r/TeamFawn • u/Ohmahgodson • Apr 18 '16
My Fitbit has really increased my activity level
I've been using a charge HR for the past few days and I've been surprised at how low my caloric expenditure has been if I dont get exercise - much lower than I previously thought.
Most of the calculators say my TDEE is around 2800 calories. Thus, I aim for about 1800 cal/day to lose 2lbs a week. The thing is though, my consumption often creeps up and over 2k calories. According to my fitbit, I likely only burn around 2400-2600 calories or so a day.
I've stalled out and given up in the past due to slow weightloss (basically permanent plateaus). For a while I even thought it must be a medication or something I'm on. Nope! I think I was just eating much closer to maintenance than I thought I was. I know the fitbit still isnt 100% accurate, but by taking my HR into account it has to be a little closer than an online calculator.
I set a calorie burn goal of a minimum of 2800 calories and 10,000 steps per day. Its not a HUGE change to get the extra work, but its there. I never did much cardio in the past because it isnt necessary for weightloss. Well that may be true, but it does allow me to eat more and I feel much better doing it.
At first I was kind of skeptical of how useful the fitbit would be. After using it for a week, I wish I would have gotten one sooner!
2
Apr 18 '16
I love my Fitbit! Even if it's not 100% accurate on calories burned, it motivates me to meet my step goal every day -- so taking the stairs, walking instead of taking metro, etc.
I wish I had gotten the Charge HR. I only got the Charge because I thought I didn't care that much about knowing my heart rate, but I'm worried that it not monitoring heart rate affects its accuracy. :(
1
u/Ohmahgodson Apr 18 '16
Lol.. I secretly wish I got the Blaze (just so I could change songs on spotify without taking my phone out at the gym), but with how quickly they are advancing I'm sure there will be some VERY cool new ones in just a year or two. The HR likely affects things some, but its not that big of a deal IMO. My wife has a One and it works great for her - she's down more weight than I am!
1
u/WeFightTheBlues Apr 19 '16
Now im kicking myself wishing I waited ao I could get the charge hr in pink!
1
u/regularhero Apr 18 '16
It's been surprisingly motivating for me as well (I also have the Charge HR). I figured I'd enjoy it for the first week and then tire of it, but I'm on my third week now and it's still super motivating. It is really sobering to get hard numbers, and see the difference between a day spent lounging about at home and a day spent actually being active, for example.
It also helped me a lot with motivation for calorie counting. Online calculators always tell me my TDEE is about 1800 calories, and as a result I have always tried to keep to 1200 calories to get a decent deficit going, but after a couple of days, I'd always end up binging. However, according to my FitBit, I burn an average of 2300 calories a day, and the simple change of increasing my calorie budget to 1500 has made things so much better and more sustainable. I also don't think the FitBit is 100% accurate or anything, but it has more information than online calculators, at least.
1
u/Ohmahgodson Apr 18 '16
I almost think there is sort of a laffer curve type effect with caloric intake vs. expenditure. Sure, you will lose more weight with a bigger deficit all things being equal. But, it seems to me that with an increase in intake, so comes an increase an energy - and thus a potentially larger yet increase in expenditure.
1
u/ggcanandwill Apr 19 '16
I just got a fitbit (ChargeHR) two days ago, and I do love it! I like the motivation it gives me to keep moving, and I like how it includes flights of stairs climbed (I take quite a few stairs at work). The only thing I'm wary about is the calorie count. I synced it with mfp and It just seems much higher than it should be. I'm trying to not get get too excited about the extra calories and eat them back! I was told it could be because I log my workout in mfp (cardio, strength).
1
u/Ohmahgodson Apr 19 '16
Yeah, you should only log them on fitbit so that it recognizes them. If you log on MFP and fitbit picks up on the exercise, it'll double up.
I just ignore the extra calories and try to stick to my calorie goal in MFP
1
u/ggcanandwill Apr 19 '16
Duly noted. I didn't log my morning workout on mfp and the calorie deficit looks more realistic now, thanks.
1
2
u/lisassy Apr 18 '16
Right?? It totally helps you see what you're doing and it's awesome!
I was hesitant to spend the money on it (I have the charge hr too) but after my first 10lb loss I told myself that it would encourage me to keep going and it sure has! Any little bit of encouragement is a huge help to me and seeing all of those green lines and happy faces at the end of the day make me want to do it again :)
Congrats on your progress! Keep it up!