Accounting for Exercise on Your Weight Loss/Food Tracking App

Happy 2013 everyone!!  I hope everyone enjoyed themselves last night, and was safe as the new year began.  We were at our house with some friends watching the ball drop at 12am, while drinking some good beers and recovering from a day's worth of sodium at a local Japanese Steakhouse.  Delicious, but let's just say I couldn't get my rings off last night!

 YesterdayI posted about the importance of changing your food diary phone app goals (specifically on My Fitness Pal), and today I'm going to teach you that you shouldn't record your exercise on most food recording apps.  If you happen to have one where they don't give you those extra calories burned from exercise to then consume, then by all means, add your exercise.  My Fitness Pal, and most apps I've seen, are not like that unfortunately.  Let me explain.......when I first started learning about My Fitness Pal, I hated it that when I added exercise to my plan they would then "allow me" to eat more calories.  To me, this was pointless.  So many Americans workout, then eat more because they think they can.  This is why for many people working out doesn't help them lose weight.

Many times the "calories burned" number that you see on your exercise machine is inaccurate.  This has been tested many times.

Check out my goals below from My Fitness Pal (before I changed them to make them more realistic and accurate for my personal needs.  See a local registered dietitian to help you do the same!).

See the asterisk??  Your net calorie recommendation from MFP is your total calories consumed, minus those burned by exercise.  So, they are saying on days that you exercise you can eat those calories back.  It even says, "So the more you exercise, the more you can eat!!"   

Ummmmm...BOOOOO !  Not true.  That would be nice though, wouldn't it?

Exercise more, eat more?  Hmmm, I don't think so.  Maybe some days, sure, but don't do that on a regular basis (unless you're an elite athlete!)  

By determining my own calorie needs and showing you why I would have gained weight if I would have been adding my exercise into My Fitness Pal, and following their goals, you will see why this is a problem.

I like to use the very accurate equation called the Mifflin St. Joer equation for Resting Metabolic Rate, which can be found here.  This equation tells me that my Resting Metabolic Rate is 1150 calories.  This means if I sat around on the couch all day, I would burn about 1150 calories (if I wasn't sick, or eating, or doing anything at all).

This equation then allows you to multiple by an Activity Multiplier (source);

Sedentary = BMR X 1.2 (little or no exercise, desk job)

Lightly active = BMR X 1.375 (light exercise/sports 1-3 days/wk)

Mod. active = BMR X 1.55 (moderate exercise/sports 3-5 days/wk) --------This is ME!

Very active = BMR X 1.725 (hard exercise/sports 6-7 days/wk)

Extr. Active = BMR X 1.9 (hard daily exercise/sports; physical job or 2X day training, i.e marathon, contest etc.)

So this activity multiplier/factor takes into account your everyday activities and exercise.  If I multiply my RMR by 1.55 I get 1782.  So, in order to remain at my current weight, which was my goal when I was using this application, I needed to consume about 1782/day.  Yep, that's almost exactly hat they came up with for my calorie goals on MFP. HOWEVER, the problem is that when I added my exercise, they give me on average an extra 300 calories.  WRONG!  The equation already took into account my daily activities and exercise, so why would I add more?!  It's lame, and I this is why I never added my workouts to My Fitness Pal, and I tell clients not to either.  And just to prove my point even more, check out this recent article from the New York Times Well Blog.  Here is a quote form the article;



Close mathematical scrutiny of past studies of exercise and weight loss shows that that happy prospect [that exercise will speed up your metabolism, basically continuously] is, sad to say, unfounded. One of the few studies ever to have scrupulously monitored exercise, food intake and metabolic rates found that volunteers’ basal metabolic rates dropped as they lost weight, even though they exercised every day. As a result, although they were burning up to 500 calories during an exercise session, their total daily caloric burn was lower than it would have been had their metabolism remained unchanged, and they lost less weight than had been expected.

The problem for those of us hoping to use exercise to slough off fat is that most current calculations about exercise and weight loss assume that metabolism remains unchanged or is revved by exercise.


My Fitness Pal does give you less calories as you lose more weight, which is the accurate thing to do, but they should not give you more calories when you add exercise.  Period.  Why? Because it's already accounted for in the equation.  What's more, they tend to overestimate the calories burned from different exercises.  I put in "30-minutes elliptical training" one time and they gave me a 300-calories burned.  HA!  In my dreams.

Here is another great article about how people who exercise a lot tend to weight more.  Why? Read the article it's fascinating. One of the points they make is that people compensate for their exercise by eating more, despite not really being more hungry (did you know that your appetite often decreases on days you work out?!) and that people tend to be more lazy during the day on days they do a hard workout, which is not good.




QUESTION:  Do you add your exercise to your food diary phone apps? If so, do you eat those extra calories if you are trying to lose and/or maintain weight?

Keep in mind, if you workout for long periods of time (such as when you are training for a marathon or a similar large athletic event) you may actually need the extra calories.  But, for most of us who are recreational exercisers (ie: ~45-60 minutes a day, moderate intensity on average) we really don't need to strive for extra calories on days we work out!  But like I always say, see a local registered dietitian for more details about your own personal dietary needs.

Thanks for reading!

The Candid Rd

NOTE: I love comments!  But, be sure to come back to read any replies to questions or comments, as they do not go directly to your e-mail.

