Do you guys eat your exercise calories?

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2

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  • californiagirl2012
    californiagirl2012 Posts: 2,625 Member
    edited July 2015
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    Every day is different. I don't use the calculator, I pay attention to how I feel. If I need a little more food from exercise I eat a little more, if not I don't.
  • joanneleblanc1
    joanneleblanc1 Posts: 7 Member
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    Not daily - I might "save" them for something special coming up that specific week (ex:like a wedding event). Knowing that I could use them helps me plan better overall.
  • Sued0nim
    Sued0nim Posts: 17,456 Member
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    joanneleblanc1 wrote: »
    Not daily - I might "save" them for something special coming up that specific week (ex:like a wedding event). Knowing that I could use them helps me plan better overall.

    Sorry I forgot to say I manage my calories on a weekly basis too
  • Kalikel
    Kalikel Posts: 9,626 Member
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    Not usually. When I'm hungry I do.

    But if you can eat some or all of them and still lose weight, do it!
  • accidentalpancake
    accidentalpancake Posts: 484 Member
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    I tried one, but those guys are scrappy. I try to find some lazy non-exercise calories instead. Less of a fight.

    In other words, nope. I don't eat extra directly due to obligation. Only when my body is telling me I need more.
  • KrisiAnnH
    KrisiAnnH Posts: 352 Member
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    I try to eat 50% of mine back, as mfp is designed for you to eat your exercise calories back. I get my calorie burns from fitnessblender not mfp, but that still means I have no idea how accurate they are. Occasionally I eat less than 50% back but I try and eat the full 50 as I figure my body needs the extra fuel if I've done the workout.

    Also the extra calorie allowance can stop me wanting to binge or allow me to have an extra something I couldnt usually. Bear in mind though I am on 1200 cals so if I dont eat back exercise burns I could be dipping into an unhealthily large deficit.
  • ttttyyyy1
    ttttyyyy1 Posts: 7 Member
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    I don't unless I'm hungry and feel the need to refuel
  • coreyreichle
    coreyreichle Posts: 1,031 Member
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    Partially. I eat 60% of Runkeeper's estimated caloric burn back.
  • JunoBeachVan
    JunoBeachVan Posts: 10 Member
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    Once I hit my target weight (86 pounds down, 14 to go), then I will start eat a percentage of my exercise calories. But for now, that would defeat the purpose for me.
  • flrancho
    flrancho Posts: 271 Member
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    Sometimes I do and sometimes I don't. It depends on how hungry I am.
  • meddaugh48
    meddaugh48 Posts: 41 Member
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    I never do.
  • griffinca2
    griffinca2 Posts: 672 Member
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    Only if I'm hungry.
  • Asher_Ethan
    Asher_Ethan Posts: 2,430 Member
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    It really depends... I found that MFP over exaggerates calorie burn for exercise so I always try to under estimate my calorie burn (example - if I got running, I put it in as walking) I watch my hunger cues after that and see if I should eat them all or not.
  • Liftng4Lis
    Liftng4Lis Posts: 15,150 Member
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    Absolutely eat a portion back. Remember, the winner gets to eat the most and still lose.
  • whmscll
    whmscll Posts: 2,254 Member
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    Yes, almost all of them. Otherwise very hard to stick to 1200 a day. I underestimate the calorie burn, or shave a portion off what MFP gives me and then log that amount. Because if it shows in my log that I have uneaten calories you can be sure that I will eat them.
  • chels1126
    chels1126 Posts: 6 Member
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    I think a lot of it depends on your height, weight and goals. When I was starting at 150 lbs I absolutely did, because I had more weight to lose and it was easier to do so. Once I reach my body's happy weight or set point, I stop eating as many of them back as it becomes harder to lose this weight and I have to try a little harder. I'm not a nutritionist/doctor so I can't advise you to do the same or if that's right, it just works for me!
  • thankyou4thevenom
    thankyou4thevenom Posts: 1,581 Member
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    Depends on the day. If I'm on a maintenance day yes. If I'm on a cutting day no.
  • vivmom2014
    vivmom2014 Posts: 1,647 Member
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    Yes, I eat them back - 75% to almost all.
  • Yoshirio
    Yoshirio Posts: 242 Member
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    Not usually. If I do,it's only because I am hungry and it's only about a third of them.
  • PeachyCarol
    PeachyCarol Posts: 8,029 Member
    edited July 2015
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    I used to eat less back than I do now, and I didn't have energy to work out. What a conundrum. The more I eat back, the more I exercise, the more I exercise, the higher my TDEE gets and the more weight I drop. I eat 50%-60% back and have been steadily increasing the frequency and intensity of my workouts. Win-win.

    I recently got a Fitbit, and once I've had it for a while, I'm going to trust it for burns since most of my activity other than strength training is step-based.

    I don't use MFP for my burns, though, I use Shape Sense and then figure out net burn using their option for an additional calculation. Their calculators give a less generous burn for most activities than MFP does.

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