Garmin Calculations. Are they correct?

goldyray1 · April 2021

I went to Garmin Connect and studied how they got their figures. This is what I found out:

Total Calories Burned:
Active Calories 722
Resting Calories 1281
Active + Resting Calories = 2003 Total Calories Burned

Adjusted Goal:
Daily Goal 1200
Active Calories 722
Daily Goal + Active Calories = 1922 Adjusted Goal

Calories Remaining:
Adjusted Goal 1922
Consumed 1362
Adjusted Goal minus Consumed = 560 remaining calories

I did over eat today. I consumed 1362 calories. (Coworkers birthday cake)

My Garmin calculates my calories burned thoughout the day. The total calories it shows up until the moment is 2003. So they are subtracting the calories used at rest (BMR) and subtracting it from the days' total calculation of calories. 2003 - 1281 - 722. The 722 is considered active calories no matter what you do, exercising, walking or whatever. Of course if you run for an hour the 722 would go higher because more calories would be burned. This 722 does include walking for one mile on my treadmill.

Is this miscalculating? If it is, please tell me what I need to do.

glassyo · April 2021

You need to look up what the word "remaining" means.

Pro tip: It means you didn't overeat.

Lietchi · April 2021

goldyray1 wrote: »

I went to Garmin Connect and studied how they got their figures. This is what I found out:

Total Calories Burned:
Active Calories 722
Resting Calories 1281
Active + Resting Calories = 2003 Total Calories Burned

Adjusted Goal:
Daily Goal 1200
Active Calories 722
Daily Goal + Active Calories = 1922 Adjusted Goal

Calories Remaining:
Adjusted Goal 1922
Consumed 1362
Adjusted Goal minus Consumed = 560 remaining calories

I did over eat today. I consumed 1362 calories. (Coworkers birthday cake)

My Garmin calculates my calories burned thoughout the day. The total calories it shows up until the moment is 2003. So they are subtracting the calories used at rest (BMR) and subtracting it from the days' total calculation of calories. 2003 - 1281 - 722. The 722 is considered active calories no matter what you do, exercising, walking or whatever. Of course if you run for an hour the 722 would go higher because more calories would be burned. This 722 does include walking for one mile on my treadmill.

Is this miscalculating? If it is, please tell me what I need to do.

Garmin isn't calculating your calorie burns, it's estimating them based on the stats you entered, your steps, heart rate...
Those estimations are based on statistical averages, which may or may not be accurate for you.
To find out if they're accurate, you need to monitor your weight (4 to 8 weeks) and compare it to how your weight should have theoretically evolved. (3500 calories remaining should theoretically equal 1lb of lost bodyfat)

goldyray1 · April 2021

OMG. That sounds so complicated. Losing weight is hard enough without all of these calculations. I think I will just stay at 1200 calories a day and do my mile on the treadmill, do my yoga and forget the rest. You need a college masters to figure all of this out.

janejellyroll · April 2021

goldyray1 wrote: »

OMG. That sounds so complicated. Losing weight is hard enough without all of these calculations. I think I will just stay at 1200 calories a day and do my mile on the treadmill, do my yoga and forget the rest. You need a college masters to figure all of this out.

You really don't -- though I understand why it sounds intimidating.

Basically what you can do is this: choose how much of your exercise calorie adjustment you want to eat back. Some people start with 100%, some start with 75%, some start with 50%. Eat back that amount for a reasonable period of time (say, 4-6 weeks). Compare your actual results to your expected results. If you lose weight as expected, that's great. Stick with the percentage you're eating back. If you're losing less than expected, reduce the percentage you're eating back. If you lose more than expected, eat back a larger percentage. It just requires some patience and observing the trend.

If you eat 1,200 AND exercise without eating anything back, you're assuming that your calorie burn through exercise is 0. Rather than observe the trend and adjust the number, you're assuming the ONLY number that we know can't be right -- 0. Why would you go with the one estimate you know is wrong when you have the option to eat more?

