Not another calorie question...

Buffm4n
Buffm4n Posts: 21 Member
in Health and Weight Loss
Just started using the app on Monday, My current weight is 183.6 and my target is 170. I currently work a desk job which I assigned accordingly and I can get around 11,000 steps on my synced fitbit a day. My target net calorie is at 1500 and I am averaging around 300-400 net calories per day, far smaller than the recommended amount to lose 2 pounds per week. It seems like to me I am eating a healthy amount of food, I wake up at 630 have a smoothie and hard boiled egg whites every morning, a pretty standard salad at lunch, and brown rice and veggies for dinner at around 5 and I go to bed at 11. After reviewing my reports I am apparently eating a dangerously low amount of food. Is this true?? It seems like I am eating plenty but I'm consistently under my net calorie goal by over a thousand. Any help would be appreciated, thank you!

Replies

  • Marilyn0924
    Marilyn0924 Posts: 797 Member
    With so little weight to lose, 2 pounds/wk is far too aggressive a goal.
    1500 daily calories is the bare minimum required to maintain health for an adult male.
    Set your loss to .5 lb/week, with your activity set as lightly active and eat your calories.
    It will be slower, but much more sustainable.
  • RoxieDawn
    RoxieDawn Posts: 15,488 Member
    To lose 13.6 pounds, 2 pound per week is too aggressive. You need to set MFP for .5 pound loss per week (no more than 1 pound). So unless you are shorter, older, sedentary you should be eating more than 1500 cals a day.

    Are you weighing your food with a food scale? If not you can be eating a little more than what you put on the diary.

    You have to eat more food and make sure you eat the min MFP gives you to lose weight plus some of your exercise calories. Prolonged diets that are very low in calories are dangerous and can lead to short term side effects that can lead to longer term health problems.
  • Buffm4n
    Buffm4n Posts: 21 Member
    Thank you for the responses! I guess my concern lies in a lack of understanding of how MFP syncs with my fitbit steps, MFP calculates you use 2000 calories a day just doing daily things and that plus my fitbit makes me skeptical of my actual net calories. Seems like I could be double dipping in calorie burning with the steps I get throughout the day, as in some of those steps are probably included in the initial 2000 calories a day MFP factors in and are factored in twice with my fitbit steps. Am I missing something here or just over thinking it? Thank you!
  • janejellyroll
    janejellyroll Posts: 25,763 Member
    Duffmen wrote: »
    Thank you for the responses! I guess my concern lies in a lack of understanding of how MFP syncs with my fitbit steps, MFP calculates you use 2000 calories a day just doing daily things and that plus my fitbit makes me skeptical of my actual net calories. Seems like I could be double dipping in calorie burning with the steps I get throughout the day, as in some of those steps are probably included in the initial 2000 calories a day MFP factors in and are factored in twice with my fitbit steps. Am I missing something here or just over thinking it? Thank you!

    If you have synced your Fitbit to MFP and are getting adjustments, they've already removed the possibility of double-dipping. You only begin generating adjustments when it is estimated that you have burned more calories than your activity level would have estimated. Nothing is counted twice.

    Some people do find that their Fitbit overestimates their calories burnt, but this is a separate issue.
  • Buffm4n
    Buffm4n Posts: 21 Member
    Also I am weighing my food with a scale down to a T.
  • Tacklewasher
    Tacklewasher Posts: 7,122 Member
    As long as you have negative adjustments turned on, then the fitbit should be close at the end of the day. It may fluctuate a bit during the day, but will even out by the end.
  • Buffm4n
    Buffm4n Posts: 21 Member
    Tacklewasher wrote: »
    As long as you have negative adjustments turned on, then the fitbit should be close at the end of the day. It may fluctuate a bit during the day, but will even out by the end.

    I should clarify that I am only using fitbit to count my steps and than sync that information with the MFP app. Do I still need to turn negative adjustments on/off?
  • janejellyroll
    janejellyroll Posts: 25,763 Member
    Duffmen wrote: »
    Tacklewasher wrote: »
    As long as you have negative adjustments turned on, then the fitbit should be close at the end of the day. It may fluctuate a bit during the day, but will even out by the end.

    I should clarify that I am only using fitbit to count my steps and than sync that information with the MFP app. Do I still need to turn negative adjustments on/off?

    The negative adjustment will ensure that your calorie goal is adjusted *down* if you move less than MFP would have estimated given your activity level. Depending on what you set your activity level to and how many days you have when you go below that, it could make a difference.
  • Buffm4n
    Buffm4n Posts: 21 Member
    janejellyroll wrote: »
    Duffmen wrote: »
    Tacklewasher wrote: »
    As long as you have negative adjustments turned on, then the fitbit should be close at the end of the day. It may fluctuate a bit during the day, but will even out by the end.

    I should clarify that I am only using fitbit to count my steps and than sync that information with the MFP app. Do I still need to turn negative adjustments on/off?

    The negative adjustment will ensure that your calorie goal is adjusted *down* if you move less than MFP would have estimated given your activity level. Depending on what you set your activity level to and how many days you have when you go below that, it could make a difference.

