Calculating calories burned by heart rate

BigZ486
BigZ486 Posts: 47 Member
in Fitness and Exercise
According to the MFP database, walking at 2.0 mph at a slow pace for 60 minutes burns 535 calories for me.

But according to a heart rate based calorie burn calculator, with my age of 28, weight of 472 lbs., and my heart rate of 141 bpm (the treadmill at my gym measures it), i would have burned 1170 calories from 60 minutes of exercise:

http://www.shapesense.com/fitness-exercise/calculators/heart-rate-based-calorie-burn-calculator.aspx

That's a hell of a difference. Which should I use? And does anyone know of a reliable calculator online I could use?

Replies

  • 27strange
    27strange Posts: 837 Member
    The heart rate monitors on gym equipment are known to be inaccurate, even the ones that have you input your measurements. The best thing to do would be to get a HRM watch if you really want to keep accurate track. Otherwise use somewhere in the middle between MFP and the gym equipment.

    For instance I can do 30 minutes on the elliptical at home and it says I have burned 770 calories, MFP says I would have burned 470 calories. When I wear a HRM watch it puts it at around 600-650. So in this example I just record it as about 600.
  • kiawya
    kiawya Posts: 73
    The thing is your heart rate does not stay constant. When I work out at the gym, I go by the equipment, as long as I can put in my weight and age. When not using monitoring equipment, I go by MFP. I would rather count a lower number just to be sure. If your wearing a monitor that continually monitors heart rate, and takes into account your weight and age, I would go with that.
  • EmBlazes
    EmBlazes Posts: 374 Member
    My HRM is always lower than the values here on MFP but I know that I have a hard time getting my heart rate really high. There is also the "pause" factor to consider. For example, you might record "60 mins circuit training" but you aren't actually working hard for the entire 60 mins generally so that makes a difference to your overall calories burned.

    I always go by my HRM because I figure it's got to be the most accurate thing I have to hand. I'd rather be conservative with my calories burned figure than too generous.
  • slimdownspicey
    slimdownspicey Posts: 110 Member
    For things like running my HRM is always way higher than here - the other day I went for a 45 min walk/run where I ran till my heart rate was at 175 then walked until it was back at around 135 then ran again, etc. According to my HRM which is programmed to my height, weight, age, and approximate max heart rate I burned 600 calories + the cooldown for a total of 750. I stuck with that number - my trainer has told me in the past that this is the most accurate count you can get. Even when I look up certain activities on other sites it will say "based on a 130 lb female" and I'm 173 so that count is wrong for me.

    I would definitely invest in a HRM with a watch...it's really motivating and you should be watching your heart rate while you workout on a consistent basis.

Categories