Calories burned

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What is the point in eating the calories you burn?? Won't you lose more weight, quickly, if you dont consume what you have burned??

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  • elvisbabe304
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    No one knows??? lol
  • lauristewart
    lauristewart Posts: 379 Member
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    I don't usually eat back my calories for that very reason. I need to lose weight!! Not gain! LOL!!
  • nicehormones
    nicehormones Posts: 503 Member
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    It's simple math. You can lose weight quickly with no exercise at all. It's a matter of net calories. You can eat more when you exercise and be more fit rather than be hungry all day with the same net. You don't want to be eating 1200 calories and burning off 500 because you're only netting 700 and your body freaks out and thinks it's being starved. Then your metabolism naturally slows.
  • newarkco05
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    It depends on a couple factors however yes you will burn quickly but it is easier to plateau. I eat back almost all of my exercise calories and have been losing very quickly. It involves feeding the body when it needs and tricking the metabolism
  • NotGoddess
    NotGoddess Posts: 1,198 Member
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    If you search the forums you'll find lots of info.
    The point is this- You've already created a known calorie deficit when you registered your weight loss goal with MFP. Say it's 1lb/wk. That means your calorie goal is already 500 below your normal daily burn. If you burned 500 more with exercise and don't eat them back you actually have a 1000 calorie deficit for the day. If you always do that, you run the risk of creating too high a deficit and having your body try to compensate by slowing down your metabolism.
  • natersmama
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    MFP creates a deficit for you to lose weight without exercising when it tells you how many calories to eat everyday, it also tells you to eat what you burn so you still provide your body enough calories to function properly. like if you eat 1200 a day. but you burn 300 on exercise. technically since you burned 300 of your food cals working out, it only leaves 900 for your body to function off of. and your body requires "x" amount for your organs and whatnot to work properly. so creating a bigger deficit every day potentially puts your body in starvation mode.

    whether or not all this is legit, idk. i'm not educated in this stuff. its just what i've gathered from the boards. lol.
  • danewton
    danewton Posts: 15 Member
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    You should eat back at least some of those calories otherwise your body could run-down and you end up feeling tired all the time and hungry as well. I thought the same as you when I first started. After I started eating back some of the calories, my body felt better, my mood felt better, and I had the energy during the day to do what I needed to. You don't have to eat them all if you don't want to - I usually don't; however, about once a week, I get really hungry and want to eat more than I usually do. Those I consume more calories but do not exceed the net calorie amount (eat all exercise calories on that day).
  • nicehormones
    nicehormones Posts: 503 Member
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    Also, I forgot to add that you shouldn't want to lose weight too quickly. If you didn't put on that weight quickly, you shouldn't take it off that quickly..... Especially if you have a lot of weight to lose because then you have an even bigger problem when you didn't give your skin enough time to catch up with the shrinking. Just a thought.
  • elvisbabe304
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    Thanks ladies...My main problem is that take tonight for instance...I have 680 calories left but I am not the least bit hungry!! Its frustrating..
  • SaddyPants
    SaddyPants Posts: 152 Member
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    Thanks ladies...My main problem is that take tonight for instance...I have 680 calories left but I am not the least bit hungry!! Its frustrating..

    You shouldn't feel like you have to eat every single exercise calorie every day. A couple days of being under won't kill you! But if you know you're going to work out a lot on certain days maybe you could try and plan some extra calories throughout the course of the day? This usually works for me.
  • lauristewart
    lauristewart Posts: 379 Member
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    Don't eat if you are not hungry!! That is not a big deal...in fact, it is good you are listening to your body!!
  • rickmorr
    rickmorr Posts: 1 Member
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    i usually eat back half of what I burn in exercise. otherwise my caloric deficit would be too much to be able to exercise again the next day.