How Do Calorie Counters on Nordic Tracks Work?

How Do Calorie Counters on Nordic Tracks Work?
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Models of Nordic Track exercise equipment include some type of display that gives you real-time feedback regarding your workout. Basic models may include speed, time and distance. You will also find models that provide more detailed information such as calorie and carbohydrate burn. Nordic Track carries a variety of exercise equipment from treadmills to ellipticals to step machines. Each type provides a different type of cardio workout.

Equipment Technology

The Nordic Track company prides itself on its innovative technology. Testing by their development team ensures that calorie counters on their devices are accurate within test settings. Calorie burn of participants using Nordic Track equipment can be calculated with measures of metabolic response such as carbon dioxide output. Armed with this information, the exercise equipment can be calibrated to provide accurate measurements.

Measuring Calories

The calorie burn on Nordic Track exercise equipment is an approximation based on distance and effort. The more intense your workout, the more calories you will burn. Calorie burn from 1 to 99.9 is displayed in calories and tenths of calories. After 99.9, the display will indicate calories burned as a whole number. Some models will also display the grams of carbohydrates burned. One g equals approximately nine calories. The rate of carbohydrate burn is therefore linked to your effort.

Setting Exercise Goals

The benefit of the calorie counter is to provide you with a means for gauging your performance. You will likely find that if you have a defined goal such as calorie burn, you can more easily set milestones for your exercise plan. Some models such as the treadmill X7i Incline Trainer include this feature. You can define the amount of calories you want to burn in a session. A progress bar will display your current status. This feature is helpful if you are following a weight loss plan and want to burn a certain amount of calories per day.

Expected Calorie Burn

A 150-lb. person using a Nordic Track stationary bike can burn about 477 calories an hour with moderate effort, according to the Health Status website. Using an elliptical, the same individual will burn about 773 calories an hour. The greater calorie burn comes from engaging more muscles with the arm action these machines use. With this base information, you can then use your Nordic Track to plan your exercise schedule. For weight loss, you should plan on exercising on your exercise equipment five to six days a week, recommends the American Council on Exercise.

References

Article reviewed by Allen Cone Last updated on: Jun 14, 2011

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