Setting activity level?

clafairy1984
clafairy1984 Posts: 253 Member
in Health and Weight Loss
Wondering whether I should keep my activity level as lively active. Or whether, as I use a fitbit, I should change to sedentary and let fitbit alter my calories as appropriate?

Replies

  • malibu927
    malibu927 Posts: 17,562 Member
    Whatever works for you. I had mine on lightly active before I disconnected it because sedentary put me at 1200 calories.
  • abatonfan
    abatonfan Posts: 1,120 Member
    edited April 2016
    It's personal preference. Do you mind having negative calorie adjustments (if you currently have that setting enabled) if you move less than what MFP's activity level is? Do you follow NEAT (MFP's method where you earn additional calories through exercise) or TDEE (sorts like taking all the exercise done in a week, averaging it all out, and giving you a certain amount of calories to eat per day regardless of exercise done that day)?

    Personally, I have MFP settings set below its recommended sedentary calories (last time I checked, it was around 1700 for a maintenance goal, and I currently set it to 1530ish before adding exercise). Even then, I need to get about 3K steps before MFP adds a positive exercise adjustment (otherwise, MFP only gives me 1350ish to maintain on if I was completely sedentary).
  • Christine_72
    Christine_72 Posts: 16,049 Member
    Either , either. I used to be set at lightly active, but because my active days stop at around 5pm when I turn in to sloth mode, I was losing a decent amount of calories in the evening because mfp expects you to keep up that lightly active pace til midnight.
    I'm set at sedentary now even though most days I hit 15- 20,000 steps, and just let fitbit do it's thing. Setting it to sedentary also took off some of the pressure, as there will sometimes be days when I truly am sedentary.
  • DonaldBlinks
    DonaldBlinks Posts: 55 Member
    I believe fitbit will only add calories for you after you go beyond the number of steps that it deems appropriate for your set activity level. So if you're lightly active, it might assume you take 5,000 steps a day and then it will only add calories for you if you go beyond it. Wheras if you're set to sedentary, it assumes you take 3,000 steps a day and will start adding calories when you go beyond that. So whatever you set your activity level at, it should be roughly the same.

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