Must you eat the calories you burn off through exercise?
PankyM
Posts: 2 Member
I excercise regularly alternating between strength training and cardio and have been logging the calories I burn off through exercise each day (based on my heart rate monitor) into MFP. My goal is to lose weight and I am using MFP's daily calorie recommendation based on the activity level and weight loss goal that I entered. Should I take in enough calories each day to replace the calories burned during exercise plus my goal calories, so that my net calorie intake equals my goal calories? Or should I limit my total calorie intake to my goal calories only so that my net calorie intake is less than my goal calories?
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Replies
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I stick to my goal calories. It's personal preference. You're giving yourself a bigger deficit if you don't eat them back but some people find that they're hungry, sluggish if they have a large deficit. Do what works best for you0
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If you are set as sedentary, you are supposed to eat them back. If you're set at active, mfp is giving you more calories, so no don't think you are supposed to eat them.
Either way, I wouldn't touch any of them if you aren't using a heart rate monitor. If you are using a HRM, try eating back half for a couple days and monitor your weight? Basically eat then "as needed"0 -
The way MFP is set up is for you to NET your goal. However, accuracy becomes really important if you're going to. Usually a safe amount falls between 50-75%. This leaves you room for errors (either calorie burn estimates being too high or food logs being inaccurate/not logging with food scale/using "generic" or "homemade" entries that aren't your own)
I try to get my NET as close to my Goal as possible. 100 over or under isn't a big deal. My calorie burns come from my Fitbit Surge and I've had it long enough to compare intake/loss/expected loss to determine that it's fairly accurate for me. This last month was the first that I didn't meet the expected loss, but that's my own logging that's the problem. Since my logging is off (4-5 black hole days), my average intake is off which in turn means my expected loss is off.0 -
I usually eat back half sometimes almost all using my hrm I feel that I.am successful doing this losing 11 lbs since beginning of march. Some days if I burn over 400 cals my calories net would only be about 850 for the day which is way too little to feed my body
I only get 1360 a day to lose 1 lb a week.0 -
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Must you? No, but it's highly recommended to in order to fuel your body.0
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I've been doing this for a year, haven't touched the exercise calories, and it's worked for me.0
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But it depends on how much you have to lose too. Someone that has to lose 100lbs or more isn't the same as someone who's only trying to lose 20lbs.DeguelloTex wrote: »I've been doing this for a year, haven't touched the exercise calories, and it's worked for me.
If someone was at 1400 calories a day, burned off 600 that day, I would encourage them to eat AT LEAST half of those calories back.
A.C.E. Certified Personal and Group Fitness Trainer
IDEA Fitness member
Kickboxing Certified Instructor
Been in fitness for 30 years and have studied kinesiology and nutrition
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Well, when I started, I needed to lose 112. Now, I need to lose 12. I'm approaching it the same way.
But it depends on how much you have to lose too. Someone that has to lose 100lbs or more isn't the same as someone who's only trying to lose 20lbs.DeguelloTex wrote: »I've been doing this for a year, haven't touched the exercise calories, and it's worked for me.
If someone was at 1400 calories a day, burned off 600 that day, I would encourage them to eat AT LEAST half of those calories back.
A.C.E. Certified Personal and Group Fitness Trainer
IDEA Fitness member
Kickboxing Certified Instructor
Been in fitness for 30 years and have studied kinesiology and nutrition
I'm just saying what's worked for me.
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mz_getskinny wrote: »If you are set as sedentary, you are supposed to eat them back. If you're set at active, mfp is giving you more calories, so no don't think you are supposed to eat them.
Either way, I wouldn't touch any of them if you aren't using a heart rate monitor. If you are using a HRM, try eating back half for a couple days and monitor your weight? Basically eat then "as needed"
The calorie goals for active don't take additional exercise into account, so you should still eat those calories back as long as you factor for over-estimated calorie burns.
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janejellyroll wrote: »mz_getskinny wrote: »If you are set as sedentary, you are supposed to eat them back. If you're set at active, mfp is giving you more calories, so no don't think you are supposed to eat them.
Either way, I wouldn't touch any of them if you aren't using a heart rate monitor. If you are using a HRM, try eating back half for a couple days and monitor your weight? Basically eat then "as needed"
The calorie goals for active don't take additional exercise into account...
That's up to the user. MFP gives me an 1100 calorie difference between sedentary and highly active. Lots of MFPers use the activity level as a proxy for exercise and set their activity level higher than it "should" be and then don't log exercise separately at all (or log it as 1 calorie, just to keep track).
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That's up to the user. MFP gives me an 1100 calorie difference between sedentary and highly active. Lots of MFPers use the activity level as a proxy for exercise and set their activity level higher than it "should" be and then don't log exercise separately at all (or log it as 1 calorie, just to keep track).
You could use it that way and get results, but if you are using it "as designed" then the active level is for your routine activities. If you choose active based on those and don't eat exercise calories back, you may increase your deficit beyond what you had intended.
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janejellyroll wrote: »
That's up to the user. MFP gives me an 1100 calorie difference between sedentary and highly active. Lots of MFPers use the activity level as a proxy for exercise and set their activity level higher than it "should" be and then don't log exercise separately at all (or log it as 1 calorie, just to keep track).
You could use it that way and get results, but if you are using it "as designed" then the active level is for your routine activities.
Exactly. And If someone's routine includes a run 3x a week and a cycle 2x a week there's no reason not to build those calories into the base activity level and go from there.
"As designed".
:drinker:
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Exactly. And If someone's routine includes a run 3x a week and a cycle 2x a week there's no reason not to build those calories into the base activity level and go from there.
"As designed".
:drinker:
I don't think we disagree. I am just saying that if you follow the website instructions to set up your goals and then log your exercise, you will be double counting. However, if a user knows what they are doing, it truly doesn't matter.
When responding earlier, I was responding as if the website was being used "as designed," as someone had said those at active should not eat their exercise back.
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Thank you all for the info!0
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