Surge Calories Surned seem too high - not losing weight with deficit

[Tikal769]

I like my surge, but it seems pointless if its reading incorrectly. It seems that i burn anywhere from 3200-3900 calories a day, including working out/cardio on my fitbit surge. When paired with Myfitnesspal it tells me to eat anywhere from 2200-2900 calories(Fitbit calorie Adjustment). Im suppose to be losing about 2 lbs a week. It seems to set me to eat 1000 calorie deficit a day.

I have spent 3 weeks eating what it tells me. Clean healthy eating, following macros and what not. Most days it seems like I have to force myself to eat what its recommended. After 3 weeks, all ive done is maintain my current weight.

Last week i went to just eating 2000 calories a day. its been almost 2 weeks and ive already lost about 1-1.5 lbs. So it appears now im on the right track.

I just don't get how the surge is saying I burn so much in one day and Its not like im starving while eating at 2000 calories. I have plenty of energy when weightlifting and cardio on their respective days.

Anyone else having issues with their surge overcalculating calories burned?

Also my settings for my surge have changed from being non dominant to dominant even though its on my non dominant arm. I felt it was initially over calculating my steps, it has gotten more accurate after i made this change.

Anyone have any issues with Calories burned seeming excessive?

(5'9 192lb 32yo Male - Weight lift and Cardio 6 times a week)

[SunsetRunner]

Yes, the values I see on the Dashboard/app are too high for me as well. Since I ran 4.5 miles this morning, I can eat 3100 calories today? And still have a weight loss of 1 to 2 lbs per week?

I've checked the calcuations Fitbit states they use (You can see the calculations in the API documentation here: https://dev.fitbit.com/docs/activity/#get-activity-intraday-time-series) to determine Total Energy Expenditure (TEE) with a second (experimental) source, and they agree, though I can't say if they're applying the calculation correctly. My calculation shows a TEE of 2373 kcal.

And how they are determing the number of additional activity calories to add in is a mystery. Could be METs (this would be my guess), or HR calculation, or both, or something completely different. My calories tracked on from running this morning agree with the MET formula (MET*Tmin*0.0175*Mass) - 522 kcal.

So, minus the 500kcal deficit, at the most I should be around 2400 kcal (which is the value if I set the food plan to "Sedentary.") (69.5"/173.5/51yo/Male)

[bbarrera]

The Fitbit calorie estimates seemed fine when I was walking and losing initial 40 lbs. That was when I was using Force and Flex.

However once I became fit, and began cycling for intense cardio and interval training, the Fitbit calorie estimates were way too high. Garmin HRM and Apple Watch are in basic agreement on calorie burn, but Fitbit is (usually) high. For example on Sunday I rode 52 miles and these were calorie burns for the entire day:

- 4717 cals Fitbit

- 4037 cals Garmin

- 3746 cals Apple Watch

On that ride I didn't put Apple Watch into exercise mode, so it was a bit low. Watch and Garmin are much closer when I track a ride on Watch (because it samples HR every 3 seconds).

Oddly, yesterday I rode 44 miles and Fitbit was more accurate. The big issue I have with Fitbit is that calorie estimates aren't consistent, for any given long ride I don't know if calories will be too high, right on, or too low. One thing I do know, the Surge HRM isn't very accurate *for me* while cycling.

[Tikal769]

I'm wondering if being Fit is making the difference.

Im not a body builder or super lean, but i have been working out consistently for about a year now. I just got the surge in december. Im wondering if the calorie burned estimates are different for me than to someone else who is 190lbs and doing jus moderate activities.

in this last year, im more fit than ever. 190 today im a smaller shirt and pant size. 190 years ago i was a lot bigger. I guess the surge is geared to the average joe?

[SLAYTHRAX]

I have been having the same problem with my Surge, I have been trying to operate at a 750 calorie deficit, yet after 2 weeks, I have only maintained my weight even staying in this range. I haven't been very active, yet if I'm truly in this range, how could I not lose weight? 

[TarinFitbit]

Hey guys @SLAYTHRAX @Tikal769 @bbarrera @SunsetRunner thanks for all your information! Let me share with you two post with useful information:

- The first one is from my friend @MarreFitbit "Calorie counting is incorrect", she is describing a little bit more the Overbudget, Underbudget, In zone and Calories left. 

- The second one is mine, with some tips to make your Calories Burned more accurate "Accurate Calories" 

However, if after all your calories are still inaccurate, please take a moment to Contact Costumer Support, they will be more than happy to further investigate the discrepancy on each account and find a quick solution for you.