Calories and which to use...

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  • ChelleBelle2708
    ChelleBelle2708 Posts: 131 Member
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    sorry, I'm probably driving everyone mad....
  • heybales
    heybales Posts: 18,842 Member
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    Ahhhhh - kg's. The math is slightly different than what I've been doing.

    So for KG, you selected .3 kg/week loss, which they use as 300 cal deficit.

    Fitbit though still goes by deficit amounts, not weight loss goal.

    So 250 compared to 300 will still be off for eating goal by end of day.

    So my math above changes with new setting.
    MFP
    1610 goal + 300 deficit = 1910 estimated daily burn
    1910 + 520 Fitbit correction = 2430 daily burn

    Fitbit
    2434 daily burn

    MFP 2430 - 300 = 2130 eating goal
    Fitbit 2434 - 250 = 2184 eating goal

    Close as you'll get.

    But again - don't try to follow 2 roads to same destination. This example of confusion is exactly why.
  • ChelleBelle2708
    ChelleBelle2708 Posts: 131 Member
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    haha!! ok, that's a little bit easier to understand.

    Is there a way of changing the deficit amounts so they match

    Also today is showing a 285 calorie deficit

    I'm hoping one day I will get this!!!
  • ChelleBelle2708
    ChelleBelle2708 Posts: 131 Member
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    Looks like the calories under the knige and fork tile on FitBit dashboard keeps changing as it now says 2222 Calories!

    This is way too confusing for my liking. Really sorry I don't get it... kinda thinking of ditching it now. All I wanted to do was set up a goal on MFP, log my food and have FitBit feed it my activity information and yet it seems impossible to get the numbers right

    Grrrrr!!!
  • ChelleBelle2708
    ChelleBelle2708 Posts: 131 Member
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    ok hubs has just sat with me to work it all out, and I think I get it now

    MFP is saying I should eat 1610 calories. With the exercise I have done today it has given me 623 calories back - so 1610 + 623 = 2233
    Fit Bit is saying I should eat up to 2222 calories now

    So I guess that as MFP is set as a 0.3kg loss per week, and FB is set at 0.25kg per week, this is as close as I'll get

    Sound right?
  • heybales
    heybales Posts: 18,842 Member
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    Again - your confusion is coming because you are trying to follow 2 roads. Stop it. ;-)

    Forget the Fitbit eating goal - meaningless - because you aren't going to use it.

    Reread the FAQ upper part.

    No you can't change the deficit amounts to match, because you are using kg, and MFP is based on weight to lose weekly, translating that to deficit.
    Fitbit is straight deficit, increments of 250. Whatever that work outs to in weight.

    Again - those eating numbers on Fitbit have NO bearing on your eating goals on MFP, so it really doesn't matter anyway.

    What you have just stated as your desire as to what you want - can easily be done.

    You are setup now - merely stop looking at Fitbit eating goals, and what you desire is accomplished.

    It is that simple, you merely think you don't got it. You may not understand why they don't match up, in which case don't even get started on why they won't match during the day.
    But if you want to know, the math is in the FAQ.



  • NancyN795
    NancyN795 Posts: 1,134 Member
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    ok hubs has just sat with me to work it all out, and I think I get it now

    MFP is saying I should eat 1610 calories. With the exercise I have done today it has given me 623 calories back - so 1610 + 623 = 2233
    Fit Bit is saying I should eat up to 2222 calories now

    So I guess that as MFP is set as a 0.3kg loss per week, and FB is set at 0.25kg per week, this is as close as I'll get

    Sound right?

    Yes, sounds right to me. It really is as simple as setting up a goal on MFP, logging your food and having FitBit feed it your activity information. That is it in a nutshell. You can ignore what FitBit says about how much you can eat.
  • ChelleBelle2708
    ChelleBelle2708 Posts: 131 Member
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    LOL... thank you for being kind of patient with me. I'm not the brightest bulb in the box when it comes to technology, although if hubs asks me where something is I can tell you straight away!!! haha

    Right, I may just delete that tile from FitBit dashboard to make it easier on my brain lol

    Thank you all again
  • NancyN795
    NancyN795 Posts: 1,134 Member
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    Well, if us darn Yanks would get in step with sensible parts of the world and switch to the metric system, you wouldn't be stuck with trying to get two separate systems that default to using pounds to use kilograms instead. That has got to add to the confusion factor!
  • ChelleBelle2708
    ChelleBelle2708 Posts: 131 Member
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    hahaha!! don't get started on the metric system. Anyway I love you Yanks :-)
  • retirehappy
    retirehappy Posts: 4,754 Member
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    There is away to set MFP to kg instead of lbs. My Home, Settings, Account settings, Update diet/fitness profile:

    Update Your Diet Profile

    To help us update your personalized fitness goals, please update your profile by making any changes to the values below.
    Change units for weight and height (e.g. kg vs lbs)
    that is highlighted click into it and set MFP to kg instead of lbs.

