strength training doesnt show the number of calories burned

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venetianz
venetianz Posts: 78 Member
in Fitness and Exercise
I noticed that when you record your exercises in the cardio section it shows calories burned but in the strength training section it doesnt. But strength training burns more calories. It only shows reps and sets. How do i record calories for strength training?
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Replies

  • whiskeycharged
    whiskeycharged Posts: 400 Member
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    I noticed that when you record your exercises in the cardio section it shows calories burned but in the strength training section it doesnt. But strength training burns more calories. It only shows reps and sets. How do i record calories for strength training?

    Search 'Strength training' under the Cardiovascular category and just add in the # of minutes you worked out for. MFP will calculate the calories burned and your done. :bigsmile:
  • MDWilliams1857
    MDWilliams1857 Posts: 315 Member
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    Yea, I wear a HR monitor and list all my weight training as cardio so I can put in calories burned.
  • esurgeon
    esurgeon Posts: 1
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    Apparently Heart Rate Monitors will only give you accurate measurements of calories burned for cardio work outs, not strength work outs.
  • jacksonpt
    jacksonpt Posts: 10,413 Member
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    Apparently Heart Rate Monitors will only give you accurate measurements of calories burned for cardio work outs, not strength work outs.

    Correct.
  • jacksonpt
    jacksonpt Posts: 10,413 Member
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    I noticed that when you record your exercises in the cardio section it shows calories burned but in the strength training section it doesnt. But strength training burns more calories. It only shows reps and sets. How do i record calories for strength training?

    Not exactly answering your question, but IMO, if you want to burn calories, do cardio work and log the cals. If you want to change how you look or get stronger, lift and focus on technique and consistency, not calorie burns.

    JMO.
  • LMPMOM4
    LMPMOM4 Posts: 75
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    I wear my Polar hrm when I lift and I always get about 300 calories. I lift for an hour and I work hard and I'm sweating hard. Should I not count those calories? I also walk and count those cals my hrm tracks.
  • jacksonpt
    jacksonpt Posts: 10,413 Member
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    I wear my Polar hrm when I lift and I always get about 300 calories. I lift for an hour and I work hard and I'm sweating hard. Should I not count those calories? I also walk and count those cals my hrm tracks.

    IMO (and this is a highly debated topic on MFP), no you shouldn't. First of all, you didn't burn nearly that many calories. Second, HRMs are not effective measure of calories burned during weight training. Weight training has a minimal increase in oxygen uptake, which is what calorie burns are based on. Calculated calorie burns (be it from HRMs, machines, etc) are based on that increase in in oxygen.
  • LMPMOM4
    LMPMOM4 Posts: 75
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    I wear my Polar hrm when I lift and I always get about 300 calories. I lift for an hour and I work hard and I'm sweating hard. Should I not count those calories? I also walk and count those cals my hrm tracks.

    IMO (and this is a highly debated topic on MFP), no you shouldn't. First of all, you didn't burn nearly that many calories. Second, HRMs are not effective measure of calories burned during weight training. Weight training has a minimal increase in oxygen uptake, which is what calorie burns are based on. Calculated calorie burns (be it from HRMs, machines, etc) are based on that increase in in oxygen.

    Wow.. I had absolutely no idea. I can try it and see what happens. I'm new here and I'm trying to eat as many calories as I can because I've been severely dieting for about ten years. I'm ok with not losing for several months. If anything it'll give me more motivation to walk and ride my bike more to get that cardio in.
  • nothing1994
    nothing1994 Posts: 1,936 Member
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    So if hrm dosent do it how do u calculate calories burned ???


    Mfp over does it ... with the calories burned
  • ggcat
    ggcat Posts: 313 Member
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    Yea, I wear a HR monitor and list all my weight training as cardio so I can put in calories burned.


    ^this!
  • LNZimmer
    LNZimmer Posts: 94
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    So if hrm dosent do it how do u calculate calories burned ???


