How does MyFitnessPal calculate how many calories you burn during exercise without input of Heart R

PapouliMJE

How does MyFitnessPal calculate how many calories you burn during exercise without input of Heart Rate

Lietchi

Probably based on MET values or a similar system:
https://www.healthline.com/health/what-are-mets#definition

Heart rate isn't necessarily an accurate way to estimate calorie burns.

AnnPT77

Yes, it uses METS values that come from research, as Lietchi suggested.

In addition to the link she gave, that explains METS, there's a comprehensive list of METS values for various activities here:

https://sites.google.com/site/compendiumofphysicalactivities/home

Heart rate is a reasonable way of estimating calories for some types of exercise, and a pretty terrible way for others. METS is a reasonable way of estimating calories for some types of exercise, and a pretty terrible way for others. Some exercise machines produce reasonable estimates, and others are pretty terrible.

Are you sensing a pattern there? 😆🤣

Most people, doing average amounts of exercise, don't have to worry lots about this, because "close enough" will work. Sure, you want to avoid crazy-far-off estimates if you can. But being off by even a hundred calories for 3-4 sessions a week, in a world where most everyone should be eating a minimum of 8400-10500 calories (probably more, for most), and everything else is also estimated so could be high/low . . . 300-400 calories off isn't arithmetically a big deal, realistically.

If you like to be more accurate, you can learn more about which estimating methods are most likely to be most reasonable for particular activities. I'm not going to try to write an essay about that here, but if you do a certain type of exercise, and are wondering about the best way to estimate it (among the many iffy options), make a post in the Fitness section of the MFP Community and ask. People will disagree, but probably a consensus will emerge.