Over exercising and undereating

2kidsandadonut
2kidsandadonut Posts: 137 Member
edited December 16 in Health and Weight Loss
So my recommended calorie intake for the day is 1500 but because I am so active I usually gain around 2500-4000 calories through exercise. Am I seriously supposed to eat that much? I've been losing weight steadily but I don't want to crash. I'm having problems some days just eating the 1500 especially since I forget to eat meals some days because I'm so busy. Is it bad to have a deficit of over 2500?
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Replies

  • BrewerGeorge
    BrewerGeorge Posts: 397 Member
    If you're using the MFP guidelines to gauge the amount of Calories gained through exercise be aware that they are a rough approximation. I generally only apply about half to 2/3 the Calories that MFP recommends for a given exercise - depending on how hard the exercise felt to me.

    Really, though, let your body guide you. If you really have a 2500 Cal deficit, you'll be STARVING. If you keep it up, you'll start to feel listless the next day. You may have insomnia. (Personally, anything over about an 800 Cal deficit keeps me up all night until I eat.) If you're not experiencing these symptoms, you're probably overestimating your exercise calories burned.

    However, if you find that you DO need those calories and are having trouble eating enough to get them raise the Calorie density of the foods your eating. Look at supplements like protein bars and drinks. Eat nuts and fats. (Notice that your macros go up as well when you add exercise, so you can eat more fat and still stay within guidelines.)
  • fitby38
    fitby38 Posts: 307 Member
    first ... what are you doing to burn 6000 calories?
    second ... ahhh ... i would think you entered something wrong in your mfp profile to get 1500 calories, but YES you need to eat more.
  • SoDamnHungry
    SoDamnHungry Posts: 6,998 Member
    Could you give an example of how you've gotten to a deficit of 6000 calories in one day? That sounds like a lot of exercise.
  • BrewerGeorge
    BrewerGeorge Posts: 397 Member
    Yes I'm genuinely curious! Today I had a deficit of over 6000 calories I'm worried that even if I eat all my recommended that I'm burning too much and it may cause problems. There is no need to be snarky.
    What in the world are you doing to gain 6000 Calories? 7500/day is in marathon-runner territory.
  • SuddenlyPickles
    SuddenlyPickles Posts: 88
    I don't understand how you can burn that many calories... Es-plain, Lucy.
  • fitby38
    fitby38 Posts: 307 Member
    Really, though, let your body guide you. If you really have a 2500 Cal deficit, you'll be STARVING. If you keep it up, you'll start to feel listless the next day. You may have insomnia. (Personally, anything over about an 800 Cal deficit keeps me up all night until I eat.) If you're not experiencing these symptoms, you're probably overestimating your exercise calories burned.

    i agree ... you are probably overestimating your exercise calories burned
  • fitby38
    fitby38 Posts: 307 Member
    I don't understand how you can burn that many calories... Es-plain, Lucy.

    LMBO ... exactly ... i guess not impossible ... but highly unlikely!
  • 2kidsandadonut
    2kidsandadonut Posts: 137 Member
    I tilled a eight foot by eight foot patch of garden (hoeing, shoveling, and watering) for 3 hours, mowed my lawn using an old fashioned hand mower for 2 hours, then edged it, and swept the walk. I then went to the gym and did 2 hours on the elliptical and 1 hour 15 mins doing water jogging with resistance weights.
  • Package02
    Package02 Posts: 97
    Could you give an example of how you've gotten to a deficit of 6000 calories in one day? That sounds like a lot of exercise.

    ^I'm curious about this too. 6000 seems insanely high. I would assume that you would be blacking out from lack of nutrition. I think you're calculations must be wrong somewhere along the line
  • jaabee11
    jaabee11 Posts: 322 Member
    Gosh, that was a bit rude.
    Op is asking a genuine question.

