Need help recording weight training/strength training

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jillcwatson1
jillcwatson1 Posts: 100 Member
in Fitness and Exercise
I am a new gym member, using Cybex machines with weights and counting reps...not minutes on each one. How do I record this on MFP? I really don't care that I am given a calorie burn so that I can eat back my calories, but wanted to aim to increase over time and want to feel that this exercise is also beneficial for my overall weight loss goals. I am fine with the cardio recording but not the other half. Can ANYone tell me how they do it? Thanks.

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  • rugratz2015
    rugratz2015 Posts: 593 Member
    edited February 2017
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    When I go into the exercise section of my diary it gives me the option of recording cardio or strength- click on strength then find a matching exercise, you should be given the option of reps etc.
  • rugratz2015
    rugratz2015 Posts: 593 Member
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  • jillcwatson1
    jillcwatson1 Posts: 100 Member
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    I see that. But do you need to record each of the 10 or so machines that I may do on that day? Do you get ANY calorie burn info on the strength training exercises? I only do 2 sets of 15 reps on each machine. I may only be on the machines for 30 minutes start to finish. I spend 1/2 that time recording the ones I do on the record sheet at the gym.
  • donns
    donns Posts: 29 Member
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    I asked both my personal trainer and my nutritionist, also a personal trainer. They both use MFP for food and cardio, but not for strength training. I don't know how they train, but when I work out with my personal trainer almost nothing we do is already an exercise in MFP and I wouldn't be able to keep track of it all anyway. I would like to see a generic strength training entry, although it would be wildly inaccurate due to difference in rests between sets etc.
  • singingflutelady
    singingflutelady Posts: 8,736 Member
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    Track it as strength training under cardio
  • donns
    donns Posts: 29 Member
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    singingflutelady wrote: »
    Track it as strength training under cardio
    Wow -- that's great. I never thought of looking there.
  • rugratz2015
    rugratz2015 Posts: 593 Member
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    jillcwatson1 wrote: »
    I see that. But do you need to record each of the 10 or so machines that I may do on that day? Do you get ANY calorie burn info on the strength training exercises? I only do 2 sets of 15 reps on each machine. I may only be on the machines for 30 minutes start to finish. I spend 1/2 that time recording the ones I do on the record sheet at the gym.

    I record each machine I had work on. I can then 'copy' the exercises from the last Tom I did them, so I don't have to input everything each day, plus it helps me track and see if it's time to move up.

    It doesn't show the cals burned, but to me that's a bit of a bonus as I can't eat them back, and therefore I can't over estimate.
    singingflutelady wrote: »
    Track it as strength training under cardio

    I've tried that but it wouldn't allow me unless I upgraded to premium.
  • Hornsby
    Hornsby Posts: 10,322 Member
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    Just type in "strength training" into the cardio section.
  • CorneliusPhoton
    CorneliusPhoton Posts: 965 Member
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    And with the 'strength training' entry, you cannot record each individual machine you work on, just how many minutes you spent doing general strength training.
  • H_Ock12
    H_Ock12 Posts: 1,152 Member
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    If you're looking to see a calorie burn, track it as strength training in the cardio section. I don't find the strength training section itself to be very useful, so I track my exercises, reps, sets, weight in a notebook.
  • egcabanissiii
    egcabanissiii Posts: 3 Member
    edited February 2017
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    I keep a notebook for all workouts - sets, reps, lbs, rest periods. I note pain, fatigue, etc. VERY easy to enter look back to see progress. I've tried over a dozen lifting apps-- I have yet to find one that beats pencil and paper.

    I wear a chest strap for HR which links into MFP for exercise calories. MUCH, MUCH more accurate than MFP estimates as the HR is a true measure of your work and intensity incorporating age, height and weight.

    M HR app of choice for the last two years is Motifit. I've used with both iPhone and Android. I bought it on both platforms. The developer responds to feedback within 24 hours. I keep a running dialog with him about the app and "easy" features I like him to add. Easy for me to request - no clue on the programming side.

    I also use various HIIT timers for some endurance workouts, with Motifit tracking everything in the background.

    When my workout is complete I log the time and calories in my notebook.

    NOTE: I don't know the developer of Motifit, nor do I have any incentives, financial or otherwise, to use the app, other than it being great.
  • canadianlbs
    canadianlbs Posts: 5,199 Member
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    i made custom metrics when i was using mfp, iirc. same thing as idk, your calories or your calcium or whatever. you can get them displayed as a graph so as to track your 'progress'.

    now i just do the strength stuff with excel. it's less fiddly. or whatever programme you're doing, chances are great someone's come up with an app.

    but this is for actually tracking your 'progress' as a lifter, not as a calorie counter. as others have said, meaningful calories are hard to calculate iwth strength training, so imo it's better just not to think about them.

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