Is the Calories Burned Function on Cardio Machines Accurate?

Topics in this article: Is the "Calories Burned" Function on Cardio Machines Accurate?

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Michael Collins

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Is the "Calories Burned" Function on Cardio Machines Accurate?

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Michael Collins: The data that comes out of the machine is a rough estimate.

The more information you enter (accurate information such as height, weight, age) the better the estimate will become. This still doesn't mean it's even close to accurate though.

There are too many key variables that the machine wont be able to take into account such as your current conditioning and overall level of fitness, lean body weight, body fat %, biochemical and hormonal stats, etc...

Even things like stride length (how long your legs are) factor in. Not to mention the efficiency of the nervous system in the movement which I've written about here.

Efficiency of the nervous system is a great thing for performance in sports and when working on specific skills because you expend less energy. It's not so great when trying to lose weight because... you expend less energy (burning calories).

If you're serious about keeping track of your calories burned, there are devices that you can wear around your upper arm such as the Exerspy and the BodyBugg.

They tend give a more accurate estimate of calories burned because of new technology that allows sensors to pick up on things like skin temperature and physical exertion. These products still far from perfect but better than nothing.

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