How not to eat when you can afford to?

I just remind myself of the great progress I've done so far and that if I'm not hungry then I'm not gonna put that stuff in my body especially late at night. If I really am craving it I'll eat it in the day where I know I can burn it off better. Also for using those calories at night if I'm really craving some munchies I'll look for a healthy snack I have that can be just as delicious good luck!

I don't believe in bad foods, only bad portions/frequencies. I wouldn't eat fast food every day, but I do certainly eat it sometimes. Although it wouldn't be McDonalds, we have much better fast food burger joints around these parts.

If I have 1000 extra calories late at night, you better believe I'm ordering a pizza or picking up some fast food!

I don't use food as entertainment or rewards. I dont eat if im not hungry as that just propegates a bad relationship with food imo. Id bank the calories for when im really hungry. I go by weekly cals not daily btw as it allows for more flexibility.

Are you sure you are not over estimating your burns? Or only counting half the estimated burn?

My biggest problem is, I feel I can't trust MFP calorie use for exercise. It just does not add up. I can often have 1000+ calories at the end of the day, but I know if I eat them, there is no way I'm going to lose weight. I wish there was a more accurate way to count your calorie burn. Personally If I’m not super careful what I eat, it does not matter what exercise I do.

LovLeigh416 wrote: »

So, you eat a little, you workout a lot, and at the end of the day you still have like 1,000 calories you can technically eat. How do you NOT go to McDonalds or eat pizza or something you know is bad but totally have the calorie budget for?

If I do have a lot of calories available from a workout, pizza and tacos are my first two choices!!

Wish I had this problem. Having 1000 calories "spare" in a day? Man, if only!!!!

Kane68 wrote: »
My biggest problem is, I feel I can't trust MFP calorie use for exercise. It just does not add up. I can often have 1000+ calories at the end of the day, but I know if I eat them, there is no way I'm going to lose weight. I wish there was a more accurate way to count your calorie burn. Personally If I’m not super careful what I eat, it does not matter what exercise I do.

Always estimate low ... so if you went for a bicycle ride, don't log it as a fast ride, log it as one of the slower options. I log mine as between 16 and 19 km/h no matter what I actually did. I'll also only log rolling time, not the total time I was out there, and I round down.

Then, I aim to eat about half my exercise calories back.

So last Sunday, I cycled a fairly hilly 100 km over 5 hours, burned 1800 cal (in theory) ... and then sat down to pizza and sorbet.

Thanks for that, halfing my exercise calories, is pretty much what i'm doing now.
BTW, Nice burn.

I agree with others:

1. Make sure the exercise burn is accurate
2. Log/and or eat back only a portion of it if you think it is not completely accurate
3. Plan your day out to eat some of those extra calories earlier in the day (fuel your workout)
4. Use some of those extra calories for an indulgence - if McDonalds or pizza sounds good, get some. Doesn't have to be 1000 cals worth.

LovLeigh416 wrote: »

WinoGelato wrote: »

I agree with others:

1. Make sure the exercise burn is accurate
2. Log/and or eat back only a portion of it if you think it is not completely accurate
3. Plan your day out to eat some of those extra calories earlier in the day (fuel your workout)
4. Use some of those extra calories for an indulgence - if McDonalds or pizza sounds good, get some. Doesn't have to be 1000 cals worth.

Vote this as best answer. I suppose eating earlier in the day and still being reasonable is the main takeaway I'm getting. Also not to trust MFP? So how can I estimate what I've burned from, say, 45mins weightlifting?

Others who lift more regularly can probably comment on the best tools to estimate calories burned from lifting - I use a FitBit and I know others use an HRM, but these are more for steady state cardio and not great for lifting. In general - lifting is less about a calorie burn and more about building strength, preserving lean muscle, etc. In fact if you are actively trying to build muscle, you can't do that in a calorie deficit.

I would probably recommend using a TDEE calculator like this:
http://scoobysworkshop.com/calorie-calculator/

To figure out your TDEE, this will help you plan ahead with a constant goal. Please note, if you do the TDEE method, you don't eat back the exercise calories, they are already factored in.

If you haven't, you should read this thread, and some of the other stickied posts at the top of the forums

http://community.myfitnesspal.com/en/discussion/1235566/so-youre-new-here/p1

VanillaGorillaUK wrote: »

LovLeigh416 wrote: »

WinoGelato wrote: »

I agree with others:

1. Make sure the exercise burn is accurate
2. Log/and or eat back only a portion of it if you think it is not completely accurate
3. Plan your day out to eat some of those extra calories earlier in the day (fuel your workout)
4. Use some of those extra calories for an indulgence - if McDonalds or pizza sounds good, get some. Doesn't have to be 1000 cals worth.