Remember -- 1,200 is the absolute lowest that most women should ever go. You're setting yourself up for failure if you eat like a very sedentary person and behave like an active person.

yirara · April 2021

It's not difficult. Just disconnect your Garmin from MFP, look at the numbers for fun reasons and eat the calories MFP gives you. Do log your exercise and eat back a certain number of them. That's really all there is to it. But yes, you should certainly eat more than 1200 calories if you do more than sit around all day.

The garmin watch is nice to look at. It can probably record walking tracks, can give you all sorts of numbers including calories, but these calories are just estimates that can be correct or be massively wrong. For some people this works, for others it don't.

hipari · April 2021

Based on this and the other chain you started, you seem to be really into your Garmin. Since you know what your total calories burned is, according to your Garmin, an easy way to hit the ballpark of 1lb/week would be to just subtract 500 from your total calories burned and eat that. So, your total calories burned was 2003, 2003-500=1503 <- that would be your goal to eat.

Mixing MFP math and Garmin math seems to be your problem here, so just choose one and stick with it for at least a month. If it doesn’t work, it’s time to adjust.

Now, here’s the important part. When we talk about a calorie goal, we are talking about a GOAL, not a limit. Think about it as a shooting target where that goal is the bullseye. No matter what direction you go, the farther you are from the bullseye the less points you get. Same with weight loss.

glassyo · April 2021

hipari wrote: »

Based on this and the other chain you started, you seem to be really into your Garmin. Since you know what your total calories burned is, according to your Garmin, an easy way to hit the ballpark of 1lb/week would be to just subtract 500 from your total calories burned and eat that. So, your total calories burned was 2003, 2003-500=1503 <- that would be your goal to eat.

Mixing MFP math and Garmin math seems to be your problem here, so just choose one and stick with it for at least a month. If it doesn’t work, it’s time to adjust.

Now, here’s the important part. When we talk about a calorie goal, we are talking about a GOAL, not a limit. Think about it as a shooting target where that goal is the bullseye. No matter what direction you go, the farther you are from the bullseye the less points you get. Same with weight loss.

OMG, I started a reply going into the math of it all to show how she's undereating but stopped because math is hard and you came along and simplified what I was trying to simplify.

(And, OP, you ARE most likely undereating. Wouldn't you rather lose weight while still being able to eat more of the foods?)

lemurcat2 · April 2021

Is there a reason you reported the same question? I answered you in the old thread -- did you lose track of that thread? (I've done that before!) If so, it's here: https://community.myfitnesspal.com/en/discussion/10830223/not-understanding-net-calories#latest

How much weight are you trying to lose per week? (And how much do you need/want to lose in total?) That's relevant to the answer.

cwolfman13 · April 2021

goldyray1 wrote: »

I went to Garmin Connect and studied how they got their figures. This is what I found out:

Total Calories Burned:
Active Calories 722
Resting Calories 1281
Active + Resting Calories = 2003 Total Calories Burned

Adjusted Goal:
Daily Goal 1200
Active Calories 722
Daily Goal + Active Calories = 1922 Adjusted Goal

Calories Remaining:
Adjusted Goal 1922
Consumed 1362
Adjusted Goal minus Consumed = 560 remaining calories

I did over eat today. I consumed 1362 calories. (Coworkers birthday cake)

My Garmin calculates my calories burned thoughout the day. The total calories it shows up until the moment is 2003. So they are subtracting the calories used at rest (BMR) and subtracting it from the days' total calculation of calories. 2003 - 1281 - 722. The 722 is considered active calories no matter what you do, exercising, walking or whatever. Of course if you run for an hour the 722 would go higher because more calories would be burned. This 722 does include walking for one mile on my treadmill.

Is this miscalculating? If it is, please tell me what I need to do.

I think the biggest issue here is massive overthink. Your device is just a tool, just like MFP or any of these other calculators and databases and apps out there. None of them are "exact"...they all use various algorithms and population statistics and your own inputs to give you whatever data you're looking at. For some people, these devices and calculators can be wildly off from reality...for others, they can be relatively close and the only way to really tell is with real world data compared to the data your device or a calculator or whatever is giving you.

