Do those devices really tell you how much you burn in a day?

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  • tjohnoconnor
    tjohnoconnor Posts: 58 Member
    All of them are estimates and some are better than others. There are so many things that go into those estimates as well. Even an HRM can only estimate. Without measuring lung capacity and blood gases and co2 and a plethora of other things it is all an estimate. What you can do is find which one works the best for you. For 1 month I ran MFP, Endomondo, mapmyfitness and fitbit doing the same exercises and eating the same number of calories and the same balance of macros all balanced at my settings at each meal. Compared calories consumed to calories burned and the weight loss and was shocked to find fitbit was closest for me. A friend in town here did the same and fitbit wasn't close at all. There are other ways to find out as well, you just have to figure it out.
  • evileen99
    evileen99 Posts: 1,564 Member
    NO. Not exactly.

    A HRM on it's own will Help with a 'Estimate' of your total energy expenditure, it (or better the software where you log the data, like say MFP) also needs to know your gender, Height and weight so that it can ESTIMATE your energy expenditure (and better than nothing or a full on guess).

    N.B a lot of folks early have said that the trackers CALCULATE your energy expenditure - they don't the ESTIMATE it based upon the data that you provide and their internal model - how accurate the results it gives is based upon the accuracy of the data provided and the software model.

    To CALCULATE your expenditure, the tracker would need a lot more sensors that just a HRM and a pedometer!! You really need to spend time in a calorimeter to get more accurate data - where ALL of your inputs and outputs are measured .. yes that too!!

    The BodyMedia Fit is NOT a heart rate monitor, nor does it contain one. A few of the things it looks at are skin temperature, amount of sweat, and acceleration.
  • Shropshire1959
    Shropshire1959 Posts: 982 Member

    The BodyMedia Fit is NOT a heart rate monitor, nor does it contain one. A few of the things it looks at are skin temperature, amount of sweat, and acceleration.

    Cool - still only an estimate :-p
  • lindsey1979
    lindsey1979 Posts: 2,395 Member
    I'm also a Bodymedia Fit monitor --- I love it and find it to be very accurate. My calculated deficits align very well with my weight loss. I love seeing the different graphs, reports and calorie burns -- I find them very motivational. I recommend it very highly.
  • ravenmiss
    ravenmiss Posts: 384 Member
    Have only looked a little but I seem to think that the BodyMedia is only available in the US?

    I think there's a UK version of it but it's a lot more expensive :(
  • ythannah
    ythannah Posts: 4,371 Member
    I had a HRM first, back when I first started working out. That was before I joined MFP. Now I find MFP overestimates my burn from cardio by about 30%, so I overwrite MFP's number with the HRM number when I log my exercise.

    Within the past year I got a Fitbit, mainly to track sleep as I sleep very, very badly (perimenopause). I don't have it synched with MFP as I think that's just way too confusing, lol.

    I figure the Fitbit is a pretty decent reflection of my TDEE... I average around 1600/day, and that seems to align with online TDEE calculators that I've played with, considering I'm a 50 year old female with a desk job.
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  • PLAID1977
    PLAID1977 Posts: 70 Member
    I researched a variety of activity monitors for the same reasons you are asking. I wanted to know if I actually could be eating more and still losing without spending much time trying out...for fear it wouldn't work!

    I finally bought the Body Media Link armband about 5 weeks ago. It was the best $100 I ever spent. I have been able to increase my calories many of the days and feel pretty confident about my calories burned throughout the entire day, not just in a workout. It is also motivating to me.

    I have consistently lost the 2 lbs each week that I have been working toward. This was not the case when I was going strictly by MFP's numbers. And this is not new weight loss/water weight as I've been at this a long time. I reset my goal to lose only 1 lb the next few weeks as I am much closer to goal. I'm confident that I will now do that as well.

    I love my Body Media. It is the most accurate choice out there, considered a medical device...not a glorified pedometer. Totally worth every penny for me!

    Edited to add: You could play around with your TDEE and probably get similar results. But this simplified it for me and took my own user error out of the equation!
  • Chain_Ring
    Chain_Ring Posts: 753 Member
    Buy a Garmin device, it will make all others look like toys............... :-)
  • Mommy2two_2
    Mommy2two_2 Posts: 33 Member
    Im in love with my bodymedia arm band! I just got the basic core but it has been eye opening!!! I way underestimated my calorie burn and was under eating for soooo long!! Could not maintain that and would binge. Now I get to eat more!!!!!! When calculating I always didn't believe it or would underestimate it because I thought there is no way I can eat that much and still lose. With this it says heres what you burned.. Heres how much to eat.. Bam that simple!!! I spent $80 on it and would do it all over again in a heartbeat!
  • InevitableButterfly
    InevitableButterfly Posts: 340 Member
    My BodyMedia Fit does...kinda. Based on every calculator I've ever used with all of the different equations I've found, it seems that Body Media is pretty close to my estimated TDEE when I wear it for a 24 hours straight, and I'd say it's pretty close to accurate when it calculates the burn during 'off body' times. There have only been a few times I've been like '65406834094850345302458 kcal burned? WHOA!' O_o'

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