Why exercise to lose weight?

MFP already has a deficit calculated in for you. For example, if you set your goals to sedentary you will burn around 1700 a day with sitting around. So, you eat 1200 which gives you a 500 calorie deficit each day by not exercising at all.
If you exercise on top of that, you can eat your exercise calories back without you losing the 500 calorie deficit a day!
If you don't eat your calories back, you will be netting to low which can cause you to plateau. You can also choose to eat back half the calories you exercised, in case you overestimated the calories burned or whatever.

It's really important that you are not netting to low, it won't help your weight loss. I ate 1200 each day in the beginning with intense exercise, but now I've upped my calories I'm still losing weight!

This! This is how MFP is set up to work...and it DOES work.

"skinny people look good in clothes, fit people look great naked!" Just sayin......

This.

lol I DO NOT EAT BACK EXERCISE CALORIES.

EXERCISE IS ESSENTIAL TO WEIGHT LOSS.

If you work on a railroad or play some kind of professional sport as a living your daily routine is exercise enough....MOST PEOPLE DO NOT HAVE THOSE TYPES OF JOBS AND MOST PEOPLE DO NOT EAT AT A CALORIE DEFICIT. SO BOTH ARE GENERALLY NEEDED FOR BEST RESULTS.

exercise is not essential to weight loss. For that all you need is a caloric deficit which can be achieved through diet alone. That being said, exercise can help you with that deficit while allowing you to eat more food and have the same deficit.

As I said Exercise is Essential to weight loss, Unless you are a Vegtable ur getting some kind of exercise, period. Simply tossing and turning or walking around. MOST PEOPLE EXERCISE. THUS WHEN THEY DO EAT LESS THEY LOSE BECAUSE WHAT THEIR BODIES HAVE DETERMINED IS ENOUGH FUEL TO RUN IT EFFICIENTLY THROUGH THEIR NATURAL EXERCISE AND BODILY FUNCTIONS.

CAN YOU EAT 500 AND LOSE WEIGHT, YES.

DO HUMANS USUALLY EAT 500 CALS NOPE. A NORMAL FUNCTIONING ADULT USUALLY EATS 2000+ CALS A DAY, IF YOUR BODY ONLY BURNS 1700 NATURALLY.. EXERCISE IS NEEDED.. OR EAT LESS AND EITHER MAINTAIN LOES SLOWLY OR VIRTUALLY STARVE YOURSELF.

I was thinking the same thing today while I was at the gym. I burned approx 800 calories this morning, I don't think I'm going to eat all the calories back, but I do think that I'm doing to get a 200 calorie cone at Dairy Queen.

To me, loosing weight is about getting smaller, and healthier. I know that I will never stick to a 'diet' so exercising allows me to eat my treats and still loose weight.

I know that exercising is important and will make you healthy, toned, etc.... but if you're going to eat back the calories you burn anyway, then what's the point?

I don't think you should eat back your calories unless you've done a helluva lot of exercise.

I know that exercising is important and will make you healthy, toned, etc.... but if you're going to eat back the calories you burn anyway, then what's the point?

I don't think you should eat back your calories unless you've done a helluva lot of exercise.

Why? if you are already in a deficit prior to exercising you should eat them back to provide you enough fuel to recover from the workout and to provide fuel for your next workout.

so i can go back to masturbating to pictures of myself instead of that nasty internet.

No one has thrown in YET.....muscle weighs more than fat.....LOL....Sorry had too!

Muscle takes up less space, by exercising you gain lean muscle that replaces bulky FAT. I have a friend who is the same height weighs 10 lbs less and is two pant sizes bigger than me, WHY? Because I work out and she chooses not too!

From my experience: it makes me feel great. I honestly love exercising and the benefits that come with it are plenty.

I've been at that point where I was "skinny-fat" once in my life and it's definitely not something I would go back to.

For me, eating right and exercising come hand-in-hand. It's a healthy lifestyle for your body and for your mind.

Why Exercise Is Important for Weight Loss
Diet and Weight Loss Tutorial

Just as a car runs on gasoline, our bodies run on the blood sugar (glucose) circulating in our bloodstream. When we exercise enough to deplete the supply of blood sugar, hormones are released that instruct our fat cells to release fat into our bloodstream. The fat circulates to the muscles that need it for fuel, and we end up with less fat on our bodies.
The Right Reason to Exercise

Exercise plays an important role in maintaining a healthy body, and it makes it possible to create a calorie deficit and lose weight without starving your body and slowing your metabolism. But do not look to exercise as your sole method of weight loss.

