Your opinion on HRM total calories burned??

Macacadopai
Macacadopai Posts: 183 Member
edited September 26 in Fitness and Exercise
I talked to my friend today and it seems we count burned calories in a different way.
I start it off when my workout starts, and when I've ran/done my workout/danced I turn it off and count that as my total calorie burn.
She starts off the same, but only turns it off when her heart rate has settled down after the workout.
There is obviously no right or wrong here, some people do it like that, other take them as "bonus calories"
My question is how do you do it? We were just wondering what the most common way is? :)

Thanks!

Replies

  • BerryH
    BerryH Posts: 4,698 Member
    I'd just register what you burn during the workout, everything else is a bonus. If you really want to be accurate, you should subtract the amount you'd be burning during that period due to your BMR. So if it was an hour, you'd take off your daily base calories burned/24.
  • cptino
    cptino Posts: 46 Member
    I have my HRM running for the entire class, beginning to end. I didn't even think about turning it off before then! LOL! I will be interested in seeing what the other responses are to this question!
  • aweigh2go
    aweigh2go Posts: 164 Member
    I stop my HRM when I complete the last set or step off the treadmill. Once, I did an experiment and did find that I continued to burn calories immediately after lifting weights but I don't count it. I just consider it bonus.
  • Natalie0506
    Natalie0506 Posts: 163
    I turn off my HRM when my workout is over. It doesn't seem right, somehow, for me to continue to let it run.
  • MOM2SWEETNESSx3
    MOM2SWEETNESSx3 Posts: 6 Member
    I turn my HRM off as soon as I complete the exercise.
  • allie_00
    allie_00 Posts: 73
    On a similar note, do you sometimes notice that your HRM says you burn a lot more calories than a treadmill, etc. I was running outside yesterday for about 40 mins and I supposedly burned about 600 calories. I approximate that I was running at about 6.7 mph-ish. Does this seem crazy?

    There were some hills and points when my heart rate was as high as 169-171 (or about 85 %) I run both indoors and outdoors but it seems to me that I'm burning a lot more cals than most people! (I'm 5'8, 148 lbs and in pretty decent shape)
  • JunkFoodJane
    JunkFoodJane Posts: 150 Member
    I turn mine off. I think it overestimates, so I'd rather not add even more to that # even though I don't count the calories I eat. I'm cOnsidering a more sophisticated monitor to wear all of the time. Then I could monitor that for a bit and count calories and see how they add up. Would be interesting!
  • Jayni40
    Jayni40 Posts: 123 Member
    I turn mine off when my HR drops down to my baseline right after my workout while I'm cooling down.
  • JennLifts
    JennLifts Posts: 1,913 Member
    I do it like you do. And My HR drops within 5 minutes, so there wouldn't be an advantage for me anyways haha.
  • jensdaily
    jensdaily Posts: 16
    When I'm done working out, I turn the HRM off.
  • xnattiex
    xnattiex Posts: 143 Member
    I do the same as you, turn it off as soon as i'm finished, i feel like if im not working then im not burning!
  • mommy2josh
    mommy2josh Posts: 21
    i turn mine off when my HR drops below 130, and there are only stretches etc left to the class, i know it won't go up again.
  • digby765
    digby765 Posts: 163
    :smile: Like many i count the cals burned during the exercise only...:heart:
  • greeneyed84
    greeneyed84 Posts: 427 Member
    I turn it off a obou 5-10minutes after i'm done. My HR is still up for a while.
    My question is, do you pause you HRM when you go use the restroom etc? I have 2 kids with me in the morning when I workout. I just keep it running but only count the minutes I was actually working out
  • erickirb
    erickirb Posts: 12,294 Member
    I'd just register what you burn during the workout, everything else is a bonus. If you really want to be accurate, you should subtract the amount you'd be burning during that period due to your BMR. So if it was an hour, you'd take off your daily base calories burned/24.

