XPost: alt.support.diet.weightwatchers   
   From: news@rmns.co.python.uk   
      
   On Wed, 05 Apr 2006 06:49:33 +0900, Doug Lerner    
   wrote:   
      
   >Up until now I have only counted my "net calories" each day - the calories I   
   >actually ate minus the exercise calories I earned on my exercise bike. The   
   >exercise bike shows my calories burned on a little computer read-out, and it   
   >all depends on my input weight, time, distance, etc. It also measures my   
   >heartbeat during the exercise.   
   >   
   >So, thinking just in terms of conservation of energy if I used up 300   
   >calories on the bike then I deducted 300 calories from what I ate so far   
   >today, which is a great incentive to exercise!   
   >   
   >Using this method I've lost over 70 lb in about 300 days so far.   
   >   
   >But, I wonder...   
   >   
   >Lately it seems to me that the less I actually *eat* - not just the net   
   >calories, but the calories I actually eat (ignoring exercise) - the more I   
   >actually lose.   
   >   
   >Technically it should not make a difference whether I eat 1500 calories in a   
   >day and do zero exercise, or whether I eat 1800 calories in day and do 300   
   >calories worth of exercise, right? But I think I lose more when I actually   
   >eat just 1500 calories.   
      
   First of all let me congratulate me you again on losing so much. You   
   really are inspiring.   
      
   I think the explanation of your problem is that the number on the   
   exercise machine isn't correct. All machines overestimate how many   
   calories are burned.   
      
   For nstance if your maintenance figure is 1800 calories/day you will   
   consume (1800/24) 75 calories per hour if you didn't exercise. If you   
   do exercise for an hour the machine says you consumed 300 calories and   
   you did, but you would have consumed 75 anyway. You can only take off   
   225 calories off the amount you eat.   
   They are probably also generous with the number of calories expended.   
   It makes sense for them to do this so that people think the extra work   
   is worth it.   
      
   >Could it be that my "net calorie" theory is correct but I'm just getting bad   
   >calorie counts to use?   
      
   Your "net calorie" theory is abosolutely right and it's been working   
   for you for ages - don't change it.   
      
   >Sometimes I just do 15 minutes of exercise and still count those calories.   
   >Should I require myself to do a minimum number of minutes before the   
   >calories become "countable"?   
      
   Probably. 15 minutes of exercise isn't going to do much at all, at   
   least in terms f weight loss.   
      
   my advice fww is not to change a thing. you are doiin great so don't   
   fix it. Eventually as your weigt reduces you will have to adjust the   
   1800 calries down a bit to contine losing though.   
      
   Ray   
      
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