Calories burned when cycling

yirara
yirara Posts: 9,943 Member
in Fitness and Exercise
I don't have the means to measure the energy I created when cycling. Is there a way to estimate how many NET calories are burned when cycling 104km leisurely in 5 hours, flat terrain? Female, 44yrs, 62kg, 169cm.

I found this calculator: https://keisan.casio.com/exec/system/1350958587
which gives me 2,272kcal (gross I suppose), which sounds very exaggerated.

My fitbit gives me 2809kcal for the day until now (20:45). It usually gives me around 1700 on sedentary days.

I'm trying to find out whether to eat a lot more candy or not, but don't even know where to start calorie-wise :D
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Replies

  • deannalfisher
    deannalfisher Posts: 5,600 Member
    I normally burn 12-1400 for a 56mile ride - at 74kg
  • yirara
    yirara Posts: 9,943 Member
    I think the calorie burn for cycling depends a lot on effort, compared to walking or running, right?
  • ajwcyclist2016
    ajwcyclist2016 Posts: 161 Member
    During the ride did you fuel yourself and after having your normal amount of food do you still hungry. If still feeling hungry just have a little more good food not empty calories
  • yirara
    yirara Posts: 9,943 Member
    Well, I'm not hungry. I just have a lot of Christmas candy laying about :D And a zeeuwse bolus - trust me on that one: it's heaven!
  • spiriteagle99
    spiriteagle99 Posts: 3,744 Member
    I would think that 104 kms is worth a few extra pieces of candy. I read once that biking is about 5:1 compared to walking, so that would be the equivalent of a 20 km walk, which is enough to allow some indulgences.
  • sijomial
    sijomial Posts: 19,809 Member
    yirara wrote: »
    I think the calorie burn for cycling depends a lot on effort, compared to walking or running, right?

    Not really - effort is subjective.

    Calories burned depends on the power you produce primarily - that power has to overcome your rolling resistance and your aero drag (speed has a huge impact on that). Variables include bike and rider combined weight, type of bike, terrain, tyres, clothing, cycling solo or in a group, elevation....

    But it all comes down to power. Problem is that power meters are expensive and you in particular would be better spending your money elsewhere (better/faster bike).

    Suggest you use Strava (available as a free app on your phone) which attempts to estimate the power you are producing, it's also a great way to track progress and relative performance.
    It actually estimates gross calories but as you are using a flat bar road bike rather than a road bike it may well be that its estimates are pretty close to your net, if not an underestimate.

  • yirara
    yirara Posts: 9,943 Member
    Thanks. I don't have the cash for a road bike, nor the space to store it. It would probably be a wee bit lighter and would allow for a more wind-protected sitting position, but that's about it I guess.

    I tried to use ismoothrun today, but as my phone doesn't last me long enough just on battery it won't last me long enough with Stave either, and certainly not with bluetooth enabled :/ Anyway, new phone cable is on my shopping list and I still have a spare one that I picked up from work.
  • aokoye
    aokoye Posts: 3,495 Member
    yirara wrote: »
    Thanks. I don't have the cash for a road bike, nor the space to store it. It would probably be a wee bit lighter and would allow for a more wind-protected sitting position, but that's about it I guess.

    I tried to use ismoothrun today, but as my phone doesn't last me long enough just on battery it won't last me long enough with Stave either, and certainly not with bluetooth enabled :/ Anyway, new phone cable is on my shopping list and I still have a spare one that I picked up from work.

    Interesting that strava won't run. A road bike would probably be a lot lighter but failing that, I would put slick tires (so non-knobby tires) on your wheels. That'll help with the rolling resistance quite a lot.
  • yirara
    yirara Posts: 9,943 Member
    edited December 2018
    aokoye wrote: »
    yirara wrote: »
    Thanks. I don't have the cash for a road bike, nor the space to store it. It would probably be a wee bit lighter and would allow for a more wind-protected sitting position, but that's about it I guess.

