Fitbit steps and calorie sync

Tashanicole444
Tashanicole444 Posts: 86 Member
edited December 20 in Fitness and Exercise
Hello everyone,
I’m considering getting a Fitbit . My Apple Watch will give me 130 calories for 24000 steps lol. Seems low I am told the Apple Watch doesn’t work properly on this app which sucks . Can some one let me know what a fit bit gives for their step count. ? Is Fitbit more generous ? Thanks.

Replies

  • ginnytez
    ginnytez Posts: 1,411 Member
    I have a fitbit Versa synced with MFP. I don't add any steps or exercise into MFP-just what comes over from Fitbit. Yesterday I had 14,466 steps (6.84 miles, I have short legs) and 90 active minutes. I was given 511 exercise calories for the day (I did walk for 1 1/2 hours straight, so that might have upped it). I know there are debates about accuracy, etc., but I have been paying attention to that for my net and eating some of those exercise calories back and am losing at the predicted rate (if not a little more).
  • teckelwoodhounds
    teckelwoodhounds Posts: 1 Member
    Does anyone know how to manually add going up and down stairs? My fitbit shows 0 for stairs no matter how many times I go up and down.
  • miakelaa
    miakelaa Posts: 43 Member
    If you have your activity settings on "active" or "very active" the app will automatically increase your calorie limit for the day on the assumption that you already exercise a lot. I think what might be happening is that your Apple Watch is only adding the calories you burn after you reach that threshold. Otherwise I don't know.
    I use my Apple Watch for tracking. But I don't sync with MFP. I just look at the calories burned under the move section of the activity app, then subtract my total calories consumed for the day to find my net deficit. If you love your Apple Watch but have this one issue, you could try that.
    I had one Fitbit or another (Fitbit Force, Charge 2 HR, then the Ionic) from 2014 to the end of 2018, but I found that the battery on them never lasted. They seemed to kick the bucket just after the warranty ended. I don't know how long you've had your Apple Watch for but I'd be hesitant to switching to a Fitbit.
  • autumnblade75
    autumnblade75 Posts: 1,661 Member
    teckelwoodhounds wrote: »
    Does anyone know how to manually add going up and down stairs? My fitbit shows 0 for stairs no matter how many times I go up and down.

    I'm not aware of a way to manually add stairs to Fitbit. I tried to Google it, but didn't find anything useful, there, either. Have you verified that your model includes that feature? Zip, Flex, Flex2, Alta, Inspire, and Versa Lite don't count stairs. I may have missed some, too.
  • autumnblade75
    autumnblade75 Posts: 1,661 Member
    Royce284 wrote: »
    Hello everyone,
    I’m considering getting a Fitbit . My Apple Watch will give me 130 calories for 24000 steps lol. Seems low I am told the Apple Watch doesn’t work properly on this app which sucks . Can some one let me know what a fit bit gives for their step count. ? Is Fitbit more generous ? Thanks.

    I haven't compared to an Apple Watch, but my Fitbit is definitely more generous than my Garmin. The thing is, though, that like @miakelaa said: If you're not taking more steps than are already accounted for in your activity level setting, you won't get an adjustment to your calories.

    Best of luck.
  • sarabushby
    sarabushby Posts: 784 Member
    Fitbit have given me free of charge replacements even outside of warranty so it’s always worth contacting them if you have an issue. Likewise Garmin.

    OP- 24,000 steps is a lot! What activity level did you set for yourself? Is this a normal activity level for you or was all or some of it through intentional walking/running?

    FYI when you see on Fitbit the calories burned for a period of exercise this includes your BMR - calories you would have burnt if sedentary over the same time period. So this explains why the number may be higher than what you’d see if you say logged the same activity manually in MFP.
  • Tashanicole444
    Tashanicole444 Posts: 86 Member
    Thanks !! Very helpful.
  • heybales
    heybales Posts: 18,842 Member
    Almost all database and machine exercise results are Gross - what you burned in that chunk of time for base calorie burn and that which the exercise caused above it. (bikes with watt meters being the biggest outlayer).
    Because almost all studies of exercise is what the test participants burned in total, or as multiplier of their base burn.

    A very few provide Net. (which is over BMR rate of burn which is sleeping, much lower than Sedentary activity level)
    But really, NET doesn't make sense - because what were you going to be doing otherwise, sleeping - maybe?

    MFP should really be using NET though in their database, because they already have a base calorie burn higher than BMR( x .25, x .4, .6, .8) they account for you burning, actually your activity level daily calorie burn (assumed no exercise) / 1440 minutes in the day for per minute rate.

    Most discover that Fitbit for step-based calories (not HR-based) at exactly a pace given in the MFP database match up very closely (Fitbit uses the same database too). Basically the same formula, so makes sense.

    The problem is MFP when you add it is say 300 added on to some calorie burn that already had some movement expected during that chunk of time.
    Whereas Fitbit would be correctly saying 300 in total for that chunk of time.

    But when MFP syncs with Fitbit it's a good correction because it's total Fitbit burn - MFP expected burn = adjustment.


    If you like the Apple watch, and you might prefer eating the same amount daily no matter the activity level - there is a way to unsync Apple as you should do anyway, and use MFP in TDEE style eating goal.

    Just get your weekly reports from Apple about average total daily burn (base burn, activity calories, exercise) for a week at a time.
    Keep a 3-4 week average going for normal weeks (don't include spring cleaning week, or sick with flu week), and each Sun adjust your manually set MFP eating goal.
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