Hi all,

I am new here.

I decided this is the year to stop kidding myself, and stop dreaming about thin life, and actually make it happen

I calculated that I use 1970 calories on average day for just doing daily activities. So I allowed myself maximum calorie intake 1470 calories, hoping for 1 pound weight loss per week.

I also walk 4.1 miles per day at 4.5 mph speed which burns 415 calories (Droid has this great app called cardio trainer; it measures your speed and maps your route).

I add those calories back to my 1470 intake...giving me 1885 calories to consume...I usually don't use those bonus calories, but I decided that once per week, I will splurge and have a dinner out

How do you use yours? Towards extra food or extra weigh loss?

First 11 days, I managed to shed 6 pounds. I am sure lots of it was water weight.

I never eat them - but I think your idea of saving up some of them for a treat is a good idea. I'm not good with treats!

Congratulations on your progress and work so far!!!

I'm another that doesn't count "exercise calories" at all. It's really difficult to get an accurate measurement of how many calories are used through exercise - even the best calculator is just an estimate.

In my head, calories consumed are what I track for my weight loss, while exercise is what I do for better overall fitness.

I don't use my exercise calories (or points, I do WW.) The only time I will eat more to compensate for activity is if I'm hiking all day or biking over 25 miles. Then my body needs more fuel. Otherwise, it doesn't need the extra food.

This is what I do as well. I do so many different activities (Zumba, yoga, pilates, cardio) that it's hard to get an accurate "calorie burned" amount, so I don't really trust any of the calorie burning estimates that I find on websites.

I stick with eating the calories I am supposed to for the day, and I don't pay attention to any exercise calories. I do them for my overall fitness, as well, and just focus on that aspect.

Here as well. I never ate my activity calories. I just considered them a bonus to weight loss and a part of a healthy lifestyle.

I try to never eat my exercise calories back. I just don't trust that I'm really burning what they say I am. I walked miles and it said I burned 1200 calories. If I ate all that back, I'd have eaten double my daily calories and where was I going to find that? Honestly, I don't believe I really burned that many calories so I just don't eat them back. It's safer for me.

I don't eat back my exercise calories either because I'm trying to (finally) learn what is a healthy amount of food for me to eat.

Once I'm in maintainance I'll get a few more calories but right now I'm doing just fine on 1500 or so a day. I'm very seldom hungry, never craving junk food, and losing weight slow and steady so I don't want to mess with what's working for me.

I don't add in my exercise calories either. I keep track of my daily exercise, simply because journaling everything I relate to my goals toward weightloss seems to keep me on track!

When I was on WW years ago, I would add back in my points for doing certain activities, but I still was hesitate, cause calories burned is always an estimate!

Saving it up for a night out, is not a bad idea! I allow myself one guilt free high calorie (normally eat 1600, high calorie day 2200) day. But I make sure that is a day I am really doing a lot of at the gym, or putting in an extra half hour of cardio!

I do want to say that it's all an experiment anyway, and you arethe best judge of what works for you. If counting exercise calories and using them for a higher calorie day works, then stick with that!

Weight loss (IMO) is very much about trial and error over time. So do what you're doing now, and do it until it doesn't work, andthen figureout something new to try.

Be patient with yourself, too. The nature of experimenting is that you will need time to draw accurate conclusions.

Thanks ladies...great input!

I don't figure my calories-burned into my food calories. Instead, I eat more than most people do. Most days I eat 1700-2100 calories. I eat more the day after I do a run over 12 miles. When weight lifting was my main exercise, I ate 2000-2500 calories/day and lost a lot of weight. Some exercises really boost your metabolism.

If you're new to restricting calories, be very careful about slowing your metabolism. Less food and more exercise will kill your metabolism, so ease into this. Starting with higher calories will make your plan easier to stick with. If you lost six pounds in 11 days, I'd say there's no reason to cut back on calories more. Keep it up!

I try not to figure it in as much as I can, but I do try to keep track of it. Sometimes, if I know I exercised that day and I'm close to my limit, I allow myself to go over. Especially if I'm hungry or just really need something to keep me going.

I'm also fairly new, so I am not cutting back too much. I let FitDay figure my calorie intake. And I'm at about 2000 a day right now. Pretty easy to stick with. The goal is losing 2 pounds a week.