HRM aahhhhaaaa!!!!!! Moment

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  • DietPep1978
    DietPep1978 Posts: 202
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    The first few weeks I had my HRM (Polar FT7) I constantly looked at it and wrote down numbers. My job is A LOT of sitting on my *kitten*. In general, for me, if I just sit and do my job and don't' go out for walks. I burn around 100 calories per hour...just breathing. We all burn something just by living, someone can correct me but I think its called a BMR. If you want to get very sticky about actual calories burned, you could subtract this base calorie burn from what you burn in a workout. If went for an hour walk and burned 400 based on my HRM, in reality I burned an extra 300 calories because 100 of those 400 are what I'd burn just by being alive. I probably sound crazy.

    Studies have shown that using HR to try to calculate calorie burn is only valid as a straight line from about 90-150 bpm. Outside those ranges, the ability to use a calculation, and therefore your HRM, are very inaccurate.

    At rest, the BMR calculators (you are correct on term) have been shown to be as accurate as you are going to get without lab work, or known thyroid issues, or lowered metabolism because of starving yourself.
    Next above that is maintenance calories, where you selected your avg daily activity, which takes the BMR times some value. This is where the BodyBugg/BodyMedia/FitBit can improve accuracy. Instead of just 4 big ranges, infinite steps. (but they aren't as accurate for real exercise as HRM is).

    So point is, don't use the HRM for non-exercise usage, hoping for any accuracy to make decisions on.


    Thanks for the info! Someone was telling me about their faster than normal heart rate and another was telling me about their slower than normal heart rate and I often wondered what this meant for HRM readings. You've answered that question!

    I should also make the point I didn't in my earlier post - exercise - HRM or not - is awesome!
  • awdhemi
    awdhemi Posts: 99 Member
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    UGHH!!!! Now you make me want to go buy one! My problem is that I don't want to spend the money on it. I really would love to use one a few times just to see what I burn when using my Bowflex treadclimber (machine calculates) and doing Zumba on the Wii (found a site to calculate), because I want to see how accurate my calories burned actually are!!! After, that I don't think that I would use it that much! If only I knew someone locally that had one I could borrow, lol!!!

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