Could my hrm underestimate calories?

Pickles11

I was doing insanity with my hrm today and after the pure cardio video I had apparently only burned like 180 calories for 30 mins. I checked my hr several times throughout my workout and it was in the higher end but a few times it was very low (like 80 or 90) which must have been wrong since I could barely breathe. Is there any way or reason it could be that I actually burned quite a bit more? What could cause my chest strap to think my hr is so slow for a few mins?

chelso0o

Yeah your HRM could be off. I don't like to use them to estimate calorie burn cuz I read somewhere that they are pretty inaccurate. (i.e, you're not going crazy! It's probably wrong. haha!)

MegMilleratc

I would disagree about them being inaccurate, the chest strap is the most accurate they can get. Though with mine if it's not quite tight then the reading is tempermental. Perhaps adjust your strap so it sits more tightly across your chest. Look at your owners manual about cleaning the electrodes as well, sweat and dead skin cells can leave a build-up that can impair the reading.
Hope this helps and way to go with Insanity

boehle

I just got one for christmas and I am not a huge fan of it.
my heart rate fluctuates a lot on it too
plus i cant get my chest strap to stay on most the time while working out.

BeautyFromPain

I would disagree about them being inaccurate, the chest strap is the most accurate they can get. Though with mine if it's not quite tight then the reading is tempermental. Perhaps adjust your strap so it sits more tightly across your chest. Look at your owners manual about cleaning the electrodes as well, sweat and dead skin cells can leave a build-up that can impair the reading.
Hope this helps and way to go with Insanity

pinkita

I have a Polar FT4 (chest strap version), and it overestimates my burn. I started using a BodyBugg a few weeks ago and that seems more accurate when I compared the data.

namenumber

What kind of HRM do you have? Also, when you wear it do you wet the strap or use electrode gel? It needs to be wet to have a good connection. I use electrode gel and it usually works great, except sometimes when I'm not warmed up yet it doesn't seem to do a good job picking up my HR. I've occasionally looked at the watch and seen that it read 0 or "Heart Rate not detected" but once I get sweaty I don't have a problem. Also, sometimes for some reason it just doesn't pick it up well, so I just go back to the home screen and restart the process and that seems to work. Also, if I'm doing something that requires me to bend forward in a way that the sensor gets pushed away from my skin, it won't detect my HR.

Also, what did it say your max and average HR were?

(Sorry if this isn't much help, I'm just throwing out ideas and things that have worked for me )

firedragon064

I just did insanity and buaigrn 372 cal for 1/2 hour but I weight 184 lbs tho.
Your heart rate should be at least 130 during the power jump.
80 or 90 HR is for resting HR. Your chest trap may need new battery.
I would try to wet the chest strap to get better connection and make sure the chest strap is stay on where it's supposed to be
then test it again.
The 1st few time, I did insanity, my chest trap slide down my stomach so the HR did not get update.

Pickles11

My hrm usually seems pretty accurate, and I don't have much to lose so I know my burns aren't as high as others. I was just surprised by this particular workout and how it sometimes read 90. Its not like it wasn't registering because it still said a number, that's why I am confused. It definitely wasn't having a problem staying wet because of how much I was sweating...maybe it was too much sweat? I think it is on its tightest setting too so I can't make it tighter.

darlilama

Low battery?? THat might cause it to do some funky things, if it has seemed normal in the past. You might try to contact the maker, if they have a support line.

vs1023

I haven't had any issues with my HRM. I have the Polar F7 (now the FT7) and it has a strap.