New user: Logging Horse Riding and Farm Work
Equus3nMom
Posts: 42 Member
Hi there,
I got a FitBit because I am trying to get a general read on my TDEE without my gym/fitness exercise. I ride horses professionally. I have not been logging my equestrian activities with MFP. I was using the Acupedo to track steps which goes from about 15k to 20k+ on any given day. It has added back calories at times. But, that is in no way accounting for the fact that I'm also riding, or that many of those steps are taken pushing manure carts, feed carts, carrying shavings and buckets etc.
I'm losing weight well, but I am getting headaches, very tired and very sore now that I've added my workouts. MFP only logs my cardio, but I am doing a rigorous strength training too. I'm hoping Fitbit will help me figure my average TDEE to better target my calorie goals.
So, how about the riding? Do I take it off during that time because it will log as steps right? Should I then log it in MFP or on Fitbit as a horseback ride?
Also, do I go back to listing as sedentary or leave my MFP at active?
All help greatly appreciated.
I got a FitBit because I am trying to get a general read on my TDEE without my gym/fitness exercise. I ride horses professionally. I have not been logging my equestrian activities with MFP. I was using the Acupedo to track steps which goes from about 15k to 20k+ on any given day. It has added back calories at times. But, that is in no way accounting for the fact that I'm also riding, or that many of those steps are taken pushing manure carts, feed carts, carrying shavings and buckets etc.
I'm losing weight well, but I am getting headaches, very tired and very sore now that I've added my workouts. MFP only logs my cardio, but I am doing a rigorous strength training too. I'm hoping Fitbit will help me figure my average TDEE to better target my calorie goals.
So, how about the riding? Do I take it off during that time because it will log as steps right? Should I then log it in MFP or on Fitbit as a horseback ride?
Also, do I go back to listing as sedentary or leave my MFP at active?
All help greatly appreciated.
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Replies
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Hi, riding horses and a variety of other occupational activities (such as farm work) are actually included in the Fitbit activity database. You could log those activities and it should adjust your TDEE. I find it easier to search for an activity if I use the phone app and am not too specific in the search, so for riding horses I would try: "riding" or "horse" (if the first doesn't work). I would not recommend logging these activities to MFP. I think there can be a problem with elevating your allowance too much if you log hours of exercise to MFP. I haven't found this to be the case logging hours of activity to Fitbit. The MFP activity level is meant to reflect how active you are outside your planned workouts. I actually log exercise or other activity (if I need to) to Fitbit. But I think it could work well for your purposes to log your non-step workout here and your horse riding and other activities to fitbit directly. I think I would try leaving your MFP activity level set to active for now. Be sure and enable "negative adjustments" because this will alert you to whether you chose too high an activity level. I would give it a week and see whether you are earning a zero or positive adjustment most days (the zero adjustment is only good if you have negative adjustments enabled, otherwise it often means you would have earned a negative. That is assuming all is working as it should). If you ere really taking 15k-20k steps you are not sedentary and from what you describe I don't think you are sedentary. Active is probably about right (maybe even very active).0
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I personally do not use my Fitbit while riding. I like to toss it in the tack box before I jump in the saddle. The reason being is that the Fitbit will actually count the horses steps as well as any movement you do in the saddle, i.e. posting/jumping. For those types of exercises I would manually log in MFP. Personally, I tend not to log my riding since it seems like MFP allots more calories to those exercises than I personally feel they are worth.0