Reached goal weight - thinking about getting a Fitbit to help with maintenance

sallav4567
sallav4567 Posts: 1 Member
in Goal: Maintaining Weight
Hi there. I'm 33 years old female. I'm 162cm tall and had a few vanity kg to lose. I've just reached my goal weight of 52kg (down from 57kg). As I didn't have much to lose I set the rate to 0.2kg per week, looking back I lost ~0.5kg a week. I'm fairly active so I do get a lot of exercise calories which I have eaten back. I've read that MFP often overestimates the calorie burn, so I've been conservative when logging exercise, like choosing the lowest intensity for walking and cycling, for other exercise I've tried to estimate the active time within the session rather the length of the whole session, and this has worked for me as I have lost the weight.

Now that I've reached my goal weight, I'm wondering if I would benefit from getting a Fitbit (one that does HR), so I could know more precisely how much I'm actually burning with exercise. My maintenance calories won't be that different from what I was losing on, so I have less room for error.

Or am I just better off continuing with MFP alone as it has worked for me so far? If I do that my plan would be to add 100 cal to daily calories per week until my weight stays stable.

Any advice would be appreciated. Thanks in advance.

Replies

  • CyberTone
    CyberTone Posts: 7,337 Member
    I got a Fitbit Charge HR after I reached maintenance and I am glad I did. I have been able to eat more than I thought I would and maintain the weight loss. Last fall I upgraded to a Fitbit Charge 2 and like the extra features it provided.
  • Jthanmyfitnesspal
    Jthanmyfitnesspal Posts: 3,521 Member
    The actually best method is to keep tracking and watch your weight, adjusting accordingly. It takes patients, but it works.

    I have had several fitbits and I liked them, but the calorie estimates are pretty crude (usually too generous).
  • macchiatto
    macchiatto Posts: 2,890 Member
    edited June 2017
    I got a Fitbit Charge 2 around the time I reached maintenance (coincidence; DH and I each bought a fitness tracker with our REI visa rewards :) ). It's helpful but like pp said, I also find it to be generous in estimating my calories burned per day. Still though, it's fun to have and provides added incentives to keep moving, helps track sleep, etc. I think for some of us, setting new goals helps us not get bored at maintenance (and/or miss the satisfaction of seeing numbers drop on the scale, or get lazy, etc.) and slip back into less healthy habits, so for some a fitness tracker might be a nice way of keeping interest and motivation going.
  • girlgroves
    girlgroves Posts: 235 Member
    I got a Fitbit Charge 2 for Christmas. I had been maintaining successfully since the summer of last year, but linked my fitbit to MFP when I got it and started to trust the calorie burn that it gave me - however, the numbers it generates are too generous, and my weight actually started trending upwards. I love all the fitbit features though, and I wear mine constantly, but as sijomial says, it's not good for certain types of exercise, and I've now unlinked it from MFP. I would caution against relying on the numbers any tracker gives you - I've found that the best way of maintaining is to track my own data (i.e. calories in and weight) over time. That said, maintenance can be a bit 'same old, same old' and getting the fitbit did help me set new goals, keep interested and find a new momentum. So - useful, but not in the way you may think!
  • jrwms714
    jrwms714 Posts: 421 Member
    girlgroves wrote: »
    I got a Fitbit Charge 2 for Christmas. I had been maintaining successfully since the summer of last year, but linked my fitbit to MFP when I got it and started to trust the calorie burn that it gave me - however, the numbers it generates are too generous, and my weight actually started trending upwards. I love all the fitbit features though, and I wear mine constantly, but as sijomial says, it's not good for certain types of exercise, and I've now unlinked it from MFP. I would caution against relying on the numbers any tracker gives you - I've found that the best way of maintaining is to track my own data (i.e. calories in and weight) over time. That said, maintenance can be a bit 'same old, same old' and getting the fitbit did help me set new goals, keep interested and find a new momentum. So - useful, but not in the way you may think!
    This. I, too, bought the Fitbit, linked it to MFP, and found it to be too generous, not to mention confusing. So I unlinked it, also, rely on MFP's calorie count b/c that's how I got to maintenance in the first place. I do use the Fitbit daily but its more like a pedometer for me. It doesn't register lots of exercising that I do, but keeps me motivated. On days when I do not work out, I just adjust calories according to the steps counted in a way that I have randomly made up that works for me. I agree with @girlgroves (above). Don't rely on any trackers or even any cardio machines ... never really accurate. Maintenance is about finding what works for you - calories, exercise, etc. It's sooooo individual!
  • laurenebargar
    laurenebargar Posts: 3,081 Member
    I Find my charge 2 to be extremely accurate as well, and found MFP was actually underestimating my daily burn. I definitely think it would help with maintenance, im not there yet, but It definitely motivates me to keep moving!
  • mk2fit
    mk2fit Posts: 730 Member
    I agree with @CyberTone and @laurenebargar. I had a Charge HR for just over a year, and now have a Charge 2. I didn't get any fitbit until I'd been on maintenance for several months. By the time I got it, I was doing well guesstimating intake/output. I do like being able to time my runs with it, but I do not like being part of the Borg. If I had it all to do again, I probably would not have any fitness tracker. That's just me, tho.
  • d_thomas02
    d_thomas02 Posts: 9,048 Member
    I've been using a Charge HR linked to MFP for about 18 months. Looking at Calorie intake, the Charge HR's TDEE, and actual daily weight trends, I've found the tracker over-estimates my TDEE (or I underestimate my intake) by 100 calories a day.

