Calories left at the gym

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MelJolly
MelJolly Posts: 49 Member
in Fitness and Exercise
Do you go by what the machine at the gym says regarding calories burned, or what MFP says for calories burned?

According to the machines here's my workout tonight:
12 miles in 46 minutes between levels 10 and 18 on the bike= 350 calories
45 minutes/ 5200 steps or 3.0 miles on the elliptical= 500 calories
30 minutes=1.43 mile on the treadmill ranging from .5 to 4.0 incline = 128 calories

According to the site:
45 minutes on the elliptical = 761 calories
30 minutes on the treadmill = 507 calories
46 minutes on the bike = 908 calories

Replies

  • superstarcassie
    superstarcassie Posts: 296 Member
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    I would recommend a heart rate monitor. I think MFP and the machines estimate too many calories burned. the HRM isn't perfect, but I think its more realistic.
  • srobey
    srobey Posts: 3
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    i am guessing every machine/cal counter has its own system of counting or averaging things out. i kno when i do the eliptical at the Y i average a little over 100 cals burned per mile and i keep my "steps per min" arounf 65-75.

    not sure what to reccommend... :-/ but keep up the good workouts!! :)
  • TGIBriday83
    TGIBriday83 Posts: 68 Member
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    investing in a heart monitor is the best idea. itll track the calories you burn based on your heart rate so its a lot more accurate. plus you can track your calories doing things that don't have built in calorie counters. i like using mine at home when im just doing a quick routine of crunches and push ups.
  • deckerp
    deckerp Posts: 4,365 Member
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    I find a difference between my elliptical, the elliptical at work, and MyFitnessPal too. My Heart Rate Monitor is closer to MyFitnessPal but not the same. We're guessing a bit at the portions and calories too I suppose. I try not to get too wound up about being exact. The important thing is to keep at it.
  • MelJolly
    MelJolly Posts: 49 Member
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    My problem with that is the following.... my work-out buddy and I have compared heart rates and levels, etc. at the gym. I take a blood pressure medication and have trouble getting my heart rate over 117.
  • irunwithscissors
    irunwithscissors Posts: 89 Member
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    Awesome workout! For me, MFP is lower than the machine. In 30 min on the treadmill, the machine says 180 and MFP tells me 130. However my friend said her treadmill says like 300 in 30 min. So, we are always going to be guessing, but if that guessing works, then, well, it works! Keep up the great work!
  • MelJolly
    MelJolly Posts: 49 Member
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    Awesome workout! For me, MFP is lower than the machine. In 30 min on the treadmill, the machine says 180 and MFP tells me 130. However my friend said her treadmill says like 300 in 30 min. So, we are always going to be guessing, but if that guessing works, then, well, it works! Keep up the great work!

    The thing is...... one or the other determines the net calories, ultimately. I guess with that in mind I should go with whichever says I burned the least calories, so it gives me fewer extra calories I am "allowed" to take in.
  • fooja
    fooja Posts: 451 Member
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    hmmm...when i type in 45 mins on the elliptical it says 637 cals.....wierd. sometimes my elliptical says different than mfp, but it depends on how fast i go and what resistance i do.
  • irunwithscissors
    irunwithscissors Posts: 89 Member
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    That's a great idea too, then you aren't cheating yourself (without knowing it) and really if you are too low, then you will lose more than expected!
  • scottjaqua
    scottjaqua Posts: 4
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    I would just be consistent. You don't need precision. What I do is if I have a machine that tells me calories, I use that. If I go for a run outside, I look it up online. I don't use the MFP estimates because, just like the food items, you never know where it is coming from. If you need to estimate for a run outside, try: http://www.healthstatus.com/calculate/cbc
  • leelu
    leelu Posts: 136 Member
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    Remember that MFP uses your weight to calucuate the amount of calories - if your not entering that into the machines at the gym then it will be different.
  • 2bskinnyagain1978
    2bskinnyagain1978 Posts: 32
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    I always go by the gym machines cause most of them u can put your weight in and it accur calculates it based on your weight...
  • MelJolly
    MelJolly Posts: 49 Member
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    I always go by the gym machines cause most of them u can put your weight in and it accur calculates it based on your weight...

