how man calories can you burn on the elliptical?

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KKOLB1
KKOLB1 Posts: 53 Member
in Health and Weight Loss
Okay I know that my machine is off as are most sites when you enter in your workout. there's no way in an hour I burn 1300-1400 calories. I do interval training on it & always change up the times. Last night for example I did high speed for 5, low for 4, up for 10, low for 5 etc. It's pretty vigerous when I do the high speed & I sweat like mad. I have looked on multiple websites to try & avg. what the sites say. How do you get the most accurate reading? A HRM? do those work effectively? some people say they dont. How many calories do you think it's possible to burn med/high intensity on an elliptical for an hour?

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  • erickirb
    erickirb Posts: 12,293 Member
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    HRMs are not 100% but by far are the best indicator of caloric burn. Get one with a chest strap and allows you to enter your are, gender, and weight.
  • ChefJenn
    ChefJenn Posts: 350 Member
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    i do mine of setting 4 and in 20 mins I burn around 300 calories. but its all about your heart rate. I have a HRM and double check my machine and its only off by like 10 calories.
    I have seen some men burn like 1000 calories in a hour but again it might have to do with heart rate and weight and the machine
  • spammyanna
    spammyanna Posts: 871 Member
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    I usually burn about 700-800 on the elliptical for an hour.
  • sek92
    sek92 Posts: 43 Member
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    i burn about 280 calories in 20 min. and i dont push myself so i bet hard core people could do 1000 calories
  • mallorybriann
    mallorybriann Posts: 1,380 Member
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    I would invest in a HRM, but there is no way to know 100% what you are burning.
    I typically burn 100+ calories per ten minutes on the Arc Trainer (similar to an elliptical)
    But it all depends on your height/wight and heart rate.
    I have found that MFP estimates are WAY off to what I get on my HRM, but the machines, if you can type in your info, are usually more accurate (but still estimate more).
  • shannonkk
    shannonkk Posts: 192 Member
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    I got a sportline HRM from walmart with chest strap and I was sadly surprised when i discovered I was not burning 1000 calories in 59 minutes, I was only burning about 450. I was dripping sweat.
  • TiffanyW1014
    TiffanyW1014 Posts: 614 Member
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    I weigh 190 and I burn 110 every 10 minutes but that is not at a crazy fast pace!!
  • jmzhale
    jmzhale Posts: 186
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    I found that after I got my Polar FT7 that my elliptical (Proform Ergo Strider from Walmart) showed about double what my HRM showed and MFP was about 1.5 times the HRM. According to my HRM I burn btwn 850-1015 in 90 minutes. I'm 5'9" 220lbs. I've read a rule of thumb is about 90-110 cal/10 mins for normal cardio which is where my HRM indicates for me. That will probably change some tonight as I will be adjusting the HRM settings to my new weight.
  • Sweet13_Princess
    Sweet13_Princess Posts: 1,207 Member
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    You're better off plugging in your calorie count from your HRM or from the machines on MFP, rather than putting in the time. I really feel that the elliptical calorie burns are greatly inflated.

    Shannon
  • fanceegirl75
    fanceegirl75 Posts: 620 Member
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    Good info everyone. I usually do a fast walk/run combination on the treadmill. But think I'd probably burn double the cals on the elliptical. I do about 50 mins on the treadmill. Elevated at 2.5. Walk at 4 and run at 5. Can anyone agree or disagree about burning more or less on the treadmill vs. elliptical?
  • yoghurtand
    yoghurtand Posts: 119
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    I usually put my weight in as 3-4kgs less than it actually is (~6.5-9lbs) and it comes out as pretty accurate. I burn around 500-700 in an hour going at a moderate to vigorous rate.
    Good info everyone. I usually do a fast walk/run combination on the treadmill. But think I'd probably burn double the cals on the elliptical. I do about 50 mins on the treadmill. Elevated at 2.5. Walk at 4 and run at 5. Can anyone agree or disagree about burning more or less on the treadmill vs. elliptical?

    I think that if you're in it purely for calorie burn, the elliptical is better as it is more sustainable. I can stay on a treadmill for MAX (and usually only 25mins HIIT) one hour and burn ~400 calories, but I can be on a cross trainer for 2+hours and burn upwards of 900. I think for general fitness though that shorter more intense (and not necessarily calorie burning) exercise is better than long endurance (i.e. treadmill over elliptical). But whatever you like most, I guess!
  • amehrkens
    amehrkens Posts: 162 Member
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    I weigh I 197 and I can burn 1100 in an hour on the ARC trainer.
  • ncgirl1978
    ncgirl1978 Posts: 13 Member
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    what exactly is the hrm that everyone is talking about? I would love to go purchase one myself but i want to know what im looking for and i assume it is in the sports section.
  • kristarablue
    kristarablue Posts: 707
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    I burn about 750 cal in 60 min on the elliptical I go about 7.25 miles in 60 min. so it is a good pace. Just remember, although I have lost alot, I also still weigh alot. It seems as though the more I loose, the more difficult it is to maintain the cal loss so I have to continue to increase my time on it. I don't have an HRM though.
  • CatchMom11
    CatchMom11 Posts: 462 Member
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    Good info everyone. I usually do a fast walk/run combination on the treadmill. But think I'd probably burn double the cals on the elliptical. I do about 50 mins on the treadmill. Elevated at 2.5. Walk at 4 and run at 5. Can anyone agree or disagree about burning more or less on the treadmill vs. elliptical?

    Try this! My trainer had me do this and it had me sweating like crazy and burned a ton of calories.

    Walk @ 3 incline for 2 min
    Run (5.5-6.0mph) @ 3 incline for 3 minutes
    Walk @ 15 incline for 10 minutes
    Repeat for a total of 30 minutes

    If I remember correctly, I burned somewhere around 400 calories in 30 minutes. It was intense!

    If you try it, let me know what you think.

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