Is there a way to determine individual calories burned?

hj1119

Hello all!

I hit my 90-day streak on my logging and while I'm proud that I logged *something* everyday for the last 3 months, I've decided that for the next 90 days, I want to be 100% accurate. No more eyeballing, no more pretending to myself that anything after 3 beers doesn't count My body knows, right?

So while I'm looking forward to being accurate with calories in, I'm curious - is there any way to determine MY calories out? I know there's approximately 15 billion calculators online but I can't help but feel that putting in my height, weight and selecting a predetermined lifestyle feels a bit... generic. I don't want to "eyeball" my calories out - I want to KNOW.

So is there a secret gadget I don't know about? Should I invest in a fitbit, heartrate monitor, or iphone app that follows me around? Is there a website that I can plug in how long I walked the dog and how many ounces of breastmilk my body produced and it will tell me what *I* actually burned as opposed to every other 5'10, 32 year old female who doesn't have a dog or feed a baby?

I know it's a shot in the dark, I'm just curious...

While I'm asking questions - I determined my "macros" on another website (still learning here!) but can't figure out how to change MFP to show those goals other than selecting a percentage - which is off by a couple of grams. Is that right?

cantfail

Everything is an estimate. I think your most accurate will be a HRM.

jkal1979

First, great job on your loss so far!

I use a Fitbit to calculate my calories burned during the day. It determines your calorie burn by using your age, height, weight and how active you are during the day. It's pretty close estimate but I don't think that there is anything out there that will tell you the exact amount of calories burned during the day. A HRM will not be accurate since it's only meant to be used during steady cardio.

jkal1979

Everything is an estimate. I think your most accurate will be a HRM.

HRM's are not meant to be worn all day. She would get an inaccurate reading if she did.

michelleepotter

Everything is an estimate. I think your most accurate will be a HRM.

HRM's are not meant to be worn all day. She would get an inaccurate reading if she did.

I thought the OP was specifically talking about calories burned during exercise. A FitBit is good for regular activity, but it won't give you an accurate reading for exercise. For that you need a HRM.

I don't use a FitBit or anything like that. I logged consistently and accurately for about a month (weighing my food and using a HRM for exercise), then I looked at the calories I took in vs how much weight I lost (3500 calories per pound), then adjusted my goal accordingly.

evileen99

The BodyMedia Fit is the most accurate metabolic monitor out there; FitBit Zip came in at #2 according to a recently published study. Unless you want to spend all day in a body box, one of these is your best bet to determine how many calories you're burning in a day.

Keefypoos

in short No, its all estimated

StaciMarie1974

HRM is great - but only for steady state cardio. Not all day burn. The body bugg (I think they renamed it Body Media?) meaures all day burn but requires a paid subscription. I use a Fitbit - and very happy with it. Its a fancy pedometer, and uses my movement/activity to estimate calories burned. Is it 100% accurate? Of course not. But its more accurate than the random formulas you mentioned, and requires no subscription.

I aim for a 500 deficit daily, officially. I actually like to have an extra 100-200 calorie deficit as a buffer, and I figure this helps offset burn or intake inaccuracies. In my last 4 week measurement period, I lost 3.8 pounds (goal 4) so this is working for me.

0somuchbetter0

I had the same questions about accuracy and I finally gave up. All of them are estimates, some more accurate than others, but none of them are 100%. You could wear a Fitbit, lift weights for an hour and not move your feet, and it would think you're just sitting there reading a book. I have a HRM that I bought for spinning class (Fitbit can't tell when you're biking, either). It was ok but the strap bothered me and I stopped using it. And the end of the day, only your body really knows how many calories it's consuming and burning, but it won't share the info with your brain! Very frustrating!

I have a Fitbit that I wear all day every day and it claims I burn 1 cal per minute just sitting still. So when I do cardio I subtract those cals...i.e. Fitbit says I burn, say, 350 cals during a 30 minute run. I record that as 320 cals. It's not exact but it makes me happy.

hj1119

Thank you all for your advice..

I'll into the BodyMedia Fit - and also start doing like another poster suggested.. perfectly track a few weeks of accurate intake and compare it to weight loss, see what happens. Thanks guys!

Can I just say that it's insanely frustrating to see "don't estimate or eyeball your food, weigh it and log it accurately!" but in general, calories burned has to be an estimate. Thanks, biology!

hj1119

First, great job on your loss so far!

Thanks!

hj1119

The BodyMedia Fit is the most accurate metabolic monitor out there; FitBit Zip came in at #2 according to a recently published study. Unless you want to spend all day in a body box, one of these is your best bet to determine how many calories you're burning in a day.

I would absolutely spend my day in a body box - where can I sign up?

SmartAlec03211988

I've had a BodyMedia Fit for two years and I've lost over 75 lbs so far... definitely would recommend it.

StaciMarie1974

That's due to your BMR, which is also factored into the MFP calorie recommendations.

I have a Fitbit that I wear all day every day and it claims I burn 1 cal per minute just sitting still. So when I do cardio I subtract those cals...i.e. Fitbit says I burn, say, 350 cals during a 30 minute run. I record that as 320 cals. It's not exact but it makes me happy.

tibby531

Can I just say that it's insanely frustrating to see "don't estimate or eyeball your food, weigh it and log it accurately!" but in general, calories burned has to be an estimate. Thanks, biology!

here, here! :drinker:

hj1119

I've had a BodyMedia Fit for two years and I've lost over 75 lbs so far... definitely would recommend it.

Definitely worth the $120 down, $6.95 a month eh?

Julzanne72

There are ways around paying a membership for a bodymedia....I have one and have had it for a couple of years, yet to pay for the service.

Julzanne72

I've had a BodyMedia Fit for two years and I've lost over 75 lbs so far... definitely would recommend it.

Definitely worth the $120 down, $6.95 a month eh?

The first year is free I believe, and there are ways to avoid paying the 6.95/month after your first year....

WalkingAlong

I think gadgets can be great motivators, personally. But it's all estimates.

Your best estimate is free and at your fingertips. You just have to estimate your food log as best you can and monitor your weight. From that you can back out your calorie burn. If you lose a pound a week on average, you're burning 500ish more than you eat on average. If you're eating on average 1500, you're burning on average 2000ish.

I don't know why so few people bother to do it. I guess because few people track intake well enough to trust that number? Or they don't track their intake long enough to get some long term averages? Or because it's math and that deters people?