is my fitbit accurate on my calories burned?

[kei96]

My fitbit is telling me im burning a lot of calories and i just dont think its accurate,

Im a 21 year old male, 5ft 7 inches and i weigh 12 stone 11 pounds.

I work in a furniture factory assembling all kinds of units, so i am on my feet always on the move 8 hours a day in work and i also do a 1 hour walk after work to.

I did a test yesterday where i tried to do little as possible and i burnt 2300 calories.

Tuesday-  when i was in work and also 1 hour walk after work i burned 4700 calories, i did 21000 steps and also 300 active minutes.

wednesday - when i was in work and also 1 hour walk i burned 4900 calories, i did 21200 steps and also 414 active minutes.

Friday - when i was in work and also 1 hour walk i burned 5200 calories, i did 21000 steps and also 466 active minutes.

So im burning around 4500-5000 calories everyday through the week, is this accurate?

[GershonSurge]

@kei96,

It appears to be high by about 10-15%. All the devices have an error and they are different for each person. If you are trying to lose weight, I suggest starting with a 750 calorie deficit and see if you lose weight. If not, increase the deficit another 250 calories. Keep adjusting about once a week until you determine the error.

The percentage should be consistent if you don't vary the type of exercise by much.

[kei96]

ok thank you, i also forgot to mention my resting bpm is 62 if thats makes any difference

[WavyDavey]

If you're getting over 400 active minute per day (nearly 7 hours), then I'd say your calories burned could be close to that. That's a whole lot of daily activity.

@kei96, how many calories are you taking in per day? And is your weight going up or down?

[kei96]

yeah im doing about 300 - 450 active minutes per day, mainly in work

[kei96]

i only just got the fitbit a week ago, aint really checked how many calories im eating but i know i havent been eating over 3000

[SunsetRunner]

For Fitbit and any other device is just impossible to be accurate. It just doesn't know everything about you and less data you provide ( like updating your body fat percentage and weight ) the less Fitbit has to work with. For me it's never accurate and it greatly underestimate calories I burn. One thing is that you need to learn to put some adjustments on what Fitbit shows you. Unfortunatelly, we cannot all be labeled under single math formula that will work for everybody 🙂 There is nothing wrong with Fitbit here. The numbers it shows should be individually interpreted rather than blindly taken as truth 🙂

[Mukluk4]

Are you using a basic tracker or a HRM?

If using a non-HRM then your assembly actions may be converted to steps which will impact your calories burned.

[dezellis]

Accuracy of calories burnt must depend on accuracy of HR capture if HR device is used.

Compare a recent walk of mine:-

1st photograph from Fitbit of Calories Burnt.

2nd photograph form Fitbit of HR Data.

3rd photograph from Fitbit of Impact.

4th photograph full length scroll from the Wahoo Fitness App monitoring a Wahoo TickrX Chest Strap HR monitor on the same walk.

[Evemariesaint]

I jog on the spot every morning until I've zapped 1000 calories. This doesn't take long as apparently my heart rate goes up to about 170 when I'm doing this, even though I'm not breaking sweat, so it can't be accurate, especially as my resting heart rate is about 54.
I KNOW the exercise bike for half an hour (10 km) is burning more calories (I'm soaked!) but fitbit thinks not.

[Dominique]

How long does it take you to burn 1000 calories while jogging in place? And how many calories do you burn in 30 minutes while pedalling on your exercise bike? Energy expenditure is a function of time and intensity. If you want to compare both activities, record them as such on your Fitbit for the same time (e.g. 30 minutes). Then show us the corresponding graphs and stats.