Is this right? Seems like a lot of food to eat....

anneeb
anneeb Posts: 16 Member
edited September 19 in Health and Weight Loss
Hi, this is my first post here.

The program says that I have to eat 1,200 calories a day. Today I have a kick boxing class and that gives me 417 calories to add on to my 1,200. 1,617 calories seems like lots of food to eat in one day to me...do I have to use up all the calories?

Thanks!!

Replies

  • rheston
    rheston Posts: 638
    You may be one of those fortunate individuals who can follow the recommendations of MFP and eat to all your calorie levels. Myself, and many others, are not as fortunate and have to eat to the lower number.

    I'm not sure why this is except that I believe it has something to do with the way we initially entered our details about ourselves when we first joined MFP and it appears to be calculating the earned calories twice.

    The suggestion I've passed on to others is that you can do one of two things, first you can eat to the higher level (but if you're not hungry it's okay to fall short) and see if you gain or lose. If you lose weight then you're okay to continue as long as you keep an eye on your personal progress.

    On the other hand you can eat to the lower level and if you feel you're not getting enough food (feeling hungry more during the day) then add in those calories with healthy snacks -- but again keeping an eye on your weight loss and other physiological conditions.

    The thing to remember is that you need to burn off 3500 calories a week in order to lose one pound and if the way MFP is calculating this for you then you are good to go. Always treat the information you receive from MFP, the internet, and the rest of us is that this is just a guideline and you have to make sure that what you're doing is the right thing for you.

    That's a long winded way of saying, "maybe" isn't it?
  • demezat
    demezat Posts: 158
    I, personally, would not use up all those extra calories...to me it seems like you're defeating the purpose of burning the calories if you just comsume them again. But thats just me.
  • heather0mc
    heather0mc Posts: 4,656 Member
    i like having the extra calories and always eat at least half of them. even if you ate all of them, you would still be under a calorie deficit. think about how much you would eat before you came to MFP and try logging in a typical day just to see...

    i eat the e. calories until i am full. usually i have enough left over during the day to have a couple hundred left over at night as well. but do what works best for you. :flowerforyou:
  • tbrown1025
    tbrown1025 Posts: 165
    i like having the extra calories and always eat at least half of them. even if you ate all of them, you would still be under a calorie deficit. think about how much you would eat before you came to MFP and try logging in a typical day just to see...

    i eat the e. calories until i am full. usually i have enough left over during the day to have a couple hundred left over at night as well. but do what works best for you. :flowerforyou:

    just wanted to remind again that, yes, you will still have a deficit after eating your caloreis earned through exercise (some people don't understand that). You'll want to eat back a good bit of them b/c you do not want to eat too little for your body to function properly.

    I also think 1600 is a bit much for me, but a good protein bar will usually help bump me, or I can have a scoop of ice-cream for an after dinner treat. :wink:
  • LuckyLeprechaun
    LuckyLeprechaun Posts: 6,296 Member
    http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/10589-for-those-confused-or-questioning-eating-your-exercise-calo
  • imabhealthy
    imabhealthy Posts: 74 Member
    I eat em. Earn em and eat em. Works so far, steady 1 1/2 to 2 lbs a week (and I cheat on weekends). I think everyone has to find what works for them, but I eat most of mine back. I am usually hungry enough to do so, but I eat healthy foods, and if not hungry, I don't eat.
  • swishpete
    swishpete Posts: 15
    how do you burn off 3500 calories a week? I workout 5 times a week for about 40-45 minutes each time, am watching what I eat and have not lost not one pound. It's been over a month since I started excercising to Jillian Michael's No More Trouble Zones.
  • hiddensecant
    hiddensecant Posts: 2,446 Member
    Other sites ask you how much you exercise as well as your overall activity level every week and give you a flat daily allowance according to that. MFP gives you a lower allowance and adds calories as you log exercise (in case you work out more or less than you said you would).

    The way MFP is set up ... if you're going to exercise like that every day, then work up to eating at least most of them. If you're only working out a few times a week (every other day or whatnot), then you can try averaging them out.

