calories seem high

jonbairam11

Hi All
i will probably get shot down in flames but the calories burnt when inputting an exercise seem awfully high.

how reliable are these? I realize they are a guide, I am on the big side of big 313lb so i reckon I will burn a lot doing a bit of exercise. At least i think thats how it works, but still they seem high.

any thoughts or answers are welcome, i dont want eat more having not burnt enough calories in the real world

Jon

mamagooskie

For me I found it to be fairly accurate. I now have a HRM so I can get an exact reading but I found that before when I compared my HRM reading to the MFP estimate I actually burned more so it worked in my favor for me.

mamagooskie

double post.

nll002

my treadmill is customized to me, so when I log stuff on here I always have to change the calories burned - but I'm always increasing them! I've found the site underestimates for me! you're right that because you weigh more, you will burn more calories - also men burn more than women because you have more muscle mass. If you're ever in a gym, set up a machine to your height and weight and see if it comes close!

HeidiMightyRawr

I think they seem a bit high too, and I've seen several other people comment on this.
Personally I would buy a HRM as they're the only way of getting an accurate result of how many calories you're burning. I have a Polar FT4 and love it, there's quite a difference sometimes between that and MFP's calculations.

Mindful_Trent

Unless you're using a HRM or BodyBugg/BodyMedia type product, chances are your estimates are off. Personally, I find gym machine and MFP estimates to be very high. I use my BodyMedia Fit to estimate exercise calories, and 80% of the time (maybe higher) it will give a lower number than what MFP and the machines estimate for the exercise.

I'd recommend you invest in a HRM or BodyBugg/BodyMedia FIT - if price is an issue, there are some very affordable HRM's out there, especially this time of the year - lots of sales going on!

kickchick

I agree with everyone else's comments...generally I find the estimations to be a little less than my actual amount burned. And doing the same activity as my heavier cousin who is also on MFP, it accounts for her weight difference and burns more calories for her doing the same exercise. I would say it is fairly accurate and a good guide.

HectorBusyBee

Hi Jon,

I noticed that too. The good thing is that with the exercise log you have choices on intensity. For instance jogging/walking for 30 minutes is not the same as jogging for 30 minutes. That helped me a lot. Try to enter the the exercise and intensity that most resembles your actual workout. Hope that helps. Keep up the good work. Good luck!

Hector

dabomb5198

I have used a HRM for over a year now and it works great. The cardio machines always show that I burned more calories than the HRM indicates. I'm sold on the Polar.

Meganne1982

I've worried about their accuracies as well- but the computer on my elliptical machine says I burn almost double what MFP says, so I figure it's probably more accurate then my machine!

piquilter

I sort of compare what my hrm calculates & what the machines come up with. If there's a large difference I enter something kind of in between. I got a fitbit for Christmas so I keep an eye on that too. I try not to eat every exercise calorie so I feel like everthing balances out. I'm a little anal with some things, can you tell? :laugh:

celesalk

generally, I use my HRM and find the site underestimates for me sometime. But only by a bit, so I feel pretty confident that the site is logging it semi-accurately when I can't use my HRM for some reason or another.... because odds are the input on my foods is only semi-accurate anyways since I don't weigh out my food.

I just try to slightly over estimate my food and try not to eat any of the exercise calories, and that normally works well. At least, been seeing great results.