Women’s Health (one of my most beloved mags) contributor Dr. Keri Peterson discusses which in fact plays a larger role in these health conditions. Just watch the below video  from the Today Show for the 411. I saw this segment the other day and just had to share. It’s a goodie!

I happen to take great pride in my sweating abilities. Once or twice I have been embarrassed, but nothing feels better than the completion of a kick-ass workout accompanied by those “I feel so good neurotransmitters,” otherwise known as endorphins.

With all my heart pumping and sweat drenching, I wonder how many calories I’m torching. I know the gym machines always exaggerate, but by how much? Then—I received my belated birthday present from my dad—a Mio Motiva Petite Pink Watch! Can we say … exciting?!?

My Mio Experiment

The Mio is a watch that provides electrocardiogram (ECG) readings of your heart. All this means is that it has built-in sensors, allowing it to measure the electrical activity of your heart’s contractions. Simply put, the watch allows a pretty accurate reading of  your heart rate.

What’s even more exciting is that my Mio can track how many calories I burn during my sweat sessions.

With this knowledge I set out on a calorie burning experiment. I strapped on my Mio Motiva Petite Pink watch—what a name, huh?—and chronicled my workouts over the last few days. Note—I only used it when doing cardio.

Below are my results:

Machine Causing Me to Sweat Buckets	Time On Machine (minutes)	Calories Burned According to Machine	Calories Burned According to Mio
	60	7oo	500
	30	292	242
	20	232	215
	60	612	696
	60	915	597

As you can see, my Mio results were all lower than the machines’ estimate of calories burned. The elliptical-type machines were most “off.” Now, I know what you’re all thinking … “Well, how do you know your Mio is right?” To answer your question—I don’t. BUT, I do know that it is more accurate than the gym machines and that the results more closely match the rule of thumb for calorie burn—approximately 100 calories per every 10 minutes of heart-pumping, sweat-dripping exercise.

Just as the machines do, the watch asks for your age, gender, and weight and times the length of your workout. But, it also continuously assesses your heart rate, measuring your level of exertion. It then takes into account of all these factors, does some calculations, and finally, displays your “torched” number. Oh, how I wish it matched the machine’s number, that would mean a lot more chocolate covered raisins for me, but nop … maybe next time…

Now, my goal is NOT to parade my Mio—though I do adore the watch. But, rather to simply show that the machines in the gyms, particularly the “ski-like” ones, overestimate the number of calories torched. To more closely examine this point, I turn to one of my all-time favorite New York Times pieces by Ms. Gina Kolata, Putting Very Little Weight in Calorie Counting Methods. Kolata writes,

Claude Bouchard, an obesity and exercise researcher who directs the Pennington Biomedical Research Center in Baton Rouge, La., found that if, for example, the average number of calories burned with an exercise is 100, individuals will burn anywhere from 70 to 130 calories.

What Determines Your Exercise Burn?

• Level of exertion (aka are you barely blushing OR are you creating the next Niagara Falls?)
• Time exercising
• Calories burned per day, regardless of exercise (aka resting metabolic rate)
• Age
• Sex
• Size
• Body weight
• Body composition

What you do while on the machine also matters. William Haskell, an exercise physiologist at Stanford, explains this in Kolata’s article,

…with treadmills, the calories are not accurate if you hang on the bars. Hanging onto the rails reduced the number of calories burned by 40 to 50 percent. The same thing happened with stair-climbing machines.“I’ve seen people hanging on stair climbers who think they are doing 1,200 calories an hour,” Dr. Haskell said. “They probably are doing 600 calories an hour.”

A Message From Me to You

Ladies and gents—keep up those sweat sessions, just don’t take the calorie counts on the machines number for number—they’re not accurate. However, I must note that out of any machine, the treadmill is most accurate in terms of calorie counts.  BUT, keep in mind that not one “calorie counting tool” is dead-on, since there are MANY factors that determine how many calories your muscles are burning, and they just can’t be measured precisely by the average Joe or Jane in the gym. But, hey—if you have a device that can do this, ya better get on that … you’ll make a lot of moola.