    I tried to use ismoothrun today, but as my phone doesn't last me long enough just on battery it won't last me long enough with Stave either, and certainly not with bluetooth enabled :/ Anyway, new phone cable is on my shopping list and I still have a spare one that I picked up from work.

    Interesting that strava won't run. A road bike would probably be a lot lighter but failing that, I would put slick tires (so non-knobby tires) on your wheels. That'll help with the rolling resistance quite a lot.

    Yeah, my bike is 9.6kg I think. I could make it a bit lighter still by removing fenders and the luggage rack, but then I'd get messy office pants and could not transport my groceries anymore :D . I don't have slicks because there's a lot of lumps and bumps on the road, tree roots, cobblestones and lots of other things. But worth thinking about. Can you cycle with slicks on such terrain? Other than that I have very thin tires already. They might be due an exchange though.

    Well, Strava would probably run, but I could not linked it to an HR sensor to start with as my phone battery would be empty in no time. I think HR measurements are premium only anyway, right?

    Don't forget guys, I've just moved internationally, after several months of earning no money at all (and no benefits) and 2 years on £1200. I don't have money just laying about at the moment.
  • aokoye
    aokoye Posts: 3,495 Member
    Yes, you can. I mean think about the cobbled sections of the Tour of Flanders - though you're probably not dealing with those extremes. What size wheels do you have?

    You don't need Strava Summit to record heart rate (I just tried) but you do need it to look at any of the analysis, which I'm not convinced will be useful for you. Even without connecting an HR monitor, Strava would probably give you better calorie estimates than what you're getting now.
  • yirara
    yirara Posts: 9,943 Member
    Size wheels: thickness no idea. diameter: just normal adult ones.. 28"?
    Thanks mate. I'll look into this. I'll have o give my bike a proper shop maintenance in the new year anyway and will discuss if there are other things I could change. Grips at the bar ends might be a good idea as I had my hands there quite a lot.
  • Machka9
    Machka9 Posts: 25,616 Member
    I estimate at 100 calories for every 5 km. So if you did 104 km that's about 2000 calories.
  • Machka9
    Machka9 Posts: 25,616 Member
    yirara wrote: »
    aokoye wrote: »
    yirara wrote: »
    Thanks. I don't have the cash for a road bike, nor the space to store it. It would probably be a wee bit lighter and would allow for a more wind-protected sitting position, but that's about it I guess.

    I tried to use ismoothrun today, but as my phone doesn't last me long enough just on battery it won't last me long enough with Stave either, and certainly not with bluetooth enabled :/ Anyway, new phone cable is on my shopping list and I still have a spare one that I picked up from work.

    Interesting that strava won't run. A road bike would probably be a lot lighter but failing that, I would put slick tires (so non-knobby tires) on your wheels. That'll help with the rolling resistance quite a lot.

    Yeah, my bike is 9.6kg I think. I could make it a bit lighter still by removing fenders and the luggage rack, but then I'd get messy office pants and could not transport my groceries anymore :D . I don't have slicks because there's a lot of lumps and bumps on the road, tree roots, cobblestones and lots of other things. But worth thinking about. Can you cycle with slicks on such terrain? Other than that I have very thin tires already. They might be due an exchange though.

    Well, Strava would probably run, but I could not linked it to an HR sensor to start with as my phone battery would be empty in no time. I think HR measurements are premium only anyway, right?

    Don't forget guys, I've just moved internationally, after several months of earning no money at all (and no benefits) and 2 years on £1200. I don't have money just laying about at the moment.

    HR measurements aren't premium ... and you can get a backup battery. On a 300K I'll usually carry 2 backup batteries just in case. Also close other programs, and dim the screen.
  • sijomial
    sijomial Posts: 19,809 Member
    You can plug in an inexpensive external battery pack. I've used them on all day events to keep phone and lights topped up.

