Calorie intake and Fitbit reliability
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Well, my sedentary calorie expenditure is already higher than all common equations give me. Fitbit packs some on top. And then a massive amount for working out.0
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Well, my sedentary calorie expenditure is already higher than all common equations give me. Fitbit packs some on top. And then a massive amount for working out.
What is a "massive" amount anyway? I'm 5'3" and 114 pounds, but normally get 2000 to 2500 calories from Fitbit depending on what I've done that day.0 -
I find my fitbit one to be very accurate. I only walk usually about 10,000 steps a day and get 400ish calories sent to MFP for that.0
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about 150 too much, which is a lot if you're not tall and not heavy and over 40. Exercising is way off for me. I'll try to run today to see what happens (have been sick lately and am uncertain if I'm able to). I know my running expenditure, and it's very close to the commonly used lbs * distance * 0.68 equation, which is derived from METs in the Compendium of Physical Activities. I suppose the numbers Fitbit gives me for a workout are workout calories + BMI over that time (thus gross calories), but still.0
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I have my Fitbit and Garmin connected (only kept Fitbit Flex 2 because it connects to reward sites), but for the first year of weight loss I only had the Fitbit connected, with my profile set to sedentary (which I most definitely am not). During that year I ate near enough what Fitbit gave me and lost at pretty much the expected rate of 1-2lb/week.
The last couple of months I've been going by what my Garmin FR35 gives me, which is consistently 500 Calories less than Fitbit, and despite my target loss only being 0.5lb/week, I've been losing 5-7lb/month, which tells me that the Fitbit is rather more accurate. But I'm not sure whether I should be changing my activity level here on MFP as the Garmin has given me a miniscule 300 Calories for 30000 steps while Fitbit has given me 1000+0 -
MommaGem2017 wrote: »Mine remains ridiculously high. No way I could eat that massive amount of calories and not gain. I mean, I was eating a similar amount of calories over the past 7 months and gained 8kg (I was depressed). So no, this certainly is not working for me and there's no way I'm going to trust it. I mean, fitbit gave me 2800 kcal on a day where I walked 18km. That's 600kcal more than I probably burned that day.
As I mentioned previously in thread, you probably have MFP and FitBit set at different goals. If the two apps don't match, then FitBit WILL try to give you back more calories than you need.
a) I've not linked both
b) I'm not logging food on fitbit
c) I know what my maintenance calories are and how much calories certain activities burn for me thanks to years of calorie counting and book keeping
=> fitbit is off on estimate calorie burns, both normal daily sedentary calorie expenditure and especially on exercise calories. There is no special setting that increases burn because I'm eating on maintanence or dieting very mildly.
Then why bother using FitBit at all if you've got it all figured out?
I don't think 2800 total calories burned sounds outrageous at all for a day where you walked 18 km? You meant kilometers not 18,000 steps? Regardless, depending on your current stats neither sounds outrageous. I'm 5'2 and 118 and my calorie burns are around 2200 for 15k steps/day which is about 6-7 miles for me (short steps!). If I go significantly above my norm for steps then my calorie burns top 2500 and I'm petite and at goal weight.
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MommaGem2017 wrote: »People, please don't forget that fitness websites state that 10,000 steps a day is considered "Active"
Careful. 10k steps of walking about is not "active". Anybody assuming that will likely end up with a significant over-estimate on calories burned.
Yes it is, and I provided the links if you had read any of my other posts.
Sedentary = less than 5000 steps
Low Active = 5-7999 steps
Somewhat Active = 8-9999 steps
Active = 10-12,499 steps
Highly Active = 12,500+ steps
https://www.verywell.com/how-many-pedometer-steps-per-day-are-enough-3432827
This is one link but many others state the same information. This is also assuming that the person does this every day, not just once in a while. Just because someone is not spending daily time in the gym does not mean they are not getting a calorie burn other ways.
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nosebag1212 wrote: »Mine is very accurate. I'm convinced people who say it's way off for them either aren't using it properly i.e. trying to use it to measure stuff like weight lifting, HIIT, cycing (things it's not designed for) etc, horribly inaccurate with their tracking or they just have a faulty unit.
^This.
There is a long screen that comes up when you sync your Fitbit telling you what you need to do to sync properly and I'm not entirely sure anyone reads it because it's so long. There are also several long posts over on the Fitbit users group which are worth a good read.
I am comfortable enough with mine (I tracked by scale performance and compared data to the Fitbit) to use the calorie adjustment to create my deficit since I'm just fiddling around with vanity weight.
