How active would you say I am?

no1elseislikeme

I’m trying to figure out what activity level I’m at. I do spend much of the day sitting down. But I exercise for about an hour and twenty minutes every single day. I do a mixture of yoga, Pilates and body weight exercises. I don’t do cardio due to a knee injury. If MFP’s estimates are accurate, I’m burning about 332 calories altogether. I’ve been at 119 lbs for quite a while now and I was happy there and ate at maintenance. But after some overindulging recently, I’m now at 121 lbs. And I want to lose those two pounds and I’m in weight loss now. And I’m really struggling with whether I’m lightly active or active. If anyone here could give me some guidance, I’d really appreciate it.
For further reference, I’m female, 26 years old and I’m 5’6.

tinkerbellang83

Activity level in MFP is excluding intentional exercise.

So if you're sitting down most of the day outside of times when you're exercising you'd be Sedentary (which accounts for about 3000 steps).

LivingtheLeanDream

In regards to your spike in weight its likely those few pounds are just temporary unless you know you ate an extra 7000 calories. Our weight fluctuates normally, e.g my weight can bounce up and down by 2 to 3lbs from day to day.

I agree with @tinkerbell about the activity level.

teranga79

2lbs could be food in your system, water retention, muscle soreness, totm....... have you thought about having a target range you're happy with instead of a fixed number? 121 still seems on the low side for your height.

zylkm4

I feel your pain. I too am dealing with a tibial injury and knee issues so my exercise has decreased considerably recently. Like you I also average about an hour and a half daily exercise (was more when I was taking ballet/pointe classes in addition, and cycling to work in summer), but I have a desk job at work all day. I am also on the lighter side at 112-113 lbs 5'5.5" but am two lbs more since my exercise dropped down due to my injury. It has consistently stayed here and I am trying not to worry too much because really I don't need to be any thinner (I also have very low bone density so it's risky to be this small). I think when you resume exercise, hopefully gradually, to the level you were before it will come off again. If you are not continually gaining you are doing fine. Your body likely needs the extra calories or rest to repair itself. When tracking my intake and activity, I just put myself at sedentary and do the math. I'm much older than you at age 46 and feel like I have to be a little more strict as I gain weight more easily, but I think the lower your weight the easier it is to "overdo", unless you have an incredibly fast metabolism, which is usually increased with more exercise.

amy19355

no1elseislikeme wrote: »

I’m trying to figure out what activity level I’m at. I do spend much of the day sitting down. But I exercise for about an hour and twenty minutes every single day. I do a mixture of yoga, Pilates and body weight exercises. I don’t do cardio due to a knee injury. If MFP’s estimates are accurate, I’m burning about 332 calories altogether. I’ve been at 119 lbs for quite a while now and I was happy there and ate at maintenance. But after some overindulging recently, I’m now at 121 lbs. And I want to lose those two pounds and I’m in weight loss now. And I’m really struggling with whether I’m lightly active or active. If anyone here could give me some guidance, I’d really appreciate it.
For further reference, I’m female, 26 years old and I’m 5’6.

Over the course of a week, my weight can fluctuate as much as five pounds total on a day by day basis.
Daily weigh in and logging has been invaluable insight about this exact point. I can see the downward trend over time, which is the ultimate goal for me.

My mental health would be very uneven if I had to achieve the exact same weight every single day. I don't eat or move around exactly the same way every day, and all these things affect my weight. As such, to my thinking, it gives me zero value to try and micromanage a pound or three on the day to day.

savithny

The only reason you'd be "lightly active" would be your intentional exercise.
If you choose to call yourself "lightly active," then you should NOT log that exercise for more calories. You'd be double-counting that activity.

DancingMoosie

It sounds like you are generally sedentary. Set your activity level to sedentary and then log your exercises separately. But don't worry about two pounds, it's probably just water fluctuations.