    Actually you should back off maintenance calories, as you would not be in a coma (BMR cals) if you did not workout. So you would take maintenance/24 to get cals burned during the day, when not working out.
  • MistyMtnMan
    MistyMtnMan Posts: 527 Member
    I let mine run a bit until my heart rate is down. I mean you're burning those calories whether you see it or not. Plus its usually only like 10-20 which isn't going to make or break your day.
  • erickirb
    erickirb Posts: 12,294 Member
    I talked to my friend today and it seems we count burned calories in a different way.
    I start it off when my workout starts, and when I've ran/done my workout/danced I turn it off and count that as my total calorie burn.
    She starts off the same, but only turns it off when her heart rate has settled down after the workout.
    There is obviously no right or wrong here, some people do it like that, other take them as "bonus calories"
    My question is how do you do it? We were just wondering what the most common way is? :)

    Thanks!

    Heart Rate is not the only thing that factor into calories burned, so I would stop it once you are finished or that time period would be grossly overestimated. Your HRM bases your calories burned based on Age, weight, height, perceived exertion (heart rate), duration of workout etc. So although your HR is up after, if you are not moving much you will only be burning way less then your HR would predict as it would assume you are still working out.
  • Macacadopai
    Macacadopai Posts: 183 Member
    I talked to my friend today and it seems we count burned calories in a different way.
    I start it off when my workout starts, and when I've ran/done my workout/danced I turn it off and count that as my total calorie burn.
    She starts off the same, but only turns it off when her heart rate has settled down after the workout.
    There is obviously no right or wrong here, some people do it like that, other take them as "bonus calories"
    My question is how do you do it? We were just wondering what the most common way is? :)

    Thanks!

    Heart Rate is not the only thing that factor into calories burned, so I would stop it once you are finished or that time period would be grossly overestimated. Your HRM bases your calories burned based on Age, weight, height, perceived exertion (heart rate), duration of workout etc. So although your HR is up after, if you are not moving much you will only be burning way less then your HR would predict as it would assume you are still working out.

    Thank you for the comment. And I've read about it so I know you are right. But my question wasn't how it works, but how YOU usually do it. :smile: Although I'm assuming it's the same as me based on you comment :smile:
  • sophieshaped
    sophieshaped Posts: 228 Member
    I always subtract the amount of cals I would have burned had I been resting – so whether that's straight away or 30 mins after, it doesn't matter.

    I wore my HRM a few times for 10 mins to calculate a rough burn per minute. Then after a session I multiply that by the amount of mins recorded on my HRM. That way however long my HRM has been recording for, I get a closer idea of 'extra' calories burnt.

    Wow I'm not sure I've explained that clearly ;o)
  • Rinny_D
    Rinny_D Posts: 80 Member
    I turn my HRM off as soon as I complete the exercise.

    In saying that I am also going to start subtracting by rest calories I would have burned anyway as it king of seems like cheating if I don't.

    Also my HRM tells me how many calories I burn per lap (so if I am running or riding a lap=1 km) it's different every km, so it's quite inaccurate to average it out, especially when the first 1/2 of my workout is uphill and the second half down hill.

    The more advanced your HRM more accurate the information it's giving you will be, so as soon as my workout is complete it get's turned off.

    Also If I have to run to the loo or grab a drink or something I generally don't pause it as it's only 30 seconds in the middle of the workout, It's really only like 30 seconds of your run/ride was slower or you stopped to grab a drink, I only pause if I'm road running and ger stuck at lights so it doesn't count that waiting time into my lap time. :)
  • TekkyGeek
    TekkyGeek Posts: 3 Member
    I turn mine on when I start working out and turn it off when I am done. i know people here are saying that you should subtract your BMR to be accurate, but then again there is a burn post workout that continues for a while after you stop exercising. That effect is additional to your BMR, and should/could be added to your workout calories if you were trying to be 100% accurate.

    The way I figure it, it all works out in the end, so I don't bother subtracting BMR from my workout.

    Also some of the more advanced HRMs have different formulas that they use to calculate calories burned. They take into account the standard age, height, weight, but then factor in VO2 Max, fitness levels, body composition, and other factors that will affect your calories expended.

    The fitter you are, generally the more calories (efficiently) you will burn than someone who is less fit but is working at the same heart rate. It is also a lot harder (as you get fitter) to get your heart rate to those higher levels than when you were less fit. All of this comes into play when trying to calculate calories.

    Hope this helps!
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