    Thank you I currently have my activity setting set at the lowest level due to my desk job. Just to make sure I'm on the right track I should have negative adjustment turned on?
  • janejellyroll
    janejellyroll Posts: 25,763 Member
    Duffmen wrote: »
    janejellyroll wrote: »
    Duffmen wrote: »
    Tacklewasher wrote: »
    As long as you have negative adjustments turned on, then the fitbit should be close at the end of the day. It may fluctuate a bit during the day, but will even out by the end.

    I should clarify that I am only using fitbit to count my steps and than sync that information with the MFP app. Do I still need to turn negative adjustments on/off?

    The negative adjustment will ensure that your calorie goal is adjusted *down* if you move less than MFP would have estimated given your activity level. Depending on what you set your activity level to and how many days you have when you go below that, it could make a difference.

    Thank you I currently have my activity setting set at the lowest level due to my desk job. Just to make sure I'm on the right track I should have negative adjustment turned on?

    Yes, to be the very most accurate, you would. I will say that I am on "sedentary" too and have negative adjustments turned on and the only time it has kicked in in almost three years was a day that I was in bed sick all day (and not eating anyway). So it may not be a factor for you.
  • amusedmonkey
    amusedmonkey Posts: 10,330 Member
    Keep in mind that Fitbit can over-estimate for some people. For 11k steps the adjustment should be no more than 300 something calories. If you are setting your goal to 1/2 a pound a week and eating back exercise calories you would not have much room for error, so make sure you aren't overeating exercise. It's important not under eat, especially that you're so close to goal and muscle loss is more likely at this point, but it's also important not to overshoot in the opposite direction if you want to lose weight. I would eat half of your fitbit calories for now, and if you find yourself losing faster than you're supposed to, eat back more of them.
  • jessiferrrb
    jessiferrrb Posts: 1,758 Member
    edited February 2018
    amusedmonkey wrote: »
    Keep in mind that Fitbit can over-estimate for some people. For 11k steps the adjustment should be no more than 300 something calories. If you are setting your goal to 1/2 a pound a week and eating back exercise calories you would not have much room for error, so make sure you aren't overeating exercise. It's important not under eat, especially that you're so close to goal and muscle loss is more likely at this point, but it's also important not to overshoot in the opposite direction if you want to lose weight. I would eat half of your fitbit calories for now, and if you find yourself losing faster than you're supposed to, eat back more of them.

    that can vary a lot. my fitbit gives me an adjustment of about 630 calories for 11,000 steps and that is consistent with what i have found cross referencing other online resources which take into account, height, weight, age, stride, etc.

    edited: typo
  • amusedmonkey
    amusedmonkey Posts: 10,330 Member
    jessiferrrb wrote: »
    amusedmonkey wrote: »
    Keep in mind that Fitbit can over-estimate for some people. For 11k steps the adjustment should be no more than 300 something calories. If you are setting your goal to 1/2 a pound a week and eating back exercise calories you would not have much room for error, so make sure you aren't overeating exercise. It's important not under eat, especially that you're so close to goal and muscle loss is more likely at this point, but it's also important not to overshoot in the opposite direction if you want to lose weight. I would eat half of your fitbit calories for now, and if you find yourself losing faster than you're supposed to, eat back more of them.

    that can vary a lot. my fitbit gives me an adjustment of about 630 calories for 11,000 steps and that is consistent with what i have found cross referencing other online resources which take into account, height, weight, age, stride, etc.

    edited: typo

    I did a rough METs calculation based on his weight and the crude assumption of 2k steps a mile and that's where I came up with that number. I could be completely and totally off base, of course. That's why it's better to adjust the eat back amount based on experience. With such a tight goal as 1/2 a pound a week, these things can very easily screw with it.
  • CyberTone
    CyberTone Posts: 7,337 Member
    Duffmen wrote: »
    janejellyroll wrote: »
    Duffmen wrote: »
    Tacklewasher wrote: »
    As long as you have negative adjustments turned on, then the fitbit should be close at the end of the day. It may fluctuate a bit during the day, but will even out by the end.

    I should clarify that I am only using fitbit to count my steps and than sync that information with the MFP app. Do I still need to turn negative adjustments on/off?

    The negative adjustment will ensure that your calorie goal is adjusted *down* if you move less than MFP would have estimated given your activity level. Depending on what you set your activity level to and how many days you have when you go below that, it could make a difference.

    Thank you I currently have my activity setting set at the lowest level due to my desk job. Just to make sure I'm on the right track I should have negative adjustment turned on?

    You will not see the option on MFP to enable negative Calorie adjustments unless the Fitbit is synced.

    I would strongly recommend that you sync MFP and Fitbit; make sure Fitbit is selected as your Step Source in MFP; enable negative adjustments in MFP, set MFP Activity Level to at least Lightly Active; start by eating back and least 50 to 75% of the Fitbit Calorie adjustment; and then adjust the eat back percentage based on real results after about 4 to 6 weeks.

    I would recommend reading through the first three posts in this thread on the MFP Fitbit Users group...

    http://community.myfitnesspal.com/en/discussion/10098937/faq-syncing-logging-food-exercise-calorie-adjustments-activity-levels-accuracy

    http://community.myfitnesspal.com/en/group/1290-fitbit-users

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