Do calorie burn rates differ depending on weight?

DelilaLightfoot
DelilaLightfoot Posts: 53
in Fitness and Exercise
Hi there. I'm new to MFP and wonder if you could help with a question - I am just starting out on what I intend to be a year long journey to loose a lot of weight - around 140lbs. I am currently 308lbs and have started exercising daily - slowly to start by walking for around 50/60 mins at 5kms p/h on a treadmill. My treadmill calculates that during that time I burn around 250/300 cals - is that a general calculation or is it likely that I am loosing more because of my weight and unfit state? Does everyone burn the same calories at the same speed over same time regardless of weight?

When I select 60 mins walking form the MPF exercise database for my diary it gives me a much higher calorie burn off - is that because MFP use my weight etc and calculate based on that?

In short I'm not sure what 'calories burned' number I should use - treadmill or MFP? Thanks for any help.

Replies

  • nisha0612
    nisha0612 Posts: 75 Member
    Invest in a good Heart rate monitor, one with a chest strap. It will tell you how much you burn depending on your weight, height, sex. It will also help you keep track and motivate you to lose more. I love my polar FT7, it also records how much of my workout was fat burn.
  • Treadmillmom1st
    Treadmillmom1st Posts: 579 Member
    I have heard from other threads that MFP over estimates calories burnt during exercise.

    But in direct answer to your question, 'Do calorie burn rates differ depending on weight?' the answer is yes.
  • lambertj
    lambertj Posts: 675 Member
    If when you get on the treadmill it prompts you to enter your weight I would use that number over the MFP number (the MFP number is grossly inaccurate), that being said, because I wear a heart rate monitor I have noticed all the machines at my gym are off a bit - I usually burn a bit more in an hour than the machines say I do. A good rule of thumb is 100 calories per mile walking. As you become more efficient at the exercise however, you will burn less calories for the same effort so that is when you have to step it up a notch, perhaps add some incline to your walks.
  • Denjo060
    Denjo060 Posts: 1,008
    I find that the heavier you are the more you burn gt a HRM thats the best way to not overestimate your calories burned
  • 714rah714
    714rah714 Posts: 759 Member
    A good rule of thumb is 100 calories per mile walking.
    This may be true if you are at a certain weight, but definitely not true for everyone.
  • LindseySprake
    LindseySprake Posts: 333 Member
    Hi and welcome :-)
    To put it simply, yes! Everyone burns cals at a different rate.
    It is dependant on your weight, but also height, age, gender, state of health/fitness level etc etc.

    The best thing I can suggest is to get yourself a Heart Rate Monitor. It uses the info you input into it (as above) with your heart rate and calculates (as best it can) how many cals you burn.
    Again it is not going to be 100% accurate, but near as you'll be able to get it.

    Hope this helps and good luck on your journey :smile:
  • Amberonamission
    Amberonamission Posts: 836 Member
    I am still significantly overweight but my burns have lessened greatly as I have gotten into better shape. It is not ALL about weight. It is about how physically fit you are. Get a good Heart Rate Monitor. It is the best investment I have made.
  • Anthony110101111110001101
    Anthony110101111110001101 Posts: 239 Member
    The answer is yes. If for no other reason then you are carrying more weight which requires more effort. If you want to be accurate get a HRM like others are suggesting but in the beginning the estimates from the devices or this site should suffice. (My opinion anyway)
  • fitbum19
    fitbum19 Posts: 198 Member
    Best caloric expenditure measurement = BodyMedia FIT
  • DelilaLightfoot
    DelilaLightfoot Posts: 53
    Thanks everyone for responding! Most helpful - will definitely invest in a HRM. Makes sense that an unfit/heavier person will work harder to walk 5kms in an hour than a fitter/lighter person.

    What a great community of helpful people here :)
  • nevilles
    nevilles Posts: 11 Member
    Yes, you do burn more calories for a given level of exercise when you weigh more. It just takes more energy (calories are energy) to move the higher weight around.

    As you lose weight, you will slowly burn less, so you will have to increase the intensity or duration of your exercise. Don't worry about that, though, the fact that you have started something at all is your victory!

    So...a lot of treadmills have a feature that allows you to input your weight. If yours can do that then the calorie data it shows you will be more accurate.

    If your treadmill can't do that, then input your exercise data into a calculator like this one:

    http://www.exrx.net/Calculators/WalkRunMETs.html

    Use this to check the data that the treadmill is showing you.

    Finally, don't worry too much. Again, being accurate to the last calorie is basically impossible, the important thing is to do something, calculate something, and log it all in MFP.

    Good Luck!

    -NS
  • Sjenny5891
    Sjenny5891 Posts: 717 Member
    Until you get it... I would go with the smaller number of the two
  • DelilaLightfoot
    DelilaLightfoot Posts: 53
    Thanks for the support :)
  • weird_me2
    weird_me2 Posts: 716 Member
    If you don't input your weight, the standard calories burned calculation on most treadmills is based on 150 lbs! If you are unsure about the numbers MFP is giving you, I like the calculator here:

    http://www.sparkpeople.com/resource/calories_burned_list.asp

    It has a very comprehensive list so that you can put walking on a treadmill at 5kmph w/ a 0% incline and your weight and age for the estimate.

    www.caloriesperhour.com is pretty decent, too.

    I've found that when I enter my weight on the treadmill my calorie burns match up pretty closely to the sparkpeople calculators and my weight loss is pretty much what I would expect based on calories in vs. calories out.

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