How do you earn move calories?

[Tammster]

I am willing to adjust to this new goal of tracking "move calories" but I'm just so used to tracking steps. I honestly don't know how to go about earning move calories (the term seems strange but I guess that's what it is). I am not a huge exerciser but I do walk frequently and I will start going back to my trainer next week. I walked for about 40 minutes today and tracked it in the workout app. I do see that I burned calories but I don't know if it is doing it correctly. A few questions:

- Is it only tracking move calories when I do a workout with the workout app?
- Does it know how fast I'm walking and will it burn more calories if I walk faster? In this case, I set my workout on minutes (40 minutes) but I could have walked really fast or really slow. Does it know?
- If I'm working out (say riding a bike) and forget to create a workout in the app, will I get credit for burning those calories?
- If it tracks constantly (not just when in a workout) what does it consider moving? Standing up? Walking? Waving my arm around??

I do accept that this method is more efficient then counting steps (5,000 slow steps isn't the same as 5,000 fast steps but they're treated the same on my fitbit) but at least I understand steps.

One other question, I think I clicked too fast when I set it up because it gave me a VERY low move goal (like 700). I know I can adjust it (I adjusted it to 1800 which is my fitbit goal) but how do I recalculate it using the watch? I changed my weight by a pound to see if that adjusted it but it didn't.

 

[Tammster]

Bump

 

[Patriot24]

The watch is tracking your movement (or lack thereof) at all times. The data is recorded in the Activity app regardless if it is during a workout or not.

The Workout app is essentially just a tool to help you better quantify what you earn during a workout session and provide additional motivation.

The "Move" metric, as you know, is just another term for Active Calories burned. Any movement that causes calories to be burned is considered "moving".

To change your Move goal, force touch anywhere in the Activity app.

 

[Menel]

I don't know.

But a fitbit can't track heartrate.
Apple watch can, so it should use that information to determine that you are using more calories.

 

[Julien]

The watch is tracking your movement (or lack thereof) at all times.....

Just to add to this. The accelerometer in the Watch is measuring moment. Also believe it takes into account a higher HR with movement. HR is the biggest factor for calculating calories burned.

 

[sayheysarah]

- Is it only tracking move calories when I do a workout with the workout app?

Anytime you move, you do not have to be in a workout mode.

- Does it know how fast I'm walking and will it burn more calories if I walk faster? In this case, I set my workout on minutes (40 minutes) but I could have walked really fast or really slow. Does it know?

Yes, it knows. You can set one of the displays to show your pace when working out. The faster you move, the more you burn.

- If I'm working out (say riding a bike) and forget to create a workout in the app, will I get credit for burning those calories?

This one I am unsure of. I know the HR won't be going constantly, you will get credit for movement just like you normally would.

- If it tracks constantly (not just when in a workout) what does it consider moving? Standing up? Walking? Waving my arm around??

I am sure Apple has developed software algorithms to determine what you are doing. Like right now, I am moving my wrist some to type, but my watch is not registering any steps. Similar to the Fitbit.

 

[Annieshaf]

The reason for the low calorie target is that the watch only counts calories over and above those which your body uses at rest as "move" calories. If you look at the app on the phone you will see that the move calories are added to the rest calories to give you a totL for the day. 700 sounds like the right target for an active person.

 

[Patriot24]

The reason for the low calorie target is that the watch only counts calories over and above those which your body uses at rest as "move" calories. If you look at the app on the phone you will see that the move calories are added to the rest calories to give you a totL for the day. 700 sounds like the right target for an active person.

I was saddened to see that the default for "Low Activity" was 250 active calories.

 

[Tammster]

Thanks so much everyone! Now that I wore my watch all day today and did not log a workout, I do see that I've burned 181 move calories (probably walking up the stairs & walking to lunch). That makes a lot of sense.

Can't wait to make it back to the gym this week. It will be my first test of a gym workout.

 

[Metsfan7450]

I was confused about this as well. I have my goal set at the 620 calories for "Move" and am struggling to reach it. I run 30 minutes every day so never have trouble with my "Exercise" goal. I guess the thing I can't figure out is if a "move" is enough to burn calories, why it's not an "exercise." The watch logs more "exercise" than I realize I'm doing, but not as much "move."

 

[sb22]

move confuses me too. I've always completed the others but move only completed for the first time for me last night and this was after logging an intense yoga workout. i am going to try training tonight and see what it does

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One other question, I think I clicked too fast when I set it up because it gave me a VERY low move goal (like 700). I know I can adjust it (I adjusted it to 1800 which is my fitbit goal) but how do I recalculate it using the watch? I changed my weight by a pound to see if that adjusted it but it didn't.

Open the app on the watchand press down firmly (I had to ask the same the other day)

 

[Gregintosh]

Maybe you can increase the amount of calories burned with an in-app purchase.

 

[tivoboy]

several

I don't know.

But a fitbit can't track heartrate.
Apple watch can, so it should use that information to determine that you are using more calories.

several fitbits do indeed captured heartrate data, and possibly better than the apple watch.