Timex HRM accurate calories burned?

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lethwin
lethwin Posts: 18 Member
in Health and Weight Loss
Was wondering if any fellow HRM wearers out there could help me out.

I just bought a Timex T5g981 hrm since I've heard the calories burned that the ellipticals show you are not that accurate. I put my weight into the watch config and did a few sessions. So far every time, my HRM shows more calories burned than the machines show. I was expecting the opposite. Today, I input my weight(214) into the elliptical and I noticed the machine was also picking up the signal from my chest strap(thought that was pretty cool lol). Anyway, after 30 minutes the machine showed 500 calories burned but the watch showed 740 calories. Do you think my watch is more accurate or did I just blow $50 dollars on an inaccurate HRM?

Replies

  • CHANGES4ME
    CHANGES4ME Posts: 132 Member
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    hey let how is your wkend goin? i am also a member of sparkspeople.com, & all a lot of the people there i talk from around the world told me bout omron.com. i have 4 perdometers, they 2 r not very accurate. so i got me an omron. 24.95, came off line through wal-mart, & like they told me; i put it on 1st thing in the am, track everything b 4 i go 2 bed....but your timex is prouble better, cuz it goes by your heart beart, & pulse......
  • usmcwifemom
    usmcwifemom Posts: 8
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    I recently got a Timex HRM and the calories burned seem incredibly high...haven't quite figured out why yet...
  • jbqueen
    jbqueen Posts: 89 Member
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    I had a Timex, then found a great deal on a Polar FT4 ($42!). I found that the Timex was at least 100 calories over what the Polar showed, so I'm sticking with that.
  • RUNMLT
    RUNMLT Posts: 15 Member
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    yeah....i did a Bootcamp class today, my TIMEX said i burned 1,074 calories...previous research told me that a 60 minute bootcamp class burns around 700 to 850 calories....
  • cmstrauch
    cmstrauch Posts: 4
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    I Agree! I use a precor efx at the gym..keep my hands on the HRM at all times..I enter my sex, age and weight. Then on the timex, it just knows my weight and HR. The elliptical reports 650 cals and the timex 800. i bought this thing so I could know how my cross fit workouts are affecting my calories burned. So now I guess I am returning it or I have to remember to subtract about 25% from what the times says. :o(
  • tangal88
    tangal88 Posts: 689
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    I had a Timex, not sure Model Number, but was recommended highly on Amazon. About $60.

    Calorie burn seemed very high to me, as I am a 5'2" women, pretty fit, and know roughly what I "should" burn on average doing certain things. My model did not allow me to enter Gender, which is not a good thing. Men and women burn cals differently.

    I replaced it with the Polar 7 - and found the Timex was pretty much overestimating all cal burns, on all exercises, about 200 cal more per hour then the Polar. (polar allows you to enter gender)

    The polar shows much closer to what should be expected for my size, and gender.

    I lost weight, and inches with both models. So ether can work for you.

    Just keep in mind, if you feel your unit is burning higher then normally expected, based on what you should be burning - then use caution not to eat all your exercise calories, added from your workouts.

    HRMs are really only one more tool in the total health package. So use them as that, knowing that they have faults and limits - but can still be a terrific tool.

    Also, to add, in my case, my treadclimber shows a higher cal burn then my Polar HMR as well. However it does come with a chest strap (that looks identical to the Timex one), which I do not wear, so that would effect accuracy, since the LCD console is only "guessing" without the strap in place.

    I use the Polar HMR, with its strap, for best accuracy.
  • JennedyJLD
    JennedyJLD Posts: 123 Member
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    I use a $60 Timex Midsize Road Trainer as well, and have had the same concern. I'd seen many people here complaining that MFP over-estimates calories burned during workouts, and thought I'd try a monitor for a more accurate count. I was surprised to see the HRM giving me credit for, in some cases, more than twice the number of calories that MFP was estimating. I use the HRM exclusively for jogging/running, which makes up more than 90 percent of my workouts. Perhaps MFP is more accurate on that than on other exercises. For example, I would think it's impossible to estimate something like aerobics or swimming since you really don't know the intensity at which two different people are doing the same exercise, and one size will therefore not fit all. With running, MFP knows your weight and age as well as the speed you're running, so perhaps it's more accurate.

    At any rate, my experience is that Timex over-estimates, if anything. I can't afford to go get a Polar just to double check the one I already have, so I tend to go with MFP's lower estimates. I figure it won't hurt if I'm actually burning more than I record.
  • Byrdsong1920
    Byrdsong1920 Posts: 336 Member
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    I found this post on google.com , I was wondering the same thing. I have the Timex WR30m. I feel it does show higher calories. Sometimes it matches the cardio machines such as elliptical and treadmill, but on other things its off. I bought it because I was doing a 2 hour salsa class and was really getting my HR up and was curious. Online it said about 10 calories/minute for moderate salsa (assuming you are moving the entire 2 hours,which isnt realistic). I was showing on my HRM that I burned 1400 sometimes. I agree w/perhaps subtracting about 20% from what it shows.... Its hard to tell.

