Recording exercise calories burned

KrazyAsianNic

I was just curious if there are any successful MFPers out there who have lost weight using MFP's exercise calories burned. i know MFP can be way off calories burned, but I don't have the money to invest in an HRM.

I have downloaded an app that calculates smaller numbers than MFP for the same thing, but it gets time consuming to have to use one app then to record on another app.

Any advice on recording exercise calories burned?

paleirishmother

I have noticed that as well! If I add an exercise manually (wt MFP calculations) I notice a big difference in the numbers I get from my HRM. MFP calculations are always at least (for me) 200calories more than what my HRM says. For example, I do the 30DS, my HRM says 224 calories, MFP says 445. I tend to dial down the number if I use MFP calculations. That is a good way to be safe as to not overestimate your calories.

If you have another site that is telling you a different number, try manually adjusting calories burned to something in between the 2 numbers, just to be safe.

titi4j

I personally record my exercise on MFP just for the purpose of being able to look back on it and keep track of what I'm doing (minutes wise). I don't pay attention to the calories burned too much. I just want to know I'm burning something. I don't "eat back" my exercise calories. I went through a nutrition program and the nutritionist said definitely not to "eat back" calories if you're trying to lose weight. I don't know if this helps, it's just what works for me.

Mokey41

Easy answer is to not eat your exercise calories and it becomes a mute point. Unless you are a professional athlete putting in hours and hours of heavy work you don't need to supplement your food with extra calories especially if you have a lot to lose. Just log exercise for your own record.

megleo818

I've thought about this a lot.

For me, it's more important that I'm doing SOMETHING consistently, rather than the exact number of calories I'm burning. So when I work out on the elliptical/stepper machine, I enter my age and weight, then use what that machine tells me I've done. When I work out with my trainer, I enter the number of minutes we've worked as circuit training in MFP and take whatever it gives me. When I walk the dogs, I enter the minutes and pace (GPS watch tells me that) into MFP and, again, take what it gives me. Are all of these numbers accurate? -- Surely not. But are they consistent when measured against themselves? -- More or less. Is that good enough for me? -- Yep.

My personal opinion is that it's easy to lose yourself in micro-managing your exercise calories. It works best for me to monitor what I eat as accurately as I can, do some strenuous activity daily, and strive for consistency. That's a plan I think I can live with for the rest of my life. If I were a professional athlete or training for a marathon or something, I'm sure I'd have a different opinion (and vastly different needs). And I certainly have a lot of friends who track their burn to the calorie and manage their nutrition in great detail -- more power to them! It's just not for me.

Good luck to you!

KrazyAsianNic

thank you all for your responses. I agree that I should just take what MFP gives me and concentrate more on doing some type of exercise and watching my eating.

Azdak

If you have a lot of weight to lose, I would just stay with a reasonable, consistent calories intake (1500-1800 cals, depending on weight) and not factor in exercise calories at all.

If you work up to the point where you are truly burning 500-800 cals in a workout, then you might add a little (150-200 cals) snack on the big days, but otherwise, you can track exercise calories as a motivational tool, but I would not include them in an eating plan.

Velum_cado

My HRM usually tells me I burned half what MFP says. If I've done some walking or something, I tend to say I did half the amount of time, just so it's a bit more accurate. But I successfully lost about 80 lbs before I was on MFP, or owned a HRM, so I agree with the advice of just being sensible with your diet and make sure you're getting plenty of exercise.

sandobr1

I have been recording my walking calories as what MFP says, but cutting yoga time in half. I don't really eat back excercise calories at this point so it is sort of a bonus. I also have not really incorporated any big routines yet, I plan on adding this in the near future as I consider my goals and options. I will say I am considering seriously about getting a HRM but still in the research phase. I do plan on starting again 30DS and am most likely to add kettlebell workouts as well. Walking has been a main source of physical activity but with winter coming I am not sure I can do it as much as now, I am going to try but brrrrrr......

wanttolose40lbs

I have the opposite problem, when I'm on the elliptical trainer at home, it says I burn around 520 calories for 30 minutes, depending on what incline I use, MFP says I burn 349. So I use the MFP number, I don't have a HRM so I don't know which number is the correct one.

Alford96

I usually dial down the time or intensity. For instance, Tae-Bo or Zumba 45 minute class gets dialed down to 30 minutes OR i'll manually change the calorie burn to something lower. For instance, a recent workout with MFP calculations was 485 cals so I manually put in 400. I tend to go with the calories burned if I'm using an elliptical or something, just manually change it on MFP. I am actually planning on buying a HRM soon, just have to come up with the funds.

StyxxandStones

<~~~ Lost 63lbs using only the mfp numbers, eating 1600 calories, and eating back exercise calories.

Jennloella

I started losing more after I got a HRM, I was able to watch and make sure I was exercising in the zone, not just working out "comfortably" I record my exercise on here, but change the calories to reflect what my HRM says. so for me, it failed me because I thought I was burning more in a half hour than I was. Now, for instance while riding my bike if I look down and my HRM says I'm only at 86, I know to kick it up a notch so I'm not wasting my time.

Kyrogix

Hi, I know that they are way off with calories burned. However, if you are eating less and exercising more than before changing the lifestyle then you're all good. Slow and steady, exercise 5-6 days a week, and fast after 8pm (maybe a little chicken and small piece of cheese if you get the munchies after 8pm). I wish you the best of luck.

lenniebus

I have been considering my exercise calories as wiggle room or insurance. I'm not sure my calories are 100% accurate since I don't weigh food and eat out sometimes, so the exercise just makes me feel better if I may be going over my daily calories. I'm starting to run a bit more now, and my long runs are about an hour...I add in a bit of extra food for this right after I run, but no where near the calories MFP says I burn. So far, it's been keeping me at a 1lb/week weight loss which is what I'm looking for.

