Slendertone Belt - average cals

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LeviFit
LeviFit Posts: 18 Member
in Fitness and Exercise
Does any one know how many calories (on average) is equal to 30 mins use of the Slendertone belt ? I know the belt works for me and I can see the benefits but to date, I have been estimating the cals used.
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Replies

  • LynnBirchfield
    LynnBirchfield Posts: 577 Member
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    What is a slendertone belt? Thanks.
  • fatkidlovescake
    fatkidlovescake Posts: 66 Member
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    I would say that a slendertone probably doesn't really burn calories at all as you are not actually using your muscles they are just being electronically stimulated.
    They are designed to help tone your stomach the "lazy way" without the actual exercise rather than to burn calories (this is by no means an expert opinion).
    Perhaps if you were wearing it whilst exercising your stomach muscles ie. whilst doing sit ups or the plank or something similar it may burn a few extra on top?
  • LeviFit
    LeviFit Posts: 18 Member
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    The SLENDERTONE belt is worn around the tummy and stimulates the tummy muscles electronically - basically doing lots of sit ups while doing the garden, chores, shopping, walking and even in the gym! Basically the belt does the hard work while I get on with other more useful things. It works as I am more toned. I use it most days and log it but have no idea how many cals I use up:smile: . It is not really for burning cals but rather to tone but it would be great to have an idea of cals burned...
  • GaveUp
    GaveUp Posts: 308
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    The SLENDERTONE belt is worn around the tummy and stimulates the tummy muscles electronically - basically doing lots of sit ups while doing the garden, chores, shopping, walking and even in the gym! Basically the belt does the hard work while I get on with other more useful things. It works as I am more toned. I use it most days and log it but have no idea how many cals I use up:smile: . It is not really for burning cals but rather to tone but it would be great to have an idea of cals burned...

    I wore my HRM while I had it on and it messed the HRM up big time.... it would go from 58 to over 200. I took the HRM off right away LOL.... I figured no extra calories burned
  • GaveUp
    GaveUp Posts: 308
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    I would say that a slendertone probably doesn't really burn calories at all as you are not actually using your muscles they are just being electronically stimulated.
    They are designed to help tone your stomach the "lazy way" without the actual exercise rather than to burn calories (this is by no means an expert opinion).
    Perhaps if you were wearing it whilst exercising your stomach muscles ie. whilst doing sit ups or the plank or something similar it may burn a few extra on top?

    I just got mine and I put it on intense and I found that if I work with it... it feels like it working better. I think I will see results as long as I am continuing healthy way of eating and exercising.
  • NYGiantsGal1986
    NYGiantsGal1986 Posts: 1
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    Thanks for asking this question, but I wish someone would actually attempt to answer it. If your muscles are contracting via crunches or electronic stimulation - the point is that the muscle is working and expending calories. No one can say that no calories are being burned by using a Slendertone. Your body does not differentiate and use less caloric expenditure because it figures it is contracting via stimuli as opposed to physical contraction via crunches. This is the 2nd time I have used Slendertone (and yes, I understand it does not burn fat... It is called Slender TONE as opposed to Slender fatburner ab belt...) and I will say it is the best abdominal toner I have ever used. The first time I did not supplement with any exercise or dietary constraint and it toned up my abs and this 2nd time around I am using it in conjunction with spin class and MyFitnessPal diet tracker and obviously the results are being expedited. It seems to mimic what planks do, and aid your body in holding your abdominal muscles erect and assist in strengthening your abdominal muscles as well as obliques. No, I am not a paid spokesman for this company, but if they wanted to pay me for that I would accept. It really does work. I am also a registered nurse, so I know a little something about exercising and muscle toning.
    Back to the point at hand - DOES ANYONE KNOW HOW MANY CALORIES 30 MIN BURNS? Would love to know so I can put in my journal. Thanks!
  • elka67
    elka67 Posts: 268 Member
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    Contact Slendertone the company, no?

    I never thought it would burn any cals though as you are not putting any effort into the muscle contractions ...
  • DrMAvDPhD
    DrMAvDPhD Posts: 2,097 Member
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    I would consider it to be more like strength training, working the muscles but not burning a significant increase in calories. I would not attempt to eat back calories from it, perhaps just increase your protein intake to give muscles fuel to build on.
  • RobynTrudgian
    RobynTrudgian Posts: 1 Member
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    Slender tone is for those seeking tone, toning exercises are well known to not burn a significant amount of calories. Therefore with the slenderrone belt being an even less activate method of toning I would say as a food health science student that it would not be worth adding your belt training in your diet diary, I have one and I realise I can't eat more because I'm using it as much as I'd love to!
  • Yogi_Carl
    Yogi_Carl Posts: 1,906 Member
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    Question: Back to the point at hand - DOES ANYONE KNOW HOW MANY CALORIES 30 MIN BURNS? Would love to know so I can put in my journal. Thanks!

    Answer: (and yes, I understand it does not burn fat... It is called Slender TONE as opposed to Slender fatburner ab belt...)

    I think you answered your own question; none or minimal - either way not worth marking down as calories, especially if aiming to eat them back, but maybe worth doing as a way of topping up your abdominal work.
  • cc_Architect
    cc_Architect Posts: 1 Member
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    I've thought about getting one (Groupon has them for $70 right now) but only for toning. If it actually does burn calories I'll just consider it as a plus and not even count it. Running, biking and walking is where I'm getting my calories burned.
  • concordancia
    concordancia Posts: 5,320 Member
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    I used the google and came up with this:

    http://www.livestrong.com/article/333324-slendertone-pros-cons/
  • bad_wolf99
    bad_wolf99 Posts: 1
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    My understanding is that an ab belt is an electrical stimulator; it sends an electrical impulse to the muscles ordering them to contract. It does not create the energy for contraction, it merely acts as a replacement for the nervous system (also an electrical system...of sorts). The actual contraction is carried out using energy from the body.

