Logging workouts alongside steps?

mummytee87
mummytee87 Posts: 14 Member
in Fitness and Exercise
Hello!

I never log my workouts on MyFitnessPal as the steps automatically sync to my account from my fitbit and I just go from there.

I am just wondering, say for example the 35 minutes cardio I did this morning burnt 243 calories and myfitnesspal shows my steps as 3,937 steps at 205 calories. Do I log my workout alongside the steps or not? It seems that this would then look as though I burnt more calories than I have but I saw somewhere that it will adjust accoringly?

Many thanks

Replies

  • Lietchi
    Lietchi Posts: 6,846 Member
    Even though you don't see the exercise sessions in your diary, Fitbit is sending over ALL the calories you burn, not just your steps. So your calorie adjustment already includes exercise.
    Fitbit sends over how many calories you've burned in total and compares that to how much you'd burn at the activity level you selected in your MFP settings. (If the day isn't over, it will extrapolate.) If your Fitbit days you've burned more, then you get a positive calorie adjustment (those 205 calories in your example).

    Don't log exercise in MFP, you'll just 'mess up' the sync between MFP and Fitbit.
  • penguinmama87
    penguinmama87 Posts: 1,155 Member
    edited April 2021
    My Garmin tracker does this too - I get an estimated calorie burn from my step count and an additional line for my runs, which it detects automatically and then syncs to MFP. Even though I'm not logging again on MFP this feels like double counting, since a big portion of those steps came from my run to begin with. So for eating, I just ignore the run line and use the step counter calories. But perhaps I'm not interpreting it right?

    ETA: I'm sorry, I think I misunderstood your post. You're only getting the steps synced and NOT the exercise. I think that's how it's supposed to work, and you shouldn't log the exercise additionally on MFP. If you want a record, I've seen the recommendation to log it in your news feed on your profile, which won't affect your food and exercise diaries at all.
  • janejellyroll
    janejellyroll Posts: 25,763 Member
    If you're using a Fitbit synced to MFP, you don't need to make additional adjustments in MFP for exercise. The sync does all that for you. You will never see entries for individual exercise sessions, just an overall calorie adjustment.
  • Lietchi
    Lietchi Posts: 6,846 Member
    edited April 2021
    penguinmama87 wrote: »
    My Garmin tracker does this too - I get an estimated calorie burn from my step count and an additional line for my runs, which it detects automatically and then syncs to MFP. Even though I'm not logging again on MFP this feels like double counting, since a big portion of those steps came from my run to begin with. So for eating, I just ignore the run line and use the step counter calories. But perhaps I'm not interpreting it right?

    ETA: I'm sorry, I think I misunderstood your post. You're only getting the steps synced and NOT the exercise. I think that's how it's supposed to work, and you shouldn't log the exercise additionally on MFP. If you want a record, I've seen the recommendation to log it in your news feed on your profile, which won't affect your food and exercise diaries at all.

    There is a difference between Fitbit and Garmin:
    - Fitbit only shows a calorie adjustment, no exercise entries in the MFP diary (but it does take into account all calories, including exercise)
    - Garmin sends over both total calories for the day and individual exercise sessions. However, there is NO double counting since MFP simply compares total calorie burn for the day according to Garmin (including exercise) with the MFP estimate for the day (chosen activity level +calories from exercise according to Garmin). Your step count has nothing to do with it, that's just another metric Garmin sends over to MFP, but that's not the basis of your calorie adjustment. So basically: eat your exercise calories - total of your step adjustment and exercise sessions - as indicated in MFP (unless you think your Garmin is overestimating your daily total calorie burn).
  • cwolfman13
    cwolfman13 Posts: 41,865 Member
    mummytee87 wrote: »
    Hello!

    I never log my workouts on MyFitnessPal as the steps automatically sync to my account from my fitbit and I just go from there.

    I am just wondering, say for example the 35 minutes cardio I did this morning burnt 243 calories and myfitnesspal shows my steps as 3,937 steps at 205 calories. Do I log my workout alongside the steps or not? It seems that this would then look as though I burnt more calories than I have but I saw somewhere that it will adjust accoringly?

    Many thanks

    FitBit and most other devices synced to MFP give an adjustment to reconcile actual activity per the device to the activity level selected in MFP...you don't get a specific calorie adjustment for a specific exercise because your activity level selected on MFP already accounts for a certain amount of activity, even if it's set to sedentary...it's just a reconciliation adjustment.
  • penguinmama87
    penguinmama87 Posts: 1,155 Member
    Lietchi wrote: »
    penguinmama87 wrote: »
    My Garmin tracker does this too - I get an estimated calorie burn from my step count and an additional line for my runs, which it detects automatically and then syncs to MFP. Even though I'm not logging again on MFP this feels like double counting, since a big portion of those steps came from my run to begin with. So for eating, I just ignore the run line and use the step counter calories. But perhaps I'm not interpreting it right?

    ETA: I'm sorry, I think I misunderstood your post. You're only getting the steps synced and NOT the exercise. I think that's how it's supposed to work, and you shouldn't log the exercise additionally on MFP. If you want a record, I've seen the recommendation to log it in your news feed on your profile, which won't affect your food and exercise diaries at all.

    There is a difference between Fitbit and Garmin:
    - Fitbit only shows a calorie adjustment, no exercise entries in the MFP diary (but it does take into account all calories, including exercise)
    - Garmin sends over both total calories for the day and individual exercise sessions. However, there is NO double counting since MFP simply compares total calorie burn for the day according to Garmin (including exercise) with the MFP estimate for the day (chosen activity level +calories from exercise according to Garmin). Your step count has nothing to do with it, that's just another metric Garmin sends over to MFP, but that's not the basis of your calorie adjustment. So basically: eat your exercise calories - total of your step adjustment and exercise sessions - as indicated in MFP (unless you think your Garmin is overestimating your daily total calorie burn).

    This is very useful, thank you! I didn't know it worked like that. :)
  • jlperrotta1345
    jlperrotta1345 Posts: 3 Member
    Hi All, Interesting thread. Im new to MFP. Switching over from Noom app and trying to adjust to the differences in tracking. I have an Apple Watch. This discussing is exactly my question from today....do I need to input a district exercise in MFP for my 3 mile run today? I tried doing this and now Im unclear if Im double -counting the steps?
  • Lietchi
    Lietchi Posts: 6,846 Member
    jlperrotta1345 wrote: »
    Hi All, Interesting thread. Im new to MFP. Switching over from Noom app and trying to adjust to the differences in tracking. I have an Apple Watch. This discussing is exactly my question from today....do I need to input a district exercise in MFP for my 3 mile run today? I tried doing this and now Im unclear if Im double -counting the steps?

    People with fully synced trackers should never enter exercise manually on MFP.
    (PS sync between Apple and MFP is iffy for some, might be better to sync Apple with the Pacer app and then sync the Pacer app with MFP)
  • sijomial
    sijomial Posts: 19,809 Member
    jlperrotta1345 wrote: »
    Hi All, Interesting thread. Im new to MFP. Switching over from Noom app and trying to adjust to the differences in tracking. I have an Apple Watch. This discussing is exactly my question from today....do I need to input a district exercise in MFP for my 3 mile run today? I tried doing this and now Im unclear if Im double -counting the steps?

    @jlperrotta1345

    Read the final post in this thread about the issues peculiar to Apple....

    https://community.myfitnesspal.com/en/discussion/10830403/why-is-11k-steps-not-enough-for-sedentary#latest

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