Question about my fitbit adjustment

Krisstah

So i really need help understanding this, so i can make the fitbit adjustment work for me and my weight loss goals.

So. MFP has me set at 2530 calories a day, -1000 calories for a 2lbs a week weight loss, equals 1530 calories for food a day before excersize.

I mostly use my fitbit for work, because i work 12 hour shifts and am go go go all day.

So today i walked 20,727 steps and climbed 28 flights of stairs. Fitbit says ive burned 3150 calories today. When i get home, it syncs to the computer and when i go to my excersize diary it says "fitbit adjustment 976 calories" ...

This leaving me with the question, WHERE do they get this number from? because if i subtract 3150 from 2530 i only get 620, and if i subtract 1530, i get 1620.. soo.. can someone please for the love of all things holy, explain how this works to me? so i have an idea of just how much of these "extra" calories are real?

Krisstah

bump

diddyk

Does it say 2530 then you subtracted 1000 for your goal? Or does it say 2530 based on a 2lb a week loss?

UticaBoy51

It also calculates the calories that you burn just from doing essentially nothing. Like the sleep calories burned, they are in addition to the moving around.

bikinibeliever

Bumping for a friend that has the same question.

zyxst

If I understand it correctly, the adjustment is what Fitbit thinks is more than your activity level on MFP. It's your activity level on MFP vs activity on Fitbit, but I have no clue why the numbers don't match (adjustment of 976 vs. 620).

meyerjf

The 3150 calories burned that show up on fitbit sounds suspiciously high to me. I would try contacting fitbit - their customer service is very good.

bikinibeliever

Is the 3150 for the entire 24 hour period? If so that is about what I burn in 24 hours on a working day.

kristina509

When you're using the Fitbit AND MFP, you want to stick with one or the other, as they're never going to match. I stick with MFP, and it has gone very well for me. According to the Fitbit I burn less calories than I would if I just entered in my exercise, but that just helps me work harder. There is a forum on here just for Fitbit users which may help, also.

Krisstah

the 3150 is just from 5am to 7pm from when i wake up and go to work and when i get home.

If i was to use MFP instead of my fitbit, then what would be the point of wearing it? id be putting in all that walking and stairs climbed and still only have 1530 calories for the day? there has to be some excersize out of the 12 hours of busting my butt at some point.

diddyk

the 3150 is just from 5am to 7pm from when i wake up and go to work and when i get home.

If i was to use MFP instead of my fitbit, then what would be the point of wearing it? id be putting in all that walking and stairs climbed and still only have 1530 calories for the day? there has to be some excersize out of the 12 hours of busting my butt at some point.

I'm guessing, you have MFP at a sedentary level? MFP gives you a BMR of 2530, less 1000 calories for 2lb per week loss is 1530. Fitbit calculates that you were very active (20,000 steps is a lot) and your actual burn was 3150. In order to get your MFP calorie adjustment, it looks at what you've burnt, what MFP says your goal is, and adjusts so your calorie goal is 1000 less than what you burnt for the day.

If you were to change your MFP setting to active (which 20,000 steps is), it would probably give you a much higher calorie goal than 1530. The point of wearing it...it's giving you credit for busting your butt all day. It would be instead of logging a few hours of walking.

I have my MFP set to sedentary, as some days I am. Most day I am fairly active, and I get an adjustment of 300-400 calories (not nearly 20,000 steps.) Days where I'm not working, sitting at home and watching tv, I am truly sedentary and I don't get an adjustment.

Hope this helps.

Krisstah

the 3150 is just from 5am to 7pm from when i wake up and go to work and when i get home.

If i was to use MFP instead of my fitbit, then what would be the point of wearing it? id be putting in all that walking and stairs climbed and still only have 1530 calories for the day? there has to be some excersize out of the 12 hours of busting my butt at some point.

I'm guessing, you have MFP at a sedentary level? MFP gives you a BMR of 2530, less 1000 calories for 2lb per week loss is 1530. Fitbit calculates that you were very active (20,000 steps is a lot) and your actual burn was 3150. In order to get your MFP calorie adjustment, it looks at what you've burnt, what MFP says your goal is, and adjusts so your calorie goal is 1000 less than what you burnt for the day.

