Weight Training Question

jma56

Hello all,

I'm new here...just wondering why the system doesn't count calories for strength training exercises...?

FAKECED

not sure. i advise you to get a heart monitor that also count calories and use that while lifting. also bodybuilding.com gives you an estimate on calories burned when lifting weights and etc.

sjcply

you can put it under cardio, search "strength training" or go under my exercise and create exercise" if you have a HRM

Azdak

http://www.myfitnesspal.com/blog/Azdak/view/hrms-cannot-count-calories-during-strength-training-17698

mworld

there are special heart rate monitors out there that have weight lifting modes that will help get you close. polar makes one. aside from those, azdac is right and the normal variety will be pretty much useless.

although if you already have one...azdac makes it pretty clear that heart rate monitors only ever overestimate by as much as 35% so you can safely take any number you get from yours and just decrement it by 35% (Assuming his numbers are correct)

cmw72

That was a very informative post and I was glad to see you address circuit training.

These days I do more of a circuit than just straight out strength training, so I'm constantly trying to keep moving. The amount of cardio I'm doing during my circuit outweighs the time I spend actually lifting something heavy. I understand those numbers might not be accurate, and I don't directly apply them to my calorie intake. But I figure it's a wash, as the numbers probably even out in the long run if you factor in the afterburn.

I do plenty of cardio before an after my circuit training anyways, and those are the numbers I tend to rely on.

In the end, I look at my HRM as more of a motivational tool than anything else. The numbers it gives me push me to work out harder / longer. When I see I've burned 900 calories on the treadmill, I'll keep going until I get to 1000. The same goes for my circuit training or swimming. It's just a number, and at the end of the day I want to make that number as big as possible.

Then again, I don't replace all my exercise calories, so your mileage may vary.

Azdak

That was a very informative post and I was glad to see you address circuit training.

These days I do more of a circuit than just straight out strength training, so I'm constantly trying to keep moving. The amount of cardio I'm doing during my circuit outweighs the time I spend actually lifting something heavy. I understand those numbers might not be accurate, and I don't directly apply them to my calorie intake. But I figure it's a wash, as the numbers probably even out in the long run if you factor in the afterburn.

I do plenty of cardio before an after my circuit training anyways, and those are the numbers I tend to rely on.

In the end, I look at my HRM as more of a motivational tool than anything else. The numbers it gives me push me to work out harder / longer. When I see I've burned 900 calories on the treadmill, I'll keep going until I get to 1000. The same goes for my circuit training or swimming. It's just a number, and at the end of the day I want to make that number as big as possible.

Then again, I don't replace all my exercise calories, so your mileage may vary.

The key, IMO, is to do as you are doing--use your HRM as a TOOL, not as a "master". Find the ways that it motivates *you* to do better or to stay focused so that you have quality workouts.

The main caveat I have with using HRMs for pure strength training is the numbers may not be consistent for the same individual from workout to workout, so even if you are using them as relative markers, they won't be very effective. And if you are using them for circuit training, you have to compare like workouts with like workouts.