Should I eat exercise calories???

Options
Nardoned
Nardoned Posts: 7 Member
in Fitness and Exercise
Hi all!

I'm just starting back with MFP with around 1320 calories per day. Today after the gym I burned about 400 calories for around 6,200 "steps" total for the day. Should I eat those calories or should I try to only eat the 1320 calories? The cravings and hunger are so real! Today I ate the calories and did not go over my total calories for the day, with "burned" calories included (around 1700).

Thanks!

Danielle
«1

Replies

  • NorthCascades
    NorthCascades Posts: 10,968 Member
    edited January 2017
    Options
    Of course you should. You should eat weekend calories, too.

    EDIT: Exercise is like driving your car. Calories are like gasoline. When you drive your car, you have to put more fuel in it. When you use your body, the same thing applies.
  • Nardoned
    Nardoned Posts: 7 Member
    Options
    Thank you - that's what I thought. I'm definitely hungrier when I work out hard, but was confused.
  • Nardoned
    Nardoned Posts: 7 Member
    Options
    What are weekend calories?
  • beckaluffagus
    beckaluffagus Posts: 2 Member
    Options
    Listening to your body is the most important thing you can do. If you're hungry, eat a health snack! Like another poster said, your body needs fuel to do that hard work and as long as you aren't piling on empty calories, it probably isn't going to hurt you even if you go over.
  • beckaluffagus
    beckaluffagus Posts: 2 Member
    Options
    healthy snack* lol.
  • MrsCoby78
    MrsCoby78 Posts: 14 Member
    Options
    Frankly, I don't know why you wouldn't eat exercise calories. Like North said, your body needs the fuel!
  • Nardoned
    Nardoned Posts: 7 Member
    Options
    Thank you everyone!!
  • vikidelynn
    vikidelynn Posts: 8 Member
    edited January 2017
    Options
    Here is my plan, I am a diabetic so I am a carb counter mainly. 130g a day (roughly 1,200 calories)...unless I earn them after I hit 10,000 steps a day. So yes, I will celebrate with a few extra carbs (or calories) but only after I hit a minimum of 10,000 steps. This is because moving my body is so important to controlling my diabetes. Four 15 minute walks a day spread throughout the day (typically 1st thing in the morning and after each meal) is an hour's worth of walking and not so hard to achieve.
  • CajunCher2005
    CajunCher2005 Posts: 21 Member
    Options
    I don't ever eat back my exercise calories. I'm just not that hungry when I exercise at least 45 minutes to an hour a day. However, when I don't exercise, I get very hungry. I've gained nearly 15 pounds since losing 35 because of that. The game starts again.
  • d_waters
    d_waters Posts: 11 Member
    edited January 2017
    Options
    Try macro counting.. on training days, you generally can consume more carbs, and less on Rest days.(we're all different) I actually eat more than I did before and am losing weight. Make sure each meal has all 3 macros..and aim for more carbs before your workout for fuel
  • Lestan48
    Lestan48 Posts: 489 Member
    Options
    i don't eat my exercise calories. They are a bonus to me. I do eat an Aussie Bodies protein bar after exercise though and count it
  • tennileb
    tennileb Posts: 265 Member
    edited January 2017
    Options
    I eat back 1/2 my exercise calories. Except on big days, today 1696 calories burnt snowshoeing, maybe eating back 500
  • tennileb
    tennileb Posts: 265 Member
    Options
    And are you measuring your burn by your own heart rate monitor or the machine, or mfp's estimate
  • tennileb
    tennileb Posts: 265 Member
    edited January 2017
    Options
    Just to see I entered 266 minutes of snowshoeing into mfp, it said 2573 calories, my heart rate monitor said 1696 calories. Mfp and the cardio machines over estimate calories burnt. I use a chest strap heart rate monitor ( polar m400)
  • DancingMoosie
    DancingMoosie Posts: 8,619 Member
    Options
    Yes, just make sure you are not over estimating your exercise calories. For reference, I only burn about 60-70 calories per mile walked.
  • riffraff2112
    riffraff2112 Posts: 1,757 Member
    Options
    I eat back a portion. I do not really trust the readouts on the machines, or the calculators so just to be safe, I usually eat back about half.
    This also gives me a little wiggle room in case I didn't weigh my portions properly (which I definitely do not).

    All of this is trumped by the fact that if I am hungry, I eat them all back!
  • GreenHeather2014
    GreenHeather2014 Posts: 74 Member
    Options
    I also eat back only a portion of my exercise calories. For example, for 60 minutes on the treadmill, the equipment says I burned about 400 calories, while MFP says it's almost 1000. I'll eat the 400, maybe a bit more, maybe a bit less, depending on how hungry I am, but not the full 1000. If I'm eating 1000 extra calories then I'm probably also not eating healthy foods.

Categories