How to calculate time spent walking at work?

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GenerouslyEm
GenerouslyEm Posts: 7 Member
in Health and Weight Loss
Hello all,
I've been on MFP for about a year now and I'm stuck at 155 after dropping from 163. My goal weight is 140-145. Not far to go but I have hit a serious plateau. We're talking about 4 months at the same weight.
My routine is:
Breakfast- protein heavy, around 165-240 cals
Lunch- about the same
Dinner- usually work food, from the burrito bar that I work at. This meal usually clocks in at around 600-900 cals
Snacks- celery with blue cheese.
I drink often and usually consume 3-4 drinks which I know is terrible. I've started taking a medication this past weekend that will make me sick when I drink (alcoholism runs in the family and I've excepted that I was unable to stop on my own). So that will cut those calories out.

Exercise wise I do the MOVE series on Daily Burn, pilates, and yoga. I have been trying to not workout everyday but instead do two days of half an hour of cardio and half an hour of yoga or pilates and then taking a day off.

SO that's the outline. Now for the real question. I work as a hostess/ busser about 3-5 days a week at an extremely busy bar/restaurant. I do not sit the entire time and for at least 5 hours of my 8 hour shift I am walking at full speed, cleaning, seating, running dishes, and running upstairs.
My concern is that I have no idea how to calculate that into my exercise diary and I don't know how to calculate how many calories to eat back?
I checked how many cals I might burn walking for 5 hours at "Mod Pace, walking dog" on here and it said I'd burn 900 something calories! If that's the case my deficit is absurd!
Any thoughts that might A. kill my plateau, and B. help me figure out what I might actually be burning at work?

Replies

  • sodbuster
    sodbuster Posts: 3 Member
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    I use a FitBit step counter that works great with Myfitnesspal. Check it out @ fitbit.com I think you will like it.
  • GenerouslyEm
    GenerouslyEm Posts: 7 Member
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    Ohhh! That might be a really good investment! Thank you!
  • pricesteve
    pricesteve Posts: 39 Member
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    How accurately are you able to measure the calories in your work food? Your plateau may simply be because you are underestimating your consumption by a couple of hundred calories.
  • somerisagirlsname
    somerisagirlsname Posts: 467 Member
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    Do you have your profile listed as sedentary or lightly active? If it's listed as lightly active or active it is already accounting for the calories that you burn during your daily routine, including working on your feet at a bar/restaurant. That's how MFP is designed. If you are plateauing, just figuring out how to log an exercise that you already do every day probably isn't going to help in figuring things out, but that is just my opinion.

    If I were you I'd just change my settings to reflect that my lifestyle is "lightly active" or "active."
  • Gee_24
    Gee_24 Posts: 359 Member
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    Ohhh! That might be a really good investment! Thank you!

    I have one and its EXCELLENT. As I am off work right now each evening I go out and walk until I feel it vibrate or pulse. Then I know I have hit 10,000 steps and have hit my goal.

    Then I go home and enjoy those extra calories. Its very accurate. I wore a pedometer at the same time on the first day and they were within 50 steps of each other.
  • I_Will_End_You
    I_Will_End_You Posts: 4,397 Member
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    If I were you I'd just change my settings to reflect that my lifestyle is "lightly active" or "active."

    I'd suggest the same. Change it to active, and only log dedicated workouts as workouts. What you do at work is your normal daily activity.
  • QuilterInVA
    QuilterInVA Posts: 672 Member
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    Walking at work is not exercise, it is normal daily activity.
  • Mokey41
    Mokey41 Posts: 5,769 Member
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    Walking at work is not exercise, it is normal daily activity.

    This because sporadic walking back and forth in a restaurant doesn't elevate your heart rate like briskly walking for exercise where you don't stop and start. The extra calorie burn from standing is negligible. You could set your activity level to lightly active and it will account for the fact you don't sit at a desk.

    The more likely culprit in your plateau is your eating. You really don't know how much your food intake is and the drinks add up quickly.
  • _steveruns_
    _steveruns_ Posts: 34
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    LOVE my Fitbit!
  • Francl27
    Francl27 Posts: 26,372 Member
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    I'd get a fitbit, or just switch to TDEE-20% and include that in your activity.
  • SLLRunner
    SLLRunner Posts: 12,943 Member
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    What is you activity level set at? With all your walking at work, it sounds like you are very active.

    It's true, though, walking at work is part of your normal activity and is not counted as extra exercise.

    Since you have been maintaining for the last four months, is there a chance you are underestimating calories ingested and overestimating exercise calories? It's easy to do. I know because I was doing this early on and not losing one single pound.
  • rduhlir
    rduhlir Posts: 3,550 Member
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    OP, just make this easy on yourself. Your activity is lightly active at the least, if not active. Set your activity level accordingly and don't eat your day to day activity calorie burn back.

    Also, depending on the types of drinks you are drinking, they can add up fast. If you aren't keeping tabs on the calorie consumption of those then I agree with Mokey that calories are going to be the culprit. For example, one skinny margaritta from Ruby Tuesdays is 150 calories. Sure one is fine, but start adding more and more and they add up. And after 5 of those things thatis 750 calories, just as much as one slice of dessert pies!
  • xapril77x
    xapril77x Posts: 248 Member
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    I have a Body Media Fit & it gives you your total for the day... It's really helpful!
  • PhoenixStrikes
    PhoenixStrikes Posts: 587 Member
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    I have a Body Media Fit & it gives you your total for the day... It's really helpful!

    I also use the body media fit and it helped me a lot. I know exactly what I burn throughout the day and with accurate logging it can be a really helpful tool. And it showed me that I have a much more active job then I originally thought.
  • GenerouslyEm
    GenerouslyEm Posts: 7 Member
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    Thank you for all the suggestions! I'm be resetting my activity level and will be reassessing calorie burn/intake. Does anyone else use Daily Burn and if so, are the calorie burn estimates accurate?

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