Yeah, sorry to leave you hangin' there on that last one. I had to go to work. Crazy work.
Moving on...
So, 1 MET = 3.5 ml of oxygen per kg of bodyweight per minute. This formula will explain how much work is being done in METS. This is actually a part of a bigger equation. I know exactly what you are thinking: “Kg? Ml?” What, you don't know how to convert standard to metric? Come on. Seriously. No problem, I bought you guys a calculator. It's on the right.
Now, cardiovascular work is defined by the amount of oxygen being used and since we don't have spirometers just lying around we are going to have to “predict” METs based on existing data. That is to say, walking is roughly 5 METs, give or take. So, if we factor this all together and use a 150 pound man walking for 20 minutes for our example and using the awesome calculator on the right: 5 METs x 3.5 ml of oxygen = 17.5 ml of oxygen per minute x 20 minutes = 350 ml of oxygen for the duration of the exercise divided by 1000 = .35 Litres of oxygen x 4.85 (predicted caloric expenditure for mixture of fat/carb burn) = 1.7 calories x 68 kg of bodyweight for a total of 116 calories over 20 minutes. Got it? Awesome.
This is what personal trainers have to know to become personal trainers. Ask your trainer to work this out for you. Chances are they can't. That's why we use calculators to do this. THIS IS A SCIENCE. There is very little guesswork involved here and the guesses that are made have a basis for comparison and are valid to extremely close margins and degrees.
And I went ahead and put on a NEW calculator to assist you in figuring out how many calories you burn for a vast array of activities so you don't have to try to figure it out on your own. This will give you new perspective on your workout and help you to better understand what you are doing. One of the most difficult parts of working out is understanding the “why” behind doing it. Kinda like chasing your tail with your eyes closed.
So, this endless maelstrom of incomprehensible gobbledygook and technical nonsense is definitely something to consider. Cardiovascular exercise is what burns fat. It is what tones us up. Keep that in mind.
More later...
Tuesday, November 4, 2008
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2 comments:
I've added 30 minutes in the late afternoon to my workout (walking briskly with my dog Polly), trying to get rid of the extra "stuff" I can't seem to lose. Taking Calvin's advice. :)
That's the spirit. Stay vigilant. Try not to get discouraged and stay off that darn scale.
JoAnne is taking my advice of trying to knock out some cardio twice a day. Keeping your metabolism spinning throughout the day is what we're shooting for. Likewise, more exercise will ultimately make you FEEL healthier. It's win/win.
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