Weight Loss Prediction

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stfennell
stfennell Posts: 6 Member
in Getting Started
I am a new user, but I have been tracking my food every day for two weeks. When I complete an entry for the day it predicts weight loss over a five week period. How accurate is this prediction? It is a great motivation tool for eating but I wasn't sure if I should use this as a guide.
Thanks for any comments.

Replies

  • RipperSB
    RipperSB Posts: 315 Member
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    I think you're right, it can be a motivator but how often is today going to be like every day? Every day for five weeks?
  • JMC3Terp
    JMC3Terp Posts: 2,803 Member
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    I tend to view it as not being accurate because that means you would have to eat similar foods with similar calories and similar exercises every day. It's a nice guide to let you know if your doing a good job. But it is simply an estimate stating that if the next 34 days were the same as today, you MIGHT weigh SAID amount.
  • cwolfman13
    cwolfman13 Posts: 41,874 Member
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    It also stipulates that "if every day were like today"...well...is every day like today? Also, consider the inherent inaccuracies that come with calorie counting...eroneous data base entries...not properly weighing or measuring servings...not being honest with your stats in account set up, activity level, overestimating exercise burn, etc...all of these things lead to inaccuracies which would obviously trickle down to any kind of projection of weight loss over time.

    You also have to consider that weight loss really isn't a linear function...you will not lose exactly X Lbs per week...you will have weeks with bigger losses, smaller losses, no losses, and even gains. Personally, I never paid any attention to it...I think it's pretty much just gimmicky.
  • stfennell
    stfennell Posts: 6 Member
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    Thanks for the feedback. I'll see what happens in 5 weeks :wink: , but will pretty much ignore it as accurate prediction. My main goal is paying attention to the quality of food I am eating and eating within my calorie allotment for the day.

    How accurate is the fitbit activity adjuster? Should I use this as a guide to increase my daily calories?
  • editorgrrl
    editorgrrl Posts: 7,060 Member
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    stfennell wrote: »
    How accurate is the fitbit activity adjuster? Should I use this as a guide to increase my daily calories?

    MFP's "in five weeks" thing is useless. It's only accurate if you're going to eat at that exact same deficit for the next 34 days. Who lives like that?

    Your Fitbit burn is TDEE, the number of calories necessary to maintain your current weight. Connect your accounts at http://www.myfitnesspal.com/fitbit If (and only if) you enable negative calorie adjustments in your diary settings, MFP will adjust your calorie goal every day to TDEE minus deficit.

    I lost the weight & have maintained for a year, so I know my Fitbit adjustments are 100% accurate. You can learn more in the Fitbit Users group: http://community.myfitnesspal.com/en/group/1290-fitbit-users
  • editorgrrl
    editorgrrl Posts: 7,060 Member
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    For an accurate prediction of when you'll reach goal, sync your Fitbit account with Trendweight. (It's free.) Trendweight plots a moving average to show you your trend without the "noise" of water weight. It's been completely accurate for me, and I don't know if I would've successfully maintained without it.
  • JMC3Terp
    JMC3Terp Posts: 2,803 Member
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    Trendweightis pretty cool. I'm not sure how much I buy into its averages since the trend is always above my weight for all 103 weigh ins. But I love the projected goal date feature which does seem to be relatively accurate based on the math.
  • stfennell
    stfennell Posts: 6 Member
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    editorgrrl wrote: »
    stfennell wrote: »
    How accurate is the fitbit activity adjuster? Should I use this as a guide to increase my daily calories?

    MFP's "in five weeks" thing is useless. It's only accurate if you're going to eat at that exact same deficit for the next 34 days. Who lives like that?

    Your Fitbit burn is TDEE, the number of calories necessary to maintain your current weight. Connect your accounts at http://www.myfitnesspal.com/fitbit If (and only if) you enable negative calorie adjustments in your diary settings, MFP will adjust your calorie goal every day to TDEE minus deficit.

    I lost the weight & have maintained for a year, so I know my Fitbit adjustments are 100% accurate. You can learn more in the Fitbit Users group: http://community.myfitnesspal.com/en/group/1290-fitbit-users

    Thanks for the advice. I will check out both.

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