Heart Rate & Calories Burned - P90x and Other Work

Pedometers vs. Heart Monitor

2012-05-25T16:18:00.002-07:00

So I went for a jog in Central park. According to my pedometer I went 3 miles. I took my sweet ass time though, as I stopped to walk a couple times due to shin splints.

Here are the stats

Ipod Nano Pedometer:

2.99 miles
304 calories burned

Heart Monitor:

144 bpm avg
177 bpm peak
575 calories burned

So either the pedometer is way too conservative, the heart rate monitor is way too aggressive, or my heart was beating way too quickly and I was minutes away from exploding.

P90x2 - X2 Ab Ripper Workout Results

2012-01-19T05:10:00.000-08:00

I have to admit that I was surprised at the calories burned and heart rate that I got from my HRM. I think that sicne this workout is still relatively new to me, I may be working harder at it...that or I simply underestimated the strain of it.

Time: 16:24
Avg HR= 114 bpm
Peak HR = 137 bpm
K Burned = 150

P90x2 - X2 Ab Ripper Review

2012-01-11T20:31:00.000-08:00

I just started the new P90x2 x2 Ab Ripper. I have done 3 workouts so far. In another week, once I can finish the entire workout properly, I will strap on a heart rate monitor. I can finish the workout, although my form could be slightly better. That is a huge difference. In took me 6 weeks to master the first ab ripper, and another month or so to do it with all the advanced movements.

I think once you have mastered the first ab ripper, x2 ab ripper's learning curve isn't as bad, mostly because you already have great ab and core strength. The advantage, is now it is a new workout entirely. The crazy 25 reps 25 reps 25 reps theme is gone. Now we have 30, 20 or even just 10 depending on the exercise. It is also about 45 seconds or so shorter. However, my abs look shredded right after a workout. X2 Ab Ripper is an entirely different beast.

X2 Ab Ripper is really a core ripper. Whereas the original was very into the abs, and core was emphasized on advanced moves, almost everything here in X2 emphasizes the core and abs. There are tons of isolation maneuvers. Think of this as the yoga belly blast from the original P90x Yoga X combined with Core Synergistics in a 15 minute workout.

This means some old favorites (or in my case, nemeses) return, but in X fashion, with a twist. We have the Superman/Banana Roll but while making an x with the arms and legs. We also have boat maneuver a couple times. Once while moving your arms out and in in a rowing fashion ("Row Your Boat"), and then once where you tuck your knees in and roll back, and on the roll out, extend your legs and and arms out and hold the boat position ("Roll V Hold").

The routine opens with a "Scissor Twist." This is fifer scissors, but when the legs are set up with say the left down and right up, your left hand touches the right foot while your right arm extends completely out to the side. You alternate from one side to the other in scissor fashion. You'll see side oblique crunches again, but you do the left and right in the same routine. Much like superman banana, you roll from one to the other, left, right, left, right, etc. You do not close with the super intense mason twist, but rather with a "Balanced Bike Crunch." You sit up and do the bike crunch maneuver (right elbow-left knee, left elbow-right knee alternating), but, as you can tell with the theme, you hold before moving to the other side.

Most of the routines involve slow steady movements and plenty of holds. You are isolating those ab and core muscles. Who knew staying still could cause you to shake and sweat so much. One final example, which I find the main bear of this workout, is the "Phelon Twist." You cross your arms across your chest while sitting, legs straight out on the ground. Then you lean back as far as you can go with your legs still on the ground and twist left as far as you can go without the elbow hitting the ground and just hold until Tony lets you go to the right. He takes his sweet-ass time, while your upper abs are on fire.

I look forward to reporting on what the heart rate monitor shows. I have a feeling the hear rates and calories burned on it will be lower due to the many holds, but my muscles will be more on fire than they were. Heart rate is not the be-all-end-all. If you want to strengthen those core muscles in a short period of time to prevent back injuries, and get rock solid abs, this is a great workout.

After I get full acclimated to this workout (3x a week for a month or so), I will cycle in the old ab ripper so as to keep the muscle confusion technique working. At the very least it will prevent me from getting bored.

Cheers.

