CALORIES IN/CALORIES OUT
Replies
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It sounds like maybe you're saying that your Garmin is double counting calories when you do Zumba - counting some calories for the actual Zumba but also giving you a higher calorie burn for the extra steps it counts during Zumba class?
I would try going into your exercise diary and checking what adjustment is coming across from your Garmin (I have an Apple Watch, so mine appears as "MFP iOS calorie adjustment" - I assume you'd see something similar for your Garmin). Just click on the little information flag next to it and you'll see how it's calculated - here's an example of mine for my iOS adjustment:
If you think this is giving you too much credit, delete the entry (there's a little red button on the right to do this). Then make sure your Zumba activity is showing the right amount of calories (if it looks a bit high still, you can click on it and edit the calorie burn to that 3-400 range that seems more accurate).
I'm no expert on Garmins, but I suspect that it's not recognising that it's double-counting on your activity.0 -
Thanks guys, yes i definitely wasnt eating the extra mow i know is 300-400 ishhh what do they mean
“eat back”? They said eat all 1500! Whats eat back all bout??0 -
Thanks guys, yes i definitely wasnt eating the extra mow i know is 300-400 ishhh what do they mean
“eat back”? They said eat all 1500! Whats eat back all bout??
It means eat the calories you burned exercising.
Suppose your budget for the day is 1500 calories. If you eat 1500 calories and then burn 300 calories exercising, your net calorie intake for the day is actually 1200. So, you need to eat 300 more calories, to bring your net intake to 1500.
MFP's method expects you to eat back calories burned doing purposeful exercise, so that your net intake is whatever number it gives you. Not doing that results in a higher deficit than MFP calculated for you, which may not be a safe or sustainable rate of loss. Side effects of eating too little range from "feeling kind of crappy" to literal organ failure, so, y'know, don't do that.6 -
Thanks guys, yes i definitely wasnt eating the extra mow i know is 300-400 ishhh what do they mean
“eat back”? They said eat all 1500! Whats eat back all bout??
You're making it harder than it needs to be. When you put your stats and activity level, MFP calculates about how much it takes for you to maintain (TDEE/Maintenance). Then when you put in your weekly goal of loss it figures out how many calories to take off your TDEE to lose your goal.
So, hypothetically: A person puts in all of their info and gets a TDEE of 2000 calories with the goal to lose 1lb per week (-500 calories) for a goal of 1500.
2000 TDEE - 500 cal deficit = 1500 daily calories to lose 1lb per week.
Now, lets say this person has a gym session that burns 300 calories. Now, that TDEE goes up by 300.
2000 + 300 = 2300 calories new TDEE.
Now, the goal is still to lose 1lb a week, so:
2300 - 500 = 1800 daily calories to lose 1lb per week. That's what it means by "eat back" your exercise calories.4 -
Okay so ATM i am doing x2 60min zumba classs... in my MFP goals it still has me as ‘LIGHTLY ACTIVE’ and 1450cals
Shoukd i change it to MOT VERY ACTIVE?? 1240calories🤔🤔0 -
OK, so let's try simplifying this.
One. Stop wearing your Garmin, it's muddying the waters here in a way that is not serving your goals.
Two. Go through the guided setup again. When you get to the Activity Level question, base your answer on what you do all day BESIDES Zumba. If you work outside the home, what kind of job do you have? If you don't work outside the home, about how many waking hours per day do you spend sitting down?
Once you have that reconfigured, eat that many calories every day, plus however many you burn doing Zumba (or half or 75% of those calories, since MFP tends to overestimate). An hour of sustained high-intensity cardio will burn 400-500 calories on average; probably good to err on the side of underestimating, so let's call it 350 calories per Zumba sesh, that's 500-700 extra calories per day on top of your MFP goal that you should eat.
Do that for 4-6 weeks and see what the data say.5 -
ThankU
I have stopped sync’g now i know its BS really🤔
I still record what im eating makes me accountable.
Just seems these calorie counting cant be trusted! Only things certain is the scanning on products i know for certain if im correct👍🏼 But i visited docs also said 1500 was way too high originally had activity set to ‘very active’ =1500 cals i DIDNT drop ANY weight! (Wk1-4)
Lowered activity to ‘lightly active’ =1490 still NO CHANGE to weight (wk4-6)
TODAY I thought may ill change activity to ‘not very active’
=1200cals...
