Does Endomondo really work with indoor activities

strive_to_lose
strive_to_lose Posts: 4
in Fitness and Exercise
Hi All.

My first post here at MyFitnessPal.com. I am using Endomondo to track my workouts and have linked it with my myfitnesspal account.

I generally play Badminton for a good 30 minutes in the evening after my work, with some colleagues. I noticed that I can do one of two things -
a) Finish my play and just add an entry to Endomondo. I am assuming it simply calculates some average rate of burning and tells me how many calories I have burned.
b) Or I can 'live track' and play with the cell phone on me.

So, my question really is - would Endomondo give different results in the two cases? I have not tried (b) since my clothing would not allow me to have a phone on me while playing. But if Endomondo is a super clever app and can actually determine a more accurate 'calories burned' figure based on the vigour of my movement, I would love to change my clothing a bit to have the phone on me, else I can just continue to log an entry post playing and be happy.

Any ideas? Thanks in advance.

Replies

  • Lyadeia
    Lyadeia Posts: 4,603 Member
    Unless they've changed endomondo, the calculations wouldn't be different if you carry the phone on you while you exercise. I used to while I was running and also during a Turbo Kick class when I just had the phone by my water bottle. I used a heart rate monitor with blue tooth synced to my phone with the endomondo app, so I just didn't have to carry it with me. Do you have an HRM that syncs wirelessly with the app? If you don't, I recommend getting one in that case because that will change the calculations since the HRM makes it more accurate. Otherwise, it doesn't really matter if you have your phone with you or not.
  • jeremywm1977
    jeremywm1977 Posts: 657 Member
    I use a Zephyr heart rate monitor that links to my Endomondo app, and it's my heart rate that it uses as a basis for the calorie burn calculations.......or at least that's how I think it works.
  • strive_to_lose
    strive_to_lose Posts: 4
    @Lyadeia,

    Thanks for that advice. I do not have a HRM linked with the phone. I will consider getting one in the near future but for now, I guess I will keep myself happy by adding a manual entry post workout.

    @jeremywm1977, thanks for that.
  • MeanderingMammal
    MeanderingMammal Posts: 7,866 Member
    If you're talking about always doing stuff like Badminton then an HRM won't give a meaningful figure. In essence Endomondo is as inaccurate as anything else for estimating the calorie expenditure from that type of activity.

    I wouldn't bother to wear it as the GPS isn't reliable indoors. The pool of uncertainty is about the same size as the court.
  • U2R2
    U2R2 Posts: 260 Member
    MeanderingMammal wrote: »
    If you're talking about always doing stuff like Badminton then an HRM won't give a meaningful figure. In essence Endomondo is as inaccurate as anything else for estimating the calorie expenditure from that type of activity.

    I wouldn't bother to wear it as the GPS isn't reliable indoors. The pool of uncertainty is about the same size as the court.

    I would think activities like badminton would be a shining example of when an HRM would give more accurate results than GPS based estimates of calories burned.

    In a walk, run or cycle type activity Endomondo can estimate energy expenditure based on time expired and distance traveled as recorded by the GPS chip.

    Absent the distance data due to GPS limitations in an environment such as an indoor court and relatively short distances traveled during a small court based activity an HRM monitor would provide a means to distinguish between times of high energy(akin to running) such as an extended volley and low energy(akin to walking) such as between sets or a heated out of bounds call argument :D thus rendering more accurate results.

  • MeanderingMammal
    MeanderingMammal Posts: 7,866 Member
    Undertwo wrote: »
    I would think activities like badminton would be a shining example of when an HRM would give more accurate results than GPS based estimates of calories burned.


    Anything HRM based uses heart rate as a proxy for calorie expenditure, and approximate based on the algorithms designed into the device. These algorithms are generally predicated on consistent exertion within the aerobic range. If one is transitioning throughout the range, in and out of aerobic exertion either above or below, then there are quite significant cumulative errors built up.

    An example that you'll see on here is that if HR were a true representation of calorie expenditure we'd all lose rapidly through watching a steady diet of horror films.

    Essentially calorie expenditure in any exercise is going to depend on a range of different factors. Any method of calculation is an approximation, and the main thing for weight management is to use the same method consistently, and adjust according to progress. That mitigates for a consistent level of error. Given that using an HRM is going to be no more or less inaccurate than just injecting the activity and duration, it's not worth spending the money on a toy.

    Personally I use an HRM with my Garmin, purely to judge levels of exertion and progress on various runs or rides.
  • strive_to_lose
    strive_to_lose Posts: 4
    Beyond HRM, would not the level of activity as judged by the in-built gyroscope help in making more accurate estimations?

    I am new to all this, but just thinking out loud - if I am going through a more energetic phase of badminton play, the gyroscope in the phone would register a higher level of activity while in a more cooled down phase of the game, it would register less activity. This was one of my motivations to ask the original question. If Endomondo or similar devices actually use gyroscope activity to estimate the intensity of play, it would make more sense to have the phone on you while playing the game.

    But the general theme of all the responses seems to be that Endomondo is not using such a level of sophistication. Not sure about the HRM part though.
  • Beckilovespizza
    Beckilovespizza Posts: 334 Member
    I use my Endo for tracking walking, skating and cycling outdoors, it seems accurate. I once tried to use it for treadmill work, running and walking but it did not seem to work very well. 35 mins of quite intensive interval training on the treadmill apparently burned 24 calories (on the treadmill it said 225 cals which i think was over generous). 30 mins of fast walking outdoors apparently burn 95 cals (ish) which seems more accurate. I changed the setting and it seems for me Endo doesn't work indoors.
  • MeanderingMammal
    MeanderingMammal Posts: 7,866 Member
    killerlord wrote: »
    Beyond HRM, would not the level of activity as judged by the in-built gyroscope help in making more accurate estimations?

    The purpose of these tools isn't calorie approximation, it's about tracking activities and mapping them.

    Endomondo doesn't have access to the accelerometers in the phone.

  • strive_to_lose
    strive_to_lose Posts: 4
    Thanks for that, @MeanderingMammal and @Beckilovespizza.

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