HRM whats up and down?

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Jessicaruby
Jessicaruby Posts: 881 Member
in Health and Weight Loss
for people who have a HRM did you find that your calories burned from machines and MFP were too high or too low? i just bought a bodybugg and will start using it tomorrow but was just wondering what most people found out?

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  • KateHubb
    KateHubb Posts: 366 Member
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    Generally the machines read about 100 calories higher than what my HRM does. I always go by my HRM.
  • ninerbuff
    ninerbuff Posts: 48,708 Member
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    for people who have a HRM did you find that your calories burned from machines and MFP were too high or too low? i just bought a bodybugg and will start using it tomorrow but was just wondering what most people found out?
    BB is a good tool for caloric reading. Hate the fact that you have to pay a subscription to a crappy online site though.
  • Nikki_is_Knotty
    Nikki_is_Knotty Posts: 248 Member
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    for me mfp is both up and down, depending on what activity. And the machines are def. lower than my hrm says.
  • HMonsterX
    HMonsterX Posts: 3,000 Member
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    I went for an induction at a different gym yesterday, and was doing super sets (rowing, spin, treadmill, handbike, elliptical), and was actually amazed at how accurate the heart rate and calorie counter on them was! Each machine by the end was around +-15 calories from what my actual HRM said!
  • Mkrug221
    Mkrug221 Posts: 28
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    I have an elliptical at home and I went on it for 30mins the other night. The machine said I burned 700 calories, my HRM said I burned 339. MFP seems to be pretty on most of the time for me.
  • deadstarsunburn
    deadstarsunburn Posts: 1,337 Member
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    Walking was pretty close. Running however on MFP only gave me like 160 calories for 15 minutes when I really burn more like 260. Also the machines were a lot lower.
  • annie_p
    annie_p Posts: 319 Member
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    MFP is usually quite a bit higher than what my HRM says.
  • dsak
    dsak Posts: 367 Member
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    For me, the calorie reading on my home treadmill is much HIGHER than what my HRM says. I've been tracking my calorie burn on the treadmill vs. HRM for a while, and my actual calorie burn is about 58% of what my treadmill reads.

    But.... everyone will be different. Your calorie burn will be based on height, weight, age, heart rate, etc.. If you are adjusting your weight on your HRM to coincide with your losses, etc., you'll notice that the better shape you are in and the less you weigh, your calorie burn will typically be less (doing the same activity as before). If the machines you use at home or the gym allow you to input your personal data, they may be more accurate.
  • jfinnivan
    jfinnivan Posts: 360 Member
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    Walking was pretty close. Running however on MFP only gave me like 160 calories for 15 minutes when I really burn more like 260. Also the machines were a lot lower.

    260 seems really high. How fast do you run?
    When I run on a treadmill going 6.5 - 7 mph, I burn about 100-120 calories per 10 minutes.
  • servilia
    servilia Posts: 3,452 Member
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    I took my brand new HRM to the gym last night and compared the readouts on elliptical and this treadclimber (don't know what it's actually called). I did 11.5 mins on each machine. I was shocked at the difference. The elliptical said I burned 142 cals and my HRM said 89! MFP overestimated the burn too.
  • tigersword
    tigersword Posts: 8,059 Member
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    I don't trust HRM's much. They base their entire calculation on your heart rate, which is not the sole indicator of effort, and can easily be manipulated. If you had a cup of coffee and go on a run, your heart rate is elevated and your HRM will think you are exerting yourself more than you are, and will show a higher calorie burn. It's really no more accurate than any other method of calculating calorie burn.

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