    I set mine up to give me a bigger allowance than 1200 and also eat exercise calories after that. I didn't always lose at those levels but eventually my metabolism caught up, especially because of the amount of strength training I take on these days (muscle burns fat).

    So play around with your numbers. Don't think you have to eat 1200 just to lose weight. And the point of eating your exercise calories is to keep your muscles happy. Happy muscles burn fat and you keep them happy by properly fueling them.
  • anneeb
    anneeb Posts: 16 Member
    Thank everyone. I still have over 900 calories to eat for dinner and snacking...not sure I`ll be able to pull it off, I don`t want to eat just to eat, you know.
    Previously I was doing WW so I guess my head is still with that program but I thought I would try something new as I`m so close to my goal and have been maintaining for way too long.

    Thanks again!
  • Falcon
    Falcon Posts: 853 Member
    Thank everyone. I still have over 900 calories to eat for dinner and snacking...not sure I`ll be able to pull it off, I don`t want to eat just to eat, you know.
    Previously I was doing WW so I guess my head is still with that program but I thought I would try something new as I`m so close to my goal and have been maintaining for way too long.

    Thanks again!

    Out of curiosity what have you eaten so far? Can you post your day if you don't mind?
  • anneeb
    anneeb Posts: 16 Member
    smoothie breakfast. 180 cals
    4 hard candies 100 cals
    lunch was soup at 200cals
    yogurt 40 cals
    fibre one bar 130 cals.
  • sonjavon
    sonjavon Posts: 1,019 Member
    If I were you, I'd be famished and my blood sugar would be insane. Where's the protein? Believe it or not, to lose weight - sometimes we have to eat more... particularly when we're exercising. Peanut butter is a good high-calorie nutritionally dense snack... especially when eaten with an apple.

    Good luck!
  • Falcon
    Falcon Posts: 853 Member
    smoothie breakfast. 180 cals
    4 hard candies 100 cals
    lunch was soup at 200cals
    yogurt 40 cals
    fibre one bar 130 cals.

    Where are your fruits and veggies and the protein?

    Add in peanut butter and an apple 200 cals
    a banana 90 cals
    a big salad with salad dressing just under 200 cals.
    a quarter cup of almonds 160 cals
    It doesn't take much to really boost the cals up.
  • anneeb
    anneeb Posts: 16 Member
    Thank you, these are all great ideas. I decided to join this morning sort of spur of the moment so most of what I've eaten I had in my desk at work. I'll be sure to plan from now on.

    Thanks again!
  • Kidvicious28
    Kidvicious28 Posts: 1,613 Member
    yes read that...it'll help
  • barbiecat
    barbiecat Posts: 17,203 Member
    :flowerforyou: :flowerforyou: :flowerforyou: :flowerforyou:

    I've been eating 1200-1300 calories a day and exercising 300-600 calories. I eat only some of my exercise calories.

    The food I eat is nutrition dense----lean meat, eggs, veggies, oatmeal, fruit, Kashi cereal, non-fat plain yogurt, soy milk. Everything I put in my body is nutritious. I don't eat dressings, sauces, candy, dessert, or anything that wastes my calories. I've been losing 1-3 pounds a week since January.

    I plan my meals and snacks the night before and eat only what I've planned.

    If it works, don't fix it.:bigsmile: :bigsmile: :bigsmile:
  • PSUgrl921
    PSUgrl921 Posts: 368 Member
    1200 calories is a little less than what you normally burn in a day. If you don't eat your exercise calories, or at least a good amount of them most of the time your body will go into starvation mode and hord what you eat. However, eating 900 calories at one meal isn't good either. It's all about planning. If you know you are going to work out add some nuts or something high in calories but also in nutrients to a meal.

    Nicole
  • Nich0le
    Nich0le Posts: 2,906 Member
    I can make this easier for you...sort of.

    go to another calorie website or two and find out how many calories you have to consume everyday to maintain your current weight. Take that number and reduce it by 500 for a lb a week weight loss 750 for 1.5 and 1000 for 2 lbs.

    The important thing is NOT to go below 1200 calories per day unless recommended by your doctor. Looking at your profile you should be good with 1 lb a week for slow and steady weight loss.

    :flowerforyou:
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