Elliptical training and calories burned

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D2244
D2244 Posts: 30 Member
in Fitness and Exercise
I used my elliptical machine for 30 minutes at about 2.3 mph at resistance 5 for a distance of about 1.10 miles. The machine said I burned 562 calories!!! Ok that seems like a lot to me and I don't think it is accurate. Does anyone know the formula to figure our the accurate calories burned based on the data above? Thanks!

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  • DanceForever904
    DanceForever904 Posts: 611 Member
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    i dont kno a formula but when i do the elliptical my HRM say about that so i should be close to accurate!!!
  • MassWineGuy
    MassWineGuy Posts: 6
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    I always assume those calorie counters are inaccurate, and each machine probably varies. I'd think a better answer could come from time spent and distance.
  • markdesilets
    markdesilets Posts: 3
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    Of course they're inaccurate.. There are way to many variables for a sensorless machine (or one with only a h/R monitor) to accurately predict. An overall calorie estimator is at http://www.healthstatus.com/cgi-bin/calc/calculator.cgi and you can use it to see if you're in the ballpark. One thing to note is that while elliptical and other cardio machine estimates are not absolutely accurate, the are relatively accurate. That is, if you do 500 calories one day and 550 the next you can bank on the 10% improvement. I use such measures as a relative indicator of my fitness level Hope this helps!
  • pantsdailyon
    pantsdailyon Posts: 173 Member
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    I used my elliptical machine for 30 minutes at about 2.3 mph at resistance 5 for a distance of about 1.10 miles. The machine said I burned 562 calories!!! Ok that seems like a lot to me and I don't think it is accurate. Does anyone know the formula to figure our the accurate calories burned based on the data above? Thanks!
    When I do 30 minutes on the elliptical at 4 mph, resistance at 8(which could be higher or lower than the 5 on your machine....who knows), distance just over 2 miles, it tells me I've burned 250-some odd calories. I plug the time into MFP, and they gave me around 420 calories burned. Whom should I trust?
  • Missdjslim
    Missdjslim Posts: 19 Member
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    I don't know the formula...but I know my friend used her elliptical for one hour every day and was fit and gorgeous for her wedding day! Keep up the good work!!
  • markdesilets
    markdesilets Posts: 3
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    When I do 30 minutes on the elliptical at 4 mph, resistance at 8(which could be higher or lower than the 5 on your machine....who knows), distance just over 2 miles, it tells me I've burned 250-some odd calories. I plug the time into MFP, and they gave me around 420 calories burned. Whom should I trust?

    30 minutes is clearly closer to 420 than 250. The exact value depends more on your weight than on resistance settings or speed. For me, the settings on the elliptical at max effort give at most a 20% variability. Of course you could loaf, but what's the point??

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