Can we define "active"??

BflSaberfan
BflSaberfan Posts: 1,272
edited January 15 in Health and Weight Loss
What is an "active" person to you? To me it would be someone with a hard labor job, and fairly athletic in their person life - my husband for example. Then there is me, I sit at a desk 8 hours a day. I do work out 6 days a week for about 45mins (3 days Insnity, 3 days at the gym)....that to me is not active. He is getting easily 50 hours of "activity" a week. I am getting at the very most 6 hours a week. The reason I ask is because every BMR calculator takes your activity level into consideration and with only 6 hours of exercise per week I would consider myself sedentary, although I know those 6 hours are better than zero hours a week. I dont know. I guess I'm confused.

Replies

  • KANGOOJUMPS
    KANGOOJUMPS Posts: 6,474 Member
    active to me, is a person that gets off their *kitten* and goes all day long.
    no sitting. no watching tv,
    and no computer.,
    so if your reading this,
    get your *kitten* off that chair and go for a walk.
  • Timshel_
    Timshel_ Posts: 22,834 Member
    active to me, is a person that gets off their *kitten* and goes all day long.
    no sitting. no watching tv,
    and no computer.,
    so if your reading this,
    get your *kitten* off that chair and go for a walk.

    I would go along with this. Just rarely sitting and always moving in some way, shape or form.
  • MinnieInMaine
    MinnieInMaine Posts: 6,400 Member
    The calculator should have a definition attached so that it's clear. That's why I like

    http://scoobysworkshop.com/calorie-calculator/

    It clearly gives you a range of exercise level.

    Personally, this is why I prefer eating at BMR then adding in earned exercise calories. My activity level is mostly consistent but my burns can vary depending on what I'm doing (per my HRM) so I think it's more accurate this way.
  • mfpcopine
    mfpcopine Posts: 3,093 Member
    What is an "active" person to you? To me it would be someone with a hard labor job, and fairly athletic in their person life - my husband for example. Then there is me, I sit at a desk 8 hours a day. I do work out 6 days a week for about 45mins (3 days Insnity, 3 days at the gym)....that to me is not active. He is getting easily 50 hours of "activity" a week. I am getting at the very most 6 hours a week. The reason I ask is because every BMR calculator takes your activity level into consideration and with only 6 hours of exercise per week I would consider myself sedentary, although I know those 6 hours are better than zero hours a week. I dont know. I guess I'm confused.

    I would consider you "Lightly Active." Your question underscores the need to know the definition for active used by a given calculator and, above all, to use your own judgment, commonsense, and observational powers.
  • cwolfman13
    cwolfman13 Posts: 41,865 Member
    BMR isn't be based on an activity level. I think you're confusing BMR and TDEE. BMR is just based on sex, weight, height, and age...also BF% if you are using the Katch Mcardle formula. TDEE is activity above and beyond your BMR. It generally requires playing with your numbers a bit. For example, on most calculators I'm in between light active and active. The TDEE calculator on the If It fit my Macros website is pretty awesome if you're honest with it because you can actually enter how many hours per week you do x, y, & z Here's what my days look like:

    Desk Job
    roughly 3 hrs per day cleaning, cooking, chasing after my kiddos, etc.
    8 hrs per day sleeping or otherwise in bed
    270 minutes per week (4.5 hrs) working out various intensity levels
    Remaining time is driving, sitting at my desk working...just day to day living type stuff.

    I think many people who think they are sedentary are more active than they think they are...and they think to be even remotely considered light active or active, they have to be moving all of the time. In reality, I think more people are at least light active vs sedentary.
  • taso42
    taso42 Posts: 8,980 Member
    I consider myself active. Most of the time I sit around, at work, at home. But for 4.5 hours out of the week, and sometimes more, I exercise, rather intensely. That's enough to push me somewhere in between the moderately active and heavily active categories in Harris Benedict.
  • XXXMinnieXXX
    XXXMinnieXXX Posts: 3,459 Member
    I'd say your lightly active. Even sat doing nothing I personally burn more that MFPs sedentary setting. I get a calorie adjustment for sitting on my *kitten* with body media but that's me! I find its a great tool for working g out your TDEE
  • shelbyaline
    shelbyaline Posts: 2
    Based on your job, which takes up a major part of the day, I'd say you are lightly active. You exercise, which is great! And that's taken into account on MFP when you add in your cardiovascular workouts. But for calculating how many calories you need each day and how fast your body metabolizes them, you need to look at your day as a whole, which seems to be lightly active. Which is the same as me--a student. So getting that exercise in is important... keep it up!
  • Mokey41
    Mokey41 Posts: 5,769 Member
    It depends what you're using as a calculator. For MFP settings someone with a desk job is sedentary and you add your exercise in extra. For most TDEE calculators you include your exercise in the calculation but they really don't ask what you do other than exercise. To me it doesn't make sense that someone who sits at a desk all day but exercises a few hour a week is lightly active the same as someone who works construction all day and exercises a few hours a week.
  • lbesaw
    lbesaw Posts: 267 Member
    I set mine at sedentary---because of my work. But I'm NOT a couch potato by anyone's description! Keeps my daily calories lower but I am definitely reaping the benefits. I thought of updating it since I work out for 90 minutes 4 days per week but decided I would leave it as is because I am happy with my progress.:smile:
  • Oishii
    Oishii Posts: 2,675 Member
    I need more calories just to not lose than mfp would give me if I was 'highly active' and I'm just a teacher. I don't consider myself 'highly active', but none of the calculators get close to my TDEE unless I say I am!
  • UsedToBeHusky
    UsedToBeHusky Posts: 15,228 Member
    You are lightly active, but NOT sedentary! Your co-workers that sit at work 8 hours a day just to go home, plop down on the couch, and veg out in front of the TV are sedentary.
  • ndj1979
    ndj1979 Posts: 29,136 Member
    active = three days a week of doing an hour of some kind of aerobic activity ...weight lifting, cardio, etc
  • ndj1979
    ndj1979 Posts: 29,136 Member
    for me personally I work out about 1.5/hrs four days a week and throw in one HIIT session on saturday of about 8 sprints with 30 second work and 40 second rest....and my TDEE is calculatd based on moderatly active which is 3-5 days of exercise...
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