The more I work out, the harder it is to hit my calories

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leenie96
leenie96 Posts: 65
in Food and Nutrition
Does anyone else have trouble eating after working out? It seems that the more intense I workout, the less hungry I am afterwards. Sometimes it seems that I have to force myself to eat to even hit near the 1200 area, but I know I should be eating close to 1700.

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  • natpalit
    natpalit Posts: 113 Member
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    Hey,

    Do you mean 1200 net (ie including calories burnt through exercise), or total? I have a similar thing, but I don't worry about it too much. I think its partly down to the fact that my mind is more focussed on sticking to my healthy habits after I have worked out for a few hours. As long as you have an average that is above 1200, or your BMR across your week, then daily fluctuations really shouldn't bother you. I hope this helps.
  • kellymcguire87
    kellymcguire87 Posts: 4
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    I am struggling with this myself. I get confused. If it tells me I should be eating 1200 calories but my exercise burns 400 do I eat 1600?
  • bcattoes
    bcattoes Posts: 17,299 Member
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    Then don't eat right after working out. Eat before or later when you get hungry.

    Also, make sure you are meeting your fat goals. Fat has more than twice the calories as carbs or protien (gram or gram) so you can up your overall calorie intake pretty quickly by adding healthy fats to your diet.
  • bcattoes
    bcattoes Posts: 17,299 Member
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    I am struggling with this myself. I get confused. If it tells me I should be eating 1200 calories but my exercise burns 400 do I eat 1600?

    Yes. You don't have to exactly meet that every day, but if you are set at 1200 calories per day it's because you set your activity level to sedentary. If you exercise you are no longer sedentary, so you should eat a little more.
  • kellymcguire87
    kellymcguire87 Posts: 4
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    Actually I am not sedentary. It listed my activity level as moderate. At that time I was doing 30 minutes three to four times a week. I have bumped that up to 30 to 45 minutes everyday.

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