    I've corrected this by adding a food item called 'Adjustment' (its in the database) for 100 calories.
  • poisonesse
    poisonesse Posts: 527 Member
    Sounds like you don't actually NEED a Fitbit... so only get one if you like the idea of a new toy! lol Me, I've owned the tiny Fitbit Zip for 4 years now, and I take it off only to swim, shower, or sleep. LOVE that little thing. It doesn't do heart though, it's simply a step/distance tracker, but I get off trying to keep up with or beat my Fitbit buddies in steps. I'm a hiker/walker, and while I do use MapMyWalk, I like the Fitbit for the rest of the day, those steps while simply living life can really add up! As far as HB, unless you're hooked up to a medical monitor (ie, something prescribed by your doctor) you won't really get an accurate count, just a general idea. But again, it can be cool to see how you're doing!
  • edwilts
    edwilts Posts: 5 Member
    I've been a long-time Fitbit user, even when I was 50lbs overweight. It obviously didn't help me lose weight. After losing the weight, I switched out the Fitbit for a Samsung Gear Fit and love it. I use it mostly to track the time I did each exercise so I can log it. I don't trust its calorie calculations very much although if I'm just out walking, I may use it. I find it very helpful for hiking since it has a built-in GPS and will log the mileage accurately.

    I don't put much faith into steps at all and the real answer is how you look, measure, and what you weigh. The Gear Fit is more to make sure you stay on track. It integrates well with Samsung Health. I do NOT integrate it with MFP but link Samsung Health with MFP. I do not have the Gear Fit automatically log exercises into MFP since some of my exercises can be unusual (eg, curling) and I'd rather log them manually than have it log it wrong.

    I use an elliptical often with iFit and a heartbeat monitor so I tend to trust the elliptical's calorie burn estimates more so than the GF's burn estimate. I lost weight so something must be close enough to accurate :)
  • devrinator
    devrinator Posts: 77 Member
    I don't know how accurate they are, but I definitely like being able to see a general activity level vs. calorie intake. I got into trouble in the first place by eating the same as always even though I wasn't nearly as active (I came home from the Navy--wasn't a big exercise fanatic while IN, but got a lot more walking in naturally-and came home to rural life and gained 50 lbs in five months). It's a great tool to have to stay mindful of how you're eating vs. how much activity you're getting.
  • ercarroll311
    ercarroll311 Posts: 295 Member
    Fitbit has been AMAZING for me with maintenance. I have the Charge HR2. I tracked my food and weight and what it said I was burning for a long time, and discovered my real burn was about 90% of what it said. More recently, maybe they did an update, but it's more like 95%. So you can't totally take that number as fact, but after a little while you'll get used to where you are in relation to it, and it helps a ton. I basically take what they give me and subtract about 100 calories. I've been maintaining this way since September.
  • jajonesstl
    jajonesstl Posts: 9 Member
    A fitbit or a smartwatch is certainly helpful. It can provide more than just heart rate. I use my Gear 2 to help track my bike rides and it calculates the calories. I would recommend something. My Samsung Gear 2 was on sale so only $50 more than the Fitbit Charge 2. I burned through two fitbits so I wanted to try something different. THe Garmin Vivofit HR is good as well.
  • saskiavanson88
    saskiavanson88 Posts: 13 Member
    I love my fitbit and wear it all the time. I don't know how accurate they are, it is just technology so it definitely could be off, but it keeps me on track and I have an idea on how much I burn, I have mine connected to MFP and I don't eat the calories I burn what works for me to maintain my goal. I don't know if I would gain weight if I would eat the calories burned. It is fun to me and I have a basic idea of my health, but like others said I don't know if you should completely rely on it. It helped me to know the amount of calories I should eat so for me it was definitely worth it.
  • HappyGrape
    HappyGrape Posts: 436 Member
    Charge 2 is very spot on for me! I used Charge HR during weight loss and Charge 2 for maintenance. It's like a watch with extra info - on days I end up sitting a lot taking and extra walk, on days I move a lot little extra food.

    It's not accurate for things as spin class for example, but I learned just to let it it be as if it underestimate somewhere and over estimate elsewhere it all works out in the end.

    During weight loss I reviewed 100 days of data and calories burn per (fitbit) - calorie intake (mfp) = weight loss was exactly as expected - 34 calories per day. This perhaps is things as coffee, or tiny overestimation but for someone with average daily burn of 2350 calories, this is negligible.

    I say go for it!

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