P90x - Arms & Shoulders

2011-10-05T19:05:00.000-07:00

I finally have something different to report. I did a P90x - Shoudlers and Arms routine at the gym with all different sets of dumbells instead of at home with bands. Here are my stats:

Avg HR = 116 bpm
Peak HR = 156 bpm
K Burned = 567

As you can see my heart rate and calories burned were higher when using real weights.

P90X - Plyometrics

2011-06-26T19:39:00.000-07:00

First off, let me apologize for not writing more often. I thought some of the workouts were getting rather repetitive as was the data. Therefore I have decided to not post as often. I will only post workouts I haven't done in awhile or have done less frequently, and will also post when I start trying out new routines. I may try some "Insanity" workouts in the future, also made by Beachbody, the company that produces P90x.

Today I had the chance to do the Plyometrics workout from P90X for the first time in awhile. Below are my results. I think the slightly lower calories and heart rate as compared to other times can be attributed to the fact that I am now in pretty decent cardio shape. The better shape you are in the harder it is to get your heart rate to spike. However, you'll see that jumping for an hour can overcome this when you see my peak rate.

Peak HR = 171 bpm
Avg HR = 138 bpm
K Burned = 806

Mega Workout

2011-05-30T19:28:00.000-07:00

I've been off the radar mostly because I was away for the holiday weekend and it was my anniversary. This lead to several days without working out and lots of eating. I was overdue for an Ab Ripper X workout and I also was overdue for a gym workout. Therefore I made the exhausting choice to do both today, including a jog to the gym in the 90 degree humid weather. I decided since there were so many components I would just let my watch go for the entire workout.

Workout Sequence (weights and cardio)

3 minute jog to the gym
7 minutes of stretching
16 minute P90x Ab Ripper X routine (video copied to my ipod)
Alternating sets of the LifeFitness Rear Deltoid @ 105 lbs, Pec Fly @ 165 lbs. 3 sets of each
3 sets of Icarian Lat Pulldown @ 145 lbs
3 sets of Icarian Angled Leg Press, 180 lbs of plates
2 sets of upright rows with 75 lbs preweighted bar
3 sets of Icarian seated calf raises with 70 lbs of plates
3 seats of dips using bodyweight
1 set of chinups
1 set of pullups, regular grip
1 set of neutral grip pullups
38 minutes of Precor 100i elliptical, with heart rate selected, 152 bpm as the goal. 30 minute routine with 3 minute warmup and 5 minute cooldown
5 minute walk back to apartment

Time = 1:52:46
Avg HR = 129 bpm
Peak HR = 160 bpm
K Burned = 1347

P90x - X Stretch

2011-05-21T10:01:00.000-07:00

My hamstrings were still feeling tight, as well as my shoulders and arms from the core synergistics workout and ocntinued ab ripper workouts after. Therefore I decided I needed to stretch my muscles out. I was more concerned with stretching than getting a full workout and so I opted to do the 57 minute long X Stretch instead of yoga. I also had never reviewed it yet.

X Stretch is sort of equivalent to the last 40 minutes of the P90x Yoga workout. You do a couple sun salutations but that is really the extent of the difficult yoga moves. This is more about loosening up the back, shoulders, arms and legs like you do in the second half of the yoga workout. This also does not have a core (belly) workout in it. The name is quite accurate, you will just be stretching for 57 minutes. Every muscle group will have at least one stretch, and many will have 3 or 4. Some stretches are more difficult than others. I could not get nearly as high up as the people in the vide for the camel stretch. However, for the first time ever I used a yoga block to extend my one legged hamstring stretch.

As a stretch routine, my heart rate rarely broke above 100 bpm, as even when a maneuver is difficult yoy are doing deep breathing to get through it. This will surely burn more calories than if you sat still for an hour, but this is not a cardio workout, it is just stretching. See below:

Avg HR = 81 bpm
Peak HR = 106 bpm
K Burned = 181

P90x - Core Synergistics

2011-05-19T19:45:00.000-07:00

I had not done Core Synergistics for awhile and thought I would try it out again. It is just as difficult as I remember. I used a heavier resistance band this time around. I also did this workout at 10pm at night, so being in an apartment, I had to go lighter on the jumps (I had forgotten about the halfback and the towel jumps when I put it in). I still did those jumps just as light as possible so as to make it less annoying on my neighbors, but still keep my heart rate up. I will say this workout makes me absolutely pour sweat more than any other workout I have done.

