Myfitnesspal vs OTHERS (Serious Question)

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jaygregz
jaygregz Posts: 104
in Health and Weight Loss
Okay I have been using the myfitnesspal program for about 2 months and have had great success (30 lbs lost). Tonight while surfing the web I found myself on a popular website similar to MFP that had a calorie calculator. For the sake of not inadvertently promoting another website I will just called this the "YELLOW" website. Well I put in my current weight of 192 and my height (5'8) on the YELLOW website and put that I was sedentary and wanted to lose 2 lbs per week. The Yellow website said that I needed to set a calorie goal of 3350 per day to lose 2 lbs per week. My current calorie goal for losing two pounds per week on my fitness pal is 1300 calories. I have no problem staying below 1300 calories currently, but why the huge difference in opinion? Is the other website just broken or am I missing something?
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Replies

  • mtsips
    mtsips Posts: 24 Member
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    Would you be happy to share with me this yellow website?


    As for any answers to your question - sorry, I have no idea!
  • jaygregz
    jaygregz Posts: 104
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    I think it against the forum rules to post links to other websites.. otherwise I would. Like I said I'm not advertising.. just trying to figure out what's up with the huge difference in opinion. Check your messages.
  • stronglikebull
    stronglikebull Posts: 402
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    most other sites don't assume you're tracking exercise calories and then eating them back. so if you burn a crapload of calories and eat 3500 GROSS cals on the yellow site, and eat 1300 here, plus eating back all your exercise cals, the numbers will probably be closer together. does that make sense?
  • Anayalata
    Anayalata Posts: 391 Member
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    Maybe they mixed up the formula for Sedentary with the one for Heavily Active?

    3300 is a lot to lose 2lb/week unless you're 250lb~ and have an extremely active lifestyle.
  • randiz66
    randiz66 Posts: 22 Member
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    3350 for your weight and height is insane. I would think you would gain weight. Just my opinion. I really don't know, did you double check your information to make sure you did not type incorrectly something in
  • jaygregz
    jaygregz Posts: 104
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    Well I don't eat my calories back. I seem to stay right at my calorie goal of 1300 and have only gone over 1 time since starting 2 months ago.
  • Maximumresults
    Maximumresults Posts: 175
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    all the calculators are just estimates(gives you a starting point)...you need to see what level of calories and exercise program is going to be personally suitable for you..
  • catsinpajamas
    catsinpajamas Posts: 55
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    I think I know Yellow, and have been on it for some time. I got started on MFP to support my friend. I have come to like both, and try to balance out each's ideas and goals. You have a larger discrepency that I do on how many cals I 'should' be eating for weight loss... so for that I say, experiment until you find out what works best for your body. After all, that's what these sites are for, yeah? To train us?

    Ha. Sorry I'm not much help. I could just relate to using two different (and I think the same) sites. Good luck on your journey!
  • emmymae22
    emmymae22 Posts: 206
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    I think it against the forum rules to post links to other websites.. otherwise I would. Like I said I'm not advertising.. just trying to figure out what's up with the huge difference in opinion. Check your messages.

    Lol what is this, communist Russia?? Expose the yellow site!! :)
  • LaMujerMasBonitaDelMundo
    LaMujerMasBonitaDelMundo Posts: 3,634 Member
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    It maybe that on that yellow website everything including your workouts are already accounted for whereas here in MFP it only accounts for your daily activities outside of your formal workouts which is why the settings are very low.
  • yeabby
    yeabby Posts: 643 Member
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    The other site has my calories set at 833 to lose 2lb/week..... a little scary.
  • txbutterfly69
    txbutterfly69 Posts: 115 Member
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    Okay I have been using the myfitnesspal program for about 2 months and have had great success (30 lbs lost). Tonight while surfing the web I found myself on a popular website similar to MFP that had a calorie calculator. For the sake of not inadvertently promoting another website I will just called this the "YELLOW" website. Well I put in my current weight of 192 and my height (5'8) on the YELLOW website and put that I was sedentary and wanted to lose 2 lbs per week. The Yellow website said that I needed to set a calorie goal of 3350 per day to lose 2 lbs per week. My current calorie goal for losing two pounds per week on my fitness pal is 1300 calories. I have no problem staying below 1300 calories currently, but why the huge difference in opinion? Is the other website just broken or am I missing something?

    Livestrong? To be fair, I used livestrong about 5 years ago and was very successful. It did give me more calories to eat and I lost. I quit logging, eating like my teenage daughter and gained, so I started again. MFP gives me very low calories, but I tend to go over anyways to try and do what I was doing before.

    Although I mentioned another website, I have to admit that MFP is easier to use and I love that you can scan food labels with my android phone. Makes logging so much easier. Even to create a recipe.

    Just wish that MFP would allow you to save exercises like you save a meal. Also wish that you could share recipes like the other website.
  • halobender
    halobender Posts: 780 Member
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    I think stronglikebull is correct in the assertion that they were factoring in calories burned, as well.

    That factors in a lot of exercise, that may be due to something entered in there, or maybe they would put you at 1800 calories net and expect you to burn 1700 calories. That's a lot of calories to burn, but if you mark yourself sedentary they suggest more calories burned per day, as well. Particularly since you want to burn two pounds a week.
  • jaygregz
    jaygregz Posts: 104
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    Okay I figured it out. For some reason I kept reentering it and it finally said 1350. Apparently 3350 was for gain 2 lbs even though I was putting lose 2 lbs (I'm sure it wasn't operators error.. maybe something with my browser perhaps?) Either way 1350 is more inline with what MFP says and I'm happy with the small difference.
  • LaMujerMasBonitaDelMundo
    LaMujerMasBonitaDelMundo Posts: 3,634 Member
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    I think it against the forum rules to post links to other websites.. otherwise I would. Like I said I'm not advertising.. just trying to figure out what's up with the huge difference in opinion. Check your messages.

    Lol what is this, communist Russia?? Expose the yellow site!! :)

    Unfortunately that's true. I once posted a thread with a link & then I got a PM from the moderators saying that posting links aren't allowed.
  • jaygregz
    jaygregz Posts: 104
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    LOL, Can you imagine if I would have started eating 3350 how mad I'd be after a week?
  • fmbomzo
    fmbomzo Posts: 382 Member
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    MFP is roughly doing this:

    Your BMR which would be approximately 1750 x the highest sedentary factor (1.4) minus the deficit needed to lose 2 lbs a week (7000 cals per week).

    So about 2300 TDEE minus 1000. If you changed your activity level, it would increase your calorie goal by the daily amount of estimated calorie burn.
  • emmymae22
    emmymae22 Posts: 206
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    I think it against the forum rules to post links to other websites.. otherwise I would. Like I said I'm not advertising.. just trying to figure out what's up with the huge difference in opinion. Check your messages.

    Lol what is this, communist Russia?? Expose the yellow site!! :)

    Unfortunately that's true. I once posted a thread with a link & then I got a PM from the moderators saying that posting links aren't allowed.
    Man, I had no idea. Crazy!
  • jaygregz
    jaygregz Posts: 104
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    Yeah I like the articles on there but MFPs community is amazing. Everyone here is really down to earth, chatty, and welcoming. I can't imagine using another program for that reason alone. PLUS the bar scan on my iphone app is so convenient.
  • shorty35565
    shorty35565 Posts: 1,425 Member
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    3500 cals= 1lb of fat. If ur sedentary there is NO WAY you should be eating that much imo.
    Ok, I see you did it wrong. I was thinking, wth lol

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