Suggestion for Tracking Mileage

Posts: 2,748
8/31/12 9:24 P

THANK YOU!!!

Pounds lost: 18.0

0 6.25 12.5 18.75

25

SparkPoints: (158,833)
Fitness Minutes: (112,042)
Posts: 46,222
8/31/12 9:06 P

Hi,

If you are using the new Fitness tracker, when you click on the mileage tab you will be taken to the Track Today's Distance page. On the right hand side of the page under the Optional comments box, you can select the option to manually enter your calories burn. This will bring up your calories burn box.

I hope this helps!

Coach Nancy

Edited by: SP_COACH_NANCY at: 8/31/2012 (21:07)

1 Days until:  The Historic MC 1/2 Marathon

50 37 25 12

0

Posts: 2,748
8/31/12 8:10 P

I have another suggestion for mileage tracking - I'd like the option to enter my calories burned instead of using the site estimate. If there is already a way to do this, please let me know.

example - tonight I did a sprint run on the treadmill. According to my HRM, I burned just over 1000 calories in 70 minutes. If I put my total mileage & time in the mileage tracker, it shows less than 300. I changed the entry to show walking and running separate, and that bumped the total up almost to 500.

I know there's lots of debate on this, but it just seems that something that tracks my heart rate while I'm exercising, and knows my age and weight, would be more accurate than the estimates currently available (especially when intensity is not taken into account by the mileage tracker).

or add the option to report intensity or average heart rate when using the mileage tracker. The FitLinxx site has these options and it gets much closer to the total calories burned that my HRM shows.


I use the manual calorie entry options that are available for other exercises when there is consistently a big difference in the site estimate and what my HRM shows.

thanks for your input!

Pounds lost: 18.0

0 6.25 12.5 18.75

25

SparkPoints: (158,833)
Fitness Minutes: (112,042)
Posts: 46,222
8/31/12 4:35 P

Hi Amy,

The steps tracker is for feedback but does not factor in calories burn like the mileage tracker does. It is up to you as to whether you want to track them in both your steps tracker and fitness tracker, as part of your formal exercise, or you track the steps you do above and beyond formal exercise (which is what I do). I run between 5-12 miles a day, but I only track the steps I do outside my runs.

I hope this helps!

Coach Nancy

Edited by: SP_COACH_NANCY at: 8/31/2012 (16:35)

1 Days until:  The Historic MC 1/2 Marathon

50 37 25 12

0

Posts: 932
8/31/12 4:25 P

~~~~Steps tracking is what you should be using if you are using your FitBit for all-day use--where it counts the number of steps you are using. Because we are all encourage to walk 10,000 steps a day, in a addition to any formal exercise we do~~~~

Just the question I wanted to ask. I am wearing a Striiv (received yesterday). I formally walk/jog 4 miles a day...which is roughly 95 minutes and between 10,000 and 11,500 steps. I also wear it the rest of the day. How should I enter it in my fitness tracker?

current weight: 157.3

160 152 144 136

128

SparkPoints: (158,833)
Fitness Minutes: (112,042)
Posts: 46,222
8/31/12 12:38 P

Thanks for the guidance!

Coach Nancy

1 Days until:  The Historic MC 1/2 Marathon

50 37 25 12

0

SparkPoints: (71,833)
Fitness Minutes: (60,469)
Posts: 1,073
8/31/12 9:46 A

I live in Europe but I understand you can get poles even at WalMart in the states. I got mine from a regular sporting goods store and there are different lengths, depending on your height. I am 5 feet 8 inches and my poles are 115 centimeters long. The brand name of my poles is Leki (which is kind of the best you can buy) but other poles can be just as good. Important factors are:

the length has to be right for you (get advice in a store)
your should have a sort of glove rather than just a loop for your wrist
try to get poles that are light (carbon are the lightest)

In case you or any other readers out there are interested, come and join our SparkTeam - "Nordic Walking - Pole Walking Sparkers"

Nordic Walking was developed by professional skiers, in order to keep them in shape for competition, even when there is no snow on the ground. It is really a great sport!

Maybe one day we'll get our own emoticon!?!?!

May Minutes: 1,812

0 18.75 37.5 56.25

75

SparkPoints: (158,833)
Fitness Minutes: (112,042)
Posts: 46,222
8/31/12 9:28 A

Thanks for the clarification. I will pass along your suggestion.

At the lake where I run, I see lots of people using the Nordic poles when walking and wow, it is definitely something I think I am going to give a try after my marathon in October.

If you don't mind me asking, where did you get your poles? Are there different sizes for shorter people like me?



Coach Nancy

1 Days until:  The Historic MC 1/2 Marathon

50 37 25 12

0

SparkPoints: (71,833)
Fitness Minutes: (60,469)
Posts: 1,073
8/31/12 9:16 A

Coach Nancy,

Thanks for the quick reply. Most of my mileage comes from Nordic Walking sessions, not just casual walking (although there is some of that in there too). I estimate that on weekdays, I walk about 2500 steps casual walking and 10,000-12,000 with my Nordic Walking.

May Minutes: 1,812

0 18.75 37.5 56.25

75

SparkPoints: (158,833)
Fitness Minutes: (112,042)
Posts: 46,222
8/31/12 9:13 A

Hi,

I will pass along your suggestion.

That being said, are you tracking your mileage from casual walking in your Fitness tracker, which accounts for calories expended? Mileage tracking is one thing, step tracking is something else.

Steps tracking is what you should be using if you are using your FitBit for all-day use--where it counts the number of steps you are using. Because we are all encourage to walk 10,000 steps a day, in a addition to any formal exercise we do, including a fast pace walk, running, swimming, etc, if one tracks steps as mileage. you are getting calories burn credit, which may hype-rinflate your calories burn goal which could slow your progress over time.

Coach Nancy

1 Days until:  The Historic MC 1/2 Marathon

50 37 25 12

0

SparkPoints: (71,833)
Fitness Minutes: (60,469)
Posts: 1,073
8/31/12 5:33 A

I do a LOT of walking and to support that, I use a FitBit. My FitBit sends me a report of how many miles I walked in a week. On SparkPeople there is also the ability to track your mileage for a week but you have to enter the time spent doing this. That means, on the day I get my report from FitBit, I enter my weekly mileage and have to estimate my time based on my mph. Today for example, I supposedly walked 734 minutes. That is of course not really true for today.

I know that the Spark application expects you to enter mileage after each session, which would make entering time easy. But for Fitbit users, it is so much simpler and more exact to do it once a week when we get our reports.

Can you make it possible to enter weekly mileage without entering a duration time for those miles?

I just saw that another member entered more or less the same forum post. See here: http://www.sparkpeople.com/myspark/messageboard.asp?imboard=5&imparent=28681271

Thanks in advance and keep on Sparkin'!

Edited by: DIETCOLALOLA at: 8/31/2012 (05:36)

May Minutes: 1,812

0 18.75 37.5 56.25

75