How many calories do I burn?

[brikis98]

i've been trying to estimate how many calories i burn during an average day and have not found a particularly good calculator. the biggest issue is figuring out how many calories i burn during weight lifting, which i do 3 times per week.

some of these calculators have "weight lifting" estimates (one for light weight lifting and one for vigorous), but none of them take into account how much weight you lift! i lift about twice as much as the guys i go with, but using these calculators, we'd both estimate the same number of calories burned for a 90 minute workout.

is there a good way to estimate this myself? or is the estimate given on these sites (~600 calories per hour) close enough that i shouldn't bother?

 

[Koing]

Mate 600 calories an hr seems really high mate...

Maybe 600 if your taking less then 60seconds rest inbetween your sets and your really hammering it in that full hr work out. The rest period hammers down the calories burnt so you better be not taking more then 60seconds rest.

Koing

 

[Goi]

Why do you need to figure this out? Besides, it really depends on your training intensity, so no 2 workouts are the same.

 

[Special K]

It's impossible to say for sure. Those tables aren't accurate, as there will be large variations between individuals. Your best bet is to stick with what you can track - your caloric intake, your weight first thing each morning, your appearance, and your strength/max lifts.

 

[SociallyChallenged]

Originally posted by: Goi
Why do you need to figure this out? Besides, it really depends on your training intensity, so no 2 workouts are the same.

I'm imagining he needs to figure this out so he knows how much to eat.

 

[brikis98]

Originally posted by: SociallyChallenged

Originally posted by: Goi
Why do you need to figure this out? Besides, it really depends on your training intensity, so no 2 workouts are the same.

I'm imagining he needs to figure this out so he knows how much to eat.

bingo.

i can get reasonable estimates for my resting metabolic rate, how much energy i spend when biking and running, but for weight lifting - which is the type of exercise i do the most - i'm really skeptical about the numbers.

i guess none of this is an exact science, so i'll just go with the most reasonable guess and go from there...

 

[crt1530]

It doesn't really matter. Those calculators are really only good for ballpark figures. Just base your caloric consumption off of the bathroom scale. Increase or decrease your daily calories 10% at a time to get the weight moving in the right direction.

 

[SociallyChallenged]

Originally posted by: brikis98

Originally posted by: SociallyChallenged

Originally posted by: Goi
Why do you need to figure this out? Besides, it really depends on your training intensity, so no 2 workouts are the same.

I'm imagining he needs to figure this out so he knows how much to eat.

bingo.

i can get reasonable estimates for my resting metabolic rate, how much energy i spend when biking and running, but for weight lifting - which is the type of exercise i do the most - i'm really skeptical about the numbers.

i guess none of this is an exact science, so i'll just go with the most reasonable guess and go from there...

Yeah, that's probably best. I would rather be a little bit high on the calories than not. You don't really want to LOSE weight and it's easier to tell if you've been gaining weight (at least for me). If you start noticing anything different, just try to slowly cut things back until you find that you're holding at a good weight.

 

[LongTimePCUser]

Try one of the Polar Heart Rate monitors. They estimate your calorie expenditure based on your weight and heart rate. More exertion = higher heart rate = more calories.

I use one for running and also for weights. The Polar estimate for calories comes very close to the estimates from tread mill computers. During a weight work out, I typically burn about 500 - 650 calories / hour depending on intensity. I weigh about 185.

 

[jiggahertz]

I agree with Special K and crt. With a food scale, measuring cups and a bathroom scale you'll have all the tools you need to accurately track your calories consumed/expended.

 

[skace]

Originally posted by: brikis98
some of these calculators have "weight lifting" estimates (one for light weight lifting and one for vigorous), but none of them take into account how much weight you lift! i lift about twice as much as the guys i go with, but using these calculators, we'd both estimate the same number of calories burned for a 90 minute workout.

That is because it doesn't matter. When it comes to burning calories your body doesn't care how much weight you are lifting. Heart rate would be the indicator. If my heart rate elevates lifting 10lbs and yours 50lbs, we are still getting the same workout, you are just stronger. I'd bet the "vigorous" estimates are based on someone doing a pretty crazy workout too.

 

[brikis98]

Originally posted by: skace

Originally posted by: brikis98
some of these calculators have "weight lifting" estimates (one for light weight lifting and one for vigorous), but none of them take into account how much weight you lift! i lift about twice as much as the guys i go with, but using these calculators, we'd both estimate the same number of calories burned for a 90 minute workout.

That is because it doesn't matter. When it comes to burning calories your body doesn't care how much weight you are lifting. Heart rate would be the indicator. If my heart rate elevates lifting 10lbs and yours 50lbs, we are still getting the same workout, you are just stronger. I'd bet the "vigorous" estimates are based on someone doing a pretty crazy workout too.

isn't that physically impossible? lifting X pounds MUST take more energy than lifting Y pounds if X > Y... the rest of the calorie calculations certainly take this into account: they all ask for your body weight! running at 10 mph for a 200lbs person takes more energy (ie, burns more calories) than a 150lbs person because, well, it takes more energy to move more mass...

now, perhaps the difference isn't that significant - maybe most of the calorie burning is correlated to heart rate and heavier weight just adds some extra constant on top - but i refuse to believe that it's exactly the same.

 

[skace]

Originally posted by: brikis98
isn't that physically impossible? lifting X pounds MUST take more energy than lifting Y pounds if X > Y... the rest of the calorie calculations certainly take this into account: they all ask for your body weight! running at 10 mph for a 200lbs person takes more energy (ie, burns more calories) than a 150lbs person because, well, it takes more energy to move more mass...

now, perhaps the difference isn't that significant - maybe most of the calorie burning is correlated to heart rate and heavier weight just adds some extra constant on top - but i refuse to believe that it's exactly the same.

How hard your body works and how long your body works are going to be just as important as how much you lift. You cannot compare something like running to lifting a weight. Running requires your weight because that weight is what you are basically lifting, the devices are also considered fairly inaccurate unless they monitor heart rate. The point of my post was that if I work harder to lift 10lbs than you do lifting 20lbs, I could end up burning more calories.

 

[brikis98]

Originally posted by: skace

Originally posted by: brikis98
isn't that physically impossible? lifting X pounds MUST take more energy than lifting Y pounds if X > Y... the rest of the calorie calculations certainly take this into account: they all ask for your body weight! running at 10 mph for a 200lbs person takes more energy (ie, burns more calories) than a 150lbs person because, well, it takes more energy to move more mass...

now, perhaps the difference isn't that significant - maybe most of the calorie burning is correlated to heart rate and heavier weight just adds some extra constant on top - but i refuse to believe that it's exactly the same.

How hard your body works and how long your body works are going to be just as important as how much you lift. You cannot compare something like running to lifting a weight. Running requires your weight because that weight is what you are basically lifting, the devices are also considered fairly inaccurate unless they monitor heart rate. The point of my post was that if I work harder to lift 10lbs than you do lifting 20lbs, I could end up burning more calories.

what you're talking about is efficiency, which is obviously a factor as well. however, while i may lift twice as much weight as my friends, as none of us are total novices any more, i doubt i'm twice as efficient... therefore, the weight probably plays more of a factor...

but, as i already said, these calorie estimates all seem to be guess work so my best bet is to probably just keep tweaking my diet and seeing where that gets me on the scale and at the gym.

 

[spamsk8r]

You don't really burn that many calories while you're lifting weights, even for an hour. The benefits of weight lifting come from neurological adaptations along with hormonal and metabolic changes. I wouldn't even include weight lifting in my calorie counts because it's too hard to gauge and the benefits aren't really a one to one relationship between calories and effort.