SEE WHAT HAPPENS NOW0 -
ThankU
I have stopped sync’g now i know its BS really🤔
I still record what im eating makes me accountable.
Just seems these calorie counting cant be trusted! Only things certain is the scanning on products i know for certain if im correct👍🏼 But i visited docs also said 1500 was way too high originally had activity set to ‘very active’ =1500 cals i DIDNT drop ANY weight! (Wk1-4)
Lowered activity to ‘lightly active’ =1490 still NO CHANGE to weight (wk4-6)
TODAY I thought may ill change activity to ‘not very active’
=1200cals...
SEE WHAT HAPPENS NOW
You haven't been doing any of this long enough to know if it's working. What did you base your "very active" activity level on originally?3 -
Some full weeks i was boxing a few days + 2 zumba class’s
Friday last Here in Melb, Australia 🇦🇺 We had a snap 5 day lockdown i had zumba EVERY DAY... now im back to two days only zumba.. kids after school, working, kids sports taking it week by week what i can do🙏🏼1 -
ThankU
I have stopped sync’g now i know its BS really🤔
I still record what im eating makes me accountable.
Just seems these calorie counting cant be trusted! Only things certain is the scanning on products i know for certain if im correct👍🏼 But i visited docs also said 1500 was way too high originally had activity set to ‘very active’ =1500 cals i DIDNT drop ANY weight! (Wk1-4)
Lowered activity to ‘lightly active’ =1490 still NO CHANGE to weight (wk4-6)
TODAY I thought may ill change activity to ‘not very active’
=1200cals...
SEE WHAT HAPPENS NOW
No, scanning products is not certain. The database is still crowd sourced, i.e., regular MFP users create the food entries, even the bar coded ones. They may've entered them incorrectly, they may be for outdated formulations of the product, maybe even for another country's version of the product, etc. Compare to what the product label says the first time you use a bar code, make sure the entry is correct.
Frankly, the learning curve for logging accurately is one of the biggest issues for most people who don't lose weight as expected on X number of calories (at a calorie level that should work). This is not a personal criticism, it's just a recognition that all of us go through a learning process with logging (food *and* exercise).
Your food diary is private. If you make it public to other MFP users, some of the old hands may be able to take a look and help you refine your logging practice.
In the short run, make sure you're logging every BLT (Bite, Lick, Taste), not forgetting oils used in cooking, dressings, beverages, condiments etc. If you include a "cheat day", log that, too, even if you have to estimate. Measure or weigh your portions, especially for calorie-dense things. (Weighing on a food scale is preferred, not just because it's more accurate but because it's also quicker and easier once you learn the tricks. A food scale only costs about the price of a takeout pizza, so it's not prohibitive for most people.)4 -
Some full weeks i was boxing a few days + 2 zumba class’s
Friday last Here in Melb, Australia 🇦🇺 We had a snap 5 day lockdown i had zumba EVERY DAY... now im back to two days only zumba.. kids after school, working, kids sports taking it week by week what i can do🙏🏼
Okay but that's still purposeful exercise. Your MFP activity level is supposed to reflect how active you are OUTSIDE OF purposeful exercise. If you DON'T count any of that, what's your activity level like? During the times when you AREN'T boxing or Zumba-ing, what are you doing? Are you sitting down? Standing in one place, maybe moving your arms a bit? Walking or running around? Doing a lot of bending, reaching, lifting, digging, carrying things from place to place?2 -
You are running around with kids. You have household responsibilities, nights & weekends.
Set activity level to Lightly-Active.
Leave it alone, log food accurately, log exercise as best you can accurately - and correctly eat more when you do more.
You are a woman so require a month of good data to actually see a trend or have valid info to make a decision about.
Unless you want your workouts to start sucking due to deficit being too big, or worse side effects as body attempts to adapt to a crazy situation it senses.
As to logging workout - I'm betting you saw a big MFP Calorie adjustment that included the exercise, AND the fact your daily activity level as more than MFP was set for.
MFP was merely trying to correct itself.
If you were set to sedentary before, and had workouts coming in of say 200-400 or more, and are very active otherwise - I could see a total add-on to eating goal of 1000 easily.
I think the Garmin sync probably wasn't that bad, it was being misread.