    Anyway, I'm wondering if you use a HRM. That's a lot of burn you're doing.
    If you are then I don't know how to answer you.
    Trying to eat 6000 cals + seems way too hard.
    Hopefully someone with more knowledge than me will come along.
    Good luck, hope you can work this out.
  • femmi1120
    femmi1120 Posts: 473 Member
    So my recommended calorie intake for the day is 1500 but because I am so active I usually gain around 2500-4000 calories through exercise. Am I seriously supposed to eat that much? I've been losing weight steadily but I don't want to crash. I'm having problems some days just eating the 1500 especially since I forget to eat meals some days because I'm so busy. Is it bad to have a deficit of over 2500?

    Unless you have a fitness-related job, I don't see how you can be too busy to eat, but not to work out that much :-\ One solution is to cut down on exercise time to make more time for eating.

    There are also things you can add to meals to bulk up cals such as flaxseed, or nuts. Or even a few tablespoons of peanut butter should help.

    I'd love to know what workouts you're doing though! I totally wouldn't mind having your problem :P
  • dancin2011
    dancin2011 Posts: 92 Member
    Maybe open your diary so we can better help??
  • fitby38
    fitby38 Posts: 307 Member
    i was going to suggest opening your diary ... but i didnt want to be rude or snarky
  • lisakyle_11
    lisakyle_11 Posts: 420 Member
    ...not to be the 'glass is half empty' type, but i highly doubt you burn over 2500 in any given workout session (unless it's marathon day, etc...).
  • fitby38
    fitby38 Posts: 307 Member
    ...not to be the 'glass is half empty' type, but i highly doubt you burn over 2500 in any given workout session (unless it's marathon day, etc...).

    ditto this ^^^
  • FitSid
    FitSid Posts: 117 Member
    are you SURE you're not getting kilojoules and calories mixed up?
  • SuddenlyPickles
    SuddenlyPickles Posts: 88
    I tilled a eight foot by eight foot patch of garden (hoeing, shoveling, and watering) for 3 hours, mowed my lawn using an old fashioned hand mower for 2 hours, then edged it, and swept the walk. I then went to the gym and did 2 hours on the elliptical and 1 hour 15 mins doing water jogging with resistance weights.

    Is that a regular day of activity for you? If so, I'd up my activity level on here to the maximum amount (if you haven't already) and just log the gym activities (ensuring you net at least 1,200 calories for the day, too). If this a one-off occurrence and you're 100 per cent sure you burned all 6,000 calories (by using an accurate heart rate monitor and not just the MFP database), then log it in and eat all the ice cream, peanut butter and cheese you can muster! Or send them to me... I'll eat them.
  • femmi1120
    femmi1120 Posts: 473 Member
    I tilled a eight foot by eight foot patch of garden (hoeing, shoveling, and watering) for 3 hours, mowed my lawn using an old fashioned hand mower for 2 hours, then edged it, and swept the walk. I then went to the gym and did 2 hours on the elliptical and 1 hour 15 mins doing water jogging with resistance weights.

    Is this sort of a typical day for you? If you, I'd just set your physical activity to very active and then just log the gym workouts. It will probably be more accurate.

    If you're still having trouble after that, my last statement still stands. Cut back on the workouts and make more time to eat!
  • femmi1120
    femmi1120 Posts: 473 Member
    I tilled a eight foot by eight foot patch of garden (hoeing, shoveling, and watering) for 3 hours, mowed my lawn using an old fashioned hand mower for 2 hours, then edged it, and swept the walk. I then went to the gym and did 2 hours on the elliptical and 1 hour 15 mins doing water jogging with resistance weights.

    Is that a regular day of activity for you? If so, I'd up my activity level on here to the maximum amount (if you haven't already) and just log the gym activities (ensuring you net at least 1,200 calories for the day, too). If this a one-off occurrence and you're 100 per cent sure you burned all 6,000 calories (by using an accurate heart rate monitor and not just the MFP database), then log it in and eat all the ice cream, peanut butter and cheese you can muster! Or send them to me... I'll eat them.