Forget all of the "buckets" of different calories...they're calories...they aren't different or special from each other. I have a Garmin Instinct, and I don't pay attention to the "buckets" at all...I look at the bottom line. My device tells me that I burn XXXX calories in total (forget the buckets) in a given day. Just from time and experience I know that what my Garmin is telling me is relatively accurate (though not exact) most of the time (though sometimes it can just go funky on me either silly low or silly high)...I don't need 100% accuracy, I just need a reasonable starting point.

So if I know that my daily burn is on average XXXX calories per day, I know I need to eat below that amount to lose weight...at that point, it's just a matter of math in determining how much under...so 1 Lb per week I need to eat about 500 calories below what my total daily burn is. On average I have a daily burn (total...forget all of the buckets) of 2800-3000...if I eat 2300-2500 calories per day consistently I will lose on average about 1 Lb per week over time.

dragon_girl26 · April 2021

goldyray1 wrote: »

OMG. That sounds so complicated. Losing weight is hard enough without all of these calculations. I think I will just stay at 1200 calories a day and do my mile on the treadmill, do my yoga and forget the rest. You need a college masters to figure all of this out.

It isn't though.

I think in your other thread you said you have a degree. I also have a college degree (two, actually), and neither are in nutrition. I'm also terrible at math, but I have lost at least 65 lbs and maintained it despite that.. You're making it harder than it needs to be.

By all means, keep.your Garmin because you seem to be attached to it. Disconnect it from MFP, though, because it's causing you to focus on the wrong thing and confusing you more. You seem to be determined to eat at an unhealthy calorie goal rather than just making it easier on yourself. Put your information into MFP, activity level with 1 lb a week loss, and eat to the goal MFP calculates for you (and not less!!). Try that for awhile and see where it gets you.

goldyray1 · April 2021

I have read all of the answers to my questions. When I started this, I wanted to lose about 38 pounds. That would get me to a comfortable weight and it is also puts me on the high range of my ideal weight.
I had lost down to my ideal weight a couple of years ago. I did use MFP and it was fairly easy. I didn't have a Fitbit or a Garmin. I did have a step counter. I lost an average of 2 pounds per week. I stayed at 1200 calories a day. I did exercise, at the time Zumba was really popular and I got into that. I did fine for several years.
About a year ago, I was diagnosed with Rheumatoid Arthritis. I went through the trial and error period for nearly a year before they found medication that would work for me. I took prednisone for most of that time. Of course I ate everything that came my way and still wanted more, thus the extra weight now. I am off the prednisone (hopefully forever) and that is why I decided to come back to MFP.
I purchased my Garmin and thought that between the both, I could get back into shape. I have replace Zumba with Yoga. For one thing, I am quite out of shape because of the arthritis (unable to move because of the pain), The yoga I do is very simple Yoga, for seniors. It has helped me very much.
I also have a tread mill. I had Covid back in November and that kind of zapped me out. It did affect my breathing a little. I get out of breath really easy now. I am working at walking and the treadmill and I think I can get over that fairly soon.
I guess my point is, I ate a little bit below the 1200 calories a day and I did fine. If I get to feeling like I need to eat more, I will eat more. Yoga is strength building so I really don't worry about losing too much muscle. My health (other than the arthritis ) is extremely good. I will soon be 67 and I have people tell me that I don't look 50. I think I take care of myself.
I did get clarification on some things. I thank all of you.

yirara · April 2021

You only have 38 lbs to lose. Trying to lose 2lbs per week is far too aggressive. Please read AnnP's and all the other answers again: It's not right for your health to set an overly aggressive weightloss goal. Going by your Garmin data you posted above your calorie needs per day are around 1900-2000 calories per day. In order to lose 2lbs per week you'd need to eat 1000 calories less, thus only 900-1000. I'll be blunt with you: Do you want to lose your muscles and bone strength? Do you want to get osteoporosis for the sake of rushing to lose weight that is not at a critical, severely obese level? Btw, your heart is a muscle, too. So slow down, eat around 1400-1500 calories per day and lose slowly.

Garmin Calculations. Are they correct?

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