Here are the results:

Avg HR = 127 bpm
Peak HR = 161 bpm
K Burned = 671

Ab Ripper X - Morning Workout

2011-05-15T20:40:00.000-07:00

I finally got around to doing a morning Ab Ripper, before eating or having caffeine. This workout I did 30 minutes after waking.

Avg HR = 110 bpm
Peak HR = 142 bpm
K Burned = 138

Basically, this mimicked one of my nighttime workouts in stats, perhaps a nighttime with a warmup. At any rate it seems that in order to get those workouts that burn more than 150 calories and get an average heart rate around 120 bpm, caffeine is a necessary component (not that that is recommended).

Ab Ripper X - 7:30pm

2011-05-13T19:32:00.000-07:00

I had time to do the workout a little earlier than I usually do it on a weeknight, and so I thought I would strap on a heart rate monitor to see how I did. I did not do a warmup.

Avg HR = 110 bpm
Peak HR = 146 bpm
K Burned = 137

So still my mid-afternoon workout several hours after consuming caffeine takes the cake. I will try to do a morning pre-coffee Ab Ripper tomorrow as I do not have many (or any) morning Ab Ripper X workouts. I'd also like to try one 30 minutes after having coffee, perhaps the following weekend. I'll definitely have one or the other done tomorrow.

Ab Ripper X - 4pm Workout

2011-05-07T13:26:00.000-07:00

I had coffee around 12 noon, and then walked around outside for a bit and had lunch around 3 (no caffeine with lunch). I then came home and did this workout. You will notice that my heart rate was way higher for this midday workout than my evening ones, and I was still 4 hours removed from caffeine intake.

Avg HR = 124 bpm
Peak HR = 157 bpm
K Burned = 180

You may also note that I am now at the point that I do every single repetition and I do the most advanced movement on all exercises. Quite a change from when I first started in February, wouldn't you say?

After Work Workout

2011-05-05T20:38:00.000-07:00

Weight Training

3 mins jogging to gym
6 mins stretching
LifeFitness Pectoral Fly/Read Deltoid Machine, 3 sets of each exercise, alternating 1 of each. Read delt was at 105 lbs, pec fly was at 165 lbs
1 set neutral grip pullup
1 set regular pullup
1 set chinup
Strive Seated Pushdown - 3 set option @ 130 lbs
3 sets Cybex Hip Adduction @ 110 lbs (also did one warmup set at 55 lbs)
Abduction machine was broken and so I couldn't use it

Time = 27:30
Avg HR = 121 bpm
Peak HR = 151 bpm
K Burned = 288

eSpinner - Interval Workout, Level 5 (of 5), 30-35 minutes settings

Time = 31:39
Avg HR = 135 bpm, both watch and machine
Peak HR = 166 bpm (only available on watch)
K Burned = 438 (machine); 416 (watch) This is a first!
Distance = 9.9 miles

Afternoon Gym Workout & eSpinner (from Saturday)

2011-05-02T20:25:00.000-07:00

Weight Workout

3 minute jog
8 minutes stretching
3 sets dumbbell chest press, 55 lbs each hand
3 sets Icarian Lat Pulldown, 1 @ 120 lbs, 1 @ 130 lbs, and 1 @ 140 lbs
3 sets dumbbell shoulder press, 35 lbs each hand
3 sets Icarian Seated Calf Raise, 70lbs plates
3 sets Rope Pulldown at Icarian Cable Cross Station, 90 lbs
3 sets Icarian Angled Leg Press - 180 lbs plates
1 set chinups
1 set regular pullups
1 set neutral grip pullups

Time = 45:15
Avg HR = 119 bpm
Peak HR = 163 bpm
K Burned = 457

eSpinner Workout (the one that works with my chest strap)

I selected Level 4, interval training, and 30-35 minutes. I will say I had a real hard time coordinating the recommended cadence and heart rate. I found with the increased resistance, if I went their suggested cadence my heart rate would skyrocket way past my zone. So for the most part, I just focused on my heart rate. You'll notice that the machine and my watch where nearly completely in sync for this workout. I am wondering if Timex has a piece of Star Trac now...lol

