SEDENTARY/MODERATE/ACTIVE

i also wanted to know this. i sit at a desk all day but i go to the gym 3x weekly and i walk to work and back which a 3 mile trip.

bump. I had the same question.

If you do exercise everyday set it on Moderate. If you only do it once in a while set it on sedentary.

your dailt activity does not include exercise like running ,gym walking as this gets added back when you track it so you would be adding twice if you have a desk job and not on your feet all day its sedentry . if your job is slightly manual then its moderate if you are extremely active on your feet walking all day then you are very active but exercise is seperate

Simple answer: you're tracking those workouts in mfp leave it at sedentary, if you aren't tracking them bump it up to moderate.

That being said every body is a little different and depending on your general fitness level and how much you need to lose those activities could be affecting you more or less. It's all a bit of trial and error, pick one way and stick to it or a few weeks as reevaluate. If you're losing at a steady healthy pace (roughly 1% of your weight per week) and you feel ok then leave it, if you're losing too fast (over 1% several weeks in a row) &/or feeling crappy then adjust it up, if you stop losing adjust it down.

For the OP: that roughly describes my average day but I add in weight training, I have mine set to sedentary, have my goal to lose 1/2 lb a week and I track the longer cardio sessions and strength training and don't log the dog walks and stair climbing (unfortunately while stair climbing makes for great gams it doesn't actually burn a ton of calories, a friend in pretty close to the same shape as me tested it with her hrm and I think it was something like 40 calories for 10 flights twice. So I do it for the leg workout and to escape my desk but expect it to be a big burner). This works for me, I drop about a pound a week and about a pants size every month or so.

I sit at a desk all day monday - friday, but I work out 6 days a week. I have mine set to sedentary.

Ok...Moderate it is then....Thanks all..

Ok then...So my daily needs are 2,600 cals...i`m aiming for a 1000 per day deficit. So if i eat 2,600 i need to burn 1000 off right?

no when you set the mfp correctly it asks you how much you want to lose per week and it automatically takes it off so all you have to do is meet the calorie goals it tells you to

Totals 2,851 31 113 24 227 13
Your Daily Goal 4,157 103 207 29 468 35
Remaining 1,306 72 94 5 241 22
Calories Carbs Fat Sat Fat Protein Fiber
*You've earned 1557 extra calories from exercise today

So i yesterday ate 2,851 cals...So i should be eating the other 1,306 as well?

Never pastes right does it..

Wow i don't think I could eat that many cals in a day however that's what it's saying you should be eating!! Seeing those numbers I'd go back to the "how do you feel and is it working" method. As long as you're losing at a decent pace and not crazy amounts and you feel ok I'd ignore the extra calories.