Attn Nurses... calories burned for CPR

jamielyn1369

Any other nurses out there know what the calories burned for CPR is? I had a crazy night in the ER and did CPR several rounds... approximately 15 minutes worth over the 12 hour shift. I know that it is physically exhausting and I'm assuming that I burned off several calories, but not sure if it's even worth it to list it. Anyone know?

Kalrez

Personally, anything I do at work is counted under my basic activity level.

HarlCarl

Even practicing CPR to recertify is exhausting, but I wouldn't take 15 minutes time for it. That's just me though. :happy:

billsica

I would just make sure your activity level is set appropriately.
Congrats on being able to do cpr all those times, I'm sure its appreciated by whoever you saved.

Qarol

Personally, anything I do at work is counted under my basic activity level.

This...

audram420

I've wondered that too...the nights that go crazy at our hospital always leave me as sore and tired as an intense workout. My arms are always super sore after compressions during CPR. I've never counted them as calories burned though.

sprinkies

i would just include it under your basic calorie level. i'm sure you burned some extra, but it's not really worth logging since you don't really know what you burned.

_Ben

http://blog.socialworkout.com/2010/04/29/you-can-burn-lot-calories-performing-cpr


Might help ya

fridayjustleft04

I would just make sure your activity level is set appropriately.
Congrats on being able to do cpr all those times, I'm sure its appreciated by whoever you saved.

This. If your activity level is set to anything but sedentary (and it should be if you're a nurse), I wouldn't count it.

alaw1119

I've wondered this too. Sometimes I leave work feeling like I've ran a marathon! I use to use my pedometer on my watch to see how many miles I walked in a 12 hr shift. Usually ended up being about 11 miles! That's about 900 calories!

beach_bum_gurl

I would not log it...it will just be bonus cals burned : )

jamielyn1369

Thanks everyone! I do have my activity level set at moderate I think. I wasn't going to count the calories burned, but we did several rounds of CPR on several different people. My coworkers that know I am counting calories were telling me to make sure to count these. Alaw1119, I hear ya... I average about 12-13 miles nightly. Some days are more, some days are less. And if we do CPR, it's not really ever for that long, but last night was a really bad cardiac night! Thanks again for all the advice!

spoiledwife12

I wish there were a device that could measure the actual calories burned just by my brain trying to keep up and respond to everything going on!! Sometimes I come home feeling like I should've burned at least 1000 cals!!!

tiedye

I too am a nurse. I heard floor nurses walk at least 5 miles per shift! I count that (and lifting patients, equipment, etc) as part of my daily life however. I would equate CPR to push ups maybe. Similar motions I suppose!

jozak78

I don't know that cpr is comparable to pishups. As a paramedics and ER tech, I do about equal amounts of cpr on floors and elevated on stretchers, and in both positions I tend to use the larger muscle groups of my hips and back to lift my weight off of the patients chest and let it fall again, using my weight to do the compressions. My arms stay locked for the most part. Whereas pushups tend to use the arms and chest more. I'd compare cpr muscle group usage to a dead lift with a 2 inch range of motion.

I set my fitness profile to active since I work a minimum of 60 hours a week split between EMS, the ER, and bartending. And I don't bother logging any additional exercise.

jklein11

Try wearing a heart rate monitor one night at work. Not sure if it would interfere with other equipment of not but it is a good way to figure out the calories burned on a given night at work.

scribbles412

Active CPR is 242 calories per 15 minutes. In a class is about 164. I am a 185 lb person. I just thought it should be answered for us healthcare professional.

aftoncorinne

Haha whoever says a code is not excersise has never actually done CPR... Count it!

cphelps73

I'm a paramedic, and while I too have my activity let higher like a (cough cough) nurse, if I habe an extremelu busy day with lot's pf extra activity, i.e. several interfacility transfers where we're huffing it across the buildings, or just an extra busy day, I count those mibutes or a portion of them as extra. As far as the original question I personnally have wonderd that myself, but since I don't have to do compreasions that odten personally because I have to run the code, push the drugs, intubate, etc. but that is neither here nor there. Long story short like someone else said count it as like light aerobics or aomething like that. I handle supplies at my.service and when I am restocking the supply cabinet from my storage area or putting new supplies, to checking experation dates throught my storage areas, a I count part of that time as "cleaning- light to moderate effort." I'm at 70 lbs lost. p.s. Sorry for jacking your topic! :happy:

sblueyez

Did you see the giant full moon? Bet it contributed...

Since you're not set at sedentary you don't need to track it. You can if you want or you can consider it a bonus burn!

kgb6days

Well now as another ED nurse, I would say it depends on the size of the person you're doing CPR on - you KNOW the bigger the patient the harder the CPR. However, I'd still say it counts under your normal work. Just make sure your activity level is set appropriately.