Question on Calories & Exercise

Ok I am trying to make sense of this....

So I eat 1200 Cal a day right and work out... Normally burn 360 cals .. So my fitness pal then says I have an extra 360 cals to eat. WHAT?

So I get to eat the cals that I already burned? How am I suppose to lose weight that way??

Confused.. :embarassed:

if you step back and think about it for a few minutes, it all makes sense (almost everyone on here goes through this confusion a bit at first). The key is to remember that my fitness pal gives you a deficit already, exercise calories are EARNED, so even if you didn't exercise you would be at a deficit. click the link in my signature below, it will lead you to a bunch of posts that explain everything.

Repost:::


Read the stickies,,,

The way this works is - in general you will lose weight in proportion to your calorie deficit.

What's a calorie deficit? It's when you take in fewer calories than your body needs.

So - MFP asked you some questions and came up with an estimate that you needed about 1800 calories a day to maintain your weight. Then you said you wanted to lose a pound a week. So MFP told you to eat 1300 a day. 1800 needed a day, and you're only eating 1300 - so a 500 calorie a day "deficit". This is 3500 a week, and a pound of fat is basically 3500 calories.

Remember that you need 1800 calories in a typical day. TYPICAL day as you described when you started. So,,, what happens if you make it an unusual day? What if you decide to climb Mt. Fuji? That's a lot of work,,, and your body will need a lot of "fuel" to do it.

So - let's guess that you climb Mt. Fuji tomorrow. On that day you do not need 1800 calories. You need your usual 1800, plus 500 more to make the climb - for a total of 2300 for the day. On the day you need the work your body burns up all that extra...

So - MFP has you set up for a 500 calorie deficit. On a regular day you eat 1300 - which is 500 less than you need, and you lose weight. So it's perfectly Ok (even recommended) that you eat 1800 on the day you climg the mountain. Your body burns up 2300 that day - you eat 1800 and you still have your 500 deficit. And you'll still lose weight. You'll also feel better and avoid starvation mode.

I eat most of my exercise calories, because I found that when I didn't I didn't lose weight and I didn't feel good. It worked for me...

I am living proof that eating your exercise calories works! I have lost 15 lbs in 2 months. I always try and eat my exercise calories and I am exercising at least 5 times a week. Just like banks said, it makes sense when you step back and think about it. I hope you find that it works for you too. I may leave some calories here and there at the end of the day but I mostly try and eat them all. I also spread out what I eat throught out the day and have been making healthy choices. Not junk even if it fits into my calories for the day. I have eaten junk though ,here and there, but in moderation and it seemed to curb my craving and I still lost the weight!
Everything here at MFP has given the boost I need to finally lose the weight I have been complaining about for years . Try it and it will work for you too, I know it!