bsharrah Member

I only recently started reading about these but have some concerns. What I read suggests it is nothing more than a glorified pedometer. It tracks your steps, and calculates calories burned based on the data. Here are my concerns: 1. By using your steps, it is going to provide a very generalized calorie burn…

If you are looking to lose weight, diet is everything. What you eat and how much of it will make all the difference. Regarding exercise, my opinion is you need more cardio, and not just a brisk walk. Plenty of DVD programs out there, or consider running. If you are not use to running, look into the Couch to 5k program.

Then you are using your hrm incorrectly and not getting an accurate picture. They will not accurately calculate calories when used this way.

IMO, yes and no. It is physical activity so in that sense, yes, you are exercising. Is it something I would log as exercise, no. If you are calculating your TDEE properly, daily activities such as housework, yard work, gardening, what you do on your job, are all taken into account. If you try to deduct these activities…

No. The reading it gives will be worthless.

THANK YOU!!!! Somebody else gets it. I can't believe the number of people who use hrm's, yet have no idea how they work, and what their limitations are. You can't just wear these things throughout the day, doing chores, at work, lifting weights, or walking in the park, and get an accurate reading. If you are one of these…

No one is suggesting that people should deny themselves of the pleasures in life. I loved weekly pizza, burgers & fries, and my daily mountain dew. They were my pleasures in life. One day I just made the commitment to go 6 weeks without these things, count calories, watch closely what I ate, exercise daily, and see what…

I hear the phrase "its ok in moderation" thrown out a lot. I agree with the statement but the problem I see is what people consider "in moderation" will differ depending on their perspective. For me, pizza in moderation means 1-2 slices (depending on the pizza and what is on it) about once in a month while others may think…

At this point you are obligated to pay anyway.

A hrm will not help to determine calorie burn while at work. They aren't designed for that. Can't comment on the fitbit though. Don't know that much about them.

Thanks for the input. I guess what I am wondering is if it is worthwhile, for weight loss, to ride for more than a couple hours if I am going to need to eat something if I want to go past that point, or just limit the rides to about 2 hours instead.

When I first started my weight loss, I did the slim fast diet for 6 weeks and lost 15 pounds BUT it was not the slim fast products that did it. It was just what everyone on this site preaches about, eating a calorie deficit. The slim fast stuff just took a lot of the effort out of it (no need to look at labels except for…

Biggest issue I have with eating back the calories is knowing how much to eat back. Even the best hrm only offers a rough guess regarding calories burned. I prefer to let my body tell me how much more eat on workout days as oppose to a hrm, or MFP. If I feel fine not eating the extra calories, I don't.

Agreed. Can't even browse the forums over there. Everything posted reads like and infomercial.

Yes you are exercising in some of those cases and you are certainly burning calories, but your heart rate can only be used to calculate how many calories when it is in a certain range, and even then it is still a guesstimate. Is doing housework excise? For some I guess, butbwearing a hrm while doing it is futile because…

First round means the first full 90 program. I would be hesitant in stopping this round to start lean and suggest finishing the 90 days. Commit and give it a chance to work. No program will work if you give up after only 6 weeks which is essentially what you are doing. What happens when you don't see change after 6 weeks…

Another way to think about it is this, your heart rate increases when you are stressed, but being stressed doesn't cause you to burn more calories, but it will cause your hrm readings to suggest you are. Increased heart rate doesn't necessarily mean increased calories burned.

As was stated above, they are designed to be used during strenuous cardio activity, and when done so, can give a general idea of your calorie burn, but don't rely too heavily on it. If you wear it over the course of the day, over long periods of time, during strength training routines, or doing yard work, they become…

Not what people want to hear, but what they need to hear. Great point DavPul. These things can accurately read your heart rate, which isn't that technologically difficult. Everything else is based on mathematical calculations which only provide a guess since everyone's body is different. If you enter your age, weight,…

Assuming your calorie burn is accurate. What were you doing? Running a marathon?

"If you can dodge a wrench, you can dodge a ball"

.....and after the second month, take a couple weeks off, then do it again. Or try P90x. I just couldn't do P90x in its standard form after Insanity. For me, the cardio in P90x just couldn't measure up so I did a hybrid of the two and replaced the cardio workouts in P90x with the Insanity workouts.

Not a dumb question by any means and found myself wondering if I should turn it off once I am done running or after my cool down. In the end, it doesn't matter. Your body doesn't stop burning calories just because you shut the hrm off. I sometimes turn it off immediately after the run but sometimes after my cool down, or…

I have found any workout program is 80% diet. You need to keep pushing play, but its your diet that will determine your results. Also keep in mind 6 weeks isn't very long. Most people who see results with this program have done it several times. You should see results after 90 days but don't expect them to be extreme. Not…

On another note, get the stream, not the fog. The fog will just blow back in your face if there is even a slight breeze. Imagine being on the side of a road, with an agressive dog, and you are unable to see anything. The stream can have blowback too, just not as much.

Didn't read all responses so sorry if I repeat what was said. I had a similar incident not too long ago. Pepper spray is a must to carry when running, imo. Whether it is a dog or weirdo. Dogs have a very sensitive sense of smell so a direct shot is not needed and can really mess a dog up (permanently so I am told). My…

MFP's numbers are huge guesstimations, so much so I would never bother using them. That said, 1100 seems extremely high for the workout your described.

They are correct. Running on a treadmill will not be the same as outside, and running 1.5 miles on a treadmill won't mean you will be able to do it when it counts. I suggest skip the treadmill and just run outside, early in the morning. Try the C25K program. Treadmills will help your cardio which is half the battle, but it…

Best way to do it is create a new exercise and enter calories using a HRM.

Polar is highly recommended. Most are very accurate regarding heart rate but none are totally accurate if you are looking to track calories burned. They can be close but too many variables to be completely accurate. Just make sure you get one with a chest strap.