Newbie with an elliptical bike

annetrout

Hi All!
I just bought an elliptical bike and cant figure out how to track it! I used it on the lowest setting for 10 minutes. According to the elliptical readout, that burned 50 calories. When I enter it in on MFP under the elliptical trainer it says it was 96 calories. I'm sure thats not what I burned, but which do I go with? The bike has no idea how heavy I am or anything, so I doubt its accurate, but MFP has no way of knowing if I "knocked myself out with it" for 10 minutes either.
What would be a good way to track it? Is an elliptical trainer the same as an elliptical bike?
Thanks for your help!

NorthCascades

Usually you stand on an elliptical, but sit on a bike. If yours is bearing your weight for you, then it actually doesn't make a huge difference in calorie terms what you weigh.

Normally the advice is to take the lower estimate (within reason) because people have a tendency to overestimate their exercise and underestimate their eating. Doing things like taking the lower estimate counter balances that.

As an outdoor cyclist, I have to work moderately hard (able to talk but slightly short of breath) to burn 100 calories in 10 minutes.

annetrout

Its weird! It doesn't have a seat, so I just thought it was an elliptical but the box says its an elliptical bike. So, that being said, I stand on it! Do you think the 50 calories that the elliptical says I burned is accurate? Still sounds like a lot of calories for 10 minutes. Embarrassingly enough, I was slightly out of breath even on the lowest setting! I'm 5'1 and weigh 140 lbs in case that matters!

lorrpb

Good for you for getting started on the elliptical. It can take you a long way. I'd encourage you to keep a log of your minutes, speed, and resistance level so you can track your progress over time. I have logs going back more than 3 years! I think I managed 6 minutes on the lowest setting the first time.
I wouldn't count the calories for 10 minutes. It's bonus burn to offset any other logging estimates. I never credit any exercise with more than 10 calories per minute and that's when I go all out on something. I arrived at that based on MFP burn estimates for some of my hardest classes when I was starting out. That sounds consistent with @NorthCascades 's estimate ^^ and I know that his cycling workouts are bad*ants*.

annetrout

I guess it does sound kind of petty to count the calories for 10 minutes! I think I'll work my way up to 20 minutes and then figure out how to count the calories! Maybe if I use my Vivofit and just track it by steps!

JeromeBarry1

If you've not been doing tons of cardio for months, it's realistic to think that you burned 50 in 10 minutes. You're not conditioned well. As your conditioning improves, you will be able to work more vigorously and burn more.

annetrout

JeromeBarry1 wrote: »

If you've not been doing tons of cardio for months, it's realistic to think that you burned 50 in 10 minutes. You're not conditioned well. As your conditioning improves, you will be able to work more vigorously and burn more.

Awesome! Its nice to think that all that effort was worthwhile! Hopefully it wont take long for me to get in better shape!

annetrout

lorrpb wrote: »

Good for you for getting started on the elliptical. It can take you a long way. I'd encourage you to keep a log of your minutes, speed, and resistance level so you can track your progress over time. I have logs going back more than 3 years! I think I managed 6 minutes on the lowest setting the first time.
I wouldn't count the calories for 10 minutes. It's bonus burn to offset any other logging estimates. I never credit any exercise with more than 10 calories per minute and that's when I go all out on something. I arrived at that based on MFP burn estimates for some of my hardest classes when I was starting out. That sounds consistent with @NorthCascades 's estimate ^^ and I know that his cycling workouts are bad*ants*.

I like the idea of keeping a log of the minutes, speed, and resistance levels for tracking purposes! I don't feel so wimpy now that you mentioned when you started you made it 6 minutes on the lowest setting too! There is hope!! LOL! Thank you!

NorthCascades

It's amazing how fast your conditioning will improve, at least for a while. For sure, keep a log of your progress.

lorrpb

annetrout wrote: »

JeromeBarry1 wrote: »

If you've not been doing tons of cardio for months, it's realistic to think that you burned 50 in 10 minutes. You're not conditioned well. As your conditioning improves, you will be able to work more vigorously and burn more.

Awesome! Its nice to think that all that effort was worthwhile! Hopefully it wont take long for me to get in better shape!

You will improve your fitness within a few weeks if you're consistent. It may take a short time or a long time to reach your goals and expectations depending on what they are. As long as you keep working at it, you'll keep improving.