How is it even counting calories burned?

[Android Central Question]

I've been a Fitbit user for several years. I had an aging Fitbit Blaze and when I cracked the screen last week, I decided to go with the Samsung Watch to replace it instead of the latest Fitbit model, as I've been hearing about the great Fitness trackers on the latest smartwatches. I've been using it 5 days and I have to say it has been a disappointment. I use this to monitor my calorie balance, and it's just not counting burn correctly. I had an active day and then did both a spin class and a strength class, and it's telling me I've burned 1300 calories. I would normally be around 2200 around this time. I can see that I can go in and "add" a workout-tell it what I was doing and when- but why should I have to do that when I was WEARING THE WATCH? The one that is supposed to measure heart rate and detect movement? I'm also disappointed I can't go back and see what I burned at a specific time of day- you just get one number; a daily total. Is there a third party app that does a better job of this? If not, I'm going to return it. Fitbit had better technology years ago.

 

[B. Diddy]

I moved this to the Galaxy Watch forum for more specific traffic.

 

[sonnnet]

I've been a Fitbit user for several years. I had an aging Fitbit Blaze and when I cracked the screen last week, I decided to go with the Samsung Watch to replace it instead of the latest Fitbit model, as I've been hearing about the great Fitness trackers on the latest smartwatches. I've been using it 5 days and I have to say it has been a disappointment. I use this to monitor my calorie balance, and it's just not counting burn correctly. I had an active day and then did both a spin class and a strength class, and it's telling me I've burned 1300 calories. I would normally be around 2200 around this time. I can see that I can go in and "add" a workout-tell it what I was doing and when- but why should I have to do that when I was WEARING THE WATCH? The one that is supposed to measure heart rate and detect movement? I'm also disappointed I can't go back and see what I burned at a specific time of day- you just get one number; a daily total. Is there a third party app that does a better job of this? If not, I'm going to return it. Fitbit had better technology years ago.

Make sure you have Samsung Health installed on your phone. In profile check you've filled out your height, weight etc. In the S Health dashboard on the phone, go to Manage Items and turn on weight management. Go in there. What does it show? You should have calories burnt at rest, for light activity, for exercise and total. Is this more like the figure you were expecting or is it still way too low?
(Ignore calorie intake for now and if it's telling you you are under target if you aren't tracking food).

 

[Peter621022]

What do you use as a reference to be able say your watch is calculating calories properly?
Are you sure your Fitbit is not overcounting? I see quite a few articles on the internet that claim the Fitbit is overcounting calories.

 

[sonnnet]

What do you use as a reference to be able say your watch is calculating calories properly?
Are you sure your Fitbit is not overcounting? I see quite a few articles on the internet that claim the Fitbit is overcounting calories.

Yes, that's a good point. Also if the OP could specify if the 1300 refers to only the combination of the spin and strength classes or to the day as a whole. I burn approx 1000 calories per hour when running, sometimes more if I'm pushing it. Again, does the 2200 on the fitbit relate to just the classes or the day as a whole? How long were the exercise classes and what heart rates did the OP work at? What else went on in the 'active day'? A lot of unknowns and variables here. With a bit more info, we might be able to pin it down.

 

[mlblack16]

Most fitness apps and step/activity trackers over estimate the amount of calories burned through activity, so it's difficult to tell which device/app is the most accurate predictor.

When estimating caloric requirements, the equation (Mifflin-St. Jeor) allows for an activity factor, which, if chosen correctly, will account for physical activity calories (added to RMR) and factor them into the total caloric goal for each day.

It's nice to know the calories burned from activity, but staying within the daily caloric goal is most important.