    Jinx :tongue:
  • Helloitsdan
    Helloitsdan Posts: 5,564 Member
    If the human body can only lose so much fat a day before it hops over to burning protein, why are you killing yourself?
  • SuddenlyPickles
    SuddenlyPickles Posts: 88
    I tilled a eight foot by eight foot patch of garden (hoeing, shoveling, and watering) for 3 hours, mowed my lawn using an old fashioned hand mower for 2 hours, then edged it, and swept the walk. I then went to the gym and did 2 hours on the elliptical and 1 hour 15 mins doing water jogging with resistance weights.

    Is this sort of a typical day for you? If you, I'd just set your physical activity to very active and then just log the gym workouts. It will probably be more accurate.

    If you're still having trouble after that, my last statement still stands. Cut back on the workouts and make more time to eat!

    Umm, jinx? I's buys me a coke... one two three four five six...
  • SuddenlyPickles
    SuddenlyPickles Posts: 88
    I tilled a eight foot by eight foot patch of garden (hoeing, shoveling, and watering) for 3 hours, mowed my lawn using an old fashioned hand mower for 2 hours, then edged it, and swept the walk. I then went to the gym and did 2 hours on the elliptical and 1 hour 15 mins doing water jogging with resistance weights.

    Is that a regular day of activity for you? If so, I'd up my activity level on here to the maximum amount (if you haven't already) and just log the gym activities (ensuring you net at least 1,200 calories for the day, too). If this a one-off occurrence and you're 100 per cent sure you burned all 6,000 calories (by using an accurate heart rate monitor and not just the MFP database), then log it in and eat all the ice cream, peanut butter and cheese you can muster! Or send them to me... I'll eat them.

    Jinx :tongue:

    JINX ON THE JINX?! Holy Toledo.
  • 2kidsandadonut
    2kidsandadonut Posts: 137 Member
    I'm a stay at home mom with two very active boys and finding time to eat is hard because I'm always running to do something for them. Yesterday for example I spent from 12 till 5 at three different Dr. appts. Then at 5 when my hubby got home I rushed off to get my 3 hours in at the gym. So I completely missed supper. In the mornings I'm up getting breakfast for the kids and their clothes and baths and general house cleaning before dropping my son off for pre-school and then running to afternoon appointments. I don't really get hungry during the day (which is what led to being overweight) and I would eat late at night. But I'm trying to change that so that I don't eat 5000 calories a night. My oldest son eats at pre-school for lunch and my youngest son eats baby food so I don't usually cook lunch and I forget to eat it because I'm taking my son to school and my little guy takes a nap then as well so I'm rushing to feed him and put him to bed and then I'm rushing to do what needs to be done before he wakes up.
  • BrewerGeorge
    BrewerGeorge Posts: 397 Member
    I tilled a eight foot by eight foot patch of garden (hoeing, shoveling, and watering) for 3 hours, mowed my lawn using an old fashioned hand mower for 2 hours, then edged it, and swept the walk. I then went to the gym and did 2 hours on the elliptical and 1 hour 15 mins doing water jogging with resistance weights.
    IME, the less "traditional exercise" and the more "good, old-fashioned work" an activity, the worse the MFP estimates are going to be - especially as they stretch out into an entire day. It's pretty good at knowing what to give you for an hour jog or elliptical, but is just making WAGs for gardening, mowing, etc. I always edit those kinds of activities down to at least half of what MFP recommends. For instance, I spent 7 hours yesterday building a fence - digging post holes, carrying 80 lb bags of concrete, hauling lumber, etc - and gave myself 1500 Cal for the whole thing.
  • femmi1120
    femmi1120 Posts: 473 Member
    I tilled a eight foot by eight foot patch of garden (hoeing, shoveling, and watering) for 3 hours, mowed my lawn using an old fashioned hand mower for 2 hours, then edged it, and swept the walk. I then went to the gym and did 2 hours on the elliptical and 1 hour 15 mins doing water jogging with resistance weights.

