Snap! I have been wrong about Calorie Burns!

Chevy_Quest
Chevy_Quest Posts: 2,012 Member
in Health and Weight Loss
Snap! I realized that I have been overestimating my Calorie Burns!

If you read posts from the people who have been here for a while, you realize that most of their advice to people who come here after 1-2 week with no results boils down to this.

1. Counting calories is important at this stage.
2. You may be UNDERestimating what you eat - Using a scale is always a good practice.
3. You may be OVERestimating your calorie burns - be careful.

Educate yourself on relative calorie burns and if in doubt take the "conservative" number.

For example. I strapped on my Polar FT7 HRM and did a 30 minute stationary bike ride. I cranked up the resistance and tried to keep a pace of 75 RPM. I watched my HRM the whole time and I always was between 125 and 135 the whole time. Classic "steady state cardio". My HRM said 128 minutes.

I looked at several factors and calculated my burns using MFP, My HRM, and some websites. Look at the variation! I ended up using 273 cals burned.
Graph1_zps85f35710.jpg

I have been fooling myself for nearly a year thinking I was burning more than I did - No wonder I did not lose weight that quickly

I went back to my old data, old weight, estimated my old fitness level and re-ran the numbers - There was my "smoking gun"!

Graph2_zps96bbbf0b.jpg


I did not take into account my VO2Max

When I plugged "realistic" VO2 Max numbers into one of my favorite calculators it opened my eyes.
I used a "below average" rating from this website:
http://www.topendsports.com/testing/norms/vo2max.htm

And then I plugged this info into This website:
http://www.shapesense.com/fitness-exercise/calculators/heart-rate-based-calorie-burn-calculator.aspx


It is OK to OVERestimate what you eat and UNDERestimate what you burn

It's your body and your fitness - why fool yourself? I found out I WAS fooling myself and I am taking corrective action now!

Look if you are
- Counting 950 calories for a round of miniature golf wearing snowshoes
- Counting 1270 calories for watchin "Dukes of Hazzard" reruns while dressed up as Vanilla Ice
- Counting 2000 calories for spearfishing in Loch Ness

You might want to reconsider your burns!

Good luck on your fitness journey - Keep Learning and keep "Self - correcting"!
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Replies

  • BombshellPhoenix
    BombshellPhoenix Posts: 1,693 Member
    :flowerforyou: =^.^=
  • r3ban1x
    r3ban1x Posts: 51 Member
    I think we are all guilty of this which is why and how many of us gained weight or can't seem to lose weight. There WERE 1200 calories in the giant lasagna I ate the other day and my 30 minute workout was not enough to make up for it no matter what I do or don't enter into my diary the real numbers are what matters. Not the lies we tell ourselves.
  • GiveMeCoffee
    GiveMeCoffee Posts: 3,556 Member
    0001st50.gif
  • dmg8500
    dmg8500 Posts: 31 Member
    Funny I have done this a few times. Especially this week
  • Keepcalmanddontblink
    Keepcalmanddontblink Posts: 718 Member
    This is why I use a calorie burning app, and my HRM and if the app is lower than the HRM, I use that number. If my HRM is higher, I'll deduct 100 calories just to be safe.
  • WalkingAlong
    WalkingAlong Posts: 4,926 Member
    More reason to not try to 'eat back'. Use a TDEE method, see what happens, adjust as needed.
  • sijomial
    sijomial Posts: 19,809 Member
    How did you work out your VO2 max?
    I do a regular test on a Concept2 rower (2000m fast as possible) but when I went to a sport science lab for a proper VO2 max test the results were very different.
  • sijomial
    sijomial Posts: 19,809 Member
    More reason to not try to 'eat back'. Use a TDEE method, see what happens, adjust as needed.
    Or do the MFP method, see what happens and adjust as needed. TDEE method isn't going to be any more accurate by estimating in advance rather than after the event!
  • Chevy_Quest
    Chevy_Quest Posts: 2,012 Member
    @sijomial
    How did you work out your VO2 max?
    I do a regular test on a Concept2 rower (2000m fast as possible) but when I went to a sport science lab for a proper VO2 max test the results were very different.

