Trying to make sense of the calorie intake vs. exercise amou

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I am new to using this type of program. Hoping to find success by tracking everything that goes into my mouth!!!! BUT I am confused about the information it provides you. I understand the basic calorie intake you should have. THen it tells you how much you have left after eating food. WQhen I enter exercise, it changes the amounts. Should I eat all my food amounts and exercise just as the weightloss calories. Or should I leave a few food calories left over and exercise calories to have a larger leftover amount at the end of the day? I hope this makes sense!! Thanks for your help....I just want this to work!

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  • JamesonsMommy
    JamesonsMommy Posts: 771 Member
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    sounds like we are having the same issues.. I have not been.. some days that works out for me and other days it doesn't.. I'm really not sure why. I take a class that will burn anywhere from 600-900+ calories per class.. That seems like an awful lot to forget about... How much do you have to lose?
  • LMorrison1009
    LMorrison1009 Posts: 114 Member
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    Use the search function to search the forums for eating back exercise calories. There are different people out here who swear by different things, and you really have to do the research and figure out what works best for you.
  • woody624
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    Hi, I'm new here too but have been working out for a few years. I like the site because it does add calories when you work out. Is long as your eating the right portions and eating CLEAN, no junk food and eat complex carbs not simple cards and the correct amount of protein. IMHO this will keep you from losing muscle, when you restrict your diet in the wrong way you will loose weight but also loose allot of muscle. You need to lose body fat not muscle, if you eat a clean diet and incorporate strength training in your diet you will lose the fat and not the muscle.
  • JamesonsMommy
    JamesonsMommy Posts: 771 Member
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    Hi, I'm new here too but have been working out for a few years. I like the site because it does add calories when you work out. Is long as your eating the right portions and eating CLEAN, no junk food and eat complex carbs not simple cards and the correct amount of protein. IMHO this will keep you from losing muscle, when you restrict your diet in the wrong way you will loose weight but also loose allot of muscle. You need to lose body fat not muscle, if you eat a clean diet and incorporate strength training in your diet you will lose the fat and not the muscle.

    I agree!! There are some days when i still have 12 or 1300 calories to eat.. No way in heck...lol Only way to do that is to down some ben and jerrys and a bag of chips.. not gonna happen
  • woody624
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    See: http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/10589-for-those-confused-or-questioning-eating-your-exercise-calo
    [/quote

    Thanks for posting that link! This article is right on the money!! That explains everything I have learned in the past! Everyone should read that before starting a diet ( I chose to call it a lifestyle change)
  • neuroticlin89
    neuroticlin89 Posts: 57 Member
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    It really is your call about how much of your exercise calories you want to eat back. It does seem that especially when you get closer to your goal weight, it is important to eat those calories back. If you're burning 600-900 calories a day, then your body gets a deficit of calories because what you ate got burnt up. We're all supposed to have a minimum of 1200 calories per day or else your body starts to store fat rather then burn it. So if your going below 1200 and burning 900 calories, what are you left with for the day? 300 calories. You can't let your body run on 300 calories. Eating those calories, which in this case would be 900 would simply put you back at the 1200 calorie minimum.

    1200-900+900=1200

    Don't forget though, not everyone is eating a minimum of 1200 calories per day. Some may be eating much more and therefore may not need to worry about eating calories back. Also, calorie counters are not the most accurate. A lot of times we may be underestimating how many calories we are actually eating. It's really a judgment call based on also how you feel. If you're not full and your good, there's no reason to force yourself to three other meals and sometimes it may lead you to believe that you can eat those calories by having something unhealthy.
  • neuroticlin89
    neuroticlin89 Posts: 57 Member
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    I also want to add that sometimes we overestimate how many calories we have burned as well.
  • neuroticlin89
    neuroticlin89 Posts: 57 Member
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    See: http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/10589-for-those-confused-or-questioning-eating-your-exercise-calo
    [/quote

    Thanks for posting that link! This article is right on the money!! That explains everything I have learned in the past! Everyone should read that before starting a diet ( I chose to call it a lifestyle change)


    No problem! yea this article really clarified a lot of things for me. It most definitely is a lifestyle change. I think the sooner people can accept that, the faster they will be on their way to actually losing weight, becoming fit and maintaining it.
  • MIMITIME
    MIMITIME Posts: 405 Member
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    Hi, What kind of class do you take that burns that amount of calories? Thanks
  • neuroticlin89
    neuroticlin89 Posts: 57 Member
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    Hi, What kind of class do you take that burns that amount of calories? Thanks

    I've always wondered about people who burn so many calories at once like that. I think spinning classes and maybe Zumba might burn that many calories. I've no idea. The max I've ever burned was 600 calories and that was by speed walking 4 miles for 75 minutes on my treadmill at home. On my home page, I've seen people who have supposedly burned over 1300 calories. I don't really remember from what though.