Accurate Calorie Count

MisdemeanorM

Is anyone familiar with these machines:

http://www.truefitness.com/products/commercial/product.aspx?seriesID=34&productID=44

I use this at my gym and it always tells me I burn WAY more than on any other elliptical machines... They consistantly say 500-600 calories in a 30 minute period and has says 1000 in an 45 min - hour period. I usually use it at a medium difficulty or sport intervals and I can definitely tell it works arms, abs, legs, and back at once and I usually break a sweat quicker on these ... but on some of the other elliptical machines I will feel that i am working at a difficult level (though usually only feel it in one or two parts of my legs) and it only says I burn 200-300 calories in 1/2 hour.

Do you think that this machine really works more groups and has that dramatic more of a calorie burn? I just dont want to eat my exercise calories if it turns out that I am eating more than I really burned!

MisdemeanorM

Is anyone familiar with these machines:

http://www.truefitness.com/products/commercial/product.aspx?seriesID=34&productID=44

I use this at my gym and it always tells me I burn WAY more than on any other elliptical machines... They consistantly say 500-600 calories in a 30 minute period and has says 1000 in an 45 min - hour period. I usually use it at a medium difficulty or sport intervals and I can definitely tell it works arms, abs, legs, and back at once and I usually break a sweat quicker on these ... but on some of the other elliptical machines I will feel that i am working at a difficult level (though usually only feel it in one or two parts of my legs) and it only says I burn 200-300 calories in 1/2 hour.

Do you think that this machine really works more groups and has that dramatic more of a calorie burn? I just dont want to eat my exercise calories if it turns out that I am eating more than I really burned!

Helawat

Honestly, the only way you're going to know how many calories you burned is through a heart rate monitor. Also, it matters if you input your weight and age into the elliptical.

According to a Newsweek article, "The red lights on your gym's elliptical trainer say you've burned 350 calories, but have you really worked off that Hagen-Dazs? Probably not. Fitness experts agree that calorie counters on cardio equipment inflate calorie expenditures by 10 to 30 percent (confirmed at six New York gyms, where ellipticals overestimated by 28 percent, treadmills by 18 percent and stationary bikes by 12). 'They're not accurate to the calorie, but they're close enough,' says a rep for Life Fitness, the largest gym-equipment manufacturer. In fact, 'they're just generalized.'"

http://www.highbeam.com/doc/1G1-92954365.html

Here's another thread on the issue:
http://www.calorie-count.com/forums/post/59108.html

MisdemeanorM

Especially since the count on these machines is SO much higher than the count on the other ellipticals. But, I am losing weight despite the fact that I have been eating MOST of my exercise calories and have put on some muscle.

Any recomendations on the HRM? Does it actually tell you the # caloreis burned or do you have to calculate it based on your avg HR over a period of time?

They sound expensive. I may have to pass as I have about $12 to my name right now.

I suppose in the mean time I will just eat my exercise calories based on how my body feels. I was really lethargic for a bit so I upped them and feel better. If the scale doesn't move I will lower them say 100 a day for a week until I find an average to account for the innacuracies. Most importantly I wont pig out because I think I burned a ton on the elliptical! :laugh:

shorerider

I paid $40 for my HRM, and it does everything I need--tracks heart rate, tracks exercise time, and gives me calories burned during exercise. It's a HighGear Duo I got off Amazon.