Think how many times you've heard someone say, "I'll have dessert and work it off later." As our calculators will show you, that dessert can equate to hours of exercise -- something you're not likely to actually do. Better to eat well in the first place.

Eat healthy foods in reasonable quantities and exercise regularly to maintain good health, and your body will find a healthy weight naturally.
Categories of Exercise

Exercise is frequently divided into two categories, both of which burn calories:

Aerobic exercise, also called cardiovascular exercise or simply "cardio," causes you to breathe harder and increases your heart rate.

Performed on a regular basis, activities such as running and swimming improve both your respiratory capacity (lungs) and your circulatory system (heart and blood vessels).
Strength building, also called resistance training, increases the proportion of muscle on your body. Examples include weight lifting with free weights and using a machine with variable resistance.

Because muscle is a metabolically active tissue, the more muscular you are the higher your metabolism will be. This means that you will burn more calories even at rest.

Exercise Regularly

People who exercise on a regular basis not only lose weight more effectively, but are more successful at keeping it off. And the significance of regular exercise goes beyond the physical benefits.

Regular exercise produces a mental attitude of self-care and self-esteem that bolsters confidence and the desire to continue to improve.

The health benefits of regular exercise are significant and include reduced risk for heart disease, stroke, osteoporosis and diabetes. Even just walking on a regular basis is of great value. Exercise also helps to reduce stress, anxiety and depression, which can be brought on by dieting itself, and can lead to overeating.

As explained in What It Takes to Lose It All, dieting often causes you to lose muscle and your metabolism to slow. Not only does exercise burn calories, but exercise -- especially cardio -- causes your metabolism to remain elevated for a period of time after you finish exercising. And strength building exercise builds muscle, which helps to keep your metabolism elevated 24 hours a day.
Yo-Yo Dieting without Exercise

Yo-yo dieting gets its name from the cycle of bingeing, then dieting to lose the weight gained bingeing, then repeating the cycle again and again. Yo-yo dieters typically gain weight over time, and yo-yo dieting without exercise only compounds the problem.

Without exercise, yo-yo dieters lose both muscle and fat during the diet phase, while they gain only fat during the binge phase. Over time, the proportion of fat making up their bodies becomes greater and greater, while the proportion of muscle becomes smaller and smaller.

This results in a significant slowdown of their metabolism, making weight loss more and more difficult.
Getting Started -- Slowly

Have you ever seen an obese person "busting a gut" on their first day at the gym or track? And maybe you saw them a second day, but not a third? Or maybe something similar has happened to you? Take baby steps. Maybe just walking at first. With time you will build your strength, endurance, and confidence.

You can challenge your body to improve by exercising just outside your "comfort zone." Then, when what you're doing is no longer a challenge, you can do a little more or do it a little harder, faster or longer. But forget about the old saying, "No Pain, No Gain." If you hurt, you won't get off the couch!

When you work your muscles, you may feel a little soreness the next day. This is called "delayed-onset muscle soreness" and it is especially common when you first begin exercising. Stressing your muscles causes microscopic tears to their fibers, and this causes the soreness. The good news is that as your muscles heal they become stronger.

If you experience any other type of pain, stop or see a doctor. Our bodies do a wonderful job of telling us when we are abusing them. The problem is, exercise can be so addicting that we sometimes don't want to stop and listen.
It's Natural

The human body was designed to be active, and the modern conveniences that make life so easy work to our detriment. If you have a desk job, fight back! Take the stairs instead of the elevator, go for a walk during your lunch break, and walk the last few blocks to work.

Calculate how many calories you would burn if you went for a half-hour walk a few days a week. Multiply that by 52 weeks a year and you'll be surprised at how it adds up. It can make a significant difference in your weight management and, perhaps even more important, your mental attitude and health.

I love this quote I heard somewhere:

"If you diet you look good in your clothes, if you exercise you look good naked"

I've weighed less than I do right now and felt/looked worse. Working out is sooooooooooo important for me to feel good and to look great!

95% of the time I do not eat eat back the calories I've burned. I don't think you are supposed to in general. The tracking just let's you know that if you NEED to , ie if you're still hungry, you can do so and still not gain weight ...

Do most of you really eat back teh calories you burn in exercise? I never have.

I was just having this debate with my husband yesterday....I don't really eat back my calories unless for some reason I'm just super hungry that day (usually around that TOM lol). I find it kind of pointless. If I'm exercising, I want those calories gone! But I guess some people exercise so they can eat more.

the main point of eating them is so you don't lose too fast and lose more muscle then fat in the process.