Time = 31:18
Avg HR = 141 bpm (machine); 141 bpm (watch)
Peak HR = 168 bpm (only given on watch)
K Burned = 439 (machine); 442 (watch)
Distance = 9.2 miles

Gym workout w/ Ab Ripper X Routine

2011-04-27T20:29:00.000-07:00

Today I decided to do my gym workout and include the ab ripper workout. I had to do the routine from memory, which by now was easy. It was harder not to quit before the 25 were done (or 50 for mason twists) without Tony egging me on. I think I may have done too many of the bicycles though, because my abs were on FIRE while doing those, which made everything else that much harder to complete (although I did). I did complete it in about the same amount of time as on the DVD.

Gym Workout

3 minute jog to the gym
8 minutes of stretching
Ab Ripper X
LifeFitness Pectoral Fly/Rear Deltoid (reverse fly) Machine. I did 3 sets of each exercise, going back and forth (so 1 back, one chest, then repeat twice more).
1 set neutral grip pullups (bodyweight)
1 set chin-ups (bodyweight)
1 set regular pullups (bodyweight)
Strive Seated Pushdown Machine, 3 sets @ 110lbs. This one has you select emphasis on different parts of the maneuver for each set by sliding a level. The first emphasizes the middle of the movement (i.e. most resistance occurs in the middle). The second emphasizes the end, and the third emphasizes the beginning. You are supposed to take only 0-30 seconds between sets because of this. It's a great idea.

Time = 47:09
Avg HR = 120 bpm
Peak = 162 bpm
K Burned = 485

Cardio - Precor 546i

The Precor 546i is just like the 576i, except it does not having moving handles. This one too changes inclines and resistance. Unfortunately, just like the 576i, the 546i does not recognize my heart rate monitor. for my routine I selected "Weight Loss." It then automatically starts a 28 minute routine + 5 minute cooldown. You have to proactively select "options" to enter your age and weight, which I did. Looking at my heart rate on my watch, I maneuvered the resistance levels up and down throughout the workout, while shouting answers to the Jeopardy show I was watching. I spent most of my time shifting back and forth between Levels 10-16 of resistance.

Time = 33 minutes total
Avg HR = 140 bpm
Peak HR = 155 bpm
K Burned = 462 (watch); 352 (machine)
Distance = 2.83 miles (I didn't pay attention to whether it included the cooldown or not here)

As usual my watch was way ahead of the machine on calories burned.

P90x - Shoulders & Arms Workout and then Ab Ripper X

2011-04-22T18:43:00.000-07:00

I decided to try the Shoulders and Arms workout since the only extra items you need for that one are resistance bands and a chair. I cannot install the pullup bar anywhere in my apartment and so this will be the only muscle workout I post. I took a five minute break and then went into an Ab Ripper routine. I started the routine at 7:10pm.

P90x - Shoulders & Arms

This workout has around 8 or 9 minutes worth or warming up and stretching out muscles. Then, similar to plyometrics, it has series of 3 exercises that you do two cycles of. It goes, shoulder exercise, bicep exercise, tricep exercise, repeat. Then there is ballistic stretching, and then a new set of 3 exercises fitting that criteria until around 4 minutes left, where you cool down and stretch again. It is a decent workout, and I wish I had had a full set of weights to improve my performance and jack up my heart rate some more (as well as build more muscle). I'd use the heaviest resistance bands you can find to increase your performance.

Time = 1 hour
Avg HR = 106 bpm
Peak HR = 143 bpm
K Burned = 465

I will say that my heart rate started to really climb into the 120s steadily in the last 20 minutes. It took awhile to get it going, but it did finally get there. I wonder if using 30 pound dumbbells would have improved that category, instead of my 20 lb resistance band with loops.

It is also important to remember that since this is not a cardio workout, but rather a muscle building workout, many calories will continue to be burned in the 2 hours or so after the workout as well. Therefore, this may be one of those rare scenarios where my watch is accurate or under-reporting instead of being too aggressive.

