Steps and calories burnt

sk11mra
sk11mra Posts: 16 Member
edited December 1 in Getting Started
Having used this app in 2013 to loose 2st, thought I'd come back to it. The added feature this time is that it can automatically track my activity throughout the day and adjust my calorie requirement accordingly.

It's my first day and as the day has gone on the calories burnt through walking around seem to be changing all day long. It doesn't seem to be continuous, ie at midday 8000 steps and 400 calories, excellent I thought. Now I'm at 13000 steps and 372 calories

I feel I've been cheated, where have all the burnt calories gone?

Replies

  • earlnabby
    earlnabby Posts: 8,171 Member
    What tracker are you using? Most of them calculate your calories burned via real time TDEE. If you walk several miles in the morning, it will add those calories burned, but if you then spend time sitting down, you will not be burning many calories so the tracker adjusts for the lack of activity. At the end of the day, the total calories burned should be accurate. Just make sure if you earn a bunch in the morning that you don't eat back all of them until you see what you daily total will be. Some have done that and ended up being over for the day.
  • neldabg
    neldabg Posts: 1,452 Member
    edited April 2016
    earlnabby wrote: »
    What tracker are you using? Most of them calculate your calories burned via real time TDEE. If you walk several miles in the morning, it will add those calories burned, but if you then spend time sitting down, you will not be burning many calories so the tracker adjusts for the lack of activity. At the end of the day, the total calories burned should be accurate. Just make sure if you earn a bunch in the morning that you don't eat back all of them until you see what you daily total will be. Some have done that and ended up being over for the day.

    ^This. I still log with MFP, but for this reason, I make sure to plan to hit the calorie goal for the day given by my Fitbit tracker, NOT what MFP predicts will be my end-of-the-day burn.
  • sk11mra
    sk11mra Posts: 16 Member
    Just using my iPhone to count steps.

    I've had a read a think I understand what it's trying to do, although when does it stop its <not so wonderful> calculations? At midnight?

    Does this mean when I've gone to sleep my calories burnt will still be decreasing?
  • earlnabby
    earlnabby Posts: 8,171 Member
    sk11mra wrote: »
    Just using my iPhone to count steps.

    I've had a read a think I understand what it's trying to do, although when does it stop its <not so wonderful> calculations? At midnight?

    Does this mean when I've gone to sleep my calories burnt will still be decreasing?

    The trackers figure out the total calories burnt in a 24 hour period, adjusted for vigorous exercise, so their calculations will include down times like sleeping. HOW they calculate (real time or end of the day) varies from tracker to tracker.
  • sk11mra
    sk11mra Posts: 16 Member
    Ok, thanks for the info. Just my first day so will figure out how it works over the next few days... Might go back to putting walking etc in manually if it confuses me too much!
  • melissa6771
    melissa6771 Posts: 894 Member
    They reset themselves at midnight to a new day.
This discussion has been closed.

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