Exercise calories

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taraglittle
taraglittle Posts: 14 Member
in Health and Weight Loss
Curious to see how many people eat back their exercise calories? MFP is reccomending 1200 cals a day, seems so low. Thanks in advance

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  • Ready2Rock206
    Ready2Rock206 Posts: 9,488 Member
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    If you set your calorie goal at the absolute minimum like you have, I always recommend to eat at least a portion back.
  • taraglittle
    taraglittle Posts: 14 Member
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    Its the amount MFP gave me but im wondering if I should increase it and not worry woth exercise calories
  • SusanMFindlay
    SusanMFindlay Posts: 1,804 Member
    edited April 2017
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    What did you set your weight loss goal to? 1 pound/week? 2 pounds/week? For many people, being told "1200 calories/day" is a sign that their goal is too aggressive. Try picking a slower/gentler goal until you get a number higher than 1200.
  • STEVE142142
    STEVE142142 Posts: 867 Member
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    When I was losing the weight I never ate back my calories. My starting weight was 288 pounds and my final goal weight was 220. I start it maintenance and I screwed it up by eating at my suggested maintenance calories. I dropped another 12 pounds it took me about a month and a half to two months to figure out how to maintain the weight and I'm currently been maintaining at about 2 or wait for 8 months.

    As far as eating back your calories you're going to have to figure that out yourself depending on your weight loss goals. What you have to remember is the mfp guidelines are based on a large population and everybody's going to be different as far as their intensity of workout and just a general body genetics.
  • estherdragonbat
    estherdragonbat Posts: 5,283 Member
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    I eat back half. Weight's dropping steadily.
  • KosmosKitten
    KosmosKitten Posts: 10,476 Member
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    Sometimes I eat half back, sometimes, I don't.

    However, I set my goal at 1lb a week and it gives me 1590 to work with at the "Sedentary" level. Then again, I have 60ish to lose now (started at 70ish).
  • taraglittle
    taraglittle Posts: 14 Member
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    Thank you everyone!
  • JeromeBarry1
    JeromeBarry1 Posts: 10,181 Member
    edited April 2017
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    The previous week was the first time in 14 months that I deliberately ate back a defined portion of my exercise calories. The defined ratio I'm working on is 50%. In the past week I logged 1000+ calories of exercise several days and ate back 50% of that in the form of ice cream, chocolate, and tortilla chips. I lost 2.0 lb last week.

    The reason I started doing this after 14 months of losing weight is that I am concerned with a recurring binge habit which seems to strike on average at monthly intervals. Perhaps by eating back half my exercise calories I can avoid that.
  • MelanieCN77
    MelanieCN77 Posts: 4,047 Member
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    I ate back at least half and my weight came off as expected. Some days I'd eat them all if I was really hungry.
  • SCoil123
    SCoil123 Posts: 2,108 Member
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    I eat back 80-100% of my fitbit activity calories
  • bwogilvie
    bwogilvie Posts: 2,130 Member
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    I eat back 100% of my exercise calories. But I do so because my results suggest that my Garmin bike computer and running watch are both pretty accurate at estimating calories. If I use some other means of estimating, I usually record only 50-75%.

    MFP bases its calorie goals by adding up the energy you expend just to stay alive and keep your body repaired (your Resting Metabolic Rate, RMR) and your Non-Exercise Activity Thermogenesis (NEAT): that is, the energy you expend in your daily life excluding exercise. It then subtracts your weight loss goal from that to get your final calorie goal. So if you exercise, you're creating a bigger deficit than your goal, and MFP tells you to eat it back so you don't lose weight faster than you want.

    Of course, all these numbers are estimates. When I started, I told MFP that I wanted to lose 1.5 pounds a week, i.e. a 750-calorie daily deficit. My results were actually about 1.2 pounds a week, i.e. a 600-calorie deficit. I was missing some calories, probably overestimating exercise burn a bit and underestimating intake. But I was satisfied with my progress, so I didn't worry too much about it!
  • freshmama06
    freshmama06 Posts: 36 Member
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    I excercise 4-5 times a week and I almost always eat them back. I've lost 20 lbs so far (Since 12/28) I have 5-10 lbs more before my goal!

    I say, eat them if you're hungry.
  • gamerbabe14
    gamerbabe14 Posts: 876 Member
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    I only eat mine back when I am hangry.

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