It really is worth the time invested in reading how the sync issue works.
Also, in regards to recorded steps that aren't really steps: they don't translate into calorie burn adjustments of any significance. The Fitbit is smarter than that. It might count towards a Fitbit challenge, but the algorithm can't be fooled by the intensity of movement and you won't get credit for calories burned by wrist movements.
Saying that, be smart about it. If you're going to be doing something like knitting or are at a venue where you'll be clapping a lot, take the thing off.3 -
When I owned a fitbit around four years ago, it was very accurate.0
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I have worn a Fitbit for just over 2 years now and swear by it. When i began wearing it I logged and weighed everything and followed a 1000 cal deficit. This resulted in a 2lb loss every week for 6 months, total weight loss 40lbs. I still wear my Fitbit and log and weigh everything and have maintained for over a 19 months now. Without my Fitbit and MFP I would not have been able to achieve this.3
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WinoGelato wrote: »MommaGem2017 wrote: »Mine remains ridiculously high. No way I could eat that massive amount of calories and not gain. I mean, I was eating a similar amount of calories over the past 7 months and gained 8kg (I was depressed). So no, this certainly is not working for me and there's no way I'm going to trust it. I mean, fitbit gave me 2800 kcal on a day where I walked 18km. That's 600kcal more than I probably burned that day.
As I mentioned previously in thread, you probably have MFP and FitBit set at different goals. If the two apps don't match, then FitBit WILL try to give you back more calories than you need.
a) I've not linked both
b) I'm not logging food on fitbit
c) I know what my maintenance calories are and how much calories certain activities burn for me thanks to years of calorie counting and book keeping
=> fitbit is off on estimate calorie burns, both normal daily sedentary calorie expenditure and especially on exercise calories. There is no special setting that increases burn because I'm eating on maintanence or dieting very mildly.
Then why bother using FitBit at all if you've got it all figured out?
I don't think 2800 total calories burned sounds outrageous at all for a day where you walked 18 km? You meant kilometers not 18,000 steps? Regardless, depending on your current stats neither sounds outrageous. I'm 5'2 and 118 and my calorie burns are around 2200 for 15k steps/day which is about 6-7 miles for me (short steps!). If I go significantly above my norm for steps then my calorie burns top 2500 and I'm petite and at goal weight.
Because I don't want to carry my phone around all the time for reminders, step counts, general activity other than actual workouts and just the time. Because I might not be able to exercise anymore in the future for medical reasons if the doctor I saw last week is right. General data nerdery. Reasons enough.0 -
My fitbit overestimates my burns by about 300cals per day. My deficit is usually less so if I eat according to it I gain. (I did gain the first month I bought it, then I realised it sounded too good to be true so I ignore it now)0
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Seems like the calorie estimate of fitbit is even worse than the MFP database. My 40 minute slow 5k came back as being 455kcal. Now I suspect these to be gross calories. So if I'm very generous I substract 55kcal and get 400. Personally, from experience I'd not give myself more than 270 net calories for this run. I'm confident to eat all of them back though (and just did, Dutch licorice
). 0 -
Seems like the calorie estimate of fitbit is even worse than the MFP database. My 40 minute slow 5k came back as being 455kcal. Now I suspect these to be gross calories. So if I'm very generous I substract 55kcal and get 400. Personally, from experience I'd not give myself more than 270 net calories for this run. I'm confident to eat all of them back though (and just did, Dutch licorice ).
As suggested before, if your FitBit is that inaccurate, then you should call FitBit tech support. It does your data nerdery no good if you have a flawed device.
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My Fitbit registered about 874 calories for my exercise. MFP only gave me credit for 675 of that. This is a consistent thing. So who's right? I hardly ever eat all of my exercise calories except on weekends. Just want to know.0
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MommaGem2017 wrote: »Seems like the calorie estimate of fitbit is even worse than the MFP database. My 40 minute slow 5k came back as being 455kcal. Now I suspect these to be gross calories. So if I'm very generous I substract 55kcal and get 400. Personally, from experience I'd not give myself more than 270 net calories for this run. I'm confident to eat all of them back though (and just did, Dutch licorice ).
As suggested before, if your FitBit is that inaccurate, then you should call FitBit tech support. It does your data nerdery no good if you have a flawed device.
