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MyFitnessPal's wrong calculations!

apoorvasaur
apoorvasaur Posts: 29
edited January 28 in Fitness and Exercise
Hi guys,
Many of you know how off the estimates of calorie burn on MyFitnessPal are.
Jogging/running is my main form of exercise, and I found out that MyFitnessPal practically doubles my exercise calories.
Here's an accurate calculator! Let's see how it works out for you guys(:

http://www.exercise4weightloss.com/exercise-calorie-calculator.html

Replies

  • allaboutthecake
    allaboutthecake Posts: 1,535 Member
    Probably most accurate way is wear a Heart Rate Monitor with a hard chest strap. (Soft chest strap have a tendency to miss-read, from my own experience.)
  • jamielynas
    jamielynas Posts: 366 Member
    Probably most accurate way is wear a Heart Rate Monitor with a hard chest strap. (Soft chest strap have a tendency to miss-read, from my own experience.)

    That's the ONLY way to get even a close estimate
  • GetSoda
    GetSoda Posts: 1,267 Member
    Probably most accurate way is wear a Heart Rate Monitor with a hard chest strap. (Soft chest strap have a tendency to miss-read, from my own experience.)

    That's the ONLY way to get even a close estimate

    no, heart rate monitor guesses to.

    only way to get a close estimate is hooked up to a machine that reads the gasses coming out of your mouth. ;)
  • jamielynas
    jamielynas Posts: 366 Member
    that'll be why I said it's still an estimate
  • crandos
    crandos Posts: 377 Member
    How to change macro's on MFP so i have 40 30 30 ?
  • Kalee34
    Kalee34 Posts: 674 Member
    I used the calculate that you suggested and I did the mfp one. The calculator that you suggested was either right on with mfp or it said that I had burned more than mfp said. I did it for jogging, running, weight training & aerobics.
  • Habiteer
    Habiteer Posts: 190 Member
    Probably most accurate way is wear a Heart Rate Monitor with a hard chest strap. (Soft chest strap have a tendency to miss-read, from my own experience.)

    What is an example of a hard chest strap and a light chest strap? I have a garmin forerunner 405, anyone know if this uses a hard chest strap or soft chest strap?
  • Azdak
    Azdak Posts: 8,281 Member
    Before complaining about the MFP numbers, it is a good idea to understand how the exercise numbers in the MFP database are derived. Depending on the activity, the MFP numbers can be OK or way off. It's not because of negligence or a conspiracy. MFP numbers can only be as good as their sources. And the quanlity of that source material varies widely.

    http://www.myfitnesspal.com/blog/Azdak/view/estimating-calories-activity-databases-198041

    It is also important to understand the signficant limitations of HRM calorie estimates. HRM calorie estimates are probably the single biggest source of fitness misinformation there is. However, there are some circumstances where, even with their limitations, HRM calorie estimates can be useful.

    http://www.myfitnesspal.com/blog/Azdak/view/calories-burned-during-exercise-it-s-the-intensity-not-the-heart-rate-that-counts-26524
This discussion has been closed.

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