LorinaLynn

I never used a HRM. I used MFP's estimates for most exercises. If I used a treadmill or Runkeeper to track a run or walk, I used those numbers, but they were also very close to MFP's estimates.

If I was doing a non-exercise activity - like cleaning, gardening, etc. - I didn't log the full time I spent doing it, because the calorie burn seemed too high. IE, a half hour of gardening isn't as strenuous as a half hour of weight lifting.

I always ate most of my exercise calories, and my progress was on average what MFP predicted. Maybe not on a week-to-week basis, but if I was aiming to lose one pound a week, I typically lost about 4-5 pounds a month. Some weeks a little less, some weeks not at all, some weeks more, but it always averaged out.

lizziebeth1028

I've never invested in a HRM, I just go by MFP. It has never given me a hugh burn number....so I figure I ok going with their estimate. But if you're looking for more accuracy the HRM is the way to go.

TheSink

I was just curious if there are any successful MFPers out there who have lost weight using MFP's exercise calories burned. i know MFP can be way off calories burned, but I don't have the money to invest in an HRM.

I have downloaded an app that calculates smaller numbers than MFP for the same thing, but it gets time consuming to have to use one app then to record on another app.

Any advice on recording exercise calories burned?

Here's my suggestion. Go with MFP for one month and see what happens. Use their estimates. Log everything. See where you're at. I've read a lot of posts from individuals who bemoan MFP's shoddy estimates. I think it's hogwash. Yes, maybe you're not burning 400 calories an hour playing Wii bowling. But let's say you do play an hour a day of Wii bowling, log it, eat your calories and your "exercise" calories, and you lose your goal weight? Golden right? Sometimes a little trial and error is the best.

For what it's worth...everybody decries the MFP "overestimates" of calories burned exercising. Nobody seems to decry the estimates they use when eating out....

ObtainingBalance

I usually add walking or jogging , and I am specific at the speed levels (on the treadmill) so I think my exercise calories are calculated accurately (for the most part)

Because, I've went to other sites and they estimate about the same.... if it's walking or running, you have a good estimate on how many calories you burn in a mile (with your body weight and age calculated)

However;

I add yoga on here ....and the calorie burn seems higher than it should be. All I do is stretch in yoga... I don't feel I am burning as much as it tells me I do! I think circuit training (like 30DSHRED) can be off..... because there are THREE levels of intensity you can do those at. How do they know if you're preforming a lot of body movement with it, or slacking? (exp: raising hands up and down, following the teacher specifically...doing the highest intensity option on the video... it can vary on the calorie burn depending on how much you are moving your body with it)

I do not log in strength training or any pilates I do from magazine guides. It can't be an extremely high burn, so I don't bother... I know I'm toning still.

I wish I had an HRM.... it'd be the best!

grammysboy

MFP gave me 700 calories for 42 minutes on my elipticle machine. The machine itself said about half that. MFP gives me over 600 calories for walking (15 minute miles) for 45 minutes. The treadmill gives me 500. I started out using MFP's numbers then decided I was only cheating myself so started using the machine numbers the last few weeks. The one that irritates my wife is when MFP gives me 321 calories for RIDING our lawn mower for 70 minutes. I'm not counting that one any more!

I try to eat less than the calories I'm allotted each day then figure the exercise is just bonus. I'm shooting for 1.5 lbs. a week and so far that has worked pretty well.

Good luck.

Ely82010

I don't have a HRM, so I always used and still do, MFP numbers. Sometimes I ate/eat half or most of my exercises calories, some times I don't. It all depends on how dense and satisfying my foods for the day are.

I have been on maitenance for over a year and half but I admit that I didn't have much weight to lose, so I don't know if that is significant or not.

ShaSimone

I had less of a problem when I paid less attention to the exercise calories and eating them back.

I have my calorie goal set at a certain amount, 1753, and I enter my exercise here on MFP and I may adjust it to what my HRM says if I even wear it.

I exercise max an hour and a medium intensity. I try to eat 1753 calories a day. Some days I am under (not by much) and some days I am over (most of the time) . I look at my exercise as a bit of a diet cushion to fit in some stuff that might be 'bad' or 'treats' but I like having that balance.

soehlerking

I think in the beginning I trusted MFP (before I found the Message Boards and learned the Error of My Ways), and I definitely lost weight! You can attribute that to just doing something new or no longer inhaling french fries (or at least taking a breath occasionally), but I definitely had some solid losses. These days I do more specific research into my most common activities to know what I burn--i.e. for my size, I've learned that I burn 100 cal/mile ran and about 65 cal/mile walked. If it's something I do less often (workout DVD, shopping, etc) I take about 80% of the calories MFP gives me.

Or, of course, you could go the general TDEE path--calculate your TDEE and eat 20% below it in order to lose. It removes the exercise calorie factor altogether.

KrazyAsianNic

I have the opposite problem, when I'm on the elliptical trainer at home, it says I burn around 520 calories for 30 minutes, depending on what incline I use, MFP says I burn 349. So I use the MFP number, I don't have a HRM so I don't know which number is the correct one.

I wish this was my case. I rather it say I burn less than I really do.

KrazyAsianNic

<~~~ Lost 63lbs using only the mfp numbers, eating 1600 calories, and eating back exercise calories.

That's good to know. Congrats on your loss!

KrazyAsianNic

Thank you everyone who has responded. It's helpful.