Question about activity level settings

sarahbear1981

I have my level set to sedentary because I do not have a job right now and the examples are based on work. I guess not having a job is comparable to having a desk job. However, I do workout an hour and a half everyday, in the pool, swimming my butt off. I run errands for my disabled mother and do a bit of gardening. In other words, I don't sit all the time. Should I switch my level to lightly active because of the exercise or keep it sedentary until i get a job teaching, at which point I will be standing most of the time.

ladyhawk00

Most likely, sedentary is still the best option for you. But when you choose sedentary, you will need to log most of your significant activity. MFP will then add cals for that activity, and you should eat at least some of those cals, to keep the built in calorie deficit stable.

May help to read these:

http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/186814-some-mfp-basics

http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/61706-guide-to-calorie-deficits

sarahbear1981

Thanks for the thread links. I have read both before but I guess I needed a refresher. I suppose it is better to be safe than sorry. I will stick with sedentary until I weigh less.

ladyhawk00

Thanks for the thread links. I have read both before but I guess I needed a refresher. I suppose it is better to be safe than sorry. I will stick with sedentary until I weigh less.

If you're losing on schedule, don't fix what ain't broken.

If you're not, I wouldn't necessarily change activity level. While exercise and fitness level can change what you burn on a daily basis, over and above the amount specified when you log exercise, it usually requires a pretty high level of muscle mass for that to have enough impact that you need to have a higher activity level setting.