Since having my Fitbit charge HR I only follow what my Fitbit app tells me to eat. I don't follow MFP any more, I only use MFP to log food which pulls into my Fitbit app.

oliverneedsyou wrote: »

How many calories do you eat back? I've heard to eat back half of exercise cals. Is this correct? I have a fitbit charge HR if that matters. Thanks

It depends. That advice was based on using the database and items that had no intensity with it (spin class, swim laps, ect), and you had no idea how intense you were. Plus using the database on low burn but lengthy workouts inflated calorie burn.

But in this case -

First - those aren't exercise calories - no matter the fact that's where MFP puts them for easier math with.

It's the difference between what MFP estimated you'd burn daily with no exercise- based on your metabolism and your guess of non-exercise activity level (could have been way off) - and what Fitbit is estimating you burn daily everything combined actually seeing you move.

So you could be very active daily and have no exercise and get big adjustment.
You could also do a big hard workout and be especially lazy rest the day and get no adjustment.
MFP is just trying to correct it's estimate with better data.

Second - accuracy depends on how active you are daily.
If the stride length is correct for your average daily pace (not grocery store shuffle, not intense walking workout) - that's the basis for the majority of your daily calorie burn if you are indeed active. With or without exercise.

If you aren't that active and exercise is it - then it depends on how well a HR-based calorie burn is for accuracy on your workout. Or if walking 80% of your daily steps is indeed workout level but not high enough HR for it to be used.

For instance - if you are very active and on non-exercise days burn 2500 calories based on good accuracy on steps/stride length - then eat all the adjustment back.
MFP already has taken out a deficit.
And if you are like that and workout say 500 calories - but it's off by 30% so only really 350 calories - that's a difference of only 150 / 2850 = 5%.

If you are very inactive though burning around 1600, with that same 500 but really 350 workout - that's 150 / 1950 = 7%.

Not really much either. It's just hard to make a say 1 hr workout potential inaccuracy mess up the vast majority of your calories coming from metabolism and life.

If you do a ton of steps daily in an active life - just confirm you got your stride length down right - HR isn't used for non-exercise daily calorie burn.