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Fitbit not linking right for calories burned

ao16101
ao16101 Posts: 1 Member
edited November 2024 in Getting Started
my fitbit charge hcr is great but my fitness pal is not counting my Fitbit steps for exercise and the calories burned don't match. I keep syncing fitness pal and nothing. Any suggestions? Thanks

Replies

  • yarwell
    yarwell Posts: 10,477 Member
    Closed diary so we can't see. Fitbit calorie adjustment present in exercise diary ? Click on the i icon to see what it's doing-
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  • heybales
    heybales Posts: 18,842 Member
    And beyond having good info to use as above, have proper expectations also.

    It likely isn't supposed to do what you think it is.

    http://community.myfitnesspal.com/en/discussion/10098937/faq-syncing-logging-food-exercise-calorie-adjustments-activity-levels-accuracy
  • dubird
    dubird Posts: 1,849 Member
    Fitbit and MFP are sometimes slow to sync. I don't know why, sometimes I have to update Fitbit and leave it alone for a little while before they sync up.

    Something to keep in mind is that the way Fitbit adjusts your calories is different than what MFP does. MFP will give you a set amount each day based on what level of activity you tell it. That's not always 100% accurate, but it's close enough for most people. Fitbit determines your calories based on your activity ALL DAY. Basically, as you move around, it will determine how many calories you've burned and try and average that for the day and give you a running total. I'm not sure how better to explain that. Essentially, Fitbit's estimate of how much you have left will be determined by how much activity it records for the day. Which is why the Fitbit estimate won't be correct until later in the day. This is why the calories you have left will be different.

    What I did was set a custom calorie goal, the same on both sites, and don't have negative adjustments enabled. The amount I entered was an average daily total (without exercise) for a normal week. That way, if I don't do a lot of walking around (or it's Saturday and I spend it mostly on the computer), I'm still in a deficit. But if I move around more at work or class, or I exercise, it will add more calories for me to eat. Does that make sense?
  • editorgrrl
    editorgrrl Posts: 7,060 Member
    edited August 2015
    ao16101 wrote: »
    my fitbit charge HR is great but my fitness pal is not counting my Fitbit steps for exercise and the calories burned don't match. I keep syncing fitness pal and nothing. Any suggestions? Thanks

    Connect your accounts at http://www.myfitnesspal.com/fitbit

    Set your goal to .5 lb. per week for every 25 lbs. you're overweight: http://www.myfitnesspal.com/account/change_goals_guided

    Enable negative calorie adjustments: http://www.myfitnesspal.com/account/diary_settings

    In the MFP app, go to More > Steps and choose Fitbit.

    You can learn more in the Fitbit Users group: http://community.myfitnesspal.com/en/group/1290-fitbit-users
  • rachd123
    rachd123 Posts: 3 Member
    dubird wrote: »
    Fitbit and MFP are sometimes slow to sync. I don't know why, sometimes I have to update Fitbit and leave it alone for a little while before they sync up.

    Something to keep in mind is that the way Fitbit adjusts your calories is different than what MFP does. MFP will give you a set amount each day based on what level of activity you tell it. That's not always 100% accurate, but it's close enough for most people. Fitbit determines your calories based on your activity ALL DAY. Basically, as you move around, it will determine how many calories you've burned and try and average that for the day and give you a running total. I'm not sure how better to explain that. Essentially, Fitbit's estimate of how much you have left will be determined by how much activity it records for the day. Which is why the Fitbit estimate won't be correct until later in the day. This is why the calories you have left will be different.

    What I did was set a custom calorie goal, the same on both sites, and don't have negative adjustments enabled. The amount I entered was an average daily total (without exercise) for a normal week. That way, if I don't do a lot of walking around (or it's Saturday and I spend it mostly on the computer), I'm still in a deficit. But if I move around more at work or class, or I exercise, it will add more calories for me to eat. Does that make sense?

    How do I change my calorie goal? All I can see is my weight goal. I am getting a little frustrated with my fitbit and my fitness pal at the moment. The calorie difference just doesn't make sense. I have negative calorie adjustment ticked.
  • starbean
    starbean Posts: 30 Member
    Sometimes I notice a delay for an hour or more, with Fitbit syncing to MFP. Eventually it catches up; I sync my Fitbit with the Fitbit app several times during the day, and eventually Fitbit will send the data to MFP. Only track your food in MFP, don't track it in Fitbit.
  • starbean
    starbean Posts: 30 Member
    Oh, and also: you will not see any available exercise calories in MFP until you cross a certain threshold of calories burned. Once you burn enough it will show up in MFP.
  • heybales
    heybales Posts: 18,842 Member
    rachd123 wrote: »
    dubird wrote: »
    Fitbit and MFP are sometimes slow to sync. I don't know why, sometimes I have to update Fitbit and leave it alone for a little while before they sync up.

    Something to keep in mind is that the way Fitbit adjusts your calories is different than what MFP does. MFP will give you a set amount each day based on what level of activity you tell it. That's not always 100% accurate, but it's close enough for most people. Fitbit determines your calories based on your activity ALL DAY. Basically, as you move around, it will determine how many calories you've burned and try and average that for the day and give you a running total. I'm not sure how better to explain that. Essentially, Fitbit's estimate of how much you have left will be determined by how much activity it records for the day. Which is why the Fitbit estimate won't be correct until later in the day. This is why the calories you have left will be different.

    What I did was set a custom calorie goal, the same on both sites, and don't have negative adjustments enabled. The amount I entered was an average daily total (without exercise) for a normal week. That way, if I don't do a lot of walking around (or it's Saturday and I spend it mostly on the computer), I'm still in a deficit. But if I move around more at work or class, or I exercise, it will add more calories for me to eat. Does that make sense?

    How do I change my calorie goal? All I can see is my weight goal. I am getting a little frustrated with my fitbit and my fitness pal at the moment. The calorie difference just doesn't make sense. I have negative calorie adjustment ticked.

    Changing your calorie goal while having Fitbit synced is going to mess you up more, if you mean on MFP change it.
    Don't suggest you do that unless you totally understand what is going on between accounts, when it works and doesn't work fast.
    And I don't think you probably do.

    You could set Fitbit up with same deficit that MFP uses, and then merely use MFP to log food, and in evening when topping off calories try to match whatever Fitbit says is daily total eating goal.

    Eventually the daily burn will get over to MFP to do math with, and with same deficit, eating goal will match too.
  • RoxieDawn
    RoxieDawn Posts: 15,488 Member
    edited September 2015
    Fitbit allows you to setup a 500, 750 or 1000 calorie deficit type food plan. This is will not be exactly what MFP automatically setups for you.. That is why the "adjustment" is needed. Also there are two ways in Fitbit to tell it how to sync the calories (either low calories at the beginning of the day) or do it based on historical data...

    I have a fitbit.. once I figured it out they matched (but never exactly)... Use fitbit for exercise and use MFP for the calories only and once you do this, it should ease your mind... You can use the calories adjustment on your diary in MFP as a ballpark to eat some exercise calroeis back (I never ate all of them back) because it is only an estimate of the burn.
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