    Strava estimates would probably be better than HR estimates anyway although knowing your HR can be a useful training aid for endurance cycling.
  • NorthCascades
    NorthCascades Posts: 10,968 Member
    If you can record your ride through some other means (borrow an old Garmin) you can upload the data and they'll still do their math on it.
  • yirara
    yirara Posts: 9,943 Member
    spiriteagle99 wrote: »
    I would think that 104 kms is worth a few extra pieces of candy. I read once that biking is about 5:1 compared to walking, so that would be the equivalent of a 20 km walk, which is enough to allow some indulgences.

    So that would be about 450-500kcal for me. Hmm.. Maybe. I'd think (just a guess) maybe a bit more as walking is what we do naturally. Walking is easy and I don't have a problem walking 20km on flat terrain, while cycling takes just a bit more effort. I guess the truth is somewhere out there :D
  • TavistockToad
    TavistockToad Posts: 35,719 Member
    If you trust your fitbit the rest of the time, why don't you trust it for this?
  • yirara
    yirara Posts: 9,943 Member
    TavistockToad wrote: »
    If you trust your fitbit the rest of the time, why don't you trust it for this?

    Because I never trust it :smiley: I'm a very high maxHR person and fitbit can't deal with that. For 10km runs it gives me nearly twice as much calories as 0.67*lbs*miles. It's quite spot on for very sedentary days (1700kcal while it's more like 1800) but everything involving movement is grossly overstated.
  • scorpio516
    scorpio516 Posts: 955 Member
    yirara wrote: »
    Yeah, my bike is 9.6kg I think. I could make it a bit lighter still by removing fenders and the luggage rack, but then I'd get messy office pants and could not transport my groceries anymore :D . I don't have slicks because there's a lot of lumps and bumps on the road, tree roots, cobblestones and lots of other things. But worth thinking about. Can you cycle with slicks on such terrain? Other than that I have very thin tires already. They might be due an exchange though.

    9.6 isn't that heavy. My AL road bike is around that.
    I ride 700c X 25 all day. It doesn't take bumps well but I don't have any issues with traction.

    Last big ride I did burned 1000KCal over 30 miles (50km)
  • yirara
    yirara Posts: 9,943 Member
    scorpio516 wrote: »
    yirara wrote: »
    Yeah, my bike is 9.6kg I think. I could make it a bit lighter still by removing fenders and the luggage rack, but then I'd get messy office pants and could not transport my groceries anymore :D . I don't have slicks because there's a lot of lumps and bumps on the road, tree roots, cobblestones and lots of other things. But worth thinking about. Can you cycle with slicks on such terrain? Other than that I have very thin tires already. They might be due an exchange though.

    9.6 isn't that heavy. My AL road bike is around that.
    I ride 700c X 25 all day. It doesn't take bumps well but I don't have any issues with traction.

    Last big ride I did burned 1000KCal over 30 miles (50km)

    My bike isn't bad :smile: I chose it because it is light-weight but I can use it for offroading, cycling through snow if necessary, be very agile in traffic (basically driving in town like an idiot :#o:) ) and do groceries. It's also rather long relative to the frame size (female 48 I think. Could not get a male bike in that size :( )compared to most other bikes of this type, thus my sitting position is rather sporty. The only things that differ from a race bike if I were to remove the rack and fenders is the shape of the bar, and that it's got a 8x3 Deore gear system (no hidden lower-end components) instead of the racing bike equivalent. I've only used it for less than two years I think, and then I stored it when I lived in the Middle East and the UK as it was too dangerous to use first, then I didn't want to carry it down two flights of stairs and through 4 self-closing firedoors every day just to get out, and carry it up to my office three flights of stairs and even more firedoors as bike thieves even went for really expensive locks. :'(
  • karenvandam
    karenvandam Posts: 23 Member
    What is a zeeuwse bolus? It sounds like Dutch language, but I have no idea what this is. Your biking sounds rather Dutch as well - I think the Dutch are the only ones who grocery shop by bike!
  • yirara
    yirara Posts: 9,943 Member
    karenvandam wrote: »
    What is a zeeuwse bolus? It sounds like Dutch language, but I have no idea what this is. Your biking sounds rather Dutch as well - I think the Dutch are the only ones who grocery shop by bike!

    https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Zeeuwse_bolus
    It's a regional delicacy, and I'm so happy I found it in a different region.

