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Net vs Gross Calories Burned?

starlight_chic06
starlight_chic06 Posts: 7 Member
edited February 10 in Fitness and Exercise
I just got a heart rate monitor off of Craigslist - one of the same ones they sell in stores here. I did a quick workout this morning using it (the first of my new workout plan). It works perfectly, but it doesn't give me calories burned. So I did a quick search on how to calculate it on my own based on the average heart rate it does give me. The page I went to mention net calories and gross calories. I understand the difference between the two, but I'm just wondering which one I need to be entering on here to keep the most accurate record. Any suggestions?

Replies

  • WalkingAlong
    WalkingAlong Posts: 4,926 Member
    Were you using the Runners World article that gives net and gross calorie burns per mile of walking and running? If so, they mean 'net of BMR'. I think that would be more exact than the gross value, and more conservative to use for someone 'eating back'. Though a HRM that just gives calories would probably be spitting out 'gross' values and people just use that. It's probably not that big a difference. For me, it's like a calorie a minute for my BMR. But it does add up over time, especially if you exercise a lot and at low intensity.
  • starlight_chic06
    starlight_chic06 Posts: 7 Member
    No, this was just the first site I went to with a calculator. It was on Shape Sense. It calculated my gross first and then asked if I wanted net. It really wasn't THAT big of a difference. Gross was 135 and net was 121. I really only worked out about 10 minutes, so I guess that's a little above the 1/minute you mentioned. I'm just starting out, so I just don't want to over-estimate. Maybe I'll just enter the net for now to be on the safe side and see how it changes over time. My heart rate jumped up pretty quickly - my average was 85% of my max heart rate. So maybe as I get more in shape it'll even out a little more. Thank you for your input! :)
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