Heart rate / lose weight

[Drmc]

What is the best heRt rate to be in to lose weight? Fat burn? Cardio? Peak? I feel like I'm gaining weight not losing.

[Colinm39 · Accepted solution]

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@Drmc wrote:
What is the bestheRt rate to be in to lose weight? Fat burn?Cardio? Peak? I feel like I'm gaining weight not losing.

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@DrmcMany fledgling Fitbitters report this, I put on 6lb in the first couple of months and then it settled down. Many of us resorted to the tape measure in the earlier days because we were building muscle initially.

33 lb later, 10k steps on average and watching what I was eating, I'm now onto my final 12lb to maintenance or just above my National Service weight. It took 3 years of, taking it carefully, because in my case it took 45 years to creep on and as my doctor said, "don't rush it and your body will saviour it.  How true.

The fat burn area is your aim with the cardio to improve your overall well being. Because our body at rest uses about 70% of our daily calories this saying is very true.......

"The fork is mightier than the foot".

[Drmc]

Does anyone know what heart rate you should be at to lose weight? Fat burn? Cardio? Peak?

[Drmc]

Thank you for the response. I am wanting to lose weight and lower cholesterol by exercise. 👍

[SunsetRunner]

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@Drmc wrote:
Does anyone know what heart rate you should be at to lose weight? Fat burn?Cardio? Peak?

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It shows on your activity tile as a "mouse over" (based on your age, etc.) when set on Heart Rate.

[Heybales]

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@Drmc wrote:
Does anyone know what heart rate you should be at to lose weight? Fat burn? Cardio? Peak?

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You lose weight by eating less than you burn in total.

If going slow and burning few calories in Fat burning HR zone leaves you with little to eat and you don't adhere to the plan - then that's no good.

If going fast in Peak zone leaves plenty to eat, but then you are worn out tomorrow and can't exercise barely that much, and have to eat way too little - then that's no good either.

Have to see what works for you.

Fitbit's Fat-burning zone is based on a myth that started years ago, and for the most part ended couple back, but it keeps flaring up.

Up to a certain level, usually mid-aerobic zone for most, you burn a greater % of calories from fat, until you hit that 50% mark, as you keep increasing, you burn more % from carbs.

But guess what - you burn more calories over all going harder, so the grams of fat burned stay about the same, only the % changes because you burn more calories.

And really for fat loss, if you only had 20 min say, going as hard as you could to still allow you to do it tomorrow - would be best for fat loss.

Because then you are using up more carbs from your muscles.

Carb stores that are going to be replenished after your next meal quickly, along with liver stores.

That allows insulin to be dropped and normal fat burning mode to be engaged again faster after your meal, then it would have occurred otherwise.

Because for the vast majority of your day, unless really physical job, your main energy source is fat. Except right after a meal with insulin up and fat release turned off.

Shorten that time with heavy carb burning workouts - burn more fat daily.

But, if you have more than 20 min available, and hitting your calorie goals isn't an issue when you burn less daily, then body improvement may be better, like resistance training or such.

And then there's heart health, which benefits some from short intense stuff, but not as much as some lower intensity stuff.

[Colinm39]

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@Drmc wrote:
Thank you for the response. I am wanting to lose weight and lower cholesterol by exercise.👍

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@DrmcI respect @Heybales posts because they are very honest and supportive. I don't have a cholesterol issue and all of my bloods are OK. Fitbit, movement and sensible eating is my solution and I tend to "graze eat" at my age and plenty of Omega's keeping the ratio as close to 1 as practical. See this link.  I always snack on a mixture of nuts which include, Brazil, Almond, Pecan, Cashew, Walnut, Hazelnut and Pistachio's as a mixture. I have found 2 poached eggs in the morning for breakfast really keeps the hunger pains at bay and I drink plenty of green tea.

This "new" food pyramid was just published in Australia last month.

[josephz2va · Accepted solution]

To lower cholesterol, you need to consume less of the cholesterol on the packaging and trade out cholesterol for cholesterol free. 12 Foods That Lower Cholesterol Naturally. But watch how much you consume to avoid the temptations on some of those items. It's easy to turn a 110 calorie serving to a 1,110 calorie by tempting to eat as many nuts as you want.

For heart rate, I'd recommend interval training ratio. Some treadmills and elliptical machines have it, others don't. The longer you can maintain the ratio, the better. Interval training cycles from Cardio Midway to Low Cardio close to the fat burn level.

[RHU · Accepted solution]

Hi Drmc,

There are two diffrent things that I wanted you to observe:

First, doing exercises, for example, jogging for 30 min will only help you to burn about 300 Kcal max. Imagine a scope of ice cream with give you around 100kCal, and a cone of ice cream will give you 330kCal...thus an ice cream cone is equivalent to 3 scopes of ice cream. What this means are: a. You need to eat smart, I am not saying that you should not eat ice cream, but leave the cone behind, as it contains butter, sugar etc. - so eating smart is the essential key, and b. since running 30 min can only burn about 300 Kcal, if you don't adjust your diet, running 25 hours a day will never be enough.........so start log on your food with the software, and let it help you to achieve your goal.

Second, I used to run strenously for quite some time (at a high heard rate, 25kms a day), and I managed to lost about 10kg (22lbs) in a matter of months. However, I have recentlyfound that this has not been the most efficient and COMFORTABLE way to do it. Thus, I've switched to exercising in the low intensity Fat-Burn Zone. I realised that I could lose MORE fat than before in a given time frame, so please try it. The most important and objective measurement is your trousers/skirts. When they became loose, you have reached your goal. Don't check your weight everyday, as there are many things that would affect the readings, such as water contents inside your body.

Please ready separate articles in regards to how to calculate your Heart Rate Zone for Fat Burn. And of course for any exercises, if you have any health problems, on drugs etc., you'd better consult your doctor before starting anything.  

[Drmc]

Thanks for taking the time to respond! I used to be very athletic but always hated running. I needed to play soccer or basketball to enjoy the running part. I wanted a convenient cheap way to lose weight and be more active over all so running I'm beginning to not hate as much! Lol. Thanks for the input and I figured it had to do with the eating portion and the smarts behind it as well. It's great to get reinforced info to help me be more motivated and less discouraged!

[RHU · Accepted solution]

Hi my dear,

I have two ways to help you, and the costs no money!..........

1. Install the App "Myfitnesspal", and record everything that you drink and eat. They have over 40,000 food items on their databases. It's very handy. The more you do it, the more you learn from it. For example, when I take soft drinks, I only drink the ZERO versions (0 calories). Note that a can of drink (any flavour), amounts to about 180 kCal!! Me for example, I only have about 1300 kCal quotas a day. Thus a few cans, or 3 cookies would already blown me off. And don't forget to link it up with your Fitbit account.

2. In terms of exercising in the Fat Burn Zone. The formula is like this: For Men: 220 - Your age = 100%, and for Women: 226 - Your age = 100%. You'll need to stay within 60-70% for Fat Burn. If you don't want to spend money on a heart rate monitor, you can do the following: Walk quickly for 30 sec, and then slowly for 1.5 mins, then repeat the cycle for one hour daily. You don't even need to run to get to that fat burn zone! However, if you want to get a heart rate monitor, you do need one that gives your continuous reading. As far as I understand, unless you don't mind the inconvenience of a chest strap, I would recommend Fitbit ChargeHR or Surge. Smart watches can't give you continuous heart rate measurements.

Best of luck.

[Drmc]

I love these replies I am getting. Thank you! Very helpful!

[ybakos]

@Drmc

Don't forget to measure body fat. This is a better measure than weight alone.