    My friend has Polar and his calorie burn readings are much less than mine on the same equipment; but have to compare apples to apples (women vs.women). Truly, God only knows at the end of the day!

    I do like my watch, helps me stay in my fat burn zone ....just have to start tweeking the calories burned. Good luck!
  • KeepOnMoving
    KeepOnMoving Posts: 383 Member
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    BUMP
  • Phestr
    Phestr Posts: 37
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    I have a Timex, and here;s how I calibrated it:

    1. Find a reliable calories burned calculation online (i misplaced my link, but there are several out there). Now, after your workout, plug in your age, weight, and average heart rate into the calculation, and check the difference between it and what your watch says (the watch will provide an accurate average heart rate).
    2. Now, adjust your weight in the Timex downward, if you are getting an inflated calorie burn. I went by 5lbs.
    3. Go work out again and do step 1 and 2 again.

    After a few workouts, your calories burned in the watch will get very close to your math calculations. Why does this work? Because the watch is doing the same thing you are doing with the calculation, but using a different equation. Just remember to keep adjusting the weight in your watch as you actually lose weight.

    End result - I weight 170, but my watch thinks I weigh 150. Is it accurate? Well...as close as a math equation can be. But if you already spent the money, you may as well get the use out of it.
  • caddygarcia123
    caddygarcia123 Posts: 122 Member
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    I have a Timex, and here;s how I calibrated it:

    1. Find a reliable calories burned calculation online (i misplaced my link, but there are several out there). Now, after your workout, plug in your age, weight, and average heart rate into the calculation, and check the difference between it and what your watch says (the watch will provide an accurate average heart rate).
    2. Now, adjust your weight in the Timex downward, if you are getting an inflated calorie burn. I went by 5lbs.
    3. Go work out again and do step 1 and 2 again.

    After a few workouts, your calories burned in the watch will get very close to your math calculations. Why does this work? Because the watch is doing the same thing you are doing with the calculation, but using a different equation. Just remember to keep adjusting the weight in your watch as you actually lose weight.

    End result - I weight 170, but my watch thinks I weigh 150. Is it accurate? Well...as close as a math equation can be. But if you already spent the money, you may as well get the use out of it.

    THANK YOU!! Great tip and much appreciated! I have a Timex as well and have the same exact problem but this sounds most def going to try this.
  • alliesmom20
    alliesmom20 Posts: 11 Member
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    Has anyone heard of the Mio HRM? I was wondering if there is a better brand HRM that people have tried?
  • dad106
    dad106 Posts: 4,868 Member
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    Has anyone heard of the Mio HRM? I was wondering if there is a better brand HRM that people have tried?

    Best brand out there for HRM's are Polar.

    Timex in my opinion is absolute crap... May be great for monitoring heart rate, but calories burned it is always going to be off at estimating because they don't take all info needed and their formulas for figuring out calories burned are a bit flawed.

    To OP:
    Yes you just wasted 50 dollars. Return it if you can, and get a Polar. For that same price you can get an FT4 off amazon and it will be a lot more accurate at estimating.
  • niota56
    niota56 Posts: 5 Member
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    I use a Polar HRM, so can't comment on anything Timex specific. However, I've made a few adjustments to how I use my HRM to try to reduce an overestimation of calories - I typically set my HRM for about 5 pounds lower than where I'm actually at. If I lose pounds and get closer to the weight in my HRM, I reset it back another 5 pounds. I also tend to round down my final calories burned before entering into MFP - usually round down to the closest 50 calorie increment (i..e if says burned 385, I enter 350). If it's a major calorie burn (i.e. after long runs, etc)., I may take off 100 calories. I know this isn't as accurate as if I did some of the calculations posted here on the forums, BUT i'm okay with not being 100% accurate as long as I have an idea of what I'm burning through exercise.
  • Byrdsong1920
    Byrdsong1920 Posts: 336 Member
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    I have a Timex, and here;s how I calibrated it:

    1. Find a reliable calories burned calculation online (i misplaced my link, but there are several out there). Now, after your workout, plug in your age, weight, and average heart rate into the calculation, and check the difference between it and what your watch says (the watch will provide an accurate average heart rate).
    2. Now, adjust your weight in the Timex downward, if you are getting an inflated calorie burn. I went by 5lbs.
    3. Go work out again and do step 1 and 2 again.

    After a few workouts, your calories burned in the watch will get very close to your math calculations. Why does this work? Because the watch is doing the same thing you are doing with the calculation, but using a different equation. Just remember to keep adjusting the weight in your watch as you actually lose weight.

    End result - I weight 170, but my watch thinks I weigh 150. Is it accurate? Well...as close as a math equation can be. But if you already spent the money, you may as well get the use out of it.

    GREAT TIP!!! I HAVE A TIMEX NOW!! WILL DO SOME RESEARCH!! THANKS!!
  • AlecElaine
    AlecElaine Posts: 1
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    how do you reset your weight? when I use the "Set" button on my Timex the only thing I can change is the time and date

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