Eating the calories u burn?

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kellyogda
kellyogda Posts: 20 Member
edited November 2016 in Health and Weight Loss
Hi!! Question ... if I train/workout is it best to eat the calories I burn off?

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  • janejellyroll
    janejellyroll Posts: 25,763 Member
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    If your calorie goal comes from MFP, it's designed for you to eat back the calories burnt through exercise. This is especially important if your calorie goal is low or if you're doing a lot of exercise. Some people find that calorie burn estimates are high, so they only eat back a portion of calories burnt (anywhere from 25-75%).
  • TeaBea
    TeaBea Posts: 14,517 Member
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    Deliberate exercise calories - yes. If you got your calorie goal from MFP (My Fitness Pal) - it didn't include exercise. So logging workouts give you additional calories.

    However, keep in mind exercise calorie burns are estimates. Some things are pretty accurate, other things are "generous." Most people eat back a % - say 50-75%. Then adjust that percentage up or down based on actual results.
  • oocdc2
    oocdc2 Posts: 1,361 Member
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    ^^ What these guys said: eat 50% - 75% back or save some for the next day.
  • cosmonew
    cosmonew Posts: 513 Member
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    I look at it this way. Exercise is good for you but for me it takes a little reward. SO... I work out hard and track my calories burned with a heart rate monitor...then I eat them back in a healthy way..like protein and whole foods, not candy. If I didn't eat them back there would be nothing to fuel my next workout and nothing to motivate me to do the next workout. BUT you have to be careful that you are truly earning the calories you eat. The best thing you can do is try it one way or another or half of each and see what works for you, another option is to eat them now and then when you stall or plateau as many people do, you can not eat them. As a frequent loss, gain repeater... I would suggest...do as little as possiible to change your lifestyle for as long as possible and when that doesn't work anymore..change it up. That has been my motto now for 115 days and I have lost over 30lbs and not hit a plateau..I eat almost all my exercise calories back every day..but I work dam hard for them.
  • Tacklewasher
    Tacklewasher Posts: 7,122 Member
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    I admit I don't eat mine back in a healthy way. I aim to eat/drink 1/2 back, but these are my treats. Small bag of chips, a bit of ice cream, wine, gin. ~75 days with MFP and down ~45 lbs (with a lot more to go). I regularly do not even eat/drink the 1/2 back though. Just don't feel like it a lot of the time so I don't. I have enough weight to lose that it isn't a big issue to be well under for a day. Be more of an issue when I'm closer to my weight though.

    But to each their own on what you do with them.

    The risk in eating them all back is the calorie burned estimates can be way off and you can be eating back more than you "earned".
  • butterfli7o
    butterfli7o Posts: 1,319 Member
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    I've started only eating about half back...only because a) I don't burn that much during exercise and b) wiggle room for underestimating food cals.
  • kellyogda
    kellyogda Posts: 20 Member
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    Amazing advice everyone thank u
  • NorthCascades
    NorthCascades Posts: 10,968 Member
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    TeaBea wrote: »
    Deliberate exercise calories - yes.

    What does that mean? If you run out of gas and have to walk to the nearest station, you shouldn't eat those calories?
  • SusanMFindlay
    SusanMFindlay Posts: 1,804 Member
    edited November 2016
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    NorthCascades wrote: »
    TeaBea wrote: »
    Deliberate exercise calories - yes.

    What does that mean? If you run out of gas and have to walk to the nearest station, you shouldn't eat those calories?

    I think it means don't log activity that is already accounted for by your activity level. e.g. Even the sedentary setting assumes you wash the dishes, so don't log 10 minutes standing in front of the sink as "exercise".

    That said, I "eat back" a fair number of calories that many would not consider "deliberate exercise" - but the activity levels don't go high enough for me so I simply try to maintain a 500 calorie deficit (on average) from what my FitBit says I burn. (When I did it the traditional MFP way, I lost weight a lot faster than expected, so my weight loss backs up my FitBit numbers.)
  • red99ryder
    red99ryder Posts: 399 Member
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    Also good to remember you cannot out exercise what you can eat .. at least I never have been able to lol

    Good luck
  • kellyogda
    kellyogda Posts: 20 Member
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    oocdc2 wrote: »
    ^^ What these guys said: eat 50% - 75% back or save some for the next day.
    oocdc2 wrote: »
    ^^ What these guys said: eat 50% - 75% back or save some for the next day.
    Will they roll over to the next day on my diary then? (The cals I don't eat from training)
  • janejellyroll
    janejellyroll Posts: 25,763 Member
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    kellyogda wrote: »
    oocdc2 wrote: »
    ^^ What these guys said: eat 50% - 75% back or save some for the next day.
    oocdc2 wrote: »
    ^^ What these guys said: eat 50% - 75% back or save some for the next day.
    Will they roll over to the next day on my diary then? (The cals I don't eat from training)

    No -- calories don't roll over day-to-day in the daily view (you will see them in your weekly view though).
  • burgess1984
    burgess1984 Posts: 3 Member
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    I was going to ask this i have a IQ-FIT HR cheaper version is there a way to manually enter my calories burnt thanks

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