You burnt how many calories?!

This is why I don't eat back all the cals it says I burned. I don't fully trust the estimate from here. One day I will get a HRM but until then it is just a "guess." I log stuff on here to keep track of what I am doing more then anything.

Me too. MFP exercises seem to be exaggerated. Not as much as some other sites I've been to (sparkpeople calculated that my 45 min Zumba class burned 535 cals; so i went about 100 under to be safe) but still if you're trying to eat to the right calorie count it can be confusing. I also wish MFP would expand their exercise list to include more activities. Zumba wasn't on there for example, and I felt the "dance" category just wasn't' quite the right fit.

Lol @ invisible from cleaning.. ME TOO

I don't think anything is ever 100% accurate, but I bought a Polar HRM and it's my best friend!!! I love watching that calorie burn get higher and higher

Excellent topic !

I have a related question:

Do you agree that since many here routinely "eat" their exercise calories, they should only "eat" the excess calories they burn, not the total calories burned?

For example: If I burn 100 calories per hour, just by sitting down, then if I exercise for an hour and the HRM registers 300 calories burned, that means I only burned 200 calories more than regular.
So I should only be allowed to "eat " 200 more calories, not the 300

Opinions?

don't over think things. this is weight loss, not rocket surgery. no need to be so precise.

I have a Polar FT7, I don't wear it all day, just while I'm working out. But I wear it during any type, not just cardio. I wore it for yoga tonight and even wear it when lifting weights.

Excellent topic !

I have a related question:

Do you agree that since many here routinely "eat" their exercise calories, they should only "eat" the excess calories they burn, not the total calories burned?

For example: If I burn 100 calories per hour, just by sitting down, then if I exercise for an hour and the HRM registers 300 calories burned, that means I only burned 200 calories more than regular.
So I should only be allowed to "eat " 200 more calories, not the 300

Opinions?

don't over think things. this is weight loss, not rocket surgery. no need to be so precise.

Agree!!! When you get too technical, you'll burn yourself out.

So grege, I just went to that site and put in calisthenics, vigerous and came back with about 700 as opposed to my HRM which said 825... so that is pretty close considering...

Also, there was no entry for insanity and if you have ever done the workout, you would know it is a little... umm... INSANE so thanks for the site... it is pretty accurate, and will come in hand for those times I am out and about and do not have my HRM...

I agree.... I really don't think I burnt a whole day's worth of calories during a cardio class.... but I think the MFP's calculator is very approximate. I log all my exercises, because I'm really trying hard to use the MFP log as a very critical food/exercise diary.... so I log my exercise as accurately as possible.

I also don't like how it logs various exercises into one thing, so it could look like you did 2 hours of calisthenics... when the 2 hours was actualy a combination of several things. I REALLY take my exercise calorie calculator with a grain of salt, because I don't eat the calories I burn... so I don't focus on it too much. But it is annoying when people are like "OMG you burnt WHAT?!" , lol... so after it's posted, I usually comment on it immediately to explain what I actually did....

interesting!
I will check out that calculator and article.
I had also read somewhere a while ago that the number of calories you burn on a elliptical, you should divide it by 2 and that will give you the exact amount of calories you burnt during the work out compared to a treadmill that burns just about the amount it tells you on the machine.

I just got home from the gym. Just used my new HRM. i did 50 minutes on the elliptical. Machine said i did 560, the HRM says 332.... maybe this divide by two is true for the elliptical.

I've never read this before, and I hope to the gods it's not true because in 20 minutes of be busting my *kitten* on the elliptical I only burn 100 calories according to the machine... Which is already just half of what MFP says I do. I'd hate to think that I'm only burning 50 calories in 20 minutes.

I wear my HRM all day (if I put it down somewhere I can guarantee one of my kids or DH would lose it) and I only track my actual work outs. I have found with some things MFP is only a few calories different to my HRM and others 100+ cal difference.
I log what my HRM says.

Excellent topic !

I have a related question:

Do you agree that since many here routinely "eat" their exercise calories, they should only "eat" the excess calories they burn, not the total calories burned?

For example: If I burn 100 calories per hour, just by sitting down, then if I exercise for an hour and the HRM registers 300 calories burned, that means I only burned 200 calories more than regular.
So I should only be allowed to "eat " 200 more calories, not the 300

Opinions?

don't over think things. this is weight loss, not rocket surgery. no need to be so precise.

Agree!!! When you get too technical, you'll burn yourself out.

He is really correct. I was told this when I first started on here by one of the 'thread monitors'. I really don't use all of my calories from exercise, but stay within 1300-1600 calories. I figure as long as I'm eating healthy, and getting exercise, no matter what it may be, that's what's important.

I use the machine calculated figure which I understand might be a little enthusiastic. That being said though I tend to overestimate calories and don't log extra activities during the day which wouldn't fall under my sedentary BMR setting. I do workout hard and push myself big time so I think personally it all works out in the end. I like the sound of these polar HRM's though, it's going on my wishlist

What brand of HRM do people think are best?

. I see where some folks report 700 cals burned for 60 min of cleaning.

I need to get those people to clean at my house!

Someone on my feed listed cooking as an activity and exerted in the neighborhood of 200 calories for doing itfor 90 minutes. Really? Be serious.

Try cooking for large groups for 90 minutes and see if you bust out a sweat. It's hard work. You're constantly moving and hauling things around. I've done it a few times, and after 5-6 hours of being on your feet prepping food, trust me, it's exhausting.

. I see where some folks report 700 cals burned for 60 min of cleaning.

I need to get those people to clean at my house!

Someone on my feed listed cooking as an activity and exerted in the neighborhood of 200 calories for doing itfor 90 minutes. Really? Be serious.

Try cooking for large groups for 90 minutes and see if you bust out a sweat. It's hard work. You're constantly moving and hauling things around. I've done it a few times, and after 5-6 hours of being on your feet prepping food, trust me, it's exhausting.

That is true. We have a party at our house every Dec and this year there were about 50 adults and about 20 kids. Yeah I was sweating and heart racing when I was down to the wire of spending the whole day cleaning and cooking and preping food.