    Is that a regular day of activity for you? If so, I'd up my activity level on here to the maximum amount (if you haven't already) and just log the gym activities (ensuring you net at least 1,200 calories for the day, too). If this a one-off occurrence and you're 100 per cent sure you burned all 6,000 calories (by using an accurate heart rate monitor and not just the MFP database), then log it in and eat all the ice cream, peanut butter and cheese you can muster! Or send them to me... I'll eat them.

    Jinx :tongue:

    JINX ON THE JINX?! Holy Toledo.

    Haha, wow, friending you. Now.
  • naomi8888
    naomi8888 Posts: 519 Member
    Not trying to be snarky but this comes up all the time with teenage girls asking if it's OK to net "like 200 calories a day".... *sigh* If it's a one off day and you are genuinely not hungry then don't eat but if you're trying to do it Biggest Loser Style I think you're just setting yourself up for failure.

    No one would eat back 6000 calories but I find it hard to believe you can't fit in more than 1500
  • SuddenlyPickles
    SuddenlyPickles Posts: 88

    Haha, wow, friending you. Now.

    I never thought a 6,000 calorie deficit would lead me to my MFP twin.
  • femmi1120
    femmi1120 Posts: 473 Member
    I'm a stay at home mom with two very active boys and finding time to eat is hard because I'm always running to do something for them. Yesterday for example I spent from 12 till 5 at three different Dr. appts. Then at 5 when my hubby got home I rushed off to get my 3 hours in at the gym. So I completely missed supper. In the mornings I'm up getting breakfast for the kids and their clothes and baths and general house cleaning before dropping my son off for pre-school and then running to afternoon appointments. I don't really get hungry during the day (which is what led to being overweight) and I would eat late at night. But I'm trying to change that so that I don't eat 5000 calories a night. My oldest son eats at pre-school for lunch and my youngest son eats baby food so I don't usually cook lunch and I forget to eat it because I'm taking my son to school and my little guy takes a nap then as well so I'm rushing to feed him and put him to bed and then I'm rushing to do what needs to be done before he wakes up.

    Like I said, if you're that active during the day, cut back on the gym workouts. Making time to eat is more important than burning an extra 1000-2000 calories when you're already burning more than you can handle.
  • supertracylynn
    supertracylynn Posts: 1,338 Member
    I tilled a eight foot by eight foot patch of garden (hoeing, shoveling, and watering) for 3 hours, mowed my lawn using an old fashioned hand mower for 2 hours, then edged it, and swept the walk. I then went to the gym and did 2 hours on the elliptical and 1 hour 15 mins doing water jogging with resistance weights.

    Is that a regular day of activity for you? If so, I'd up my activity level on here to the maximum amount (if you haven't already) and just log the gym activities (ensuring you net at least 1,200 calories for the day, too). If this a one-off occurrence and you're 100 per cent sure you burned all 6,000 calories (by using an accurate heart rate monitor and not just the MFP database), then log it in and eat all the ice cream, peanut butter and cheese you can muster! Or send them to me... I'll eat them.

    THIS.

    Also, If you're doing that every single day, when do you spend time with the child in your photo, assuming the child is yours?
    That is... just over 8 hours of "working out".

    Gosh, I wish my kids would leave me alone during a 20 minute jog on the treadmill, let alone 67 minutes on the treadmill... I can't imagine how many times they would petition for my attention during the 5 hours of yard work!
    As it stands, mowing the lawn (with an electric, therefore quick, mower) takes me 45 minutes because I have to stop every 10 minutes to break up some fight, gives someone food, or make sure no one's trying to die!
  • fitby38
    fitby38 Posts: 307 Member
    who forgets to eat??? even my boston terrier reminds me she hasnt been fed
    seriously ... maybe you need to visit your doctor and see if there is a medical condition ... and im not trying to be rude
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