    Mfp over does it ... with the calories burned

    AGREED. It does. (Overdoes it way too much for my liking.) I think it's very misleading to a lot of people too who log it and it gives them like 600 calories for 30 minutes of walking.
  • LMPMOM4
    LMPMOM4 Posts: 75
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    From what I'm understandding you don't count any strength training. Just the cals from cardio.
  • Linda_Darlene
    Linda_Darlene Posts: 453 Member
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    I wear my Polar hrm when I lift and I always get about 300 calories. I lift for an hour and I work hard and I'm sweating hard. Should I not count those calories? I also walk and count those cals my hrm tracks.

    IMO (and this is a highly debated topic on MFP), no you shouldn't. First of all, you didn't burn nearly that many calories. Second, HRMs are not effective measure of calories burned during weight training. Weight training has a minimal increase in oxygen uptake, which is what calorie burns are based on. Calculated calorie burns (be it from HRMs, machines, etc) are based on that increase in in oxygen.

    This!
  • jacksonpt
    jacksonpt Posts: 10,413 Member
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    So if hrm dosent do it how do u calculate calories burned ???


    Mfp over does it ... with the calories burned

    You don't. As I said above... if your goal is to burn cals (so you can eat more), do cardio. If your goal is to get stronger and change how you look, then lift.
  • jacksonpt
    jacksonpt Posts: 10,413 Member
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    So if hrm dosent do it how do u calculate calories burned ???


    Mfp over does it ... with the calories burned

    AGREED. It does. (Overdoes it way too much for my liking.) I think it's very misleading to a lot of people too who log it and it gives them like 600 calories for 30 minutes of walking.

    Be aware... it's an estimate, and estimates will be right for some people, not right for others. Blanket statements like that don't always work, but I understand the sentiment.
  • nothing1994
    nothing1994 Posts: 1,936 Member
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    So if hrm dosent do it how do u calculate calories burned ???


    Mfp over does it ... with the calories burned

    You don't. As I said above... if your goal is to burn cals (so you can eat more), do cardio. If your goal is to get stronger and change how you look, then lift.



    Ohhh thank u very much :)
  • chinmayj
    chinmayj Posts: 1 Member
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    Gosh I had no idea... HRMs don't work for strength training. Glad i know now.
  • HWeatherholt
    HWeatherholt Posts: 283 Member
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    In the book New Rules of Lifting for Women, it gives you a formula to calculate the calories you need for every day and the calories you need for days that you lift. Of course your numbers probably are different, but mine come out to be just under 300 "extra" for days I lift.
  • erickirb
    erickirb Posts: 12,293 Member
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    So if hrm dosent do it how do u calculate calories burned ???


    Mfp over does it ... with the calories burned

    You don't. As I said above... if your goal is to burn cals (so you can eat more), do cardio. If your goal is to get stronger and change how you look, then lift.

    The only thing I will add to this is that if you are strength training for 3+ days/week you may want to change your activity level from sedentary to light active to account for them that way. As lifting will require energy, some burned during, most from the 24-48 hours following. This will give you a few extra cals for that reason, and when in a deficit will provide a little more energy for your lifting sessions.
  • brian_haberman
    brian_haberman Posts: 2
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    I don't know if I agree with this view (not yours, but the correlation between calorie burn and oxygen consumption). Numerous studies have shown that resistance training elevates caloric burn for five to six hours after leaving the gym, whereas pure cardio workouts show a return to normal calorie burn rates within 30 minutes of leaving the gym. The implication here is that anaerobic exercise can't be counted on, or at least accurately estimated, to burn calories because of the lack of oxygen consumed. I think the research shows that anaerobic exercise has as much, or more, to do with calorie burn as aerobic activity. Of course, they must be used in combination for peak performance and fitness, but to just discount resistance training as a zero-calorie effort would be a huge mistake. Somewhere, there must be a reasonably accurate estimate. Sorry I don't have it, just pointing out an issue that creates a cognitive dissonance in my skull...

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