    I did the worst case estimate from this site:

    http://www.topendsports.com/testing/norms/vo2max.htm

    I am going to try some self-testing (I know that is a can of worms) and then go to a reputable lab where they strap the mask on me and find out what my VO2max really is!

    Thanks!
  • brower47
    brower47 Posts: 16,356 Member
    Excellent post!
  • Chevy_Quest
    Chevy_Quest Posts: 2,012 Member
    @walkingalong
    More reason to not try to 'eat back'. Use a TDEE method, see what happens, adjust as needed.

    You have a pretty good point there. That is why I normally eat back 25% to 50% of my estimated exercise calories. But... last year... It looks like I probably ate several times over my TDEE and didn't know it DOH! :drinker:
  • Chevy_Quest
    Chevy_Quest Posts: 2,012 Member
    @jwhited

    Referencing the classic Hogwarts gif!

    you just made my day! :smile: :drinker: :flowerforyou:
  • jkal1979
    jkal1979 Posts: 1,896 Member
    Sometimes I think that another part of the problem is that some people are not working out as hard as they think and choose a more intense level of exercise when logging it. I wonder how much of a difference that really makes.
  • sijomial
    sijomial Posts: 19,809 Member
    @sijomial
    How did you work out your VO2 max?
    I do a regular test on a Concept2 rower (2000m fast as possible) but when I went to a sport science lab for a proper VO2 max test the results were very different.

    I did the worst case estimate from this site:

    http://www.topendsports.com/testing/norms/vo2max.htm

    I am going to try some self-testing (I know that is a can of worms) and then go to a reputable lab where they strap the mask on me and find out what my VO2max really is!

    Thanks!
    It's certainly an experience! Finding out your true max HR as part of the test is also useful (and bloody hard!).
  • Chevy_Quest
    Chevy_Quest Posts: 2,012 Member
    @R3Ban1x
    The George Costanza quote
    Jerry, just remember. It's not a lie... if you believe it...
    just doesn't work here LOL!
    I think we are all guilty of this which is why and how many of us gained weight or can't seem to lose weight. There WERE 1200 calories in the giant lasagna I ate the other day and my 30 minute workout was not enough to make up for it no matter what I do or don't enter into my diary the real numbers are what matters. Not the lies we tell ourselves.
  • Chevy_Quest
    Chevy_Quest Posts: 2,012 Member
    @Jkal1979

    I think I just heard the sound of a giant hammer hitting a giant nail right on the head! :flowerforyou:

    It's the same thing as the "bogus" entries in the food database that "shave" 30-40 calories of something that is clearly published on an online website for that food just so that they "feel better" about themselves.
    Sometimes I think that another part of the problem is that some people are not working out as hard as they think and choose a more intense level of exercise when logging it. I wonder how much of a difference that really makes.
  • Mykaelous
    Mykaelous Posts: 231 Member
    This is why instead of counting my calories burned I simply don't count the 240 calorie protien shake I eat afterwards. I figure for a 1-2 hour workout that I am burning at least 200 calories, and anything over that is simply bonus calories I am burning.
  • Chevy_Quest
    Chevy_Quest Posts: 2,012 Member
    @Mykaelous - Brilliant - I I do the same things sometimes with a Quest or Zone bar after a big workout - It is "all good" !
    This is why instead of counting my calories burned I simply don't count the 240 calorie protien shake I eat afterwards. I figure for a 1-2 hour workout that I am burning at least 200 calories, and anything over that is simply bonus calories I am burning.
  • zenhiker2014
    zenhiker2014 Posts: 84 Member
    This is why I use a calorie burning app, and my HRM and if the app is lower than the HRM, I use that number. If my HRM is higher, I'll deduct 100 calories just to be safe.

    Same for me - except I always use what my HRM and calorie burn app (Digifit) say. Plus I use a fitbit for non-exercise activity, so I really never have to guess. In the last couple months, my actual calorie deficit (based on weight loss per week) and the deficit I calculated via MFP logging have been almost identical.

