Eating back Exercise Calories

[Manhattan]

Hi Ladies

So I started a new diet and exercise regime 2 weeks ago as I need to lose weight 1) to feel better about myself and 2) to reduce the effects of pco so we can conceive another baby.

I use my fitness pal, and I love how easy it is to track everything. I particularly love the bar code scanner, it's so much fun!

I'm aiming to lose 10 to 15 kilos and I'm consuming 1200 calories a day, and doing 40 minutes of either walking or bike riding a day.

My question to you all is, do you eat your exercise calories back? I've done some googling, but everything I've read is conflicting, so I'd like to know what you did and how it worked for you.

Many thanks in advance x

[Ca Plane Pour Moi]

When I'm losing weight then no, I don't. Why waste the exercise?

When I am stable or need to gain, I do.

[Sopdet]

No you don't eat back your exercise calories. You should also look at your BMR (basal metabolic rate), that will show you what your body needs to maintain your current weight. Warning with 1,200 cal diets is they can put your body into starvation mode.

[Teeki]

My fitness pal does kind of have you eating extra calories if you exercise. The app tells me to aim for a net of 1,450 calories each day. So if I burn 400, I can eat an extra 400. It has been working well for me.

I agree with Sopdet though, 1,200 is very low and not recommended for long term - it can do more damage than good because it messes with your metabolism. I have regularly gone over my 1450 but have kept to healthy foods and the weight has still dropped (in a good way, I'm also building muscle so the weight loss itself is kind of small but my shape is changing).

[PumpkinZulu]

I followed a 1200 calorie diet, lost like 28kg. I do not recommend it. It can destroy your metabolism and cause serious damage, which happened to me. I've gained back about 7kg so far and over a year since starting it, my metabolism is only just starting to recover. So I'd aim for 1500-1800 cal. As for eating back calories, no, I don't when I'm trying to lose weight. I feel like it's kind of redundant if I do.

[Manhattan]

Thanks all for your advice. So I won't eat my exercise Calories, but I'll aim to eat another 200 or so calories. It's not something I'm looking to do long term, I want to get to a weight where I'm happy (and ovulating!) and then will aim to maintain with a balanced diet and exercise.

Xo

[trishalishous]

if Im not hungry, then No I wont. But if I do want that snack/wine and I have the calories available thanks to exercise, then Ill eat them back.
Ive been known to jump on my exercise bike for 30 mins to earn my wine, after the kids are asleep.