Calories Burn, Am I doing it right??

Ashley91McC · December 2020

Hello, I recently got a stationary bike. The bike tracks how far, fast, calories burnt, etc. When I go to log in my burned calories in MFP, it says double calories burned then what the bike says. Which one should I be following??

I do an average of 40mins steady pace on 14-16
Bike: 140 calories burned
MFP: 250 calories burned

Weight: 172
Hight: 5'2
Age: 29

Thanks in advance!!!

AnnPT77 · December 2020

Any of these things are just calorie *estimates*, not measurements. If your bike has a power meter (also measures watts), that's a good sign. Many people think MFP exercise database calorie estimates run high (personally, I think it varies by exercise).

If it were me, and I didn't have a basis for a better estimate, I'd use the lower one, as long as it seems generally rational. Then, track your intake and exercise over at least one full menstrual cycle, so you can compare body weights at the same relative point in the cycle. (People without cycles should go 4-6 weeks.)

At that point, look at your average weekly loss (because it won't be the same amount every week). If the first week or two are wildly unusual, throw those out of consideration, and go for another couple weeks to get a reasonable total time period. Once you have enough data, adjust your calorie goal to achieve a sensible, moderate weight loss rate.

The estimates that dial in that sensible, manageable ongoing loss rate for you are "close enough". 😉

Congratulations on starting an exercise routine, and best wishes for much success!

brianpperkins131 · December 2020

140 is likely closer to reality for net calories.

Speed on an exercise bike is meaningless. Power output matters indoors. The big problem is most consumer level exercise bikes don't measure watts until a rather significant price point. 140 net calories is close to a 75 watt average output.

sijomial · December 2020

How far did the stationary bike go, which room did it end up in?
How fast did it go from where it started to where it finished?

Sorry - just being flippant but just to reinforce neither speed or distance are real on a stationary bike.
Leading on from that would show that picking outdoor bike speed ranges from the database would not be appropriate (no rolling or aero resistance, no gravity to fight against).

Unfortunately picking MFP stationary bike effort/intensity levels is also misleading and inaccurate. A certain calorie burn rate could feel intense to someone unfit or moderate to a a fit cyclist or easy to a good cyclist.

Other factors that aren't relevant are your weight (it's not a weight bearing exercise) or your height. There's powerful / high calorie burn rate cyclists who are heavy/light, short/tall and every possible combination.

Just go by your bike's estimate, it may well not be great unless it has a power meter but it's got a good chance of being proportionate. If it does measure and display watts then you can get a very accurate net calorie burn.

Ashley91McC · December 2020

Thank you all for your input!!! It really helps to understand what is going on.

westrich20940 · January 2021

I will echo what others have said so far here.....MFP calorie burn estimates are just estimates and in my experience tend to be either really high or really low --- or exactly right, depending on the activity. LOL great huh?

I always try to find multiple ways of estimating the calorie burn. For example, if I run - my running app will give me a calorie burn estimate (which is based on my height/weight/age/sex) and I wear a HRM (chest-strap) that also gives me an estimate. I sometimes then will also Google a couple sources to get an estimate of the calorie burn and end up picking something in the middle of all of that.

Now basically I use something in-between my running app estimate and my HRM estimate (cheating more toward my app estimate because it's usually about ~100 cals lower).

I figure if I don't gain/lose anything too crazy (I'm in maintenance now) it's accurate enough.

Calories Burn, Am I doing it right??

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