How not to eat when you can afford to?

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LovLeigh416
LovLeigh416 Posts: 17 Member
in Motivation and Support
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?
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  • ChallengerGirl9399
    ChallengerGirl9399 Posts: 33 Member
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    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! :)<3
  • ARC1603
    ARC1603 Posts: 113 Member
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    If you have the calories for it and want it, then eat it I say!
  • rankinsect
    rankinsect Posts: 2,238 Member
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    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.
  • blankiefinder
    blankiefinder Posts: 3,599 Member
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    You are supposed to eat what MFP tells you to. What are you logging for burns? For example, 30 minutes of running at x speed for 300 cal
  • cdudley628
    cdudley628 Posts: 547 Member
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    If I have 1000 extra calories late at night, you better believe I'm ordering a pizza or picking up some fast food!
  • robertw486
    robertw486 Posts: 2,392 Member
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    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?

    It's easy. For me, I eat less in the morning, work out a little harder sometimes, and have 2,000 calories I can eat before the end of the day. And I usually do eat most of them. Not at McDonalds, but that's up to you.

    If you have calories to eat, you can eat them. My today included cake... big pieces of cake. And sometimes my days include all kinds of other stuff people want to label as "bad". On top of that, I usually eat at LEAST 50% of my calories at dinner time or later.
  • Whitezombiegirl
    Whitezombiegirl Posts: 1,042 Member
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    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?



  • dramaqueen45
    dramaqueen45 Posts: 1,009 Member
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    Agree with a lot of above- if you have that many calories and you are craving pizza or McDonald's- go for it.
  • Kane68
    Kane68 Posts: 14 Member
    edited November 2015
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    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.
  • kristen6350
    kristen6350 Posts: 1,094 Member
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    I plan my day so I don't have that happen. Pre-log, then you won't have that huge gap and you won't have the temptation. If I know I'm going work out and burn let's say 300 calories I have a bigger lunch/breakfast. It may take a few more minutes the day before to make sure you are getting what you need, but it's worth it.
  • Machka9
    Machka9 Posts: 25,227 Member
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    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!! :grin:

  • Machka9
    Machka9 Posts: 25,227 Member
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    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. :)

  • Big5BigChange
    Big5BigChange Posts: 56 Member
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    Wish I had this problem. Having 1000 calories "spare" in a day? Man, if only!!!!
  • amgreenwell
    amgreenwell Posts: 1,267 Member
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    I try to remember why I'm eating well and counting calories to begin with, a healthy lifestyle. Going to any fast food would make me feel as though I'm giving up on all my good progress. If you have that many calories left at the end of the day you probably need to eat more during the day to fuel your workouts.
    If you really want to eat your 1000 calories at McDonald's go for it...but will it make you feel good?
  • Kane68
    Kane68 Posts: 14 Member
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    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. :)
  • cwolfman13
    cwolfman13 Posts: 41,865 Member
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    maybe you should plan out your days better...
  • WinoGelato
    WinoGelato Posts: 13,454 Member
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    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
    LovLeigh416 Posts: 17 Member
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    amgreenwell wrote: »
    I try to remember why I'm eating well and counting calories to begin with, a healthy lifestyle. Going to any fast food would make me feel as though I'm giving up on all my good progress. If you have that many calories left at the end of the day you probably need to eat more during the day to fuel your workouts.
    If you really want to eat your 1000 calories at McDonald's go for it...but will it make you feel good?

    Of course it will, that's why I gained weight to begin with. McDonald's always feels good lol
  • LovLeigh416
    LovLeigh416 Posts: 17 Member
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    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?
  • serouppet
    serouppet Posts: 18 Member
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    You could always "bank" them for the weekend. A couple days a week of being significantly under can give you a damn good planned splurge.

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