Eating your calories burned from exercise

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Becky0582
Becky0582 Posts: 23
in Health and Weight Loss
So can someone tell me what is best...should I be eating only what calories I am given to eat or should I be eating all of my calories burned, or some of my calories burned? What is best for my weight loss? Seems like if I want to lose more I wouldn't eat those extra calories, but some say you have to eat them to lose...what is everyone else's experiences?
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Replies

  • naiils
    naiils Posts: 20
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    I'm only new & still learning what works for ME. I tend to get hungrier when I've worked HARD so I'll eat a little more than allowed tho still less than I've earned through exercise. It also makes me feel better if I've eaten a naughty snack & I can see that I've only gone over by a few of my TOTAL cal allowance including exercise.
  • mini72
    mini72 Posts: 59 Member
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    I have spent the day trying to figure this out and what i have learned is the days I am excercising I should increase my calories by about 200.

    So yes,you need to eat to lose!
  • danarafferty
    danarafferty Posts: 2 Member
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    I have lost 40lbs and I rarely eat my excercise calories!
  • DeanneLea
    DeanneLea Posts: 261
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    Eat them.

    I look at it like this: I love food. If I can eat my hard earned exercise cals and still lose...I'm going to do it. I've lost consistently and I eat almost all of them back. I'm not going to give up any of my calories as long as I'm losing :)
  • tlc12078
    tlc12078 Posts: 334 Member
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    I look at exercise as I am earning my food, so the more I exercise the more I can eat or whatever I feel.
  • megsmom2
    megsmom2 Posts: 2,362 Member
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    Eat them. MFP gives you a deficit built into your calories goal. If you burn off more your calories net will be too low and you could trigger your metabolism to slow down.....which is NOT what you want. Eat them!
  • carajo
    carajo Posts: 532 Member
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    Listen to your body! Some days i eat...somedays i dont...My calories serioulsly range from 1500-3000 depending on the day and the workout! If your hungry EAT!!!
  • mojosister
    mojosister Posts: 25 Member
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    I almost always eat some of them. I generally don't eat all of them. But then again, I have a long way to go. I aim to never go to bed hungry - and I haven't yet!
  • kathymillard1970
    kathymillard1970 Posts: 40
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    I have never eaten them back and I am losing, but I also know that I have them if I do happen to need them on a certain day.
  • juliebmomof3
    juliebmomof3 Posts: 115 Member
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    I have been checking out the "Eat more weigh less" group, because I had the same question. MyFitnessPal figures out how many calories you need to eat to lose weight without exercising, so if you don't eat back at least some of your exercise calories back you could mess up your metabolism and go into starvation mode. I am breastfeeding and I wasn't factoring that in and I wasn't logging exercise and I was always hungry and felt exhausted, so I am going to start logging both and eating back at least some if not all of my calories.
  • LittleLightShine
    LittleLightShine Posts: 123 Member
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    I tried the approach of eating my exercise calories for a month and I didn't gain any weight but I also didn't lose. Went back to not eating them and am losing again. I think everyone is different and you have to figure out what works for you.
  • BonnieNW
    BonnieNW Posts: 1
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    Something that has been working for me is to make a vegetable smoothie in the morning and save about 12 oz for the minute I walk in the door at the end of the work day. It is my worst time and figured it was because I was both thirsty and hungry. It allows me time to get dinner going without picking at the cheese/crackers, nuts, etc.
  • raisingbabyk
    raisingbabyk Posts: 442 Member
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    I eat them back. MFP already sets a deficit for you.
  • KahuNZ
    KahuNZ Posts: 401 Member
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    I eat most of mine back - worked for me!
  • lu136mickey
    lu136mickey Posts: 202
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    Eat them.

    I look at it like this: I love food. If I can eat my hard earned exercise cals and still lose...I'm going to do it. I've lost consistently and I eat almost all of them back. I'm not going to give up any of my calories as long as I'm losing :)
    this
  • KTDrox
    KTDrox Posts: 1 Member
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    I do best when I eat about half of the calories I've burned from exercise. If I don't eat any I burn, I feel like I'm starving. If I eat all that I burn, I have to stuff myself. Half seems to work for me, but try all three and see what works for you!
  • nicholettebell
    nicholettebell Posts: 414
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    I do best when I eat about half of the calories I've burned from exercise. If I don't eat any I burn, I feel like I'm starving. If I eat all that I burn, I have to stuff myself. Half seems to work for me, but try all three and see what works for you!

    This is what I do. Middle of the road.
  • banksave
    banksave Posts: 18 Member
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    Listen to your body! Some days i eat...somedays i dont...My calories serioulsly range from 1500-3000 depending on the day and the workout! If your hungry EAT!!!

    agree, listen to your body and how you feel... a little deficit for me is healthly.. but not eating enough with huge deficits day after day... will stress your body, increase cortisol (along with other hormones) production and decrease weight loss (causing your body to slow down the energy burned by your cells... kinda of a defensive mode to thwart off starvation)

    I actually had better success and lost more body fat pounds by increasing my caloric intake while working thru beachbody's Insanity 60 day workout routine....
  • Becky0582
    Becky0582 Posts: 23
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    Thanks everyone! I'm going to just eat them if I need them and not feel too guilty about eating a few if I need them! Maybe I'll try making sure I'm at a least a net of 1200 everyday, and see where that gets me! Lost 5 lbs my first week and stayed between 1200 and 1600 everyday, with a goal of 1480 without exercise...
  • westdove
    westdove Posts: 174
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    I eat SOME of them back, but def not all. That just works for me personally....

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