Using a HRM - Calories Burned - Whats your thoughts?

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T0M0
T0M0 Posts: 250 Member
in Fitness and Exercise
HI All,

I have a few thoughts and questions with regards to monitoring calories burned using my Polar FT4 heart rate monitor.

As you all know we all burn calories all day long even if we were to do doing nothing but lye down resting all day long (known as our BMR) . Take into account general tasks such as washing, walking talking eating etc etc, this obviously makes us burn more calories in order to complete theses tasks. My Fitness Pal says that doing nothing but general day to day tasks I should burn around 2110 calories each day.

Now, if I go for a run wearing my HRM I run for an hour covering 7 miles and it states I have burnt 886 calories. Before entering this into MFP exercise diary do I need to deduct the calories I would have burnt if I had done no exercise. i.e.. 2110 divided by 24hours is 89 calories per hour. The reason I ask is that I am concerned that I am entering to many calories burnt into my diary.

For people who don't eat back there exercise calories I suppose this isn't an issue but since I joined MFP I have been eating back up to 75% of my exercise calories and so far it has worked for me but now I have lost some weight and have become a little fitter I don't want to be eating back to many calories and overeating.

I have also noticed since using a HRM that certain exercises within the MFP database are far to generous with how many calories it says you have burned. For example, a half hr walk for me at 3.5mph burns 93 calories yet MFP states it's burnt 143. Not a massive difference but as I have only this week started using a HRM it means for the past 3 months I have be over stating within my diary how many cals I have been burning on my daily dog walks.

Let me know your thoughts.
:smile:

Replies

  • rachel871
    rachel871 Posts: 113 Member
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    I think most people think that the MFP db generally overestimates calorie consumption for exercises...

    Unfortunately I can't afford a HR monitor at the moment, so I either log the calories according to machines at the gym, or if I swim for an hour (for example) i only log 45 minutes in the MFP exercise log.

    I also try not to eat back all of my exercise calories (shock horror!! :D) Like you I eat about 75% back, but the rest I leave just to cover the errors in the db...

    The thing is I guess the db has either been created by individual members who personalise the calorie burn for them, or its a generic figure... So I'd trust your HRM! :)
  • sallybetzingleboo
    sallybetzingleboo Posts: 17
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    I've just got a HRM too and have been having issues with the gym machine calorie counters. Unfortunately my HRM doesn't tell me what calories I've burnt and I realise there must be lots of factors that mean people burn calories differently. On the crosstrainer the machine says I'm burning about 11 calories per minute but my heart rate doesn't really go over 148, walking on the treadmill (I can't run ;P ) it says about 7 calories per minute but my HRM is up to about 164. I'm not really sure how to work this all out, am I right in thinking the higher consistent heart rate the more calories I'm burning?

    As to taking off your resting calories, no I don't think you do, I think that's how they work out the starting calorie count each day so it's already accounted for.
  • T0M0
    T0M0 Posts: 250 Member
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    Thanks for your replies :)

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