My Fitness Pal: Changing Your Goals (Motivational Monday)

Happy New Year's Eve!  Being the new year and all, many of you have probably resolved to lose weight or to start eating healthier.  Today I want to motivate you to start recording your food!  I already posted about the best food tracking apps (be sure to read the reader comments for even more ideas) and how I believe tracking food is helpful because it makes you more mindful, but you can read a bit more about how tracking your food can help you lose (or maintain) weight here and here, and here  (you know, just in case you weren't convinced!)

This is my lunch that I pack almost every day.  When I was using My Fitness Pal I found out the lunch that I once thought was about 500 calories, was actually about 700.  HA!  The little things you find out with fun food apps :)

As I said in my last post, I decided to use My Fitness Pal (MFP) for about 3 months before I slipped into my dress for my September wedding.  I didn't use it to lose weight, but to maintain weight (it's hard to stay on track when you have showers and other weddings to go to before your own wedding!).  I quickly learned that for someone with a history of an eating disorder, using an app to track calories isn't so smart.  While it helped me for those three months, I deleted my account as soon as I got back (Nick made me, and I'm glad he did).  So before I go on and explain my tips on setting up an account and setting goals on MFP, I want to say that if you have any history with an eating disorder, please do not use a food tracking app. It's just not smart.

When I first started dating Nick 7 years ago (when this photo was taken, I still had disordered eating tendencies.  I told him a few years ago that he needed to put me in my place if he ever noticed me becoming obsessive again.  He kept his promise.  Such a good guy.

Today I want to give you 5 tips I give my own clients for setting goals on MFP (or other food tracker apps).  Tomorrow (if I make it to the computer....) I will post about why it's important not to record your workouts. Yes, you read that right.  That doesn't mean don't workout.  Read tomorrow to learn more.

Source: iStock Photo

Ok, let's begin!  When you create a MFP account (or any other food tracker account), they ask for your age, weight and activity level.  Then they (the program) create goals for you based on the information you provide.  These were my goals, created automatically by the app.

Here are some general tips for changing and personalizing your goals;

1.  Take it from me, it's best to change the recommended carbohydrate percentage from 55% to 45% if you're trying to lose or maintain weight.  My Fitness Pal gave me a goal of 239 grams of carbohydrates per day (which is 55% of my total calories).  Wowza, that's a lot.  My average carbohydrate intake is much lower than that, and if I would have strived for 239 grams per day, I would have put on weight.  Period.

2.  Below are the micronutrient, sugar, and fiber recommendations given to me by MFP.  I don't like them.  For starters, 2500 mg sodium is slightly high (although for some people this is probably pretty low, sadly). It's even higher than the completely outdated Daily Values you see on food labels. The bottom line?   For most people 1500-2400 mg is a good goal.  If you eat out less, eat more whole fruits and vegetables, and less processed foods, this shouldn't be a problem.  You may notice for your first few days or weeks this is hard to achieve, but make it your goal, and you'll not only be healthier, but you'll lose weight because you'll be making better food choices.

3.  Make your fiber goal 25-30 g.  Why not give yourself a higher number to strive for?!  This will motivate you to choose more whole grains, fruits, and vegetables.

4.  While I'm a huge proponent of limiting your sugar intake (especially if you're trying to lose weight) the 35 g sugar goal, listed above, accounts for fruit, vegetable, dairy, grains, and added sugars.  Thirty-five grams is absurd, and it's really difficult to stick to that goal while maintaining a balanced and healthy diet.  One cup of most fruits contains about 30 grams of sugar alone, so.....a goal of 35 grams/day is ridiculous. A more reasonable goal would be about 70-100 grams (generally speaking). 

Source: iStock Photo

I'm not saying go eat a bunch of candy bars, but instead consider that you get 12 grams of sugar in one cup of milk, about 15-30 grams in a piece of fruit, and then various amounts in vegetables.  As for added sugars, read my post here to learn an appropriate limit (wouldn't it be nice if these apps actually accounted for added sugars vs. natural sugars in fruits, veggies, and dairy?! First we need to convince the FDA to require added sugars to be separately listed on nutrition facts!). Bottom line:  for most people, a sugar goal of 70-100 grams per day should be perfect. If you already eat that amount, and still can't lose weight, aim for less.  Aim to get most of your sugar from dairy, fruits, and especially vegetables.

5.  Remember, the calorie goals should be considered more like a recommendation.  It's ok to go under on some days, and over on others, just as long as your average calories are close to those given to you by My Fitness Pal.  Don't make it a goal to reach those calories every day, because one day you may not be very hungry.  You still need to eat intuitively, right?!  If you continue eating just to reach your calorie goal, and despite not being hungry, the app is pointless.  Sometimes the app overestimates calories, so if you think you could manage eating less, you should.  It could also go the other way around.

QUESTION:  Do you have any tips to provide about My Fitness Pal, or any other nutrition/food tracker app?

Stay tuned for tomorrow's post, which will be about adding exercise to My Fitness Pal.  I tell my clients not to add their exercise......and you'll see why tomorrow.  BE SAFE TONIGHT AND HAVE A GREAT NEW YEAR'S EVE!  I'll see you next year (unless I wipe out in these killer new year shoes!)

The Candid Rd

NOTE: I love comments!  But, be sure to come back to read any replies to questions or comments, as they do not go directly to your e-mail.