Vote this as best answer. I suppose eating earlier in the day and still being reasonable is the main takeaway I'm getting. Also not to trust MFP? So how can I estimate what I've burned from, say, 45mins weightlifting?

Yup, MFP uses an outdated method. We can't possibly know how many calories get burnt during weight lifting or cardio.

So, the best way is to calculate your maintenance is through a TDEE calculator. Here is one: http://iifym.com/tdee-calculator/

This calculation will take into account everything, including how much exercise you do and intensity.

To lose 1lb minus 500 from your TDEE, to lose 2lbs minus 1000. Input that goal number into your MFP settings and you no longer need to track exercise, just log your food.

I don't know if it's "outdated", per se. The TDEE method doesn't work for me because I know I would short my workouts if I didn't take account of each day independently, instead of just saying I'm "active" or "very active". The key to my mind is to figure out how many calories you are actually burning, and that takes time and effort to get right.

Jruzer wrote: »

VanillaGorillaUK wrote: »

LovLeigh416 wrote: »

WinoGelato wrote: »

I agree with others:

1. Make sure the exercise burn is accurate
2. Log/and or eat back only a portion of it if you think it is not completely accurate
3. Plan your day out to eat some of those extra calories earlier in the day (fuel your workout)
4. Use some of those extra calories for an indulgence - if McDonalds or pizza sounds good, get some. Doesn't have to be 1000 cals worth.

Vote this as best answer. I suppose eating earlier in the day and still being reasonable is the main takeaway I'm getting. Also not to trust MFP? So how can I estimate what I've burned from, say, 45mins weightlifting?

Yup, MFP uses an outdated method. We can't possibly know how many calories get burnt during weight lifting or cardio.

So, the best way is to calculate your maintenance is through a TDEE calculator. Here is one: http://iifym.com/tdee-calculator/

This calculation will take into account everything, including how much exercise you do and intensity.

To lose 1lb minus 500 from your TDEE, to lose 2lbs minus 1000. Input that goal number into your MFP settings and you no longer need to track exercise, just log your food.

I don't know if it's "outdated", per se. The TDEE method doesn't work for me because I know I would short my workouts if I didn't take account of each day independently, instead of just saying I'm "active" or "very active". The key to my mind is to figure out how many calories you are actually burning, and that takes time and effort to get right.

I do the TDEE method because, after all, my workouts are for my fitness and I don't short myself. Plus I review my progress regularly and adjust if needed based on actual rate of observed loss. I like not counting exercise calories directly because I can better plan my days in advance. I do have different calorie goals for training days.

rankinsect wrote: »

Jruzer wrote: »

VanillaGorillaUK wrote: »

LovLeigh416 wrote: »

WinoGelato wrote: »

I agree with others:

1. Make sure the exercise burn is accurate
2. Log/and or eat back only a portion of it if you think it is not completely accurate
3. Plan your day out to eat some of those extra calories earlier in the day (fuel your workout)
4. Use some of those extra calories for an indulgence - if McDonalds or pizza sounds good, get some. Doesn't have to be 1000 cals worth.

Vote this as best answer. I suppose eating earlier in the day and still being reasonable is the main takeaway I'm getting. Also not to trust MFP? So how can I estimate what I've burned from, say, 45mins weightlifting?

Yup, MFP uses an outdated method. We can't possibly know how many calories get burnt during weight lifting or cardio.

So, the best way is to calculate your maintenance is through a TDEE calculator. Here is one: http://iifym.com/tdee-calculator/

This calculation will take into account everything, including how much exercise you do and intensity.

To lose 1lb minus 500 from your TDEE, to lose 2lbs minus 1000. Input that goal number into your MFP settings and you no longer need to track exercise, just log your food.

I don't know if it's "outdated", per se. The TDEE method doesn't work for me because I know I would short my workouts if I didn't take account of each day independently, instead of just saying I'm "active" or "very active". The key to my mind is to figure out how many calories you are actually burning, and that takes time and effort to get right.

I do the TDEE method because, after all, my workouts are for my fitness and I don't short myself. Plus I review my progress regularly and adjust if needed based on actual rate of observed loss. I like not counting exercise calories directly because I can better plan my days in advance. I do have different calorie goals for training days.

That's cool. I think this is really a case where personal preference and predilection comes into play. In the end the two methods are (or should be) equivalent if applied effectively.