FitBit Question

MessyJessyJR
MessyJessyJR Posts: 3
edited November 10 in Fitness and Exercise
I just started using my FitBit yesterday and I have it synced up to MFP but none of my cals burned are showing up here like it said it's supposed to be.
Could that be why when I manually input my exercises on here it has a different number of calories burned then what my FitBit says I burned?

Replies

  • jaxxie
    jaxxie Posts: 576 Member
    I have the same question! My meals sync to my FB but it only shows up the Cals burned on my FB and not on MFP? Help would be super appreciated!
  • Brandy108
    Brandy108 Posts: 29 Member
    Kind of. When you add in your exercise to MFP, you have to put in the exact time you started it and how long it lasted. Then it will grab however many calories you burned according to fitbit and bring them over. Otherwise fitbit will just keep track and if you get a large amount of extra calories burned, you'll see a cardio exercise added as "fitbit calorie adjustment." For example, today was really busy at work and I was running around like crazy and my fitbit adjusted my MFP calories by 400ish. You can view my diary if you want to see what it looks like.
  • heethar
    heethar Posts: 21
    Don't track food on FB. Only MFP. Also, FitBIt will only log calories burned, nothing else. Fitbit will automatically add calories burned so you have to be careful not to double it up by entering them (activity based calories) in MFP.
  • angraham2
    angraham2 Posts: 128
    Kind of. When you add in your exercise to MFP, you have to put in the exact time you started it and how long it lasted. Then it will grab however many calories you burned according to fitbit and bring them over. Otherwise fitbit will just keep track and if you get a large amount of extra calories burned, you'll see a cardio exercise added as "fitbit calorie adjustment." For example, today was really busy at work and I was running around like crazy and my fitbit adjusted my MFP calories by 400ish. You can view my diary if you want to see what it looks like.

    This is close, when you put your exercise into MFP, it tells FB and replaces the calories burned for that period of time on your FB . If you are consistantly getting a large fitbit calorie adjustment then you have your MFP activity level set too low. My adjustment is usually around 100 caloires, depending on how active I am during the day. Just remember to enter all your info into MFP, and not FB. Otherwise things will get really messed up. You can also check out my diary if you like. FB tends to be a bit lower on calories burned than MFP. So if you want to use the lower number, don't log your exercise and FB will give you your adjustment when you sync.
  • jaxxie
    jaxxie Posts: 576 Member
    Thanks, good to know....how do you start/stop your workouts? I'm guessing it doesn't track Cardio and weight training separately, or do I have to log that into FB manually?
  • jaxxie
    jaxxie Posts: 576 Member
    Ok, will try that...........how do you know if it's syncing? I have been sick and very sedentary today and FB says I have burned over 1200cal. Not too sure about that?? I can't see any adjustments on MFP and no clue on how to tell if it is or isn't syncing??????? I am so confused, lol....thanks for all the help!
  • mlwolfson
    mlwolfson Posts: 4 Member
    I just started syncing my FitBit yesterday as well, and was wondering if mine was working because things seemed slow to update. Today it seems to be fine.

    Here is what is happening (as far as I can tell):

    1) Your calories burned as recorded by FitBit = exercise calories PLUS calories burned daily by just living your life (your basal metabolic rate (BMR))

    2) When FitBit syncs with MyFitnessPal, only the extra calories burned by exercise are sent to MFP. So for example, my FitBit says I have burned about 760 calories so far today. Based on the time of day, and my estimated BMR, it knows how many of those calories are from everyday living and how many are from me being more active. So the extra amount of calories burned (55 in my case right now), gets sent over to MFP. If you are sedentary all day because you are sick, no calories will probably be sent over to MFP, since you are burning only your BMR. The FB, however, will continue to show calories burned for your BMR, so at the end of the day, your calories burned on FB might read 1800 or whatever your BMR is.

    3) FB website does not add back exercise calories to what you are allowed to eat, but MFP does. That is why you may see an adjustment of 55 calories here, 100 calories there, etc.

    3) You can see the activities like Sleep and Steps synced from FitBit under your MFP - Check-in.

    4) You need to only enter the start/stop time of activities if you actually had your fitbit on while doing it. So for swimming or pilates for example, you can just enter them normally on MFP.

    5) FB website pulls Food and Exercise entries over from MFP, so do not enter them on FB.

    6) Weight is not pulled over, so enter this in both sites. The FB website says they are working on adding this.

    I hope this helps. This may not be 100% accurate, but it is my understanding of how things work - granted I've had my fitbit less than 24 hours, so...
  • slightlycrunchy
    slightlycrunchy Posts: 42 Member
    For some people, there is an issue with FitBit not correctly syncing data with MFP. You should contact customer service on both sites and see if they can help you, although MFP is aware of the problem.
  • JerseyGrlPoet
    JerseyGrlPoet Posts: 6 Member
    Thanks everyone, this is helpful. Today is the first day and I've been synced and sitting next to the base for almost 30 minutes. Does anyone know how long it takes for the "calorie adjustment" to show up on MFP? I'm trying to figure out what I can have for dinner, and getting frustrated.
  • mlwolfson
    mlwolfson Posts: 4 Member
    So actually FitBit does add back extra calories you burn, but to see it, you have to create a food goal on the FitBit website. Apparently if you set a calorie goal manually, FitBit does not add back exercise calories, because it wants you to stay under your goal. When you set a weight loss goal instead, the calorie limit is allowed to vary based on activity.

    Now that I have set this up, that amount of extra calories FitBit says I am allowed is greater than MyFitnessPal says I am allowed, though this may be do to the lag between MFP and FB syncing. FB seems to pull data almost instantly from MFP, but MFP seems slower at pulling data from FB.

    I'll know better tomorrow after a full day with a weight goal versus calorie goal.

    On a side note, seeing I was close to my first 25 flights in one day badge, I actually ran up and down stairs in my home so I could reach it. Proof already that FB is helping to motivate me!
  • MessyJessyJR
    MessyJessyJR Posts: 3
    I do not notice my FB syncing with MFP at all. I have to manually add all my cals like I was doing prior to getting my FB. It just frustrates me because I am burning lots of cals according to FB but only a little bit when I manually enter them. This is also because Idk what to log some of my burned cals as on MFP.
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