    Of course, different belts will stimulate more muscles than others, and at a higher intensity. But if you want a general calorie counter, I would go with those that estimate calories for doing crunches. Loseit.com gives 179 cals per hour, healthstatus.com says 298, and Livestrong says 300.

    Of course, depending on the intensity of the ab belt, these could be way off. For myself, I would try doing five or ten straight minutes of sit ups, nonstop (ouch, but yeah) and compare the feeling of the ab belt to that.
  • latoyaw87
    latoyaw87 Posts: 1
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    I found this online. It's what I use.

    Hi Sarah,

    If by abs toner you mean the slender tone-style devices, then unfortunately I cannot give you a calorie figure for their use. These machines are not calorie burning, but merely provide small vibrations to the muscles from which the calorie demand is near impossible to quantify and a pretty insignificant figure anyway.

    I never advocate the use of these for weight loss or even muscle toning actually! I would always urge an individual to use other methods that are more effective and functional, (relevant to everyday life), to burn calories and activate the abdominals.

    I can give you a method to provide rough calculations of calories with some of the other forms of abdominal training, such as standard sit ups and abs rollers:

    Minutes - Calories
    1 9
    5 -45
    10 -89
    20 -178
    30 -267
    40 -356
    50 -445
    60 (1 Hour) 535

    Please be aware that this is a very, very approximate calculation, (for a person weighing 140lbs), because actual calories burned is massively affected by:

    1) The fitness level of the exerciser (those more used to exercise will burn less calories due to learned efficiency and therefore need to work harder to overload the abdominals).

    2) The type of 'sit-up' exercises being performed - variations that use both the external obliques together with the upper and lower abs mean more muscle usage and a greater calorie burning potential then 'sit-up' variations that target a smaller part of the muscle group.

    3) The amount of rest between sets - the less rest, the greater the cardiovascular overload and demand and greater the calorie burning potential.

    4) The number of repetitions in each set - repetitions need to be high enough so you feel tired, but should not be reaching the 30 per set as it's a sign that the exercise is not targeting the abdominals enough, therefore the technique should be checked and/or exercise changed.

    5) The QUALITY of the 'sit-ups' - the most important of them all! The strictest form with minimal cheating with help from other body parts will optimise the calories burned.

    Whenever you do abdominals, try to ONLY think about the area you want to feel working while doing your repetitions. Don't let anything else enter into your mind that could distract from the quality of the movement. This attention principle can be applied to all body parts within strength training, however demanding the exercises are to that person.

    In answer to your second question, to input any information not already listed in the exercise diary, simply use the 'Manual Add' link in the 'Add exercise' panel.

    Hope this helps as a guide with relation to the calorie burning potential of abdominal training and I am sorry I could not provide you specifics for the Slender tone-style abs toner.

    Kelly
  • Angelfaiths
    Angelfaiths Posts: 11 Member
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    Please don't be negative about the Slendertone belt, Some of us can't exercise as we have huge mobility problems and doing crunces doesnt work when your legs don't work! i do upper body weights and i use the belt and it definitely use calories! approx 225cals per 45 minutes on the advanced setting.
  • GillianMcK
    GillianMcK Posts: 401 Member
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    I agree it's probably more like strength training and not really burning a whole lot of calories, it's working the muscle but not really increasing the heart rate (yes I know squats, dead-lifts etc all increase the heart rate but it increases for 15 reps and then recovers so never really a huge increase in heart rate, maybe for the big boys lifting significant weights)

    I wouldn't be counting it as a calorie I could eat back, same as I don't count my strength training as calories I can eat back, if it doesn't increase my heart rate for a significant period of time I don't count it!!!
  • edddrewre
    edddrewre Posts: 1 Member
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    I thought I'd add my thoughts to the argument on this. Having read the 'it burns no more calories than just typing here' comment I had to post. I'm a doctor based in the uk and studied physiology in some depth. The belt is not doing the work for you, the overall charge required to do that would be quite a shock to the skin area. It mimicks the nervous system, which works on very tiny electrical impulses.

    The muscles then undergo a chain reaction known as recruitment by dominoeing a reaction across muscle fibres involving ions I fluxing into the muscle to signal contraction, which yes still requires the body's ATP energy to contract. It's a signal replacement but not an energy replacement.

    In short it will be burning calories, as all muscle contraction does. I'm sure there is a good cohort of people that hate to think that it doesn't as it's 'cheating' in the same way that 'organic' food enthusiasts will want to believe natural is better.

    Sure it won't burn as much as elevated heart rate cardio, and perhaps doing sit ups allows for the cardio element. But there is still apt used by the muscles directly and they will sustain micro damage which will
    Mop up protein to be repaired and therefore build or tone the muscle. In many ways it's probably going to strain the muscles far more than doing sit ups limited by cardio effort could, as horrendous as that sounds.

    just thought I'd add
  • rdrage73
    rdrage73 Posts: 17 Member
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    If it burns some, it's not enough to mention. This idea was stolen from therapeutic electrical pulse stimulation and marketed as an easy way to get rock hard abs while sitting on your *kitten* wearing a silly belt... It's not like you're getting the full contraction of the muscle group as you would if you were doing core/ab exercises. You're getting a very small contraction from a small amount of the group of muscles called abs.

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