Confused by HRM

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mikethom
mikethom Posts: 183 Member
in Fitness and Exercise
I'm confused...

I went to the Gym today and spent 50 minutes on the treadmill...

The treadmill told me that I had burned ~550 calories
My HRM told me that I had burned 1362 calories
MFP seems to estimate between 450 and 600 calories depending on the exercise...

Now I've heard that the HRM is the most accurate method of estimating calories burned, but 1300+ calories seems a bit excessive.

Any suggestions on what I should use as an estimate????
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Replies

  • KazVorpal
    KazVorpal Posts: 1
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    I use "DE Dt ³ h / 4 p" or "Dx Dp ³ h / 4 p" to determine my fuzziness.

    A particularly important postscript to the above is that the fuzziness of the uncertainty -- in the form of the greater than or equal to aspect of the equation -- may no longer be quite so fuzzy. (As in Fuzzy Wuzzy was a bear. Fuzzy Wuzzy had no hair. Fuzzy Wuzzy wasn’t so fussy, was he?)
  • dad106
    dad106 Posts: 4,868 Member
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    What kind of HRM is it? If it's a Timex, I'd personally disregard it.. in my experience, they are not accurate, but others on this site swear by them.

    I agree that 1300 does sound high, but your weight does play a part in it... the more you weigh, the more that you burn.

    Me being 152 pound female burns about 430-500 calories spending 50 minutes on a treadmill walking... but since you are a male, you'd prob. burn a bit more,as males burn more then females.
  • Hoppymom
    Hoppymom Posts: 1,158 Member
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    THis makes me curious. I always heard that the HRM is the final answer but it does seem really high. However you're big guy. Bigger people burn more and men burn more. It also depends on how fast you were going and what your heart rate was. If you were tearing it up you will obviously burn a ton more than if you were walking at a medium pace. I didn't answer your question but you have to look at all the factors too. I'll keep an eye on the thread as I am looking to get an HRM. I can't find my old one.
  • Moonbeamlissie
    Moonbeamlissie Posts: 504 Member
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    check out your heartbeat, my hrm gets interference and will tell me my heart rate is crazy high. Make sure you have it put on right. I once put mine on upside down and it gets messed up readings. I know that if I am just walking my hr should be like 140-150 if I am running 160 is about the number I am looking for. Mine sometimes says 250.... now I know I am not working that hard and if I was I am sure I would have a heart attack or something. lol
  • KimmieBrie
    KimmieBrie Posts: 825 Member
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    I'm super curious too. I run outside sometimes so I was looking to get a HRM to track. The treadmill @ the gym has my heart rate at anywhere from 140s warming up - into the 160s when I run/jog - which is where it should be I think. Maybe I should just get one and compare but I hate parting with $$ especially on something I'm iffy about.

    I burnt 460 cal in an hour last night - my husb burns about 800, he's got about 50 pds on me though and runs a lot faster.
    I think you have approx 100 pds on him so... it's possible your HRM is right? Now I want one more to compare!
  • bshedwick
    bshedwick Posts: 659 Member
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    A few questions.

    Did you enter your weight into the treadmill? What about the HRM? Is it a chest strap HRM?

    That does seem a little bit high, but it depends on your heart rate during your workout and your weight.
  • Josee76
    Josee76 Posts: 533 Member
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    I'm confused...

    I went to the Gym today and spent 50 minutes on the treadmill...

    The treadmill told me that I had burned ~550 calories
    My HRM told me that I had burned 1362 calories
    MFP seems to estimate between 450 and 600 calories depending on the exercise...

    Now I've heard that the HRM is the most accurate method of estimating calories burned, but 1300+ calories seems a bit excessive.

    Any suggestions on what I should use as an estimate????

    Too many unknown factors to give advice... how fast where you walking? Did you add incline? How much do you weigh? Do you have a chest strap with your HRM? Do you have your weight inputted in the watch of the HRM?

    I honestly don't think that's high if you were walking at 4mph with a 5-7% incline, weighing in at 240 lbs (thats just a guesstimate from your ticker) for 50 minutes... if you kept your heart rate in your zone... you burn calories! :)
  • sylvuz323
    sylvuz323 Posts: 468 Member
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    I agree with Josee76, to many unknown factors...hopefully everyone has given you suggestions that you can follow up on. If you need a new HRM, I'd suggest a Polar mine is a F6 and works great.
  • ansonrinesmith
    ansonrinesmith Posts: 755 Member
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    1300 sounds high, unless you were really running on the treadmill.
    If you were walking or light jog, then I would guess it's WAY under that.