I'm curious what Garmin reported for the Zumba calorie burn all on it's own - not you logging it after the fact and picking a database entry to use - yes that is likely inflated.5 -
ThankU
I have stopped sync’g now i know its BS really🤔
I still record what im eating makes me accountable.
Just seems these calorie counting cant be trusted! Only things certain is the scanning on products i know for certain if im correct👍🏼 But i visited docs also said 1500 was way too high originally had activity set to ‘very active’ =1500 cals i DIDNT drop ANY weight! (Wk1-4)
Lowered activity to ‘lightly active’ =1490 still NO CHANGE to weight (wk4-6)
TODAY I thought may ill change activity to ‘not very active’
=1200cals...
SEE WHAT HAPPENS NOW
No, scanning products is not certain. The database is still crowd sourced, i.e., regular MFP users create the food entries, even the bar coded ones. They may've entered them incorrectly, they may be for outdated formulations of the product, maybe even for another country's version of the product, etc. Compare to what the product label says the first time you use a bar code, make sure the entry is correct.
Frankly, the learning curve for logging accurately is one of the biggest issues for most people who don't lose weight as expected on X number of calories (at a calorie level that should work). This is not a personal criticism, it's just a recognition that all of us go through a learning process with logging (food *and* exercise).
Your food diary is private. If you make it public to other MFP users, some of the old hands may be able to take a look and help you refine your logging practice.
In the short run, make sure you're logging every BLT (Bite, Lick, Taste), not forgetting oils used in cooking, dressings, beverages, condiments etc. If you include a "cheat day", log that, too, even if you have to estimate. Measure or weigh your portions, especially for calorie-dense things. (Weighing on a food scale is preferred, not just because it's more accurate but because it's also quicker and easier once you learn the tricks. A food scale only costs about the price of a takeout pizza, so it's not prohibitive for most people.)ThankU
I have stopped sync’g now i know its BS really🤔
I still record what im eating makes me accountable.
Just seems these calorie counting cant be trusted! Only things certain is the scanning on products i know for certain if im correct👍🏼 But i visited docs also said 1500 was way too high originally had activity set to ‘very active’ =1500 cals i DIDNT drop ANY weight! (Wk1-4)
Lowered activity to ‘lightly active’ =1490 still NO CHANGE to weight (wk4-6)
TODAY I thought may ill change activity to ‘not very active’
=1200cals...
SEE WHAT HAPPENS NOW
No, scanning products is not certain. The database is still crowd sourced, i.e., regular MFP users create the food entries, even the bar coded ones. They may've entered them incorrectly, they may be for outdated formulations of the product, maybe even for another country's version of the product, etc. Compare to what the product label says the first time you use a bar code, make sure the entry is correct.
Frankly, the learning curve for logging accurately is one of the biggest issues for most people who don't lose weight as expected on X number of calories (at a calorie level that should work). This is not a personal criticism, it's just a recognition that all of us go through a learning process with logging (food *and* exercise).
Your food diary is private. If you make it public to other MFP users, some of the old hands may be able to take a look and help you refine your logging practice.
In the short run, make sure you're logging every BLT (Bite, Lick, Taste), not forgetting oils used in cooking, dressings, beverages, condiments etc. If you include a "cheat day", log that, too, even if you have to estimate. Measure or weigh your portions, especially for calorie-dense things. (Weighing on a food scale is preferred, not just because it's more accurate but because it's also quicker and easier once you learn the tricks. A food scale only costs about the price of a takeout pizza, so it's not prohibitive for most people.)
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Thanks guys... still troopering on :-D
Scanning
MFP is scanning product bar codes correctly as wats on the ingred list (Australian Food standard list req’)
EG: lunch now ( 12pm Sat here 🇦🇺) large salad & 125g chix, balsamic glaze & crushed nuts all measured👍🏼 Plus im doing protein ‘LADY SHAKE’ shake replacing 1 meal.
Oh & as im a ‘Jillian Michaels’ fan she posted alot of vlogs on CI CO been awesome ive done my (sedentary) BMR 1500
As working 2/3days, home duties ect...Mod activity i thought AMR 1800 plus then additional exercise, zumba x2 400 each ill calculate that day.
Jillian advised need 800/900 daily deficit too see faster results...
