New HRM wrong????? :(

kmreynolds11

Yikes! I've been doing P90X for awhile now and have been logging the workouts using a combination of aerobics/calisthenics, etc. as most of you suggest. I even have tried to grossly underestimate the # of calories burned by putting at least 10 min less into the MFP calculator! I thought I was being good...

However, this weekend I decided to go out a purchase a new Sportline HRM to get a better estimate of the calories I'm burning during workouts. I actually wore the HRM (wrist watch & chest strap) all day at work to learn how it all operates and get a better idea of my resting HR and activity level at work. (I was actually shocked that my resting heart rates were only in the low 40's! Is that healthy??).... Anyways, the HRM worked great all day, and even helped me out on a 3 mile run I did @ lunch time. During the run, I was able to keep my HR in the target zone of 60%-80% max, but hadn't figured out how to start up the calorie counter.

Long story short.. tonight I did the P90X Chest, Shoulders, Tri & AbRipperX workout. I had been logging this workout to burn about 275-325 calories, but the HRM only recorded a burned calorie total of 130 CALORIES!!!! WHAT?! I seriously work my butt off during the workouts and do every single set, situp, pushup, etc. And... even though this workout is more low-key, I still would have expected to burn more.

What do you think???

TrainerRobin

What did it tell you for your calorie burn during your run? And how long did you workout (P90X)? What's your weight? If you share that info, it would be easier to help.

sm26davis

I too am doing p90x and I have noticed on the days I do weights and abs I dont burn that many calories. Im thinking its because your not bouncing around getting your heart rate up.

splashwags

What type of HRM?. I actually think that the HRM calories are more accurate. At leat with mine, it knows my age, wieght, and true hr through out the exercise. As you continue to use, you;ll get a better sense/feel for it.

loria30

I saw you have a ticker on your profile and you weigh about at much as I do, and that sounds about as much as I burn for 30 minutes on the elliptical machine. The rates on here are not standard for everyone. I look at my charts on here and see the "inflated" values compared with the "real" values after I got my HRM. I wish I could burn more quickly like others do, but it isn't as possible when we weigh what we do.

kmreynolds11

Sure... I hadn't figured out how to track the calories burned during my run so I was just using it to monitor my heart rate during the run... I only looked at the manual afterwards to learn how to use the calorie tracker mode.

The total P90X workout, including abs, was 72 minutes. I started/stopped the HRM with the video.

And more info: 5'8", 142 lbs. Thanks for your help and suggestions!

SHBoss1673

yeah that sounds about right. FYI, using an HRM for non-exercise heartrate will give you skewed results, HRM's aren't designed that way. IOW you really can't track resting heart rate with an HRM.

TrainerRobin

Sure... I hadn't figured out how to track the calories burned during my run so I was just using it to monitor my heart rate during the run... I only looked at the manual afterwards to learn how to use the calorie tracker mode.

The total P90X workout, including abs, was 72 minutes. I started/stopped the HRM with the video.

And more info: 5'8", 142 lbs. Thanks for your help and suggestions!

Hmmm. Sounds pretty low to me, but do some runs for a few days and/or other exercises that we have good estimates for and then report back. Sometimes a HRM will give a reading that's too low if the strap isn't situated just right or if the strap isn't damp enough, but after THAT much time at P90X, I imagine that you were pretty damp! LOL

Once you get some good base numbers from your new HRM and can compare them to runs that are pretty much within a given range, you'll be able to know if your unit is working properly or if you need to exchange it.

kmreynolds11

Hmmm. Sounds pretty low to me, but do some runs for a few days and/or other exercises that we have good estimates for and then report back. Sometimes a HRM will give a reading that's too low if the strap isn't situated just right or if the strap isn't damp enough, but after THAT much time at P90X, I imagine that you were pretty damp! LOL

Once you get some good base numbers from your new HRM and can compare them to runs that are pretty much within a given range, you'll be able to know if your unit is working properly or if you need to exchange it.

Yeah...I definitely feel like I'm working harder than that! Thanks for the advice... I'll definitely play around with using it for different exercises this week and will report back! Thanks!!!

kmreynolds11

yeah that sounds about right. FYI, using an HRM for non-exercise heartrate will give you skewed results, HRM's aren't designed that way. IOW you really can't track resting heart rate with an HRM.

Oh really? I did not know that.... not that I was using that data for anything but my own knowledge... what's the best way to track my resting heart rate???

And, if my resting heart rate is that low, could that explain why it's so hard for me to hit higher HRs? And, could that explain why it's so much harder for me to burn calories?

ifiwasurvampire

I recently bought a sportline s12 hrm watch. I also thought mine was off. After doing half hour of strenous pilates it said I barely burned 30 cals! But doing dishes for 25 mins I burned more than I did doing pilates. I don't know what to tell you tho. Good luck!

SHBoss1673

yeah that sounds about right. FYI, using an HRM for non-exercise heartrate will give you skewed results, HRM's aren't designed that way. IOW you really can't track resting heart rate with an HRM.

Oh really? I did not know that.... not that I was using that data for anything but my own knowledge... what's the best way to track my resting heart rate???

And, if my resting heart rate is that low, could that explain why it's so hard for me to hit higher HRs? And, could that explain why it's so much harder for me to burn calories?

ahh, you measure resting heart rate usually once (or not very often) by just taking your pulse for 15 or 30 seconds, usually in the morning right after you wake up. There's no need to track it all the time. It's not an accurate measure of calorie burn if that's what you're thinking. If you want to track your daily energy expenditure, you'd use a bodybugg or bodymedia fit or something like that. those devices use different methods to calculate energy. So far it looks like testing puts them pretty close to actual, a lot closer than most HRM's would get.
I don't know why your RHR is that low, or if it truly is or if it was your HRM being funky. But if it is, generally, for otherwise healthy people, a low HR correlates to better cardiovascular and muscular conditioning. For instance, Lance Armstrong was in the 30's I believe when training for the Tour, he was one of the most well conditioned endurance athletes in the world. Speculating on why you can't reach a theoretical maximum is not something I'll do. That's for a cardiac specialist to do.