Hi Feathers,

Several times now I saw people comment on eating a certain amount of calories and adding more calories on work out days. And Looking back the past month - I have not done that and haven't had an issue.

I eat between 1300 and 1400 calories. The other day was the first time out of 20 workouts the past month that I felt a bit too weak to do my workout - but my big dinner was after workout because I'd not have time to do it before.

The only obstacle to eating 1300 calories for me is finding foods that aren't as calorie dense and yet high in proteine. Other than that 1300 is really a piece of cake for me.

Just wondering if you -need- to have more calories on workout days, or you just give yourself the leeway because you are using them up anyhow?

x
~phi

I don't add calories on workout days. When I am in weight loss mode, which I am not right now, but when I am, I aim for 1200 to 1400 calories. Running three miles burns about 300 calories. I feel like if I add an extra 150 calories in, I might as well have made it easy on myself and ran only 1.5 miles. I know, I know exercise has more benefits than only the immediate calories burned. Yesterday, I ran four miles in 87 degree heat, on a humid day, with no breeze.....400 HARD earned calories burned. Last night, I was fiending for a chocolate cupcake that was sitting in the fridge....then I thought to myself was the cupcake worth negating the run earlier, it would take me about 90 seconds to polish off, versus 40 minutes of hard work. Nope!

Neither do I. I feel like wasting my hard workout.

I've started cycling my calories again and tailor that schedule to my workouts.
- One day a week I eat about 1250 calories; that's my "off day" from exercise.
- One day I eat around 1375-1400. I do 30-60 minutes of cardio on this day.
- Three days a week I eat around 1525-1550. These days I generally do moderate-level strength training and often a bit (15-20 minutes) of additional, fairly intense cardio. Sometimes instead of this combo, I do some lower body plyometrics stuff.
- Two days a week I do higher calories--around 1700 and 1850, respectively. These days I do my really hard strength training with additional cardio (20-45 min).

I eat half of my exercise calories. The way I see it, weight loss is 90% diet, losing inches comes from exercise. I can lose inches and still stay the same weight. I'm already cutting as many calories as I can (I'm at 1200-1300 calories daily) so why feel miserable and go under 1200 net calories? I do either 30 mins or 1 hour of cardio, so when I do 30 minutes, I can add one healthy 100-calorie snack. When I work out for an hour, it's either two snacks or a mini-meal--the calories actually end up coming from my pre-workout and post-workout snacks, so they do have a point to them (i.e. making it so I don't lose as much muscle mass, etc).

I eat roughly between 1600-1800 calories on any given day. I workout six days a week so I can't tell you if the 1600 is on Sunday which is my day of rest or not. I find when I've strictly reduced my caloric intake to below 1600, I felt weak and faint. But that's me.

To paint a better picture, when I began this journey about 4 years ago, I was probably consuming anywhere from around 2000-2400 calories daily and working out, if I was lucky, twice a week. Yeah...I was in bad shape - literally. I totally commend anyone who can do 1300-1400 calories a day because I just can't. Weird or what?!?

I'm also in awe of those of you who can cycle your calories because it seems like so much work IMO. With two kids, I'd need a personal assistant just to tell me how many calories I should be eating on those days, lol. I suddenly feel like the 'little piggie' of the Featherweights, lol. You gals are all so inspiring!

Friends and family members of mine can't get over how (supposedly) much I eat based on my calories and how much I weigh. I'm always telling them that I eat to nourish my body so I can power through my workouts. There's no way on God's green earth (lol) that I could possibly sprint/walk for 20 minutes, run over 3 miles or perform kettlebells for 45 minutes and exist on like 1200 calories. I would be dead on the floor and you'd have to send an ambulance for me, seriously.

I guess everyone is different too. I do have a high metabolism - I admit that and I have a lot of nervous energy (gasp!). Ask my kids, I'm always multi-tasking, lol. It takes a lot for me to just sit and do nothing. Pilates was very hard for me to do at first because you have to quiet your mind and tune into your body: core and breathing which is not how I normally operate...if you can believe that.

I don't eat more calories on workout days either, unless I feel that I need it...

I think that depends on your mindset. Someone could view their daily workouts as a new lifestyle--a more active lifestyle calls for more calories than a sedentary one, and you can still be below maintenance calories this way. I guess you could say that in your mind, exercise is like 'extra credit' in terms of calories in and out. Others might see exercise as accompanying a diet for the purpose of body recomposition, but not as responsible as diet for sheer weight loss. Neither way of looking at it is wrong.

It also matters probably what time of day you work out , and whether or not your exercise takes your net calories under 1200 and by how much.

mimi - I work out at night, but sometimes in the morning also. And since my calories are 1300.. after a workout my 'net calories' would be about 900. But I don't really believe in the net calorie idea.

fitmom - you are taller, and you are way more active and have build op way more muscle than most people here, I don't think it weird you need more calories :P


From all the replies I see everybody looks at it differently. I won't deny myself food if I feel very hungry on a work out day, but it just hasn't happened yet. Even though I eat pretty lowcal. I am considering bumping my intake up to 1500 because I am just really havin g ahard time sticking to 1300 lately. But will see what I do when I get back from France.

philana: I never thought of my height as maybe being a factor in my higher caloric need. I know I'm active and all but you're right - I'm taller than some of the other Feathers so it follow that I would need more calories than say someone who was only five feet tall. Thanks for pointing that out, I was starting to feel like the odd woman out, lol.

Well, I did an almost double-work out today. Burned about 500calories. And ate only 1250. And the work out was in the afternoon.. but I feel great! This is the first day of me trying to eat low carb, so maybe that has to do with it?

I don't know! Anyhow, I hope the 1000 calorie deficit means a move of the scale tomorrow :P