See here for muscle workout calorie info: http://exercise.about.com/od/exerciseworkouts/f/muscle.htm

Ab Ripper X

Since I was doing a workout right before this, I did not do a warmup.

Avg HR = 114 bpm
Peak HR = 141 bpm
K Burned = 149

Ab Ripper X - 3:30pm workout

2011-04-20T13:25:00.000-07:00

I did a mid-afternoon ab ripper workout today, about 2 hours after finishing my last cup of coffee. My heart rate was definitely way higher in the middle of the day, and it is possible I still had a jolt of caffeine in my system. I also now complete all 339 repetitions and do all the advanced movements.

Avg HR = 120 bpm
Peak HR = 155 bpm
K Burned = 169

As you can see the average is about 6-7 bpm higher and the peak is about 15-20 bpm higher. Closer to caffeine intake and earlier in the day will do that.

Today's quick Gym Workout

2011-04-17T21:16:00.000-07:00

I was pretty sore from yesterday's workout, but I wanted to get a quick one in, and so I went to the gym to do a varied workout.

Weight Training

3 minute jog to gym
8 minutes of stretching
3 sets Cybex Hip Adduction machine @ 110 lbs
3 sets of pullups - neutral grip (bodyweight, no assistance)
3 sets of dips (bodyweight, no asistantance)
3 sets Cybex Hip Abduction machine @ 110 lbs
2 sets chin-ups (bodyweight, no assistance)

Time = 36:14
Avg HR = 104 bpm (low because of the nature of the workout and the fact that I had to wait for space numerous times)
Peak HR = 148 bpm
K Burned = 267

Cybex 750A (Arc Trainer without moving arms)

In general, I hate these ellipticals that do not have moving arm components to them. However, the gym was oddly crowded for a Sunday night. I chose the target heart rate workout, however this machine just packs on tons of resistance to get you to 150bpm, instead of looking for a happy medium of some speed to get you there as well. It's to the point that is becomes more like a strength workout than cardio. Given how sore my legs, especially quads, were from yesterday, I got off after 11 minutes. In the future, I thinbk, that since it recognizes my chest strap, I will do manual workouts on the Cybex 750s to get my heart rate to the 150s.

Time = 11:12
Avg HR = 144
Peak HR = 156
K Burned = 124 (machine); 150 (watch)

Jog Home

Time = 3:02
Avg HR = 149 bpm
Peak HR = 162 bpm
K Burned = 47

Late Afternoon Gym Workout & Cardio

2011-04-16T17:02:00.000-07:00

Weight Workout

3 minute jog to gym
8 minutes of stretching
Icarian Seated Calf Raise, 3 sets @ 70lbs of plates
3 sets dumbbell Chest Press/fly @ 55lbs each hand (i've been gradually increasing weight here)
3 sets dumbbell one-armed row @ 55lbs each hand (same as above comment)
3 sets dumbbell shoulder press @ 35 lbs each hand (same as above two comments)
Icarian Leg Press, 3 sets @ 115 lbs of plates on each side
Icarian Cable Station, Rope pushdown, 3 sets @ 90lbs
Dumbbell concentrated curls @ 25lbs

Time = 56:03
Avg HR = 115 bpm (includes stretching)
Peak HR = 147 bpm (explained that weight training is basically interval training, spikes when lifting, goes down between sets)
K Burned = 526

Precor 100i

I must apologize for accidentally deleting my watch's data for my Precor workout. However, the heart rate information is about the same anyway since they both use my chest strap. Therefore the only comparison that is really missing is calories, and I will say that, as usual, my watch was higher than the machine. The watch was only about 50 calories or so higher this time, so not as bad as usual. I selected the heart rate workout and put in 152 bpm as my target since that is 80% of my maximum heart rate for my age according to the machine.

Time = 38 minutes (3 min warmup + 30 minute heart rate workout + 5 minute cooldown)
Avg HR = 145 bpm (so it did a decent job since this includes warmup and cooldown)
Peak HR = 161 bpm
K Burned = 525

My Sprint Home Through the Rain

This is why I lost the Precor workout data on my watch. I wrot edown the weight workout but did not write down the Precor workout data that was on my watch, figuring I would just use my watch when writing this. It was pouring, and so I made a dash home. Being the kind of guy that, would, well, write this blog, I turned on my heart rate monitor.