Also—exercise to keep you feeling good and healthy. This is SO Important! (you know it is because I put it in red). Time and time again, it’s shown that those who exercise are happier, healthier, and more energized.  Remember—we’re in this to be Healthy Inside and Out!

Lastly, the nutrition in me must tell you this–just because you worked out, doesn’t mean you are entitled to a double serving of Ben and Jerry’s Phish Food ice cream . I hate to be the wind that ruffles your feathers, but it’s true. Think about it, if you run for 30 minutes, you torch about 300 calories—which equals about 25 wheat thins (yes, even the Multi-Grain kind) and a slice of cheese. Hence, it is important to still keep your nutrition basics in your mind’s forefront. To nab some workout fuel tips, read my post—Fooding the Fire.

Til next time, I will leave you with the words of Jillian Michaels (yea, I know she “sold out” with her line of “diet” pills, BUT you can’t deny that the woman knows how to work you out!),

Don’t forget you have to be smart about what you eat. Don’t erase all the work [you] did … by eating badly. Make sure that you’re eating healthy, staying focused on your workouts, and remember that this is about … being strong, being healthy and making time for you…

Want to get a better idea of how many calories you’re burning during your sweat sessions? Click HERE for a “Calories Burned Calculator.”

Happy Healthifying!

What are your thoughts on gym machine calorie counters?

Well—being me, not only was I picturing Lance, but the mountain of food he must down each day to A) Not constantly feel as if his last meal was a week ago; B) Fuel his muscles so he can go, go go!; C) Optimize his biking performance to maximum capacity.

Now, Jon is a recent college grad and a boy, okay, man. It is crazy watching family get older! He used to be a couple inches shorter than me! Now, his 6 plus feet dwarfs my measly5’4.’’  Anyways, my point is, I quietly assumed that hamburgers, chili dogs, chicken nuggets, protein shakes, subs—you know, the typical fast food, easy to assemble college man fare—was a significant component of his diet. So, when he asked to chat about his current state of nutrition—I assumed we’d discuss ways to get his calorie, carb, and protein needs in without overdoing it on the fat. Well, I was wrong. Note to self—never ever assume or judge a college man by his surroundings (food surroundings that is)… even silently.  These fatty foods were actually a rarity in his diet and his overall day to day meals were pretty darn healthifyingly impressive (yea, that’s right…I found a new way to use  my word!).  But, what did need some work was the timing of his meals because the dude was always hungry!!! A brush-up on the carb, protein, and fat ratios of his pre- and post-sweat drenching sessions also followed suit.

Now, I know all of us aren’t Lance’s in the making, BUT our pre- and post-sweat sess needs are similar … just in smaller amounts. So, we’ll cover the 1 … 2 … 3’s …!!!

Pre-Exercise Fuel Basics

• Eat  meals 2-4 hours before you break a sweat
• Include protein and carbs in your meal
• Choose low-fat items (no fatty, fried, battered food here) to ease digestion
• Know your fiber max. High fiber meals may cause stomach woes and will lend to a less than satisfactory workout (gosh, do I feel guilty knockin’ the fiber)
• If you’re hungry or “working it” for more than an hour, have a pre-workout high-carb snack at least 30 minutes before your session (any earlier and you may have a tummy troubles. When you already managed to gym it, the last thing you need is to get off that treadmill because something just isn’t sitting too well—just giving you a heads-up).

