Wow! How do you do it?

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  • rachelc96
    rachelc96 Posts: 34
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    I wonder the same thing, but honestly, I don't think some people burn that many calories. Everybody is different and you can't always go by what a machine says. But hey, if they really do burn 900 calories, they must be either doing something like insanity or working out for hours on end!
  • rileysowner
    rileysowner Posts: 8,240 Member
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    I will repeat what others have said, a heart rate monitor is your best friend to know how many calories you have burned. The amount various machines report is a really rough estimate, and for most people will be an over estimate. A heart rate monitor is much closer to what you have actually burned.

    Add to the amount burned being dependent on weight and all that, it is also dependent on how engaged you are in the exercise. If I am tired and just going through the motions, I can do the exact same workout and burn less calories then when I am more alert and really engaged in the activity based on my heart rate monitor readings. Having said that, even working out not as engaged, will be beneficial, but just not as beneficial as doing so when fully engaged in it.

    As for burning a bunch of calories, it is a matter of intensity. When I cycle in the summer my route is full of hills, and I burn a ton of calories because I cycle as fast as I can. If I took a less intense approach, either less hills or less speed, my number of calories burned would go down. I could cycle longer to make that up, but I don't want to spend hours out there if I can do it in less time with more intensity.

    Just so you know, I am not one of those who burns 900 exercise calories a day. Sometimes I get close to 600 with my cross country skiing, but not usually. I am usually around 400 or so.
  • quara
    quara Posts: 255 Member
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    I go to the gym about 4x/ week, and do a bit over an hour of cardio when I'm there, which generally seems to burn about 300 cals/ 30 minutes, give or take, depending on exertion, type of exercise, etc.

    I also walk about 2 hours a day (most days) as my commute to and from work. I estimate that at 350, although who knows...

    So together, some days that gives me over 1000 calories burned.

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