Need help understanding the calories in vs out

[LeeRW]

I don't understand the information on the tile for Calories In. For example, currently it says "1744 Calories In. 293 calories left. 

What is this 293 calories left? It didn't seem to relate to anything in the food logging screen of Calories In v Calories Out 

Please help...

Moderator Edit: Clarified subject

[Julia_G · Accepted solution]

Hi, @LeeRW , it is a little complicated!  For your available calories (in this case 293) it does not give you the total calories for the day, but the total available up to that point in the day, if that makes any sense.  

An example might make this clearer.  Suppose you are the sort of person who likes to log all your planned eating for the day first thing in the morning.  If you log all your calories at 8 am, it will tell you that you have a negative number of calories remaining, because in Fitbit’s calculation you have not yet burned enough calories in the day to balance what you have logged. Gradually through the day the numbers will update. By lunch time, if you haven’t eaten any more food (because you logged it all at once) you will find that the negative number is smaller - you are catching up.  By midnight, if you have eaten according to your budget then it should be in balance.  I hope this makes sense.  Your budget will be based on any calorie deficit you have set.

So basically 293 is what Fitbit has calculated you have remaining in your “budget” up to that point in the day. In a couple of hours if you don’t log any more calories in you will find the number has increased, especially if you have earned extra calories through exercise.  Basically Fitbit allocates your daily calories evenly throughout the day, rather than allocating them all at once for the whole day.  

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