Time = 2:54
Avg HR = 152
Peak HR = 164
K Burned = 46

Kenpo X @ 9pm

2011-04-12T19:29:00.000-07:00

Tonight's weather was quite bad and so I did not make it to the gym. I decided it was time I did some Kenpo X as it had been awhile. I also decided that I would do some muscle building besides cardio by doing 4 two-minute drills of chair pushups with the perfect pushup. I did the first two regular chair pushup two minute drills, and then I went into the Kenpo workout. i finished the wide and close chair pushups after Kenpo. All in all it was a good overall workout. I only wore my heart monitor during Kenpo.

Time = 58:40
Avg HR = 121 bpm
Peak HR = 160 bpm (during the vertical punches at the very end)
K Burned = 615

Kenpo X is still the hardest P90x workout to get my heart rate going. It usually peaks during the "breaks" of jumping jacks and running. When I see them saying 160bpm on screen, and I look at my watch and see 137, I'm baffled as I feel like I am throwing them as fast and as hard as I can without "banging my joints." My watch is overly aggressive with the calories burned to begin with, but during Core Synergistics or Plyometrics I burned 750 or more calories as compared to what you see here. So, in my opinion, while Kenpo X is the most fun cardio workout, it is the "easiest." Keep in mind, I mean P90x easy. In any other universe this is a hell of a workout and will get you in great shape if you did it several times a week.

Gym Workout w/ Precor 576i

2011-04-10T16:31:00.000-07:00

I wanted to try another eSpinner workout today, but unfortunately, the one that recognized my heart rate monitor had a broken touch screen. I ended up on a Precor 576i, which seems to be the one machine in the gym that does not work with my watch. Today I ran errands before going to the gym, so there is no 5 minute jog to get my heart rate up before the workout.

Weight Training

5 minutes of stretching
3 sets of dumbbell chest press/flies @ 50lbs each hand
3 sets of one armed dumbbell rows @ 50lbs
3 sets dumbbell shoulder press @ 30 lbs
3 sets Icarian Leg Press @ 90lbs of plates on each side for a total of 180lbs added weight
3 sets rope pulldown on Icarian cable system @ 90lbs
3 sets of seated calf raises on Icarian machine @ 70lbs of plates
3 sets of preacher curls @ 75lbs

Time = 44 mins
Avg HR = 118 bpm
Peak HR = 148 bpm
K Burned = 438

Cardio - Precor 576i
Since the my heart rate monitor is not picked up and the hand sensors are not on the moving arms due to some short-sighted designing, all I can compare is the calories burned, which may be inaccurate since it cannot read my heart rate. However, my watch can never read resistance levels, so perhaps it evens out. For this workout, I selected the "Weight Loss" workout. It is a default 28 minute workout with 5 minute cool down for a total of 33 minutes. You have to enter your age and weight after the workout starts by hitting the options button. I gradually shifted the resistance up, ultimately to 17 of 20 to get my heart rate close to 150bpm. I did okay at doing that. In general, the weight loss workout shifts between a flat level and a slightly steep incline throughout.

Time = 33 mins (including 5 min cool down)
Avg HR = 141 bpm
Peak HR = 159 bpm
K Burned = 357 (576i); 473 (watch)

My watch, as occurs 9 out of 10 times, was quite aggressive in the calorie count. It's hard to say if the machine is low-balling, my watch is way too aggressive, or if the answer lies somewhere in between.

Guest Blogs?

2011-04-09T20:46:00.000-07:00

Since I have one type of heart rate monitor and my height and weight are pretty unique to me, I thought it would be good to get guest bloggers to appear. If you own a heart rate monitor, or even a pedometer, it would be great if you were willing to share some of your workouts, whether it be machines at the gym or at-home routines to get a wide array of results. This will show the ranges of possibilities. If you are interested in sharing, please leave a comment to this blog. If I see enough people that have interest, I will create an email address where you can send your entries. Please check back, as I will edit this post in the future.

