Calories left and calories burned don't add to deficit

[SKdance]

I'm a new FitBit Zip user and discovered the meal plan and calorie deficit tool. I was a bit confused at first, wondering if the FitBit automatically factors in the deficit you request when it assigns how many calories you have left. I read through the forums and from what I can tell, the calories left to eat has already taken into account the requested deficit.

However, I did a little math and it doesn't make senses to me. I am looking to create a 500 calorie deficit per day and for example, it might say that I have burned 2100 calories, eaten 1200, and still have 900 left. Where is the deficit in that? Wouldn't that MATCH the calories burned instead of burning more than has been consumed? Does it really mean that calories burned was 2600, but they only report 2100 to create the deficit? Any help would be greatly appreciated! 

[JDubbs22]

My guess is that you are looking at it early in the day/evening.   You continue to burn calories until midnight so it uses past history to estimate what you will burn.  Even though you have only burned 2100, it is assuming you will burn 500 more by the end of the day.

[Heybales]

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@SKdance wrote:

I'm a new FitBit Zip user and discovered the meal plan and calorie deficit tool. I was a bit confused at first, wondering if the FitBit automatically factors in the deficit you request when it assigns how many calories you have left. I read through the forums and from what I can tell, the calories left to eat has already taken into account the requested deficit.

However, I did a little math and it doesn't make senses to me. I am looking to create a 500 calorie deficit per day and for example, it might say that I have burned 2100 calories, eaten 1200, and still have 900 left. Where is the deficit in that? Wouldn't that MATCH the calories burned instead of burning more than has been consumed? Does it really mean that calories burned was 2600, but they only report 2100 to create the deficit? Any help would be greatly appreciated! 

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You are probably looking at the tile for the guage, which is that moment in time.

Most find it pretty useless tile.

The tile with Burned goal is also only up to that moment in time.

But the eating tile is based on what you are likely going to burn the whole day.

And that estimate is based on an option in your Food plan in Food logging section.

Personalized means base the daily burn on historical day averages. So the eating goal is based on what you'll likely burn if each day is similar. Obviously by the time you reach dinner perhaps, and the evening is always the same - that's pretty accurate.

Sedentary means base it on basically being awake, until you sync and show you've burned more calories.

So that would have the eating goal keep increasing past whatever point you actually burned more.

Depends on how often you sync, and how well you like planning the day.

Or, you forgot to pick a diet plan so there really is a deficit.