Heart Monitor and Calories Burned

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DMBMommy29
DMBMommy29 Posts: 7 Member
in Fitness and Exercise
Hi all...I apologize if this has been addressed in the past but I did a search and didnt find anything specific to answer my question. I recently bought a Polar Heart monitor that shows calories burned. I wore it as a test for a couple hours the other day and it showed I had burned 500 calories. (I was up doing what I normally do in a day...dishes, making lunch for my kids, just normal walking around the house etc). I was wondering these calories burned do they actually *count* or are they already counted as calories burned during "rest period' etc. Like I think it says I burn something like 1500 calories a day based on my body size and fitness level etc. So does that 500 count towards that or should I log it?

I hope I'm not too confusing. I'm just thinking how awesome to burn 500 calories in like 2 hours just walking around my house etc. I bet it's too good to be true though right?
Thanks in advance!!!

Replies

  • mamamc03
    mamamc03 Posts: 1,067 Member
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    Go to tools, then BMR and it will tell you what your normal burn per day is if you aren't doing anything out of the ordinary.
  • rockerbabyy
    rockerbabyy Posts: 2,258 Member
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    HRMs arent really good for just every day monitoring, youll want something like the bodybugg for that. theyre really intended for when you get your heart rate up from exercise
  • goldfinger88
    goldfinger88 Posts: 686 Member
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    I think that is taken into consideration when you tell the software if you're sedentary, lightly active, etc. Of course, you could put in sedentary and then log all that. I'm not sure which would be more accurate. I log household chores and things I don't normally do but I don't log things that I typically do. Perhaps someone else has a more accurate answer.
  • Pangea250
    Pangea250 Posts: 965 Member
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    Monitors like the Polar FT (which I have & love, btw) are NOT meant to give a read for cals burned for non-cardiac activities. They are not accurate for what you are describing.
  • mdebbie1026
    mdebbie1026 Posts: 164 Member
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    Hi! I am curious about this as well, I have a Polar FT7, and recently learned that the equipment I work out on pretty much exaggerate my actual calories burned acording the the FT7! Bummer! But then I wondered if I use the number from the time I finish exercising, or could I, or SHOULD I wait till my heart rate is closer to the normal rate???! I tried to find these answers on Polar's website but I got sidetracked in my search.
  • thop123
    thop123 Posts: 65 Member
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    I also have a polar heart rate monitor. I'm pretty sure BMR is how many calories you burn if you did nothing and then when you add sedentary, active, ect. it ups your calorie intake. Anyway I dont add those calories from everyday tasks because I figure its better to underestimate how much I burn in a day so I dont end up over eating.

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