Bicycling and calories burned

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gdortiz
gdortiz Posts: 169 Member
in Fitness and Exercise
(update - I know I need a heart rate monitor, now I'm wondering if I should ball park it or make a conservative guess at the calories burned, now read post!)

okay, help me figure this out!

i biked about 15.6 miles and while the entire trip took 3 hours, we stopped a few times and we figured we were on our bike for about 2 hours. now there were tiems when we coasted but there were at least two times where we had to go up hills that were not steep, but pretty long. like 1/4 mile long. I say, conservatively that our pace averaged out to "moderate"

how many calories did i burn? some calcs are saying well over 1000. that can't be right? MFP is saying 1500 calories burned.
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Replies

  • nlynnm716
    nlynnm716 Posts: 27
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    It probably is a very high amount. I do 45 minutes of vigorous cycling and that's around 480 to 500 calories.
  • mampm1
    mampm1 Posts: 88
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    My brother is a personal trainer. I usually bike on the weekend approximately 31 miles from my home in Westchester to New York City. The first time I did I thought the numbers were way too high but he thought they were probably right in line.
  • CountryDevil
    CountryDevil Posts: 819 Member
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    I cycle a lot and you will burn a lot of calories doing so. The best an only true and accurate way to calculate calories burned with cycling is with a heart rate monitor. You may get your heart rate up when going up hills and think not so many going down hills, but it is your heart rate that will determine the amount of calories burned.

    My suggestion is to get yourself a HRM to track the calories burned. You will thank yourself in the long run..
  • JThomas61
    JThomas61 Posts: 892
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    It doesn't sound right at all. I bike almost daily, my resting heart rate is 46 and I normally ride in the 20 mph range, I only burn 300 calories during a 10 mile ride and about 700-800 on a 20 mile ride. You need to consider investing in a Heart Rate Monitor (HRM) to see what your body is actually doing because MFP doesnt' take into account your age, weight, heart rate, or speed. Good Luck.
  • jamie1888
    jamie1888 Posts: 1,704 Member
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    Very difficult to estimate if you aren't wearing a heart rate monitor. I can bike for 2 hours and burn 300 calories.... or I can bike for 2 hours and burn 700+ calories. Just depends on my speed & hills, etc.
  • MayhemModels
    MayhemModels Posts: 367 Member
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    If you dont have a HRM, try and get in a habit of checking your heart rate with your fingers every 10 to 20 minutes to see if your in a arobic zone and intensity level, that way you can judge whether your going at a vigorous pace or moderate pace
  • gdortiz
    gdortiz Posts: 169 Member
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    thanks for the help ya'll, this is good stuff.

    here are the stats:

    15.6 mile ride

    120 minutes to complete

    12-14 miles per hour

    214 pounds

    5'11 height

    36 years old

    I want to at least ball park it ... I know burned at least a few calories, what should I log into MFP? Or should I not log anything and go about my day normally since I do not have accurate info?? ?
  • agthorn
    agthorn Posts: 1,844 Member
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    Very rough rule of thumb is 40 calories per mile on a bicycle, and 100 calories per mile on foot. (Yes, you work harder on hills, but you almost always slow down to compensate so your overall effort is pretty constant). I wear a HRM and this is usually pretty spot on for me - I bike ~25 miles once or twice a month and my HRM gives me a reading of about 1015 cals. So 600-650 would probably be a pretty good estimate for your ride.
  • jamie1888
    jamie1888 Posts: 1,704 Member
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    How about just logging like, 500 calories.. that's probably on the safe side.
  • lovejoydavid
    lovejoydavid Posts: 395 Member
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    It doesn't sound right at all. I bike almost daily, my resting heart rate is 46 and I normally ride in the 20 mph range, I only burn 300 calories during a 10 mile ride and about 700-800 on a 20 mile ride. You need to consider investing in a Heart Rate Monitor (HRM) to see what your body is actually doing because MFP doesnt' take into account your age, weight, heart rate, or speed. Good Luck.

