Calorie needs

Hello there ! I was wondering where I should set my activity level at .? I'm busy all day logging minimum 23000 steps. 1 hr of cardio ( 450). Should I set to sedentary or light activity

Replies

  • malibu927
    malibu927 Posts: 17,565 Member
    If you're getting in 23,000 steps, you'd fall even higher than highly active
  • PAV8888
    PAV8888 Posts: 13,394 Member
    edited February 2017
    Approximately 7,000 to 10,000 steps above highly active
  • Tashanicole444
    Tashanicole444 Posts: 86 Member
    Safe to say above 10000 steps is highly active ?
  • mlinci
    mlinci Posts: 403 Member
    10,000 steps is moderately active, above 12,000 steps is active. I'm sure that above 20,000 steps is very active by any standard.
    I walk about 11,000 steps a day and I find it easiest to keep my setting at sedentary at MFP, but sync steps from Fitbit and earn extra calories that way.
  • PAV8888
    PAV8888 Posts: 13,394 Member
    mlinci wrote: »
    10,000 steps is moderately active, above 12,000 steps is active. I'm sure that above 20,000 steps is very active by any standard.
    I walk about 11,000 steps a day and I find it easiest to keep my setting at sedentary at MFP, but sync steps from Fitbit and earn extra calories that way.

    It might be for you; but I would argue not for most people. Of course with integration enabled you don't have to worry about the correspondence between MFP and steps. Integration adjusts.

    In terms of "approximations"

    > 3,500 generally returns positive adjustments from MFP sedentary
    > 7,500 generally returns positive adjustments from MFP lightly active
    >12,500 generally returns positive adjustments from MFP active
    >15,500 generally returns positive adjustments from MFP very active.

    I am personally set on very active most of the time and have gotten positive returns as early as 13,000 steps and as late as 16,500 steps. But most of the time by the time I exceed 15,500 I am getting a positive return.

    This of course can vary by individual.

    A similar viewpoint, not adjusted for MFP settings, can be found in: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/14715035
    (i). <5000 steps/day may be used as a 'sedentary lifestyle index';
    (ii). 5000-7499 steps/day is typical of daily activity excluding sports/exercise and might be considered 'low active';
    (iii). 7500-9999 likely includes some volitional activities (and/or elevated occupational activity demands) and might be considered 'somewhat active'; and
    (iv). >or=10000 steps/day indicates the point that should be used to classify individuals as 'active'.
    Individuals who take >12500 steps/day are likely to be classified as 'highly active'.
  • Machka9
    Machka9 Posts: 24,707 Member
    Royce284 wrote: »
    Safe to say above 10000 steps is highly active ?

    No, sorry.
  • Machka9
    Machka9 Posts: 24,707 Member
    edited February 2017
    According to MFP's Goals section (see View Guided Setup) ...

    How would you describe your normal daily activities?
    Sedentary: Spend most of the day sitting (e.g. bank teller, desk job)
    Lightly Active: Spend a good part of the day on your feet (e.g. teacher, salesperson)
    Active: Spend a good part of the day doing some physical activity (e.g. food server, postal carrier)
    Very Active: Spend most of the day doing heavy physical activity (e.g. bike messenger, carpenter)




    So activity level has more to do with what you do for a living.

    Personally, I'd set it at Sedentary, and then log whatever exercise you do.
  • PAV8888
    PAV8888 Posts: 13,394 Member
    edited February 2017
    Machka9 wrote: »
    According to MFP's Goals section (see View Guided Setup) ...

    How would you describe your normal daily activities?
    Sedentary: Spend most of the day sitting (e.g. bank teller, desk job)
    Lightly Active: Spend a good part of the day on your feet (e.g. teacher, salesperson)
    Active: Spend a good part of the day doing some physical activity (e.g. food server, postal carrier)
    Very Active: Spend most of the day doing heavy physical activity (e.g. bike messenger, carpenter)


    So activity level has more to do with what you do for a living.
    Personally, I'd set it at Sedentary, and then log whatever exercise you do.

    This assumes that you intend to log the steps separately, which is something that MFP envisions you are doing because you wouldn't have a sitting person logging 20,000 steps (ergo they got them from deliberate exercise).

    Reality suggests that a lot of people either use a tracker, or find it easier to incorporate a base level of "steps" into their daily activity as opposed to logging 10 ten minute walking exercise bouts (which incidentally, at a moderate walking pace of 100 steps per minute could easily add to 10,000 steps)

    There is nothing "SACRED" about MFP activity levels. They are a LABEL for BMR x 1.25, BMR x 1.4, BMR x 1.6, and BMR x 1.8.

    How you get to that burn is, frankly, not relevant. You might include just your work activity, or you might include your lifting session in there too.

    What matters is that you don't do something silly like call yourself highly active based on 15,000 steps a day and then go and log a one hour lunch walk that is part of your 15K steps as a separate exercise.
  • PAV8888
    PAV8888 Posts: 13,394 Member
    Royce284 wrote: »
    Safe to say above 10000 steps is highly active ?
    My answer would be above 12,500 you are entering the highly active territory and leaving it at about 15,500.
  • CafeRacer808
    CafeRacer808 Posts: 2,396 Member
    Machka9 wrote: »
    According to MFP's Goals section (see View Guided Setup) ...

    How would you describe your normal daily activities?
    Sedentary: Spend most of the day sitting (e.g. bank teller, desk job)
    Lightly Active: Spend a good part of the day on your feet (e.g. teacher, salesperson)
    Active: Spend a good part of the day doing some physical activity (e.g. food server, postal carrier)
    Very Active: Spend most of the day doing heavy physical activity (e.g. bike messenger, carpenter)




    So activity level has more to do with what you do for a living.

    Personally, I'd set it at Sedentary, and then log whatever exercise you do.

    Agreed.
  • lemonychild
    lemonychild Posts: 654 Member
    It's almost irrelevant if you choose sedentary and then add on the exercise or if you choose highly active and then just stay as active as you already are because I have used both methods and they came within 100 cals of each other ... I burn 2550-2700 cals keeping highly active and MFP gives me 2610 to eat at highly active (for maintenance)