I don't get it...WHY do I want to eat my exercise calories??

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Replies

  • irisheyez718
    irisheyez718 Posts: 677 Member
    I <3 my exercise calories, they taste so good!
  • CyberEd312
    CyberEd312 Posts: 3,536 Member
    Somebody 'splain to me like I'm 6. I thought the point of exercise was to BURN the calories, why on earth would I want to cancel that out?

    If your deficit is built into your plan using MFP's format than you need to eat back your exercise calories. Creating a bigger calorie deficit by not eating them back may buy you weight loss on the scale in the short term but in the long run you will be skinny fat and that to me was never an option so I choose to eat them back.. I know not all of us came to this website needing to lose weight, some are here to track, some to get in better shape but what I find amazing is the fact we (overweight, obese,etc) never had a problem eating excessive calories getting fat but when we join a way out of that lifestyle and are given a plan of action and told doing it this way you must eat back your exercise calories then see people oppose eating the extra calories you have earned.. It amazes me... lol

    But I for one have and will continue to eat back the calories I have earned and fuel my workouts because it has helped me go from this:

    2009May2.jpg

    To This:

    2012-01-15120616.jpg

    2012-01-15120454.jpg

    2012-01-15121154.jpg
  • emmaridling
    emmaridling Posts: 1 Member
    Thank you to everyone who has been explaining this on the forums - I FINALLY get it! I'm overhaulling my entire regime now - I'll let you know how it goes :smile:
  • ArroganceInStep
    ArroganceInStep Posts: 6,239 Member
    I <3 my exercise calories, they taste so good!

    Exercise calories taste better...it's SCIENCE.
  • LorinaLynn
    LorinaLynn Posts: 13,247 Member
    "Nothing tastes as good as skinny feels," has it all wrong. It should be, "Nothing tastes as good as an exercise calorie."
  • Phestr
    Phestr Posts: 37
    I look at it this way...if I exercise, MFP rewards me for exercising by giving me more food. I once saw a poster that says "You are not a dog, so don't reward yourself with food." TO this I have but one answer....





    WOOF!
  • karimiller
    karimiller Posts: 22
    I had a heck of a time with this concept. I didn't want to eat more when I was trying to lose weight! My personal trainer finally drilled it into my head though. Basically to break it down, your body needs the energy from calories in order to burn more calories. If you aren't getting enough calories, your body isn't breaking down fat.

    If you eat 1200 calories a day, but burn 600 at the gym, your body does NOT have enough energy. Keep in mind that what you keep track of is just what you're consuming and what you're expending when you work out. But in reality your body is burning calories continuously throughout the day. It's hard to do, but you have to keep in mind that your body needs those calories. Just make sure they're healthy calories. Add a piece of toast with peanut butter into your day or an extra piece of fruit. Or with breakfast have an extra egg. It was a hard concept for me to grasp to eat more to lose more, but it's what your body needs.

    Hopefully that helps!
  • LorinaLynn
    LorinaLynn Posts: 13,247 Member
    I look at it this way...if I exercise, MFP rewards me for exercising by giving me more food. I once saw a poster that says "You are not a dog, so don't reward yourself with food." TO this I have but one answer....





    WOOF!

    I know... I trained my dog using treats, but one of the things I taught him was "leave it." I can drop food on the floor in front of him, but if I say, "Leave it," he'll turn his nose from it. He learned that ignoring food when he's supposed to ignore it, leads to bigger rewards later.

    If my Pekingese can learn that way, so can I!
  • shadan87
    shadan87 Posts: 13 Member
    the bariatric surgeon i work for says its not neccessary to eat them back! but make sure you are taking in enough protein!
  • Suzanne1307
    Suzanne1307 Posts: 3 Member
    I have read and understand that you need to keep the right amount of fuel in your body to loose and maintain a healthy balance diet .So why is it when I weigh myself after my excercise I will lose then after eating my quoted amount the very next day I weigh myself I put on a pound then the next day without any excercise it comes off... my weight goes up and down constantly but it flatulates all the time... I have lost over two stone then came off my diet recently returned to get the last few pounds but not moving really, does anyone think I reached a "Plateau" ?
  • LorinaLynn
    LorinaLynn Posts: 13,247 Member
    Weight loss is never linear. It will go down, up and stay the same. If you weight less immediately after exercise, it's just fluid loss from sweating. I can "lose" up to 3 pounds if I run for an hour. If you weigh more after a day of heavy exercise, it's fluid retention. When we exercise, it creates tiny tears in our muscles, and those tears hold onto fluid (inflammation) as they heal. It's normal and temporary, and how we get stronger.

    Solution: Don't weight yourself every day. And find other methods of tracking your progress other than the scale. Take measurements, go by how clothing fits, or my personal favorite... take photos.
  • astrampe
    astrampe Posts: 2,169 Member
    You will almost always weigh less after exercise if you sweat a lot....Drink water and you will weigh more...Bottom line - do not weigh yourself every half hour!

    Sorry to hear about the flatulance, must be embarassing!:blushing: :laugh: :tongue:
  • treetop57
    treetop57 Posts: 1,578 Member
    my weight goes up and down constantly but it flatulates all the time.

    If your weight flatulates, there is only one explanation: flatulence.

    If it fluctuates, there can be many different reasons!

    [Sorry. I don't usually mention spelling mistakes. But that one was too good to pass up.]
  • Coco_Puff
    Coco_Puff Posts: 823 Member
    There's a reason they make a point to check your heart over and over again when people follow the HCG diet. They are eating only 500 calories per day, They body starts to feed on that person's muscle. The heart is a muscle. When is it ever a good thing to eat so little that it has a bad effect on your heart. Eat healthy and eat enough people. Starving yourself by not eating burnt calories is a waste. Why lose weight by starving yourself and have sagging skin as the end results, not a good look!
  • doobyden
    doobyden Posts: 25
    the bariatric surgeon i work for says its not neccessary to eat them back! but make sure you are taking in enough protein!

    This is interesting! Anyone able to expand on it?
  • ladyraven68
    ladyraven68 Posts: 2,003 Member
    the bariatric surgeon i work for says its not neccessary to eat them back! but make sure you are taking in enough protein!

    This is interesting! Anyone able to expand on it?

    it depends on whether she explained to the surgeon that MFP already has a defecit built in and does not count exercise calories until you do them.

    http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/206951-asked-my-trainer-re-eating-back-calories
  • treetop57
    treetop57 Posts: 1,578 Member
    The surgeon is afraid that MFP will be too effective and put him out of business! He's sabotaging it.

    :wink:
  • rizzaG
    rizzaG Posts: 110
    This link from Jillian Michaels explains to you exactly WHY and HOW. It's a rude awakening to those who are not yet fully aware about the importance and how our body process the food that we eat.


    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=meqvmEf6G04&amp;feature=share&amp;list=PL92F8E707E798812C
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