Question on net calories

keithcorder
keithcorder Posts: 10
edited October 3 in Health and Weight Loss
What does this mean Net Calories??? if Im suppose to have 2000 per day and excercise and earn 1,000 does that mean if i consume 2,500 i am 500 to the good????

Replies

  • Jolenebib
    Jolenebib Posts: 142 Member
    Net calories = Food Calories - Exercise Calories

    Eat back your exercise calories.
  • amccrazgrl
    amccrazgrl Posts: 315 Member
    i eat back most of my exercise calories. I vary it up. One day 1,200 the next 1,500.
  • keithcorder
    keithcorder Posts: 10
    Im suppose to have 1990 per day

    I eat 2500 and excercise 1,000

    so 2500-1,000= 1500. So I am 490 to the good. Am I reading this right??
  • keithcorder
    keithcorder Posts: 10
    Is it accurate to say "if my net calories are under my calorie goal for the day" I am on tract to loose weight???
  • LorinaLynn
    LorinaLynn Posts: 13,247 Member
    If you've already set your calories in your goal to lose weight, your net calories can equal your calorie goal and you'll lose weight.
  • sassylilmama
    sassylilmama Posts: 1,493 Member
    If you've already set your calories in your goal to lose weight, your net calories can equal your calorie goal and you'll lose weight.

    this
  • Pebble321
    Pebble321 Posts: 6,423 Member
    Is it accurate to say "if my net calories are under my calorie goal for the day" I am on tract to loose weight???

    If your net calories equal your goal calories then you are track to lose weight.
    MFP has already created a calorie defecit for you, you don't need to eat under your goal to lose weight.
  • keithcorder
    keithcorder Posts: 10
    I appreciate everyones help!! Another question. When I pull up my report on net calories some days are a negative number (below 0) and other days are above the line into the positive part but I have been under my calories goal everyday. This makes it look like i was over some days??? How do i read this???
  • noeys
    noeys Posts: 56
    I was just trying to find info on this too. Its 830 at night, and I just finished working out, and now I have like 800 someodd calories that I need to eat if Im eating all my net calories??? Thats SO MUCH!! Is it ok NOT to eat them?
  • keithcorder
    keithcorder Posts: 10
    Not eating them is fine. Its like putting money in the bank. They are there for those days you may go a little over. One thing I read from a guy who had lost 70 lbs was he never ate back all his calories.
  • Pebble321
    Pebble321 Posts: 6,423 Member
    People on this forum will debate forever whether "eating back your exercise calories" is a good thing.
    Personally I always have and it's worked just fine for me - but I think the key thing is that you understand how MFP works and the choices you are making.

    In a nutshell... MFP sets you a daily calorie allowance that includes a calorie deficit so you can lose weight.
    - If you never exercise and just eat this amount of calories you should lose weight.
    - If you exercise and "eat back" the calories you still have exactly the same deficit and should still lose weight. You also gain the other benefits that exercise brings (fitness, toning muscles, improved mood, improved cardiovascular function etc).
    - If you don't "eat back" those calories you are making your daily calorie deficit larger than necessary. For some people having a large deficit works really well and you lose lots of weight. For other people it means that your body just isn't getting enough energy so it starts working to conserve energy which might mean that your weight loss slows down or stalls.

    There isn't really any right or wrong here, but my personal opinion is that you aren't doing your body any favours by having a really big deficit over a long period of time. You run the risk of not getting in enough good nutrition to keep your healthy and your body may not be working at it's best.
    It's also not teaching you good eating habits in the long term and now I'm looking down the barrel of maintenance I'm realising that losing weight is only the first step on this journey. Developing good habits to keep it off in the long term is a whole other process.
  • keithcorder
    keithcorder Posts: 10
    Got a question. Lets say I have 1,000 calories left one day and dont eat them back. The next day for whatever reason I go 200 calories over my goal, am I still 800 to the good for the week assuming I hit my calorie goal every other day??
  • Narvinye
    Narvinye Posts: 8
    Ruby belle yours is the best break down I have seen so far. Thanks for your post!!:)
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