Meal Ideas (eat 2-4 hours before workout)

• Low-fat tuna melt sandwich + fruit (use Diyo!)
• Turkey and Swiss loaded veggie sandwich + banana
• Oatmeal with almonds, skim milk, and a banana
• Greek yogurt + low-fat granola + sliced almonds + berries
• Garden or turkey burger on bun or bread with lettuce, tomato + side salad with low-fat dressing
• Natural peanut butter & honey on toast + 2 hardboiled eggs + melon

Snack Suggestions (eat at least 30 minutes before workout)

• 1 tablespoon natural peanut or almond butter with an apple or celery sticks
• Turkey slices on whole-grain crackers or with any fruit
• Roasted edamame
• Piece of hand fruit (orange, banana, pear, apple…oh, the possibilities!) with string cheese
• If you’re in a jam, a snack bar with less than 200 calories and at least 3 grams of fiber. My top picks: Luna Bars, Mini Clif Bars, and Kashi Go Lean Crunchy! Bars

Now, Post-Exercise Basics (eat meals within 1 hr after workout)

• Eat within an hour after exercising.
• Eat a balanced meal. If you were to divide your plate, 1/2 of the plate should be dripping in vegetables, 1/4 in protein, and 1/4 in whole grains or carbs.
• If you are not eating a meal within 1 hour post sweat session, grab a snack! And, make sure it has protein and carbs (i.e. graham crackers + peanut butter + banana). This is key for muscle recovery!
• Drink up! How do you know if you’re drinking enough? Your pee should be clear or light yellow NOT BRIGHT YELLOW. Note: unless you’re sweating buckets and working out for more than an hour you DO NOT need any sort of Sports Drink (i.e. Gatorade, Vitamin Water, etc. Save your money and the calories).
• Now, not to be a downer … BUT just because you worked out, you can’t go eat a whole pizza. Keep your nutrition in-check! Remember, for each 10 minutes you run, you only burn about 100 calories, which is equivalent to 5 Starbursts, 1 tablespoon of olive oil, 1 small potato, or about 3/4 cups cereal. Basic rule 0f thumb—for every 10 minutes of sweat-inducing exercise, you burn approximately 100 calories. Itching to find out your calorie needs for weight maintenance? For your estimate, click HERE.
• Take home point: If your like my exercising fiend friend Jon, you don’t need to be worried about how much you eat, as long as its healthy! At 3 plus hours of exercise a day, he’s burning it up. But, if you’re a slave to your desk, car, or just not moving and groovin’ all day it is important to keep in mind that you can’t exercise and forego your Nutrition Basics!

On a Concluding Note

I realize that this may not be the most titillating post, but is is information you MUST know–whether trying to achieve optimal performance or use exercise as a tool to help maintain or lose weight.

If seeking  to improve peek performance, following the above notes will get you that recovery nutrition you need pre- and post-workout, getting you geared for tomorrow’s sweat session! On another note, I often hear of folks skipping meals pre- or post-workout to help slash calories and lose weight. But, this only sabotages healthifying efforts, can throw off your metabolism from burning-and-churning, and typically, leads to the infamous cabinet raid … where everything plus the intended meal is eaten. SO … Stick to a regular meal schedule! Eat within an 1-2 hours of waking and don’t go longer than 4 hours without eating after this point. And, eat healthfully, you’ll fell better.

Question of the Day: What’s your fav Pre- or Post-Workout Snack??? Or, Meal???

Happy Healthifying!

P.S. Thanks Jon for letting me use you as a case study:)

Now–I could spice it up a notch and tell you Jillian came to my humble abode and left me in a permanent state of soreness, but that would lead you to think I was: A) quite the fitness buff; B) quite the successful lady to be able to get Jillian Michaels to leave me for 3 minutes in plank position on the floor DYING; Or, more likely C) a down and dirty liar! And, just a little bit off my rocker. SO, as you guessed, unfortunately, no Jillian was ever within my 5-foot personal space or 200-foot vicinity for that matter. Instead I powered my “No More Trouble Zones” DVD, snatched my weights, rolled out my floor mat and got to business.

Thirty minutes into the muscle burning workout, I hear a knock on my door.  With blonde curly cues poking out of every which way direction, trying to imitate curly fries gone bad, mascara running down my cheeks, sweat dripping from my shorts (yup, this workout IS that intense), I slightly crack open the door. Bella, my INDOOR cat, kept trying to finagle her way out, so I simply poke my head out the door.  Apparently, my lunging, planking, squatting, and bicep lifting is too loud for my downstairs neighbors.