    Calculating kcal on biking is notoriously difficult, as the best calcs in the world are based on calorimetry, but those were all done in labs with no hills and no wind. I agree with the HRM, as it will reflect those efforts. I will say, though, that per my HRM, I seem to burn quite a bit more kcals than you do in a similar ride.
  • nokittyno
    nokittyno Posts: 293 Member
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    Well i'm 5'6 at about 147 and for a bike to work, say 20 minutes my Polar F60 Says I burn about 227 and that's no coasting but pushing it. But on a coasting 11 minute ride, my HRM states 111 approx. That is though, usually just an hour or two after a workout so my HR may still be kind of in-gear ready. Hard to say.. I recommend a HRM. Be it a 40 or 200.00 one - totally recommend it.
  • lovejoydavid
    lovejoydavid Posts: 395 Member
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    thanks for the help ya'll, this is good stuff.

    here are the stats:

    15.6 mile ride

    120 minutes to complete

    12-14 miles per hour

    214 pounds

    5'11 height

    36 years old

    I want to at least ball park it ... I know burned at least a few calories, what should I log into MFP? Or should I not log anything and go about my day normally since I do not have accurate info?? ?

    I guess my question would be, how did you average 12 mph but only make it 15.6 miles in two hours? Perhaps you have overestimated your pace? Half a mile of hills should not equate to a near doubling of average pace.
  • MayhemModels
    MayhemModels Posts: 367 Member
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    I'm comming up with about 920 calories........ Try this site for a estimate http://www.nutristrategy.com/activitylist4.htm
  • rmsrws
    rmsrws Posts: 639 Member
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    You need a heart rate monitor. I ride every day, MFP had my calorie burn too low. On a 45 minute ride I can burn 400-600 depending on my intensity.
  • michelegrayson
    michelegrayson Posts: 157
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    I ride quite a bit on a hybrid road bike. When we are going 15-16 miles an hour on a relatively flat road, I burn about 500 calories an hour. When I ride with hills/elevation I burn about 600 calories an hour.

    As a comparison last weekend we road 35 miles in 2.30 hours and I burned about 1200 calories. The day before we did some SERIOUS climbing and I rode only 25 miles in 3 hours but climbed 2500 feet with some elevations at 12-15% and my burn that day was close to 1500.

    FYI, I wear a HRM whenever I ride. I keep it on as long as I'm cycling but if we stop for a break, I turn it off and then restart when we get back on the bikes.

    Good luck!
  • jamie1888
    jamie1888 Posts: 1,704 Member
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    You have to factor in weight, intensity level, how much muscle you have/metabolism... men will burn more than female... etc, etc. My hubby burns 300 - 500 more calories than I do on the same ride together.
  • JThomas61
    JThomas61 Posts: 892
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    It doesn't sound right at all. I bike almost daily, my resting heart rate is 46 and I normally ride in the 20 mph range, I only burn 300 calories during a 10 mile ride and about 700-800 on a 20 mile ride. You need to consider investing in a Heart Rate Monitor (HRM) to see what your body is actually doing because MFP doesnt' take into account your age, weight, heart rate, or speed. Good Luck.

    Calculating kcal on biking is notoriously difficult, as the best calcs in the world are based on calorimetry, but those were all done in labs with no hills and no wind. I agree with the HRM, as it will reflect those efforts. I will say, though, that per my HRM, I seem to burn quite a bit more kcals than you do in a similar ride.

    I was getting discouraged looking at the small numbers during my rides but a friend reminded me that once your heart becomes healthy and pumps more effeciently it has to work less do to the same about, hence less calories burnt over time.
  • JThomas61
    JThomas61 Posts: 892
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    SHAMELESS PLUG TIME: Since this is a cycling post, I would like to tell everyone that the largest sponsored cycling event in the United States is held here in Wichita Falls Tx on 27 Aug 2011. Its the 30th anniversary of the Hotter N Hell hundred. If you are an avid cyclist you have probably heard of it, its going to be great if you want to participate check out their web site.

    http://www.hh100.org
  • gdortiz
    gdortiz Posts: 169 Member
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    I guess my question would be, how did you average 12 mph but only make it 15.6 miles in two hours? Perhaps you have overestimated your pace? Half a mile of hills should not equate to a near doubling of average pace.

    ha, yeah good question. I guess if was going 12 mph i should been closer to 24 miles right?

    okay ...

    any thoughts what I should do? should I ballpark it or just not record it?
  • gdortiz
    gdortiz Posts: 169 Member
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    I'm comming up with about 920 calories........ Try this site for a estimate http://www.nutristrategy.com/activitylist4.htm

    thanks man i appreciate it ...not a bad site and the best numbers i've gotten so far, still not srue if i should ball park it or go with an educated and conservative guess.

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