    I always try to take the time to enter my weight; it's in increments of 5, so I go OVER, not under. For example, I put in 250 right now. The thing is, while I am (seemingly) doing it right........SOMETHING isn't right........I'm losing less than a pound a week, or even going UP some weeks. I don't know what to do; what to change. Tonight I worked out for OVER three hours. And the minimum has been 90 minutes five days a week, or AT LEAST 450 minutes a week. Yet my results are still minimal, at best. And I am logging my food, and watching my calories, and trying to make really really smart choices MOST of the time. What am I doing wrong???
  • granmalaura
    granmalaura Posts: 20 Member
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    Hi. Like you I am exercising a lot, not in the gym but outside. So far in March I have logged 129 miles either walking or running. I am not a good runner and am doing a couch to 10K program. This program runs for 13 weeks, but I find the running dfficult and struggle to move on each week to the next level and find I am doing most weeks twice or even 3 times, but in the long run any exercise is good exercise. (I tell myself this when I cannot sleep at night because my legs and feet hurt so much) I am out five days a week for 2 hours a time (my dog has lost weight and she didn't need to) and I have progressed from running for half a minute and can now run for 1.5 minutes and walk for 3.5 minutes 10 times. Up until yesterday I was the same weight I was 3 weeks ago, although every few days my weight would drop 1lb it would then return back up the next day. This morning I have lost 2lbs. Hooray a breakthrough. I do not expect to stay at this weight but for it to go back up again tomorrow at least 1lb. But it is something.

    I have been a dieter for many years and always had trouble losing the weight, at Weight Watchers I used to lose something like half a pound a week, whilst my daughter would lose 2lb a week. This can be very discouraging, but in the end you do lose the weight and you have to keep at it.

    Keep up the good work at the gym. I don't believe it matters too much how many calories the machine tells you you are burning, you know you are burning them, that's what matters.
  • SHBoss1673
    SHBoss1673 Posts: 7,161 Member
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    read this, it gives you good info on the gym machines

    http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/88115-an-hrm-primer
  • amillward27
    amillward27 Posts: 21
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    I like to go by the gym machines rather than mfp. MFP does not know my resistance or whether or not I'm doing hills or a weight loss program and that makes a difference with how many calories you burn. Also, depending on how many miles your doing, it means you are going faster or slower, each burning different numbers of calories. Therefore, the treadmill can tell the difference between 45 minutes of high intensity, high level workout and 45 minutes of a slow intensity, barely breaking a sweat workout, and MFP can't Just a thought! Good luck!
  • blitzsdad
    blitzsdad Posts: 1 Member
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    The big thing is a change in lifestyle. Exercise every day (walk, weight train). Eat good foods (healthy, eliminate the processed stuff and keep the calories down and you will see the pounds drop away). You will also feel better every day and not get sick. Keep up the good work.
  • deckerp
    deckerp Posts: 4,365 Member
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    ... You will also feel better every day and not get sick. ...

    I didn't really think about it until I read this but I don't think I got sick all winter long! I normally end up with one cold that I can't shake until spring. This year I had a runny nose for a few days but that was it.
  • mswing7674
    mswing7674 Posts: 44
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    well my guess would be you aren't entering your weight on any of those machines before you work out... some don't offer that feature... the more you weigh the more calories you burn and I think MFP would be more accurate based on your weight than a machine if you can't put your weight in... as those machines default to 150lbs
  • MelJolly
    MelJolly Posts: 49 Member
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    well my guess would be you aren't entering your weight on any of those machines before you work out... some don't offer that feature... the more you weigh the more calories you burn and I think MFP would be more accurate based on your weight than a machine if you can't put your weight in... as those machines default to 150lbs

    But I do. As I said, I even enter it higher rather than lower. Some of the machines I can enter my exact weight on.........others must be in increments of five pounds. In those cases I round up. I did over 13 miles today. If I go by the machines at the gym, it was maybe 750 calories. If I go by MFP it was far more......and adds more calories to what I am "supposed" to take in today.

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