Sedentary lifestyle

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xWondertje
xWondertje Posts: 65 Member
in Getting Started
Hi!

When I created my MFP account I chose to enter sedentary as my lifestyle, since I'm a student who sits on my bum between 8am and 5pm every day. Now I wonder - how much exactly is a sedentary lifestyle based on. If I walk 10k steps that day, have I moved more than what the sedentary lifestyle assumes of me? Do I need to move for an hour, 40 minutes, 20 minutes? Where exactly does my movement cross the line of being sedentary and becomes something that wasn't in my calorie calculation to begin with?

Thanks in advance for discussing :smile:

Replies

  • Gallowmere1984
    Gallowmere1984 Posts: 6,626 Member
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    I honestly don't know where the line could be drawn. It's one of those things you'll have to play with over time. Even with the odd day at work where I am extremely physically active (about twice per week), sub-sedentary values still end up working for me (even maintaining now), as I sit on my *kitten* all day playing video games when not at work.
  • Trish1c
    Trish1c Posts: 549 Member
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    10,000 steps per day is not sedentary but I don't know where the dividing line is. I find it hard to believe you sit from 8 to 5 every day. I was way more active as a student then I am as an working professional. Now I sit all day. then I moved around, walked from class to class, too the stairs more, carried books etc. Where are the little places in your day you can add extra movement?

    Don't adjust MFP from sedentary until you are genuinely & routinely exercising. For now eat the calories it says to lose weight without doing anything else. Consider the exercise a bonus & do eat back your calories so you have the fuel for your workouts.
  • Nikion901
    Nikion901 Posts: 2,467 Member
    edited July 2016
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    MFP describes activity based on your lifestyle and does not include exercise calories in it's calculation.

    So ... follow the normal daily activities description when you select your activity at goal setting time.

    Do you walk 5-6 hours a day? If not, your steps probably fall into the recommendation to get 150 minutes of exercise a week, and walking is a great way to spend those minutes in a full body movement sort of way.

    Track it for a couple of months, your food and your minutes walking, miles covered during the walk. See where you are at time and evaluate if you need to make adjustments.

    Cause, as for activity, it's the duration and exertion that makes the difference in calories burned ... you can walk 10,000 steps at a stroll pace or you can walk them at a fast pace, do you think both methods of walking would burn the same amount?
  • JeromeBarry1
    JeromeBarry1 Posts: 10,182 Member
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    Sedentary is sitting on your bum most of the time for your day job.
  • NorthCascades
    NorthCascades Posts: 10,968 Member
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    If you use an activity tracker, and allow negative calorie adjustments, then it doesn't matter what activity level you select because the system will work the truth out and fix your numbers based on reality. For example, I ride a bike 80 to 100 miles in a typical week but have myself listed as sedentary.

    If not, it's really kind of subjective. You can pick the closest match and then keep track of everything over time and see if your predicted weight loss matches your actual weight loss.
  • lemurcat12
    lemurcat12 Posts: 30,886 Member
    edited July 2016
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    My understanding is that MFP is super-extra sedentary, and that if you even average above 5000 steps you are probably lightly active. I assumed I was sedentary when I started (desk job), but even back then before I was remotely in shape I was walking 10,000+ steps most days (live in a city) and so even when I wasn't yet exercising much I found I was losing faster than even lightly active would predict. I was hesitant to eat it, though, until I got a Fitbit and comfortable that it was pretty accurate.

    That said, logging errors are common, so it doesn't hurt to start at sedentary, and then see what the results are. Room for error and all that. If you are losing more than intended you can adjust up.
  • tech_kitten
    tech_kitten Posts: 221 Member
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    Gallowmere1984 wrote: »
    I honestly don't know where the line could be drawn. It's one of those things you'll have to play with over time. Even with the odd day at work where I am extremely physically active (about twice per week), sub-sedentary values still end up working for me (even maintaining now), as I sit on my *kitten* all day playing video games when not at work.

    I would say keep the setting at sedentary because MFP tends to over-estimate how much is burned with any activity, and it's all just a bunch of averages anyway. The average woman at X height and Y weight will burn Z calories per day at A level of activity. MFP calculates too high a burn for me (whether due to my activity, logging, whatever - doesn't really matter), and I adjust based on what trends I actually see.
  • cwolfman13
    cwolfman13 Posts: 41,868 Member
    edited July 2016
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    Sedentary generally constitutes less up to about 5,000 steps per day...10K steps isn't sedentary...

    In my experience, many people who put sedentary really aren't sedentary...even if they have a desk job like myself. Outside of my desk job I do other things...I have a family to take care of, cooking to do, cleaning to do, yard work to do, kids to play with, zoos to visit, etc...even with my desk job I'm light active with just general activity.
  • AnnPT77
    AnnPT77 Posts: 32,761 Member
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    NorthCascades wrote: »
    If you use an activity tracker, and allow negative calorie adjustments, then it doesn't matter what activity level you select because the system will work the truth out and fix your numbers based on reality. For example, I ride a bike 80 to 100 miles in a typical week but have myself listed as sedentary.

    If not, it's really kind of subjective. You can pick the closest match and then keep track of everything over time and see if your predicted weight loss matches your actual weight loss.

    Yup, that. I had to set my MFP activity level differently from my actual real-world (non-exercise) activity level in order to get it to give me anything like remotely accurate calories for any given weight-loss rate. After a month or so, you'll figure out whether sedentary is the right setting for you.

    The potential deviance between your body & the generic settings is a factor, and could even have a greater impact than the difference between 5000 steps and 7500 steps (or what-have-you). Just figure out which setting gives you the best fit.

    Keep in mind, if you're using MFP as designed (NEAT method), the activity setting should reflect your basic daily activities excluding intentional exercise. MFP assumes you'll explictly record intentional exercise (or use an activity tracker) and eat most or all of those calories on top of your basic calorie allowance.
  • hmltwin
    hmltwin Posts: 116 Member
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    This is something I've been curious about from the time I joined here. I have mine set to sedentary as well, since I have a desk job. My Garmin says I get about 15K steps a day, but they also have a breakdown page: highly active, active, sedentary, sleeping. Even getting 15K steps a day, I'm still sedentary between 65-70% of the day, so I've left it at sedentary here.
  • BJG7_UK
    BJG7_UK Posts: 61 Member
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    I rarely hit 10k steps.. Going by my Fitbit I average 5.5/6k steps a day..
  • xWondertje
    xWondertje Posts: 65 Member
    edited July 2016
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    Thanks for all of the replies! :smile:

    I don't hit 10k often either, it was more of an example for the sake of the question. My daily goal is 5k, which I usually hit.

    When it comes to exercise I of course log it, and eat back 25-75% of the calories depending on what I feel like.

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