If you were to change your MFP setting to active (which 20,000 steps is), it would probably give you a much higher calorie goal than 1530. The point of wearing it...it's giving you credit for busting your butt all day. It would be instead of logging a few hours of walking.

I have my MFP set to sedentary, as some days I am. Most day I am fairly active, and I get an adjustment of 300-400 calories (not nearly 20,000 steps.) Days where I'm not working, sitting at home and watching tv, I am truly sedentary and I don't get an adjustment.

Hope this helps.

My MFP is set to lightly active. When i go to the "BMR" thing and calculate it, it tells me "your estimated BMR is: 1,873 calories/day*"

But on the "goals page" i have

NUTRITIONAL GOALS GOALS
Net Calories Consumed* / Day 1,530 calories/day
Carbs / Day 153 g
Fat / Day 51 g
Protein / Day 115 g
FITNESS GOALS GOALS
Calories Burned / Week 1,150 calories/week
Workouts / Week 3 Workouts
Minutes / Workout 40 mins
YOUR DIET PROFILE TARGET
Calories Burned
From Normal Daily Activity 2,530 calories/day
Net Calories Consumed*
Your Daily Goal 1,530 calories/ day
Daily Calorie Deficit 1,000 calories
Projected Weight Loss 2.0 lbs/ week


This is why i am confused.. =/

diddyk

My MFP is set to lightly active. When i go to the "BMR" thing and calculate it, it tells me "your estimated BMR is: 1,873 calories/day*"

But on the "goals page" i have

NUTRITIONAL GOALS GOALS
Net Calories Consumed* / Day 1,530 calories/day
Carbs / Day 153 g
Fat / Day 51 g
Protein / Day 115 g
FITNESS GOALS GOALS
Calories Burned / Week 1,150 calories/week
Workouts / Week 3 Workouts
Minutes / Workout 40 mins
YOUR DIET PROFILE TARGET
Calories Burned
From Normal Daily Activity 2,530 calories/day
Net Calories Consumed*
Your Daily Goal 1,530 calories/ day
Daily Calorie Deficit 1,000 calories
Projected Weight Loss 2.0 lbs/ week


This is why i am confused.. =/

MFP is estimating your burn to be 2530. Fitbit is telling you you actually burnt 3150. That is where your adjustment comes from.

The fitness goals in MFP have no impact on your calorie goal, just targets to achieve.

The difference in the FitBit adjustment might have to do with a FitBit setting. Go in Fitbit and on the Food Plan settings, change it to "Sedentary". This way it won't estimate your calorie burn for the entire day based on your very active work day. It gives you the adjustment as you burn the calories. When I had it to Personalized, if I was very active in the morning it would give me a big credit, then if I sat around all night the credit would slowly disappear, it assumed I would continue to be that active for the rest of the day. If you change this it might lower your adjustment.

Krisstah

okay i will pop in there and try that, ill let you know if i had to change it

Krisstah

well i changed it but i dont know if changing the food plan on fitbit is going to do anything for myfitnesspal's fitbit adjustment

diddyk

It changes the way Fitbit calculates your adjustment. If it is personalized, it might think you are going to carry on running around all evening too. If it is sedentary, you earn the adjustment as you are more/less active throughout the day.

MFP and FitBit always have a small discrepancy in what my calorie goal should be, but for the most part it is within 100 calories for any given day.

It may take a little while for FitBit to recalculate your adjustment and send it to MFP.

Krisstah

okay, i set it and changed my plan to hard so it was back to 1000 calories = 2lbs a week lost and fitbit is saying 2412 and mfp say 2473 which is very close so thats better.. now, if mfp adjusts to the 290 fitbit is saying, i think we have solved the problem

Krisstah

well it didnt change, still says 900+ calories for extra calories earned today.. and with only an hour and a half left until midnight, i cant see it dropping much more then that.. gosh im confused. =( i still dont know how fitbit got this 900 something number in the first place.

diddyk

It could be accurate. 3150 burnt is significantly more than the MFP goal.