Help, I'm not sure how much I should be eating!

ef21178
ef21178 Posts: 25 Member
in Health and Weight Loss
I'm new to MFP, so forgive me if this is a silly question. I'm confused as to how many calories I should be eating exactly. MFP tells me that my basic goal is 1200 cals per day with no exercise. Now, if I exercise and burn 500 cals, does that mean that I absolutely have to eat back the 500 cals? Or can I strive for 1200 only, not worry about eating the extra 500, and still not go into starvation mode? Any info would be great!

Replies

  • JayByrd107
    JayByrd107 Posts: 282 Member
    If you eat 1,200 and burn 500 that leaves you with a net of 700 calories for a whole day... does that even sound like that could be correct/healhty based on what it gave you for your maintenance or BMR? I don't know of any circumstances where that would be sustainable.

    I understand that you're new here, but you need to learn to think critically about your decisions so that you can be empowered and OWN your weight loss journey.
  • ef21178
    ef21178 Posts: 25 Member
    So, are you telling me that my net should always be zero no matter what?
  • ElizabethRoad
    ElizabethRoad Posts: 5,138 Member
    What? Your net should be the same as your daily goal. That's why it's your goal.
  • emilyhwithlove
    emilyhwithlove Posts: 14
    bump!
  • ef21178
    ef21178 Posts: 25 Member
    Sorry, that's what I meant. So, my net should always be equal to my goal then? No matter how much I exercise? How am I supposed to eliminate calories from my diet then if I'm just eating back what I burn off?
  • jutymo
    jutymo Posts: 162 Member
    If your goal is 1200 and you eat 1200 and burn 500 via exercise, you're not at your eating goal. You netted 700 and most will tell you that's way too low. If you burn 500 via exercise, then you need to eat 1700 that day. If MFP goals are set correctly, and you log your exercise MFP should know and up your numbers and give you a higher number to eat that day.
  • ElizabethRoad
    ElizabethRoad Posts: 5,138 Member
    Sorry, that's what I meant. So, my net should always be equal to my goal then? No matter how much I exercise? How am I supposed to eliminate calories from my diet then if I'm just eating back what I burn off?
    You already have a deficit before you do any exercise.

    Think of it this way. If you ate an extra piece of cake you could work it off with some extra exercise, right?
  • AmyVC123
    AmyVC123 Posts: 13
    If I may apologoze for the rude, but well intentioned fellow myfitnesspal member above - if your goal w/o exercise is 1200, than any calories you burn with exercise are "added" to your goal of 1200:

    1200 Goal
    500 burned doing 2 hours of yard work
    =
    1700 total allowed for the day

    good luck friend!
  • cowgirlzride
    cowgirlzride Posts: 82
    Hi, First I would cross reference with another calorie calculator. This one just defaults at 1200 it seems for many. 'The Mayo Clinic' is a renowned representation that truly has to answer for its information. After doing that, compare the two and come up with a number you feel is balanced and achievable for you. You may have to adjust... if you are not loosing. (maybe to LITTLE or to many) Usually to few calories. If you aren't sleeping well, have low grade headaches. No motivation to work out. So, keep an eye on your self and adjust when you body tells you. Then, eat your calories (Goal) and half your work out calories back. Not etched in stone... but a good guide line to aim for most days. Good luck~
  • 3laine75
    3laine75 Posts: 3,069 Member
    Sorry, that's what I meant. So, my net should always be equal to my goal then? No matter how much I exercise? How am I supposed to eliminate calories from my diet then if I'm just eating back what I burn off?

    MFP has already given you a deficit - so you'll lose weight. eat back the extra calories - your body needs fuel or it will start to metabolise itself.
  • hannarghelisabeth
    hannarghelisabeth Posts: 2
    Basically your daily calorie goal set by MFP of 1200 is already a deficit ... you would have to eat several hundred calories more than that to stay at the same weight ... in other words if your BMR is 1500 then by only consuming 1200 calories a day you are producing of a deficit of 300 calories each day :) In other words if you exercise so that 300 calories deficit is increased, you need to eat back those calories otherwise it's unlikely you'll be able to sustain such a low calorie diet for a long enough period of time to get real results!
    Hope this helped! :)
  • ef21178
    ef21178 Posts: 25 Member
    Thank you so much! I've been doing it wrong then for a while now so hopefully I can turn this around and not let my body plateau... :/
  • Salasel
    Salasel Posts: 69 Member
    Great question! First keep in mind that the suggested calorie intake is based on the setting were it asked you how acitve you are. My BMR ( Base Metabolic Rate : calories my body burns in a day) is about 2044. My fitness pal told me to limmit my calories to 1600 calories per day. My trainer sugested to bump it up to 1800. The idea is to create a calorie deficit with diet alone and have enough intake to survive a good workout Every day I try to eat 1600 to 1800 calories and then work out. You should not feel hungery or light headed.

    Good Luck!
  • therealangd
    therealangd Posts: 1,861 Member
    knowledge is power. :)

    You need to know what your BMR is. Here is a BMR calculator.

    http://www.bmi-calculator.net/bmr-calculator/

    This will tell you how many calories you burn if you slept all day.

    Then you need to multiply that number by your activity level indicator.

    Sedentary 1.2 (Desk job use this number)
    Lightly active 1.37
    Moderately active 1.55
    Very Active 1.72

    This will give you your total daily calorie needs.

    This will be your maintenance number. This is the number of calories you need to eat to maintain your weight.

    Deduct 500 calories to lose 1 pound per week.

    This is how MFP works.

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