do YOU eat your exercise calories?

Options
BeautyFromPain
BeautyFromPain Posts: 4,952 Member
in Food and Nutrition
Hey all,

just wondering who eats their exercise calories, just want to find out what works for them :)

I eat back mine ... I didn't really when I was very obese but now I am very close to just being overweight I plateaued, and was feeling hungry and dizzy. I started eating more and it is working! :)
«13

Replies

  • rudegyal_b
    rudegyal_b Posts: 593 Member
    Options
    i eat to about my BMR, usually works out to about half my exercise cals, i feel better this way and get decent results
  • MarieNevada
    MarieNevada Posts: 395 Member
    Options
    Rarely. I eat about 1400 cals a day, sometimes 1500. I never eat back my exercise calories cause that's extra weight loss. I have never heard anyone say anything about eating them back until i joined MFP. The whole point of exercising is to increase your calorid deficit. starvation mode only happens if you consume less than 1200 calories. Consume. you can burn thousands of calories a day and not hit starvation mode. The contestants on Biggest Loser dont eat back their calories, nor do the participants on Extreme Makeover weight loss edition, or any other weight loss show i've ever seen. I've been losing weight steadily, rarely plateau, and have tons of energy. I read books about fat loss, not gimmick books but solid information books that talk about working hard and having to eat right, no easy ways to lose weight, and none of those ever say to eat back your exercise calories. If that's what works for people that's great but it's not what works for me.
  • dontletmegetme
    dontletmegetme Posts: 35
    Options
    It depends on the day for me. I usually try to stick to my original calorie goal, so I don't somehow prolong my weight loss, but If I'm still hungry and I burnt a lot of calories, I'll eat something. I've never eaten them all back though, usually like 200 or so.
  • koosdel
    koosdel Posts: 3,317 Member
    Options
    not eating exercise cals can put you in starvation mode which will stall your weight loss as will slow down your metabolism. i recently did an experiment of eating them back, check it out here if you'd like:http://www.myfitnesspal.com/blog/BeautyFromPain



    You would not run a car or no fuel would you?


    Also, if you do this and get very hungry, and get frustrated you may give up.



    Exercise is good for you so you do not become skinny fat, and this is how you truly change your body.


    "Exercise is the cheap man's plastic surgery."



    Also if you need more info, feel free to search the forums. There is a LOT of information around about exercise calories.
  • Hairhacker
    Hairhacker Posts: 174 Member
    Options
    The main reason I exercise is so I CAN eat more!! lol
  • amfmmama
    amfmmama Posts: 1,420 Member
    Options
    I use them as my safety net. Last night , I was going to dinner with friends, I did a zumbathon for brest cancer in the morning so I was able to enjoy myself, not worry about every calorie. I came home, logged and didn't even use them all. !
  • xSophia19
    xSophia19 Posts: 1,536 Member
    Options
    I dont eat mine back, im earning these excercise cals for a reason, im not going to eat them back :) i find i stay the same weight when i eat my excercise cals back.. And when i dont eat them back and i stick to my 1300 calorie goal, i loose 1 or 2 lbs every week or so.
  • SueGremlin
    SueGremlin Posts: 1,066 Member
    Options
    Yes!
  • ElleC
    ElleC Posts: 37
    Options
    I eat mine back, or I start feeling unwell. I work long shifts, so I need to make sure I can stay the course.

    This is the first diet where I dont feel exhausted. I have had two tired days in 6 weeks....and those days were after hard workouts at the gym, and not eating back all my cals.

    Everyone is so different on this. I think when I get lighter / hit a plateau / find a job that does not include 13 hour shifts - I might switch it up.
  • _eislek_
    _eislek_ Posts: 198 Member
    Options
    If I'm hungry I'll eat some of them back, if I'm not I won't.
  • newarkco05
    newarkco05 Posts: 240
    Options
    I eat mine back.... I lost 50 pounds 5 years ago and I didn't eat them back at that point. All the weight is back! There is only so long a person can stay on such a low calorie diet unless you want to eat salads every meal the rest of your life. I learned from experience.
  • cloneme_losehalf
    cloneme_losehalf Posts: 356 Member
    Options
    If I'm hungry I'll eat some of them back, if I'm not I won't.


    same here!!! I let my body tell me whether I need to eat or not
  • yanicka
    yanicka Posts: 1,004 Member
    Options
    I eat my calories back. I am doing strenght training so I am doing my best to have no deficite
  • Jennyzfit
    Jennyzfit Posts: 175 Member
    Options
    I usually eat most of mine back because mfp has you at a lower calorie amount so your already losing.
  • jg627
    jg627 Posts: 1,221 Member
    Options
    I eat more before I go to the gym, so I have the extra calories to do the work. I train in the evening, so on my training days I eat more snacks or a bigger lunch. I still eat dinner afterwards though, but the 'extra' calories go in earlier. You can't really go by what MFP says for strength training, because it doesn't know how long your set rests are or the intensity of your workout. You have to gauge based on the difficulty. If your squats were too hard, then you probably didn't eat enough. If you're recounting the weight twice, because it feels light, then, if you didn't miscount, you ate plenty.
  • katkins3
    katkins3 Posts: 1,360 Member
    Options
    I eat my exercise calories back. I've lost 30 pounds, so far. I also do an intermittent fast one day a week.
  • jg627
    jg627 Posts: 1,221 Member
    Options
    I eat my exercise calories back. I've lost 30 pounds, so far. I also do an intermittent fast one day a week.

    I'm tempted to try IF, but I recently did a 1 1/2 day fast (required for a medical procedure) and the only way I could survive was doing weird things to take the edge off the hunger, like chugging a bottle of pure lemon juice from concentrate.
  • JamesonsMommy
    JamesonsMommy Posts: 771 Member
    Options
    Listen to you body.. if you are hungry EAT!! I don't eat mine back everyday but i try to eat at least some of them
  • 500daysofshelby
    500daysofshelby Posts: 41
    Options
    Listen to you body.. if you are hungry EAT!! I don't eat mine back everyday but i try to eat at least some of them

    Exactly ^. If you're not hungry, then don't eat food just because you feel like you absolutely have to. If you are hungry, then of course eat! I try and eat back at least half of the calories I burn during work-outs. I've also found it takes away any lightheadedness if I eat a little something after a good work-out. I've been eating them back, and I've been doing pretty decently so far.
  • Rae6503
    Rae6503 Posts: 6,294 Member
    Options
    Yes I do.

Categories