Making up for calories when you don't workout??

andreakrystal
andreakrystal Posts: 22
in Food and Nutrition
Hi Everyone!

Was wondering what you all do on days that you know you aren't going to work out... like your "rest" days.

Do you eat less so that you calorie intake ends up being about the same as it would have been if you had worked out? Or do you just eat and not worry about taking in more calories then you would on a normal workout day?

Just wanted to pick your brains and see what seems to work best for everyone :)

Thanks bunches!

Replies

  • chachalita8
    chachalita8 Posts: 36 Member
    usually i stick to my calorie goal, I watch what I eat and eat healthy; but i just stick to my goal...nothing more because I didnt do anything to "deserve" those extra calories, to me its just giving your body a rest from exercise, but eating well is something that must always be done. :)
  • ronellevan
    ronellevan Posts: 44
    My exercise "rest" day is also my food cheat day.
    That way I don't have to worry about it. :-)

    I wouldn't be sane without my cheat day, and I am still losing just under a kilo a week.
  • AntWrig
    AntWrig Posts: 2,273 Member
    Hi Everyone!

    Was wondering what you all do on days that you know you aren't going to work out... like your "rest" days.

    Do you eat less so that you calorie intake ends up being about the same as it would have been if you had worked out? Or do you just eat and not worry about taking in more calories then you would on a normal workout day?

    Just wanted to pick your brains and see what seems to work best for everyone :)

    Thanks bunches!
    Eat big when you train, eat less when you don't. Protein stays constant, the only things that change are my carb and fat intake.
  • Huffdogg
    Huffdogg Posts: 1,934 Member
    ^^ This
  • andreakrystal
    andreakrystal Posts: 22
    Thanks everyone!

    Yea, I def stay within my calorie goal on my rest days, but I end up pretty close to the max of my goal on those days, because I didn't burn any by working out... so I was just worried that that might mess up my weightloss goal.

    Thanks for your advice :)
  • Huffdogg
    Huffdogg Posts: 1,934 Member
    I think you are misreading your goals. You should log your exercise so that you see a higher calorie budget on those days. Always shoot for a calorie total just under what mfp says you are allowed for the day. If you log calories burned due to exercise, this will naturally work out. Your calorie budget is not a Maximum Allowable. It is a target. You don't want to be too far below it, or you won't have the fuel to power workouts. Aim to be within 200 calories of your target number.
  • tabinmaine
    tabinmaine Posts: 965 Member
    on my rest days I used to stay at 1200 calories, my daily limit. ... that sucked ! lol

    However, I have discovered that if I use those as "spike days" I still lose weight and it makes those days so much more bearable since I don't have to go hungry, I usually eat 1500-1800 calories those days.
  • nickyfm
    nickyfm Posts: 1,214 Member
    I stick to my daily limit, and sometimes eat less carbs.
  • Di3012
    Di3012 Posts: 2,247 Member
    Hi Everyone!

    Was wondering what you all do on days that you know you aren't going to work out... like your "rest" days.

    Do you eat less so that you calorie intake ends up being about the same as it would have been if you had worked out? Or do you just eat and not worry about taking in more calories then you would on a normal workout day?

    Just wanted to pick your brains and see what seems to work best for everyone :)

    Thanks bunches!

    I am just on 1200 calories per day, that is what I eat on my rest day.
  • andreakrystal
    andreakrystal Posts: 22
    I think you are misreading your goals. You should log your exercise so that you see a higher calorie budget on those days. Always shoot for a calorie total just under what mfp says you are allowed for the day. If you log calories burned due to exercise, this will naturally work out. Your calorie budget is not a Maximum Allowable. It is a target. You don't want to be too far below it, or you won't have the fuel to power workouts. Aim to be within 200 calories of your target number.

    I am going to have to agree with you on this one... I am for sure misreading my goals. I appreciate the way you explained it though... I'm still trying to totally understand how to use this tool, as I've never done something like this before. So thanks for explaining it :)

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