Net calories explained?

xxzenabxx
xxzenabxx Posts: 948 Member
edited November 2024 in Health and Weight Loss
So today I had a really active day and I did a 30 minute HIIT workout and burned 400 calories in that workout as well as the EPOC calories burned which might be another 200 calories. I also went shopping for two and a half hours and walked around a lot so burned another 250 calories there. I was also busy around the house doing stuff running up and down stairs so in total through my workout, shopping and daily activities I probably burned around 950-1000 calories. My bmr is 1450 calories.

Now I ate healthy most of the day and my calories came up to 2200...so does this mean that my net calories are 2200-950= 1250? This means that I'm still in a deficit?

Replies

  • Ready2Rock206
    Ready2Rock206 Posts: 9,487 Member
    First - logging your every day activities that are already accounted for in your daily activity level is going to cause you to over eat. Stop logging every single time you move. Unless you're losing too rapidly - then maybe you'd want to add some of that in. Your goal given to you by MFP includes your deficit - when you exercise you make the deficit bigger so you can eat some or all of those back and still be in a deficit. So you can eat your calorie goal plus some or all of the exercise calories - but again EXERCISE not daily activity.
  • TeaBea
    TeaBea Posts: 14,517 Member
    edited August 2017
    MFP gave you a calorie goal before exercise. So if your goal was 1400 for weight loss and you did not workout, 1400 is both gross & net.

    However, if you added a workout for 400 calories and you ate 1400 calories your net is 1400-400=1000 calories. This would be under-eating. You are expected to eat a portion of your exercise calories back because it wasn't in the original equation.

    The reason it's just a portion is calorie burns are often inflated. Some calorie guesstimates are better than others, it depends upon the source. Also keep in mind your activity level includes some activity. I wouldn't log shopping or general chores.....just pick an activity level. Skip adding everything back to BMR. Too many estimates, too many moving parts.

    The deficit is from your TDEE. This is BMR + activity level + exercise. You eat fewer calories than TDEE, you lose weight. If your workouts are consistent you could use TDEE less a "cut" and skip logging exercise all together.
    http://scoobysworkshop.com/calorie-calculator/
  • Maxematics
    Maxematics Posts: 2,287 Member
    edited August 2017
    "I did a 30 minute HIIT workout and burned 400 calories in that workout as well as the EPOC calories burned which might be another 200 calories." This is a gross overestimation. How did you measure the 400 calories anyway? How are you measuring your calorie intake?
  • Jruzer
    Jruzer Posts: 3,502 Member
    You are seriously overestimating your calorie burns. There's no way EPOC is 50% of your calorie burn - 10% is more typical. The calories you burned shopping and running around the house should already be included in your NEAT activity level.

    Why are you using BMR to calculate your energy needs? What number did MFP give you as a calorie target?
  • DX2JX2
    DX2JX2 Posts: 1,921 Member
    High intensity exercise is tough, but it likely doesn't burn 800 calories an hour (especially at the weight I would assume you to be based on your calorie totals). Factor that back to 500-600 and it might be more reasonable. Also, as stated above, 'afterburn' is way overrated - it's small enough not to worry about.

    Walking doesn't burn nearly that many calories. For reference, I weigh 200 pounds and burn about 60 calories per mile of walking. In order to burn about 400 calories through walking, I would need to have walked about 7 miles above whatever my normal daily walking would total. Your required mileage would be higher if you weigh less than me.

    If we adjust the HIIT down to 500 calories/hour, ignore the EPOC, and assume that you only burned 200 calories in incremental walking that would give you a total 'exercise' burn of ~700 calories. If you ate 2200 calories, then your net calories would have been 1500.
  • xxzenabxx
    xxzenabxx Posts: 948 Member
    edited August 2017
    DX2JX2 wrote: »
    High intensity exercise is tough, but it likely doesn't burn 800 calories an hour (especially at the weight I would assume you to be based on your calorie totals). Factor that back to 500-600 and it might be more reasonable. Also, as stated above, 'afterburn' is way overrated - it's small enough not to worry about.

    Walking doesn't burn nearly that many calories. For reference, I weigh 200 pounds and burn about 60 calories per mile of walking. In order to burn about 400 calories through walking, I would need to have walked about 7 miles above whatever my normal daily walking would total. Your required mileage would be higher if you weigh less than me.

    If we adjust the HIIT down to 500 calories/hour, ignore the EPOC, and assume that you only burned 200 calories in incremental walking that would give you a total 'exercise' burn of ~700 calories. If you ate 2200 calories, then your net calories would have been 1500.

    So basically net calories is the main thing to focus on? And I have burned 800 calories in one hour...I do it really intense and I'm pretty fit and young so my metabolism is higher too (24 years old). I just have this last layer of fat to get rid of.
  • xxzenabxx
    xxzenabxx Posts: 948 Member
    Maxematics wrote: »
    "I did a 30 minute HIIT workout and burned 400 calories in that workout as well as the EPOC calories burned which might be another 200 calories." This is a gross overestimation. How did you measure the 400 calories anyway? How are you measuring your calorie intake?
    I measure my pulse for now by pressing finger on my wrist. I'm on abit of a family holiday so only measuring by guesstimating or reading labels. Okay my mistake I think the EPOC is only 13% but it's still something. The more intense I go the EPOC there is.
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