True, but this data is not calculated in the device but in the app and/or website I'd think. I'm taking to fitbit, but their customer service in the UK doesn't seem to be that good.0 -
GottaBurnEmAll wrote: »nosebag1212 wrote: »Mine is very accurate. I'm convinced people who say it's way off for them either aren't using it properly i.e. trying to use it to measure stuff like weight lifting, HIIT, cycing (things it's not designed for) etc, horribly inaccurate with their tracking or they just have a faulty unit.
^This.
There is a long screen that comes up when you sync your Fitbit telling you what you need to do to sync properly and I'm not entirely sure anyone reads it because it's so long. There are also several long posts over on the Fitbit users group which are worth a good read.
I am comfortable enough with mine (I tracked by scale performance and compared data to the Fitbit) to use the calorie adjustment to create my deficit since I'm just fiddling around with vanity weight.
It really is worth the time invested in reading how the sync issue works.
Also, in regards to recorded steps that aren't really steps: they don't translate into calorie burn adjustments of any significance. The Fitbit is smarter than that. It might count towards a Fitbit challenge, but the algorithm can't be fooled by the intensity of movement and you won't get credit for calories burned by wrist movements.
Saying that, be smart about it. If you're going to be doing something like knitting or are at a venue where you'll be clapping a lot, take the thing off.
One parents evening I got 4K steps for sitting down for 3 hours straight, I guess I talk with my hands! I overwrote it with "driving" which gets rid of any "steps" accounted for and all was good but I was a little baffled for a while!0 -
MommaGem2017 wrote: »Seems like the calorie estimate of fitbit is even worse than the MFP database. My 40 minute slow 5k came back as being 455kcal. Now I suspect these to be gross calories. So if I'm very generous I substract 55kcal and get 400. Personally, from experience I'd not give myself more than 270 net calories for this run. I'm confident to eat all of them back though (and just did, Dutch licorice ).
As suggested before, if your FitBit is that inaccurate, then you should call FitBit tech support. It does your data nerdery no good if you have a flawed device.
Many people have already called them. It is a popular issue in their forums. They don't care. I'm tired of reading the same issue over and over again there. I called them too but they said the only thing they can do is replace my device. My device is fine. It counts my steps correctly. But their algorithms calculate 700cals for my 10k steps instead of 350cals (I'm 138lbs female). So for 10k steps a day and no other exercise it gives me 2100cals while I actually burn only 1850.
The best place for my fitbit is in the trash.0 -
Seems like the calorie estimate of fitbit is even worse than the MFP database. My 40 minute slow 5k came back as being 455kcal. Now I suspect these to be gross calories. So if I'm very generous I substract 55kcal and get 400. Personally, from experience I'd not give myself more than 270 net calories for this run. I'm confident to eat all of them back though (and just did, Dutch licorice ).
I would definitely contact Fitbit. Based on your 270, you weigh 128 pounds - which is a whole lot less than me. And my 40 min 5k gives me roughly the same calories as yours (only it's right for me as a gross total which is what a 24/7 tracker would be counting). So either your Fitbit thinks you weigh like 40 lbs more than you do, or it's broken.
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Seems like the calorie estimate of fitbit is even worse than the MFP database. My 40 minute slow 5k came back as being 455kcal. Now I suspect these to be gross calories. So if I'm very generous I substract 55kcal and get 400. Personally, from experience I'd not give myself more than 270 net calories for this run. I'm confident to eat all of them back though (and just did, Dutch licorice ).
I suspect you may not be understanding how FitBit and MFP work together. Is the 455 cals you saw, was that on the FitBit? Or Was that the adjustment that MFP gave you after syncing with the FitBit? Regardless, FitBit is measuring total calories burned including your BMRc whereas when logging exercise in MFP only, the estimates are for the exercise itself since the BMR and NEAT is included in the base cals that MFP gives you. Additionally, the calories are adjusted throughout the day so that if you have a period of high activity from a purposeful exercise, especially earlier in the day, the systems expect you to keep up that level of activity for the full 24 hours. When you don't then the calories are adjusted downward as is often seen when someone goes to bed thinking they have 100 cals left for the day and then wake up the next morning to find those and additional cals have disappeared.
MFP and FitBit are just trueing up, from what MFP thinks you would burn based on the stats and activity level you chose during set up, and what FitBit says you are actually burning, adjusted for your deficit or to keep with your overall goals. Usually when people are skeptical of very large adjustments it's because they are more active than they realized and the two systems are saying you need to eat more in order to account for that.
Many of us have found the two to be quite accurate an helpful when understanding how it's supposed to work and what it's actually measuring.
It's not for everyone though so if you think it's wrong, unsync the devices.2
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