    You change that on Fitbit.com under settings, personal info, units.

    Might be less confusing that way?

  • NancyN795
    NancyN795 Posts: 1,134 Member
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    My impression was that she is using kg in both MFP and FitBit, but that the two programs don't allow her to set the same weight loss goal. I think MFP gave her the option of 0.3 kg per week and the closest she could pick in FitBit was 0.25 kg per week. So, her calorie goals are never going to agree between the two.
  • heybales
    heybales Posts: 18,842 Member
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    Well, I'm really glad this came up, because while I knew MFP did weight loss goals, and just calculated a deficit to make that happen, but Fitbit used deficit goals, it never struck me that the different options that MFP uses for metric would cause the deficit amount to be different between the two.

    Which causes all my math examples to be wrong when metric is involved.

    So MFP weekly weight loss options are 0.3 kg, 0.6, 0.9, and 1.2 then?

    Strange, 0.25 increments would have been closer to the 0.5 lb increments, but perhaps they didn't want that level of accuracy involved.
    Or perhaps they do, but round up to 0.3 in that Goals page, which is really confusing then.
  • ChelleBelle2708
    ChelleBelle2708 Posts: 131 Member
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    Nancy is correct. I have both set to Kg but both have different weight loss goals. One at 0.3 and the other 0.25. That's as close as I'm going to get, but I'm just going to focus on MFP for numbers

    Hey bales. I believe the increments are 0.3, 0.5, 1... I could have some both at 0.5 but that's a little too much for me at the moment
  • heybales
    heybales Posts: 18,842 Member
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    So the Fitbit Food plans for Easier, Medium, Kinda Hard, and Harder are not just calorie deficits for metric system?
    So not 250, 500, 750, 1000?

    Sorry, I hate to mess with some settings, for fear of what will be reset and wiped out and require re-entry, or more trying to remember what I tweaked.
    Otherwise I'd test myself.

    MFP's really annoying on that, merely changing anything in the diet/fitness profile resets the eating goals and macros and others.
  • ChelleBelle2708
    ChelleBelle2708 Posts: 131 Member
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    Yes that's correct. Fitbit had 4 plans each with the weight loss amounts you gave

    MFP offers more of a selection of weight losses, but only asks what level of activity you do in a day sedentary, active, and two others. I've chosen the lowest plan for both.
  • heybales
    heybales Posts: 18,842 Member
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    Ok, So that stays the same on Fitbit no matter metric or US.

    Those are deficit plans of even increments. Obviously you lose weight eating at deficit, but the plans are the same no matter what. Oh, those aren't weight loss amounts I gave, those are deficit amounts.
    When that is converted in to lbs or kg is when it changes.

    MFP has weight loss plans, and different choices between lbs and kgs, and different deficit amounts depending on which system is used.

    Does MFP really offer more selections of weight loss in kgs?
    Because the US is 4 options, 1/2 lb, 1 lb, 1.5 lb, and 2 lb weekly.
    I assumed kg would be close conversion - 1/4 kg, 1/2 kg, 3/4 kg, 1 kg.
    What options do you have available for weekly weight loss?
  • ChelleBelle2708
    ChelleBelle2708 Posts: 131 Member
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    Ah yes sorry, MFP shows a list for loss, gain and maintain.

    There are 4 options for weekly weight loss - 0.2, 0.5, 0.8 and 1kg

    I've chosen 0.2kg per week, along with the lowest on FitBit which is 0.3kg

    On the calories adjustment... MyFitnessPal calories burned... Is this just an estimate?
  • heybales
    heybales Posts: 18,842 Member
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    Ah yes sorry, MFP shows a list for loss, gain and maintain.

    There are 4 options for weekly weight loss - 0.2, 0.5, 0.8 and 1kg

    I've chosen 0.2kg per week, along with the lowest on FitBit which is 0.3kg

    On the calories adjustment... MyFitnessPal calories burned... Is this just an estimate?

    Yes, BMR x activity factor based on your selection of non-exercise activity level.

    They are based on recent research studies, so decent enough if people are honest.

    But if using just MFP, when you do a workout, you add it, so estimate goes up since you just burned more, same deficit taken, you then eat more on big burn days, less on rest days. But it has no way to account for increased activity or big variable days.
    Hence the Fitbit and other type devices being nice.