(we need to burn 3500cals to see 0.5kg... )
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balsamic glaze is calorically dense (at least I consider it so, heck even some balsamic vinegars are substantially more calories than other vinegars). How many GRAMS did you use?
crushed nuts are ABSOLUTELY calorically dense. How many GRAMS?
Large salad?
What is a large salad?
What does it have in it?
I am about to log right now:
251g of potatoes skin and flesh, boiled with salt (I had their raw weight but someone snagged a few when they came out of the pot. In any case, raw and boiled potatoes are within a gram most of the time...)
75g of carrots boiled, drained, cooked in salt and 110g carrots, raw (hey I had leftovers from yesterday)
380g (riced) cauliflower, raw
7g salted butter (2 of those grams are for olive oil spray, but I'm logging "loosely" these days)
240g Chicken, broilers or fryers, leg, meat and skin, cooked, roasted (after having looked for the closest SR Legacy entry using USDA's FoodData Central -- that's for my two "whole chicken legs" that I pan roasted.
I will also log 4g of lemon pepper seasoning (since I am logging "loosely") to account for the lemon pepper and lemon and herb spice and tarragon I used. I did not actually weight them. It's an eyeball.
Plus 4g of fresh garlic (since I have the entry handy) to account for 2g of freeze dried garlic that I threw into the riced cauliflower when I tossed it with butter after it came out of the microwave. That's also an eyeball based on previous weigh ins of the freeze dried garlic.
And 69.5g of Cliff almond fudge bar
During this loose logging exercise I will NOT log the two cans of coke zero I drank.
So there you go.6 -
balsamic glaze is calorically dense (at least I consider it so, heck even some balsamic vinegars are substantially more calories than other vinegars). How many GRAMS did you use?
crushed nuts are ABSOLUTELY calorically dense. How many GRAMS?
Large salad?
What is a large salad?
What does it have in it?
I am about to log right now:
251g of potatoes skin and flesh, boiled with salt (I had their raw weight but someone snagged a few when they came out of the pot. In any case, raw and boiled potatoes are within a gram most of the time...)
75g of carrots boiled, drained, cooked in salt and 110g carrots, raw (hey I had leftovers from yesterday)
380g (riced) cauliflower, raw
7g salted butter (2 of those grams are for olive oil spray, but I'm logging "loosely" these days)
240g Chicken, broilers or fryers, leg, meat and skin, cooked, roasted (after having looked for the closest SR Legacy entry using USDA's FoodData Central -- that's for my two "whole chicken legs" that I pan roasted.
I will also log 4g of lemon pepper seasoning (since I am logging "loosely") to account for the lemon pepper and lemon and herb spice and tarragon I used. I did not actually weight them. It's an eyeball.
Plus 4g of fresh garlic (since I have the entry handy) to account for 2g of freeze dried garlic that I threw into the riced cauliflower when I tossed it with butter after it came out of the microwave. That's also an eyeball based on previous weigh ins of the freeze dried garlic.
And 69.5g of Cliff almond fudge bar
During this loose logging exercise I will NOT log the two cans of coke zero I drank.
So there you go.
Yeah, so my dinner was like this:
177g - Beef, short Loin, Top Loin, Seperable Lean Only , Trimmed To 0" Fat, Choice, raw
85g - Pasta, white, cooked
10g - Land O lakes spreadable butter (verified against label)
114g - Mushrooms, white, raw
1g - nonstick spray
With desert...
4 FL oz - 2% milk (verified against label)
4 - oreo thins (I've weighed enough of these to know that a serving size is pretty spot on, really no variance)
I try pretty hard to be accurate with my at home stuff, since there are times when I'll be eating out for entire weekends and working my best guesses or using chain information.2 -
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Was the prepared bowl of food actually 280 g?
Since you logged just 1 bowl.
What if the food portion weighed 310 g though?
224 cal actually.
I almost always see a single serving size pack weigh more, sometimes by decent amount.
Multi-serving items where a person will normally eat the whole thing (soup) really show this up.
6 -
mmmm..... want your desert!
Note that ice cream (and other items with a lot of air or high fat content) tends to weigh less than 1g per 1ml. And in Canada at least the package list the volume (ml) measurement, making it very hard to weigh the contents. (the database does have entries for a few of these items by weight; but you have to carefully check)
2
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