Now–I should tell you that my immediate thought was, “Oh my gosh, I apologize, it won’t happen again. I just won’t do this video anymore. I am so sorry.” BUT–my direct thoughts were: “Oh NOOOO!!!! NO more Jillian!?!? After all the weight DVDs and strength classes I’ve taken, which have left me feeling as if I just finished one of my grandmama’s water aerobic classes, I finally found one that was perfect for me! It is even much better than the strength classes at my gym!”  Emmm … I must find a way to still be able to do this!

What did I do??? Well, I told my lovely neighbor that I am very sorry and that  it won’t happen again. Inside–my muscles cried and my brain began scheming on how I can still “do Jillian” without troubling  my fellow apartment dwellers. What can I say? When I am determined … I will find a way. Out came the towels, another mat, a rug … and on came Jillian … mission accomplished! With my own “Jillian sound proof system” I was good to go … my “buffing” efforts could continue!

You may be wondering WHY I am telling you this story. Well, as I mentioned before, nutrition holds health’s hand and exercise just so happens to be tied into health! More importantly, there are some key take-home points from my lil’ anecdote:

• Engage in “sweat sess” classes, videos, outdoor activities, and/or machines you actually LIKE. If you don’t enjoy what you’re doing, you just won’t keep it up. This means you won’t see or feel any results. That’s right. I said feel. Research shows that when you work it to the max, you’ll have an extra pep in that step, smile on that face, and better slumber in that bed.
• Get determined. Schedule your workouts in your iPhone, Blackberry, date book, Google calendar–whatever you use for all your day-to-day business– use it to schedule your sessions! When you complete a workout, check it off on your planner (ahhh … doesn’t that check make you feel good?).
• Make exercise a part of you. If you work out 4 days out of the week versus 3 days out of the week, then you can assuredly say that, YES, you work out most days of the week (i.e. typically, exercise is a part of your daily routine). If you’re only at 2 days out of the week, that’s A-okay! Start there, move up slowly and aim for at least 4 days per week.
• Make it happen. Once you’ve found sweat-inducing activities you crave, and you have a more or less set schedule, WORK IT OUT. Stick to it! If you have to go layer your living room with blankets, towels, mats, etc. so your neighbors can’t hear your muscles pumping, then go do it! Remember, we ALL have days we don’t want to sweat it out, but you’ll notice that when you do, you always feel better. In the words of one of my good friends, “You never regret hitting up the gym or breaking a sweat, but you do regret when you don’t.”
• Mix it Up. Include cardio and strength training in your routines. WHY??? In short, aerobic activities will torch calories and keep your ticker tickin’ strong. Whereas strength training will help you tighten, tone, build muscle, prevent bone loss, and help amp-up your metabolism when you are simply sitting. Basically, the more muscle you have, the more you “burn” when doing nothing. To annihilate fat and strengthen your heart, lungs, and vessels, aim for at least 45 minutes of cardio per session, and to keep your muscles golden, aim for at least two 30-minute full-body strength training sessions per week. Remember, BOTH are important!
• Let it go. We all have a life. If you can’t WORK IT OUT because of a looming deadline, personal engagement, or if you’re in a funk and “just can’t work out today,” that’s okay. Acknowledge that there will be no workout today, let it go, enjoy the rest of your day, and look forward to tomorrow. After all, you’re seeking a healthy lifestyle,  a.k.a., a set of attitudes, habits, or possessions associated with YOU! Thus, if you skip only a couple days out of the week, missing a sweat session is not a habit for you, nor does it summarize your attitude. So–be happy! Exercise IS a part of your lifestyle. And, if it isn’t yet, you’ll get there. Once you start, you won’t be able to cut it out.

Now that we’ve covered the basics, stay tuned for Part II coming soon. We’ll discuss what and when to eat pre- and post-sweat session and deliver the skinny on what happens to your bod once you’re in the exercise groove. GET EXCITED!

But, before I hit up Green Grapes Blog (GGB) with this post, drop a comment and let me and the other GGB readers know what you do to stay Workout Motivated!!!

Happy sweating!