am not close to my daily goal....

    Hi, if it goes on consistently for too long you will eventually plateau and may even start putting on weight again. This is the position I'm in at the moment and I'm having to make a concerted effort to increase calories in order to restart my fat loss - sounds counter-intuitive but the body starts storing fat if it perceives a prolonged reduction in calories.
  • LavenderLeaves
    LavenderLeaves Posts: 195 Member
    Options
    johnnylakis wrote: »
    cityruss wrote: »
    I aim for that scenario. And then this happens...

    mbtcy9sh0qkc.jpg
    um is that gelato????

    Seriously what. Johnnylakis you gotta tell us what that is. I can make out the chocolate and peanut butter...chocolate gelato? What's the other stuff?
  • xmarye
    xmarye Posts: 385 Member
    Options
    I had this problem at first! My daily calorie goal is 1200cals, and often I would be around 900-1000cals. Just for the sake of making this a lifestyle and not overdoing it for no reason, I thought I should try to reach at least 1200cals everyday. I like to munch on nuts, or simply have a couple spoonfuls of peanut butter to fill up those calories! Def don't go eating a bunch of crap IMO. But if you wanted to enjoy a treat, there's nothing wrong with that: a lot of people still lose doing so. For me though, it tends to cause cravings and it's hard to control my portion, so I try to just avoid those foods. Another delicious sweet snack I love to have is plain greek yogurt with a few tbsp of sugar-free jam. :) Or a baked banana with peanut butter and cinnamon! Ooohh..

    I usually don't eat back my exercise calories, unless I am hungry. Then I might eat half of them.

    In the end, it's about finding what works for you. If you're losing, keep doing what you're doing! Good luck :)
  • triciab79
    triciab79 Posts: 1,713 Member
    Options
    MFP overestimates and if you eat them all back you will almost certainly gain instead of lose. Lets say the count is only off by 50 calories for every 500. That is a gain of 50 cal a day which if you exercise 5 times a week that is 250 calories or a little over 3lbs a year you will gain while still busting your tail daily. Plus eating more on days that you work out makes you want more on days that you do not. When I exercise I add specific snacks to my normal day, protein bars, protein shots, protein shakes, protein chips. No fun items because food is not suppose to be a reward. That is how we get into trouble, we treat food like a friend. We let it comfort us, reward us, punish us and pretty soon it is in control again.
  • xMrBunglex
    xMrBunglex Posts: 1,121 Member
    Options
    mnewell0293 wrote: »
    I am finding that I am under my cal count at the end of the day...not sure what to do...

    (new to MFP also)

    I give the red warning the middle finger & move on to the next day!

  • xmarye
    xmarye Posts: 385 Member
    Options
    cwolfman13 wrote: »
    meritage4 wrote: »
    LOL you do not need to eat all your exercise calories back as MFP usually WAY OVER estimates them. Always eat your regualr daily allottment. Some folksactually log their workouts as 1 calorie to avoid this problem.. I don't and eat back some of my exercise calories-just not all.

    Actually most people who are logging 1 calorie are doing so because they use the TDEE method which accounts for exercise in the activity level and includes and estimate of exercise burn in the calorie goal already...

    Fueling your fitness is kind of important...

    I do set my calories at maintenance, calculated with my TDEE for a couch potatoe :) Ahah. And then I log my exercise. But I usually don't eat my exercise calories back. Only half if I am really hungry. Technically, I aim to eat about 1200cals per day. I just like to have my calorie goal set at maintenance so the calories left actually represent my calorie deficit for the day. It motivates me.

    And also, when I go in the Nutrition tab and check out the weekly charts, I can see the ''net calories under weekly goal'' which allows me to know how much my total weekly deficit approximately is. It helps to keep things in perspective, especially when you had a bad day. So I try to have 3500-7000cals deficit per week to equal 1-2lbs loss per week.

    Before I set my calorie goal to maintenance, it would play mind games with me. I felt like I was going nowhere, I felt deprived seeing such a small number of calories allowed, and when I went 5cals over (which makes the number go red) I felt like a failure. So this is the main reason why this approach works well for me. :)
  • Soggynode
    Soggynode Posts: 1,179 Member
    Options
    SwankyTomato wrote: »
    Enter your exercise as 1 calorie. Everything is just an estimate anyway.
    ^^ This works for me. Exercise cals are fuzzy logic so I leave them alone. MFP has me at 1900 per day, I usually hit around 1700 but I make sure I hit at least 1500. I also pre-log my day and use dinner and evening snacks to even out my macros. Almonds, granola and/or greek yogurt are my usual calorie boosters.

Categories