    Nah, the Dutch are not the only ones to bike or walk for groceries. I'd think most Western European bigger cities have no parking places near shops, or only very expensive ones. Most people living in cities don't go shopping by car. And why should you if the shops are literally just around the corner to 500m away? And for the same reason why should you have a car if you can't even park it near your home, especially if you work in the same place? I had no car when living in Denmark either. Would have preferred to cycle in the UK, but with no secure bike parking, crazy amount of bike theft and too many stairs and firedoors it was just not practical.
  • makkimakki2018
    makkimakki2018 Posts: 414 Member
    A garmin helps loads
  • yirara
    yirara Posts: 9,943 Member
    makkimakki2018 wrote: »
    A garmin helps loads

    What a garmin? A fitness tracker? If my fitbit can't deal with a high maxHR despite it having settings for it, then I doubt a Garmin with even more limited settings for individual HR can do better. And you might have missed it: I just spent a shitload of money in an international move after getting less in that UK benefits level for more than 2.5 years, including nothing at all for 6 months. I don't really have money to buy more tech.
  • sijomial
    sijomial Posts: 19,809 Member
    Garmin is the market leader in cycle computers, their cycle specific models are a lot more than fitness trackers.
    Your doubts are based on ignorance of the product range.
    Yes you can't afford one but the advice from one cyclist to another is good advice.

    Maybe borrow one?
    I borrowed one before I bought my own and I've also loaned mine out. Maybe a local cycling club could help?

    Cyclists are a helpful and supportive bunch if you let them help, something you seem to struggle with TBH.
  • yirara
    yirara Posts: 9,943 Member
    Ok, accepted! I only know their handheld GPS and looked at their fitness trackers before.

    To be honest, at the moment I know no-one here. Hey I only came over 2 months ago and spent most time moving into my flat, making it half cozy and getting into my work. I'll certainly look into this once everything has calmed down a bit <3
  • makkimakki2018
    makkimakki2018 Posts: 414 Member
    what sijomial said. the pro peloton use them they are pretty darn accurate.
  • aokoye
    aokoye Posts: 3,495 Member
    yirara wrote: »
    Ok, accepted! I only know their handheld GPS and looked at their fitness trackers before.

    To be honest, at the moment I know no-one here. Hey I only came over 2 months ago and spent most time moving into my flat, making it half cozy and getting into my work. I'll certainly look into this once everything has calmed down a bit <3

    See if you can get one used on craigslist of the like.
  • mjbnj0001
    mjbnj0001 Posts: 1,268 Member
    karenvandam wrote: »
    ... I think the Dutch are the only ones who grocery shop by bike!

    I tried to persuade my wife to get me a Burley Travoy trailer for Christmas to go grocery shopping/etc. (I'm in NJ USA). She's now convinced I've gone completely over to the Dark Side of the Force, LOL. I got a little cred, though, when up in Ottawa for Christmas with our daughter's family, we went to the Farmer's Market in the Lansdowne Pavilion. There was a guy with a Travoy, and I had a great (short) discussion with him about it. So she was able to see that it is a "thing" after all. Maybe there's hope for one yet ...


  • BrianSharpe
    BrianSharpe Posts: 9,248 Member
    It's hard to tell with any certainty unless you're using a power meter (bikes are incredibly efficient macines) but if it's any help, my power meter estimated about 17 cal/km on my bike commutes which are on reasonably flat terrain averaging 25 km/h. So it would not be unreasonable to assume that you're burning 1,300 to 1,500 cal riding that distace at 20 km/h.

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