Stationary Bike, How accurate

AmbyrJayde
AmbyrJayde Posts: 257 Member
edited December 2024 in Fitness and Exercise
So, I bought an recumbent exercise bike. or some such, anyway exercise bike, how accurate are the calories burned in the exercise database?
It says light effort burns like 200 if I ride for 15 minutes
Does that sound about right? I need a heart monitor but the one that came with it is broke, I'm gonna get one but don't know how to budget my calories

Replies

  • redcat17
    redcat17 Posts: 267 Member
    Yeah, I don't know. The upright bikes at my gym show 274 per hour at light activity (I'm 5'11" and about 189 right now). I also think MFP reports calorie burn at too high of a level. A HRM would be more accurate, but without one I still think 15 minutes of light activity would not be that high.
  • AmbyrJayde
    AmbyrJayde Posts: 257 Member
    Hmm, guess that means I need an HRM, course it could also mean I'm not really burning as much walking either.
  • bethhyg
    bethhyg Posts: 209
    MFP puts 118 calories burned on very light effort for 30 mins.

    My bike says 137 calories burned.

    I go by what MFP says
  • wbgolden
    wbgolden Posts: 2,066 Member
    try taking your own heart rate at specific intervals during the ride and average them, then use the link i'm posting to compare it to what your bike says. the calculator is always within about 10 caloried (plus or minus) what my heart rate monitor calculates for calorie burn. give it a go :)

    http://www.triathlontrainingblog.com/calculators/calories-burned-calculator-based-on-average-heart-rate/

    (I use 35 as suggested as my VO2 max, since I don't know it yet)
  • Ely82010
    Ely82010 Posts: 1,998 Member
    So, I bought an recumbent exercise bike. or some such, anyway exercise bike, how accurate are the calories burned in the exercise database?
    It says light effort burns like 200 if I ride for 15 minutes
    Does that sound about right? I need a heart monitor but the one that came with it is broke, I'm gonna get one but don't know how to budget my calories

    The calories that you burn will be related not only to the effort, but to your weight too. Did you enter your weight in the bike? MFP has your profile, so I would be inclined to accept what the database gives you, until you get a HRM. The same applies to walking.
  • C00lCountry
    C00lCountry Posts: 282
    I found the harder thing is to figure out which effort you are doing.
    I found it was a little higher for me but I wasn't going at it as hard as I orginally thought.
    I ride a recumbant as well.
    I found a great investment was a heartrate monitor.
    Took all the guess work out of my workout.
  • meerkat70
    meerkat70 Posts: 4,605 Member
    Depends how fit you are. MFP overestimates cals on the static bike for me, by at least 100 cals per half hour.
  • shannoni_23
    shannoni_23 Posts: 25
    If ride an exercise bike, I hardly burn any calories. I wear a HRM watch and I can hardly get my heart rate up at all. But, my boss rides the same bike and her heart rate is pretty high. So, personally, I would burn more walking. But I guess it's different for everyone.
    I bought my watch from Walmart for like $28.88 or something. I use that, because I've used different machines with monitors, and I feel like they are all over the place.
  • Package02
    Package02 Posts: 97
    Well I just finished 60 minutes on a rucumbent bike doing light effort (allows for me to get my reading in) and the bike said 287 burned but my HRM said 187.
  • megmo_7
    megmo_7 Posts: 98 Member
    Everyone is different, according to my hrm i burn 1200 in an hour on the recumbent bike. The bike says 360 and mfp is lower than my HRM. I always go by HRM.
  • Im_NotPerfect
    Im_NotPerfect Posts: 2,181 Member
    I'm 5'9" and 200 lbs. I usually burn 318 calories for 30 minutes of moderate effort on my recumbent bike (at least that's what MFP says). The bike itself is usually closer to 285, but it doesn't have my weight programmed in. So I just go by MFP.
  • Spice_4_Life
    Spice_4_Life Posts: 225
    When I ride the bikes, walk on the treadmill, or do the cybex arc trainer. It tells me my heart rate should be at 119...It feels so slow. Is that what I should be doing??? It just doesn't feel like anything. I don't even break a sweat!! Help Please!!
  • meerkat70
    meerkat70 Posts: 4,605 Member
    When I ride the bikes, walk on the treadmill, or do the cybex arc trainer. It tells me my heart rate should be at 119...It feels so slow. Is that what I should be doing??? It just doesn't feel like anything. I don't even break a sweat!! Help Please!!

    Sorry, what tells you your heart rate should be 119?
  • C00lCountry
    C00lCountry Posts: 282
    When I ride the bikes, walk on the treadmill, or do the cybex arc trainer. It tells me my heart rate should be at 119...It feels so slow. Is that what I should be doing??? It just doesn't feel like anything. I don't even break a sweat!! Help Please!!
    That sounds more like the lower end of the scale. I not sure age or what not either. My range is 118 to 155
  • jkleon86
    jkleon86 Posts: 245 Member
    I go here and check sometimes the take an average.

    http://www.csgnetwork.com/caloriesactburned.html
  • Spice_4_Life
    Spice_4_Life Posts: 225
    When I ride the bikes, walk on the treadmill, or do the cybex arc trainer. It tells me my heart rate should be at 119...It feels so slow. Is that what I should be doing??? It just doesn't feel like anything. I don't even break a sweat!! Help Please!!

    Sorry, what tells you your heart rate should be 119?

    Whatever cardio machine I'm on. I'm 37 146...
  • joy31021
    joy31021 Posts: 216
    I think MFP figures are way high
  • ArtemisMoon
    ArtemisMoon Posts: 144
    I bought a recumbant exercise bike about a month ago and it came with a heart rate monitor and gives calories burned. I usually use a routine that starts off with mild resistance/low heart rate and ends with moderate resistance and a higher heart rate. For 30 minutes and me around 270 lbs, it says I only burn about 210-220 cals or so.

    And tbe bike does use my age, weight, and target heart rate to make the calculations. So perhaps this might help you judge.
  • meerkat70
    meerkat70 Posts: 4,605 Member
    Spice 4, I don't understand. How does it 'tell you' what your heart rate should be?

    (Yes, that's probably too low, unless you're ill, or, you know, 90... :-D)
  • coopersmom2006
    coopersmom2006 Posts: 839
    The bike I use at my gym is almost 100 calories (too high) off each time! Luckily I have a HRM but when I didn't I was totally logging my calories burned incorrectly!
  • Spice_4_Life
    Spice_4_Life Posts: 225
    I just used one of the calculators and it said between 109 and 128??? How can that be??? Seems too low. Oh well. I will just have to wait till I have extra cash for a HRM. Thanks anyway everyone.
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