Correct settings on treadmill

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pinkgardens
pinkgardens Posts: 6 Member
in Fitness and Exercise
My question is about setting the weight on the treadmill.

I have a Schwinn 820P treadmill and it has many pre-set programs, of which I use several different ones. My question is this. My boyfriend and I share the treadmill and I use the programs, he doesn't. When I go through the programs' settings, I never change the weight from his to mine.

It just occurred to me today that this may be causing the total calories burned to be incorrect for my weight. He's 40 pounds heavier than I am. Does it make a difference in the totals if I don't change the weight to my weight when I use the treadmill? Suddenly, I'm worried I've been recording the wrong calories burned all this time. Maybe I should be walking longer to get the same calories burned.

Many thanks!
Chanda

Replies

  • JoRocka
    JoRocka Posts: 17,525 Member
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    calories off the machine are wildly inaccurate anyway- I wouldn't worry about it or rather use what they list- or go ahead and change the weight and average it with a heart rate monitor.
  • ASKyle
    ASKyle Posts: 1,475 Member
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    Never trust the calorie burns off of a machine.

    A better estimate may be 100 cals/mile or even less. A HRM is the only way to be certain, but even these only work for steady state cardio.
  • pinkgardens
    pinkgardens Posts: 6 Member
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    Thanks! Time to recalculate those burned calories... :)
  • BrianSharpe
    BrianSharpe Posts: 9,248 Member
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    If you're walking (assuming you're not using a huge incline) a reasonable formula for calculating net calories expended is:

    .30 x weight (in lbs) x distance (in miles)

    for running use .63 rather than .30


    Source: Runners World
  • moxiept
    moxiept Posts: 200 Member
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    If you're walking (assuming you're not using a huge incline) a reasonable formula for calculating net calories expended is:

    .30 x weight (in lbs) x distance (in miles)

    for running use .63 rather than .30


    Source: Runners World

    Thanks for the formula!
  • Azdak
    Azdak Posts: 8,281 Member
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    Can't vouch for the Schwinn and they aren't considered a top-level brand anymore, but it is not that difficult or complicated to accurately estimate calories on a treadmill. People who say that "all machines are wildly inaccurate" or "HRMs are the most accurate" are wrong.

    Yes, the additional 40 pounds will make a big difference.

    Given the issues with calorie-counting accuracy (even with--gasp--heart rate monitors), it is best to exercise caution when deciding how many calories to "eat back".
  • BigGamesJames1
    BigGamesJames1 Posts: 11
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    Never trust the calorie burns off of a machine.

    A better estimate may be 100 cals/mile or even less. A HRM is the only way to be certain, but even these only work for steady state cardio.

    This! Get a heart rate monitor if you can.
  • Azdak
    Azdak Posts: 8,281 Member
    Options
    Never trust the calorie burns off of a machine.

    A better estimate may be 100 cals/mile or even less. A HRM is the only way to be certain, but even these only work for steady state cardio.

    This! Get a heart rate monitor if you can.

    A heart rate monitor is only marginally more accurate than just picking a number at random.

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