How do I verify the numbers on my treadmill?

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  • MrsJBro
    MrsJBro Posts: 59 Member
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    Truly a heart rate monitor that also calculates calories would be your best bet. The Polar FT7 is pretty awesome, I just got a new one off Amazon, I think it was around $78. That'll give you the best idea of how many calories you are actually burning.
  • laural007
    laural007 Posts: 251 Member
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    Invest in a HRM. I find I burn more calories then the treadmill states, however my heart rate is usually pretty accuate with the machine.
  • Timmmy40
    Timmmy40 Posts: 152 Member
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    Walking burn about 100 calories per mile. Running/jogging 100 - 150 calories per mile. Most if not all dreadmills I have been on over estimate calories burn. My hrm varies from day to day.
  • Kev_22
    Kev_22 Posts: 17 Member
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    No one has asked yet if you're getting results?

    In other words, if you're set to lose 1 lb per week, are you losing 1 lb per week?

    if so, it doesn't matter how many cals you're burning. It's working.

    True, it's hard to argue with the results I've had so far, I just always wondered if it was accurate.
  • ryry_
    ryry_ Posts: 4,966 Member
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    Never ever trust the machine, even if you enter your weight, because they're usually very wrong. A HRM will verify the amount of calories that you're actually burning. I can predict from the info that you provided that you're probably burning 1/2 of that (roughly 300 cals).

    Treadmills aren't "usually" wrong though.

    Your argument is pretty valid for ellipticals or arc machines, but treadmills shouldn't be lumped in with all gym machines. For that matter, neither should stationary bikes.

    Just curious. Are the formulas being used in treadmills derived from people running on actual treadmills or on paved roads? I only ask because my perceived effort is much higher on a paved road rather than a treadmill given equal speeds.

    Running on an actual road is a little harder- even if it's perfectly flat, the movement of the belt gives a slight forward propulsion advantage that a road doesn't have- that's why if you're trying to emulate road conditions you're supposed to set the treadmill at a very small (~1%) gradient.

    I'm PRETTY sure that the numbers come from treadmill studies- sports science labs at universities have been hooking people up and monitoring them on treadmills and bikes for decades, and there's very little difference treadmill to treadmill (maybe a slightly softer surface). Ellipticals, on the other hand, have wildly different movement patterns and ways to adjust the resistance (some change the angle, some use mechanical braking, etc) so two different machines have different calorie burns, so the calorie readout is "studied" by the manufacturer of that machine and there's almost no way to verify their data ("proprietary studies"). Add to the difference in movement that there is a demand for machines that get the highest burn for the least effort, so the machines sell better if the readout says a ton of calories and it feels easy (ahem....arc machines)..

    Sorry for the novel, but that's basically why treadmills are trustworthy and ellipticals are liars.

    Good info to have.

    And for everyone touting HR as the king of accuracy..."tread" lightly. I got one to try to find an accurate count. I was sure that the readout on the treadmill was inflated. Then my HR monitor started reading about 30% higher than treadmill #. Go figure.
  • TracyJo93
    TracyJo93 Posts: 197 Member
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    The calories my HRM says I burn and the number the treadmill gives me are usually off by maybe 2 calories. I'd trust the treadmill.

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