Zumba calorie burn

trixsterjl31
trixsterjl31 Posts: 101 Member
edited October 22 in Fitness and Exercise
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I find this hard to believe. I'm 331 lbs today. Zumba says about 400 calories.

I'm guessing there are many factors involved like, do you actually do all the hopping up and down or do you just 2 step and wave your arms about like a beached sea animal <. LOL.
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Replies

  • Alatariel75
    Alatariel75 Posts: 18,144 Member
    LOL

    All of these measurements are an estimate and I feel MFP estimates really high and assumes that you're at 100% movement 100% of the time you're tracking. I track taekwondo, and the burn is huge, when in reality half the class is about form etc. So their calculations might be right if I was all-out sparring for the whole time, but certainly not for the reality of the class.
  • trixsterjl31
    trixsterjl31 Posts: 101 Member
    Alatariel75 wrote: »
    LOL

    All of these measurements are an estimate and I feel MFP estimates really high and assumes that you're at 100% movement 100% of the time you're tracking. I track taekwondo, and the burn is huge, when in reality half the class is about form etc. So their calculations might be right if I was all-out sparring for the whole time, but certainly not for the reality of the class.
    Few things burn more than an actual fight. Wresting someone for 30 mins would be crazy high burn. I know I fought a guy one time (work related) for a solid minute one on one. I was done for a day after that and it was only a minute.
  • AnnPT77
    AnnPT77 Posts: 33,986 Member
    You can overtype MFP's calorie estimate with a value you consider more reasonable, if you want to. FWIW, the algorithms MFP uses are very dependent on bodyweight, and Zumba is an exercise that does really differ on that basis, since a person is moving their body through space, against gravity . . . somewhat vigorously, usually. I'm under half your size, and MFP would give me 239 calories for half an hour of Zumba. That does seem a little high to me subjectively, but possibly not crazy-high.

    It's true, though, that some people do Zumba with great vigor, while others sort of go through the motions. I think the MFP estimate assumes significant vigor, so if a person self-assesses as more of a beginner who isn't able to go at it full power, then it might be realistic to reduce the calorie estimate by some standard percentage each time, see how that works out.
  • trixsterjl31
    trixsterjl31 Posts: 101 Member
    AnnPT77 wrote: »
    You can overtype MFP's calorie estimate with a value you consider more reasonable, if you want to. FWIW, the algorithms MFP uses are very dependent on bodyweight, and Zumba is an exercise that does really differ on that basis, since a person is moving their body through space, against gravity . . . somewhat vigorously, usually. I'm under half your size, and MFP would give me 239 calories for half an hour of Zumba. That does seem a little high to me subjectively, but possibly not crazy-high.

    It's true, though, that some people do Zumba with great vigor, while others sort of go through the motions. I think the MFP estimate assumes significant vigor, so if a person self-assesses as more of a beginner who isn't able to go at it full power, then it might be realistic to reduce the calorie estimate by some standard percentage each time, see how that works out.

    I think the 239 is more realistic. I'd burn about that walking 3mph and I think the effort is mostly the same. The only difference been i did about 40 squats and jumped up and down a bit.
  • AnnPT77
    AnnPT77 Posts: 33,986 Member
    trixsterjl31 wrote: »
    AnnPT77 wrote: »
    You can overtype MFP's calorie estimate with a value you consider more reasonable, if you want to. FWIW, the algorithms MFP uses are very dependent on bodyweight, and Zumba is an exercise that does really differ on that basis, since a person is moving their body through space, against gravity . . . somewhat vigorously, usually. I'm under half your size, and MFP would give me 239 calories for half an hour of Zumba. That does seem a little high to me subjectively, but possibly not crazy-high.

    It's true, though, that some people do Zumba with great vigor, while others sort of go through the motions. I think the MFP estimate assumes significant vigor, so if a person self-assesses as more of a beginner who isn't able to go at it full power, then it might be realistic to reduce the calorie estimate by some standard percentage each time, see how that works out.

    I think the 239 is more realistic. I'd burn about that walking 3mph and I think the effort is mostly the same. The only difference been i did about 40 squats and jumped up and down a bit.

    The calorie burn would be expected to be higher for you than for me, by quite a lot, because of the difference in our body weight. (I weighed 134 pounds this morning.) Much of the calorie-burning "work" in Zumba is moving the body through space and against gravity.

    But use whatever calorie estimate you think is the most likely to be close for you. It doesn't have to be perfect. I'd encourage you to take some standard approach (to log 50% of MFP's calorie estimate, or 37%, or X number per half hour or whatever. Using a standardized number will help you as you evaluate your calorie/bodyweight estimates as you go forward.

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