Ab Ripper X - 9:45pm workout w/ modified warmup

2011-04-05T19:35:00.000-07:00

Since these Ab Ripper workouts have been getting a little stale I've left out a few as the information would have offered nothing new. I did a 9:45pm workout, about an hour earlier than I normally do, to change things up a little. I also stretched a little and then did 50 jumping jacks and then immediately started the DVD so that my heart rate would be up at the beginning of the workout.

Avg HR = 111 bpm
Peak HR = 142 bpm
K Burned = 140

As you can see, no dramatic differences. I think I am getting to that point that it is harder and hard to get my heart rate to spike upwards as I am in better shapes. You'll notice this with my last Yoga workout as well. I'm at the point in Ab Ripper were I am completing 334 out of 339 reps in the routine and I am doing the more difficult options on 3 of the exercises that have options. I think I am in just better cardio shape overall now, but I will keep looking at ways to get the heart rate up and calories burned without having to load up on caffeine.

Yoga X - 6pm workout

2011-04-04T17:47:00.000-07:00

I did an early evening Yoga X workout yesterday. You'll notice that this time I did not get my heart rate up as much this time. I also still struggle mightily with the poses that emphasize balance. I've noticed that a balance a lot better on one leg over the other consistently.

Time = 1 hour, 33 minutes
Avg HR = 100 bpm
Peak HR = 134 bpm
K Burned = 622

Weight Workout & eSpinner - 3pm workout

2011-04-03T14:42:00.000-07:00

Weight Workout

5 mins jog to gym
5 mins stretching
3 sets dumbell chest press/fly 50lbs each hand
3 sets one-armed dumbell row @ 50lbs
3 sets dumbell shoulder press @ 30lbs each hand
3 sets Icarian Seated Calf Raise @ 60lbs of plates
3 sets Icarian cable system rope pulldown @ 90lbs
3 sets preacher curls @ 75lbs (two 25 lb plates on bar)

Time = 42:31
Avg HR = 124 bpm
Peak HR = 164 bpm (during curls)
K Burned = 469

Star Trac eSpinner
To my surprise the eSpinner read my chest strap this time. This was the exact same model of machine that didn't read it a couple week ago (click the eSpinner category to bring that up). I used a different one, and perhaps it had a working battery or something. At any rate I had great feedback of cadence and heart rate on the screen. I forgot to set my watch, and so I only have the machine totals to report. The machine does not give a peak heart rate, so that will be missing. I did an endurance workout, level 4/5, 25-30mins, and entered 195 for my maximum heart rate. I used the trainer videos the machine had and stayed within the cadence AND heart rate zones as best as I could. The endurance workout is a little less intense than interval, and I bet strength is even more intense than that.

Time = 28:14
Distance = 8.10 miles
Avg HR = 130 (includes warmup and cool down though, so peak would have been useful, I do remember hitting upper 140's a bit though)
Avg Cadence = 71 (I didn't need to go to the upper range of the cadence to get my heart rate where it needed to be since I was putting on resistance)
K Burned = 361

Gym and Cybex 750AT Arc Trainer

2011-03-30T19:17:00.000-07:00

Gym

5 minutes jog outside
4 flights of stairs (ran up)
3 sets Cybex hip abduction @ 110lbs
3 sets Cybex hip adduction @ 110 lbs + 1 warmup set @ 55lbs
3 sets Freemotion Rope Pulldown @ 50lbs (max that machine goes to)
3 sets Nautilus Nitro Bicep Curl @ 80lbs

Time = 28:45
Avg HR = 101 bpm (yep, pretty low)
Peak HR = 149 bpm
K Burned = 196

I went to the gym at 9:30pm and for the life of me, I could not keep my heart rate up. It spiked when I ran and went up the steps, but during the weight training I could not keep it up. It could be because it was late night, or perhaps I am just getting in better shape, not sure. Of course, I hadn't had any caffeine anytime near the workout either.

Cybex 750AT

I selected the heart rate program (P9) and put in 152 bpm and 30 minutes. Unlike the Precor 100i, this is really just 30 minutes. It had me on really high resistance since my heart rate wasn't going up as much as it normally does and so it was as much an endurance/strength training as it was cardio. It works with my chest strap, so I just compared calories this time (and the machine didn't display the other info).

Avg HR = 141 bpm
Peak HR = 158 bpm
K Burned = 322 (750AT); 420
(watch)