    What was your average BPM?
  • mikethom
    mikethom Posts: 183 Member
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    Thanks for the comments; here are some answers to some of the questions asked:

    It is a Timex HRM with a chest strap.

    The HRM record for the the session gave me an average HR of 147, max of 172, and minimum of 84.

    Yes I entered my weight, 290 pounds, into the treadmill.

    The program I used was the "Hill Climbing" one. Most of the time I was at least 3.5 mph except for the last 5 minutes where I was in "cool down". The "incline" is non-specific but varied from 0 to 1.5 as the program progressed.

    I look forward to any more feedback you can give me. I'd rather estimate the calories on the low side (I went with 600), but I also want to be realistic too.

    Mike
  • SassyCalyGirl
    SassyCalyGirl Posts: 1,932 Member
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    it could have also been reading someone next to you-if you don't have a dual-coded HRM where you can switch channels while exercising in a gym (where others are wearing HRM's) just a thought
  • leslielt
    leslielt Posts: 113 Member
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    great question because i see some people's calorie burn and i think wow that's really high...
  • davided1
    davided1 Posts: 4
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    After reading all your responses, I'm now wondering about my own calorie burn...

    I am 6'5", and currently 249 pounds...

    I workout on the eliptical for 30 minutes at 65-70 rpm, and 3-4 on the resistance. My HRM indicates my pulse ranges from about 148-152, peaking at about 161 for the last 8 minutes or so.

    My eliptical indicates I burned about 382 calories. Does this seem right to you?
  • leslielt
    leslielt Posts: 113 Member
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    check this out
    http://www.livestrong.com/article/397703-how-accurate-is-a-heart-rate-monitor/
  • ansonrinesmith
    ansonrinesmith Posts: 755 Member
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    Ok, I'm 37, 290lbs and when I hit the treadmill, my average is about 147-150.
    In 60 minutes, I burn 1047 calories with that average.
  • SassyCalyGirl
    SassyCalyGirl Posts: 1,932 Member
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    "heavier" people will burn more calories doing the exact same exercise as someone that weighs less. That is completely normal. So comparing your workout to someone else's might not always be realistic. As you lose weight you will notice you will start burning fewer calories than before doing the exact same thing.
  • SassyCalyGirl
    SassyCalyGirl Posts: 1,932 Member
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    As your body becomes more efficient it takes more work to burn those calories. I have noticed this in my own workouts.
  • mikethom
    mikethom Posts: 183 Member
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    it could have also been reading someone next to you-if you don't have a dual-coded HRM where you can switch channels while exercising in a gym (where others are wearing HRM's) just a thought

    Interesting, I don't think this is a problem, the "behaviour" of the HRM I observed seemed consistent with my activity, also there were several other people that used the other machines around me throughout the session. If I'd accidently "synchronized" with another sensor I would expect have experienced some anomalous behaviour.

    Mike
  • MDWilliams1857
    MDWilliams1857 Posts: 315 Member
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    I bought a Timex Personal Trainer HRM with chest strap. I hate it. My calorie burns were always high. Im a big guy so I know my burn are going to be higher than a lot of people but this seemed extreme. At the gym I decided to program all of my stats: weight, age etc.. into the treadmill and wear my HRM also to get a comparison. The HRM had me burning about 250 more calories than the treadmill. Also, it freezes all the time. I will be at a 7.0 sprint and look down to check my HR and the Timex tells me its 74.... It will just freeze on a number for a couple minutes then kick back in. I decided to try my wifes Polar F6. Ive been wearing it around the house just to see if it keep a constant HR and so far it hasnt froze at all. Im going to break down and wear it to the gym (even though its pink. lol) and see what kind of burn it tells me.
  • ansonrinesmith
    ansonrinesmith Posts: 755 Member
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    It is possible, there are 4 treadmills next to each other that are Polar FT compatible, and my HRM chest strap will send signal to all of them. Everyone on those treadmills shows the same BPM as me.
    That's why I put my hands on the sensors once in a while and compare.

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