    Edited to clarify - my HRM syncs to Digifit so it's not an either/or in my case. The calories are calculated based on my HR data.
  • TX_Rhon
    TX_Rhon Posts: 1,549 Member
    I'm so glad you "math" for me because.......

    tumblr_m6zabtZCKk1rvls59o1_500.jpg
  • suemcmurry
    suemcmurry Posts: 188 Member
    bump!
  • Chevy_Quest
    Chevy_Quest Posts: 2,012 Member
    @Rhon - LOL! :smokin: :smokin: :smokin: :glasses: :flowerforyou:
    I'm so glad you "math" for me because.......

    tumblr_m6zabtZCKk1rvls59o1_500.jpg
  • Chevy_Quest
    Chevy_Quest Posts: 2,012 Member
    @all: Oh, and feel free to friend! :smile:
  • WalkingAlong
    WalkingAlong Posts: 4,926 Member
    More reason to not try to 'eat back'. Use a TDEE method, see what happens, adjust as needed.
    Or do the MFP method, see what happens and adjust as needed. TDEE method isn't going to be any more accurate by estimating in advance rather than after the event!
    I figure if you estimate once ("lightly active", whatever) and use that estimate daily, you only have one estimate to adjust-- not all of the various exercise variables-- "Was it my cycling burn that was so wrong? Lifting? Running? Swimming?"
  • tibby531
    tibby531 Posts: 717 Member
    :flowerforyou: awesome and enlightening post!! keep up the great work! :drinker:
  • DebTavares
    DebTavares Posts: 170 Member
    In general I read that you can burn anywhere from 50-100 cals per mile depending on how intense/fast you are going. But who really knows?
  • Chevy_Quest
    Chevy_Quest Posts: 2,012 Member
    @Tibby - I had great input for this topic! :drinker: :drinker: :flowerforyou:
    :flowerforyou: awesome and enlightening post!! keep up the great work! :drinker:
  • sijomial
    sijomial Posts: 19,809 Member
    More reason to not try to 'eat back'. Use a TDEE method, see what happens, adjust as needed.
    Or do the MFP method, see what happens and adjust as needed. TDEE method isn't going to be any more accurate by estimating in advance rather than after the event!
    I figure if you estimate once ("lightly active", whatever) and use that estimate daily, you only have one estimate to adjust-- not all of the various exercise variables-- "Was it my cycling burn that was so wrong? Lifting? Running? Swimming?"
    Really the two methods suit different routines. My burns vary enormously week on week so eating back afterwards has a much higher chance of being correct or at least appropriate for the amount of exercise I've done. I cycled for five hours today and burned more in a day than I did the whole of last week.
    Horses for courses as they say. If you have a very regular routine then TDEE method is simpler.
  • Chevy_Quest
    Chevy_Quest Posts: 2,012 Member
    @sijomial - That is what I have found... it's all 6 of one half dozen of another sometimes.:drinker:
    Some peoples pattern really lends itself to TDEE where others to the MFP eat back method. (I am an "eat back" kind of guy)
    Really the two methods suit different routines. My burns vary enormously week on week so eating back afterwards has a much higher chance of being correct or at least appropriate for the amount of exercise I've done. I cycled for five hours today and burned more in a day than I did the whole of last week.
    Horses for courses as they say. If you have a very regular routine then TDEE method is simpler.
  • MelodyandBarbells
    MelodyandBarbells Posts: 7,724 Member
    @sijomial - That is what I have found... it's all 6 of one half dozen of another sometimes.:drinker:
    Some peoples pattern really lends itself to TDEE where others to the MFP eat back method. (I am an "eat back" kind of guy)
    Really the two methods suit different routines. My burns vary enormously week on week so eating back afterwards has a much higher chance of being correct or at least appropriate for the amount of exercise I've done. I cycled for five hours today and burned more in a day than I did the whole of last week.
    Horses for courses as they say. If you have a very regular routine then TDEE method is simpler.

    Yup. I do the eat back because I find those numbers motivating and want to play around with them as often as possible. Once the output - weekly weight loss - started tracking with all my food and exercise inputs, then I knew I'd found the way for me. I just cranked up my max heart rate on the HRM to 197 and eat back 100% of the calorie numbers I get from that. However if someone seems truly frustrated with chasing exercise calories burned, I do suggest TDEE method.

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