why does adding excercise add calories to my daily total?

MFP uses the NEAT method to set your calorie goal, and as such this system is designed for exercise calories to be eaten back. However, many consider the burns given by MFP to be inflated and only eat a percentage, such as 50%, back.

My FitBit One is far less generous with calories than the MFP database and I comfortably eat 100% of the calories I earn from it back.

http://community.myfitnesspal.com/en/discussion/818082/exercise-calories-again-wtf/p1

MFP works on the NEAT method which means it doesn't take exercise into account when calculating your calorie goal. And since you aready have a deficit built in when setting up that calorie goal, you're meant to eat at least some of those exercise calories back.

(MFP/activity trackers/peoples brains can over estimate calories out so some people eat only a portion back.)

ladyreva78 wrote: »

The number MFP gives you already includes your deficit to lose weight. So if you do exercise, then you get extra calories.

For example, a conversation between me and MFP:

Me: Hi MFP, I'm sedentary and want to lose 1lbs per week. Here are my stats!
MFP: Great! You need to eat 1500 cals per day to lose those 1lbs per week.
Me: Hi MFP. Guess what! I exercised today? Isn't that just amazing????
MFP: Great! eat more cause I didn't plan that into that number I gave you!

The general advice is to eat back a part (50-75%) of those calories until you know how accurate they are for you. If you lose faster than planned, eat more. If you lose slower than planned, eat less.

^^THIS. If you exercise you get to eat more. Hooray!

One thing to keep in mind with all of this is that the body is an engine. It HAS to have fuel to keep you going and if you aren't putting enough fuel into the tank, exercising every bit of calories consumed without eating additional food for instance, then the engine will break down. In the case of the human body, it will consume muscle mass before fat because fat is the reserve tank and is only tapped in either the direst of emergencies or when there is consistently enough fuel in the main tank to keep things running properly. This is the reason that starvation diets not only don't work properly but are dangerous. Also remember that muscle requires more calories to maintain that fat.