Question about heart rate monitor

nicki17
nicki17 Posts: 41 Member
edited September 19 in Health and Weight Loss
I don't know much but have heard a lot of talk about HRMs. I am trying to get an accurate account on just how many calories I need and am burning. I have heard 1200 is what I need to lose 1 lb per week. I exercise, and have read i need to add in my exercise calories but what to get an accurate account. Will the heart rate monitor tell me how many calories I am burning during exercise? Also, I have a desk job and I am worried I don't burn as much as a normal person due to my job. Will a HRM tell me how many calories I actually burn during the course of a normal day. I am not sure exactly what they tell me. If I Know for sure I can make sure I am figuring exactly right for my caloric needs for my specific height weight and lifestyle.
thanks

Replies

  • nicki17
    nicki17 Posts: 41 Member
    I don't know much but have heard a lot of talk about HRMs. I am trying to get an accurate account on just how many calories I need and am burning. I have heard 1200 is what I need to lose 1 lb per week. I exercise, and have read i need to add in my exercise calories but what to get an accurate account. Will the heart rate monitor tell me how many calories I am burning during exercise? Also, I have a desk job and I am worried I don't burn as much as a normal person due to my job. Will a HRM tell me how many calories I actually burn during the course of a normal day. I am not sure exactly what they tell me. If I Know for sure I can make sure I am figuring exactly right for my caloric needs for my specific height weight and lifestyle.
    thanks
  • JDHINAZ
    JDHINAZ Posts: 641 Member
    Some HRM will tell you how many calories you burn during your exercise period. Unless you wear it all day, it won't tell you how many calories you've burned throughout the rest of the day. I just got my Polar F6 this weekend and LOOOOOOVE IT!!! To determine how much you should be eating, on the goals section here, you probably want to select Sedentary as your activity level. You can easily find other websites that will tell you how much you can eat and lose weight. They may vary some, and in any case, you'll need to find what works for you. Just don't eat too little. You're body needs fuel to burn fuel. While I don't eat all the extra calories award to me from my exercise, it's nice to know they're there if I need them.

    Search on heart rate monitors or HRM in the message boards and you'll find lots of discussions about them.
  • Mom_To_5
    Mom_To_5 Posts: 646 Member
    I have a HRM(Polar F6) and it tells me whati have burned when on my treadmill and it is way different than the actual treadmill. Also you need to burn 3500 calories to loose 1 lb not 1200 calories and like the previous poster said, set your activity levell to sedentry since you have a desk job.
  • singfree
    singfree Posts: 1,591 Member
    Unless you wear a HRM with chest strap, it is only a guess as to how many cals you are burning. I have a Reebok Precision XT HRM ($30, no tax, free shipping), which has all the bells & whistles of the high priced units. It far exceeds my expectations. The HRM will tell you how many cals you are burning, average HR, % of max HR, grams of fat burned, plus many other functions.

    The bottom line is: you need to know your BMR (basal metabolic rate), which is how many cals you burn just existing (breathing, digestion, energy to sustain life). Factor in your lifestyle (desk job, firefighter, etc..), Then you count in your exercise cals burned.

    For example, since you are sedentary, you might burn 1400 cals per day without exercise. If you exercise hard and burn 500 cals per day, your caloric requirement for that day would be 1900 cals. There are approx 3500 cals per lb of fat. Decrease your food intake by 500 cals per day (1400 cals). This is what you should be eating per day to lose 1 lb per week, assuming you exercise daily. Adjust your food intake according to how much you exercise.

    Sorry about the long post. Losing weight is a delicate balancing act of exercise, food intake, and ratios of carb/ protein/ fat.. The more experience you have dealing with it the easier it becomes. Best of luck!

    Note: I'm not a nutritionist or trainer, but I did stay at a Holiday Inn Express!
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