Calories burned riding a MOTORCYCLE...

All I need is someone to suggest wearing an HRM while riding and this will be my most favoritiest mfp thread EVAH

I think the best way to judge if this is accurate would be to wear you HRM while riding to get an accurate calorie burn.

That wouldn't work. An HRM needs the heartrate to get above 90bpm in order to get the calorie burn total.

I don't ride, but this thread (as any that has people calculating calories burned for seemingly everyday kind of things), made me go take a look at my BodyMedia Fit readouts for the couple of days I rode around Waikiki/Honolulu on a rental. Now, this included in the downtown Waikiki area in the normal daily traffic, along stretches of expressways and out of the main city, on regular streets, but with far less traffic.

And in comparing the hours that I know I was on the bike vs the hours I know I was walking, I had only slightly less of a caloric burn while on the bike than while walking.

But I would guess that hours upon hours on a freeway without a lot of lane movement, stop lights, other traffic, etc. would probably drop it even lower. And there were definite dips in the burn, down to just barely above sitting on my couch kind of levels, which I would guess were stop lights or stop signs throughout the cities.

And I know that people sometimes report weird BMF readings while in cars due to bumps in the road and things like that, but I've never experienced anything like that with mine (I make a lot of road trips between Northern and Southern CA throughout each year and it always records me like I was sitting on my couch for that time - save for the occasional air drum solo) so I wouldn't count that as too large of a error factor.

TL:DR version - riding a motorcycle could probably be recorded with a caloric burn similar to whatever you'd burn during a leisurely walk, but not more than that.

I think the best way to judge if this is accurate would be to wear you HRM while riding to get an accurate calorie burn.

That wouldn't work. An HRM needs the heartrate to get above 90bpm in order to get the calorie burn total.

When your going 165 on the freeway, trust me your heart rate is above 90 even if your riding b*tch

but you are not moving about are you.......

Look, for burn calories that will be of any use to aid in your fitness, weightloss etc etc you need to move about.

Sitting on a motorbike (I had one myself when I was 18 and my boyfriend at the time had one too), does not substitute the good old calories burns that are gained from walking, running, weights, swimming and all those things that people seem so desperate to get out of and will find many an excuse, namely "Riding my motorcycle burns several hundred calories" (oh goodie that means I don't have to bother with any actual physical workout).

I think the best way to judge if this is accurate would be to wear you HRM while riding to get an accurate calorie burn.

That wouldn't work. An HRM needs the heartrate to get above 90bpm in order to get the calorie burn total.

When your going 165 on the freeway, trust me your heart rate is above 90 even if your riding b*tch

but you are not moving about are you.......

Look, for burn calories that will be of any use to aid in your fitness, weightloss etc etc you need to move about.

Sitting on a motorbike (I had one myself when I was 18 and my boyfriend at the time had one too), does not substitute the good old calories burns that are gained from walking, running, weights, swimming and all those things that people seem so desperate to get out of and will find many an excuse, namely "Riding my motorcycle burns several hundred calories" (oh goodie that means I don't have to bother with any actual physical workout).

Ever hear of NEAT?

Riders know. Others just can't understand if they haven't done it. I ride a 650 dual sport, old guy but dirt riding burns my energy. It's like explaining what it's like to be a guy to my wife. She might understand the words I am saying but it's like me saying I "get childbirth". No I don't. I understand it, work in healthcare and have helped with multiple births, but I can't "get it". It's OK. Riders get it.

Calories burned is a function of HR. The types of riding that induce a sustained increase in HR include off road and road racing so if you're doing those, I'd say that you're burning extra cals. Other than that, the calorie expenditure is buried in the noise with BMR.

I've lost weight once (12/10 to 7/11) and in that time, I did 4 rides that were 1000 miles in a day, and one ride of 1500 miles in a day.

The SPOT tracks of my rides are here:
1/1/11 http://spotwalla.com/tripViewer.php?id=245b4d1bbb7a53262
3/20/11 http://spotwalla.com/tripViewer.php?id=28004d83e022c538e
5/21/11 http://spotwalla.com/tripViewer.php?id=2d164dd718c2051e1

6/21/11 http://spotwalla.com/tripViewer.php?id=30964dff61be266f9
821/11 http://spotwalla.com/tripViewer.php?id=367c4e4e87ed45c19

If you look at my diary (it's open) and at the details of my weight loss (http://cbeinfo.net/weight.htm) I don't think you'll see a marked impact on weight loss.

The ride on 8/21 was different than the others in that I ran a half marathon, grabbed a shower, and then did the 1000 mile ride through the deserts of CA and AZ and back to SoCal. I wore my HRM (Garmin Forerunner 305) during the ride and my HR was 62 BPM which is my standard resting HR.

The weight of the bike is not an issue because, at speed, motorcycles are turned by a slight shift in the body weight, perhaps, and by pushing on the handlebar in the direction you want to turn (it sounds weird but that's actually how it works). Even on my almost 900 pound Goldwing, there's very little effort involved.


Riding motorcycles has a lot of attractions but losing weight faster isn't one of them.

What exactly is it that burns the calories whilst sitting on the motorcycle?

If you have a naked bike, you have to deal with wind resistance. There's also the extra activity of controlling the bike as well as wearing a helmet (they're not light!).

All told, riding a road bike on a street requires very little exertion but it's more than sitting on the living room couch so some folks log it.

but you are not moving about are you.......

Look, for burn calories that will be of any use to aid in your fitness, weightloss etc etc you need to move about.

Sitting on a motorbike (I had one myself when I was 18 and my boyfriend at the time had one too), does not substitute the good old calories burns that are gained from walking, running, weights, swimming and all those things that people seem so desperate to get out of and will find many an excuse, namely "Riding my motorcycle burns several hundred calories" (oh goodie that means I don't have to bother with any actual physical workout).

most everyone here said they would not log it as an actual workout, so maybe that info will help get the panties out of a wad. I find it fascinating that the data is even out there, yet would never log it as an actual exercise.

Stick your hand out of the window of a car going down the interstate and try to hold it still. Yes, that's wind resistance, and yes, that takes physical exertion.

Now, ride a motorcycle down the interstate. You're pushing with your neck and lower back to stay upright as the wind hits you. You push/pull the handlebars to countersteer. You lean into and out of the turns. It is completely different than driving a car or sitting at a desk. Is it a strenuous workout? Not really. Does it burn more calories than you would be burning doing nothing? Yes.

I don't agree with this counting as a workout replacement, and no, I don't think a 30 minute commute to work on a motorcycle is worth logging, but if you do it for several hours at a time, it may be. For someone like me with an almost completely sedentary lifestyle and over 100lbs to lose, it's better than nothing.

Now, offroad/trail riding is a whole new ballgame, and it can be quite a workout.