hockeymom3

Q: Inconsistant Results: Workout/Activity/Exercise

I have an Apple Watch that is giving very inconsistent results.  Perhaps someone can explain the differences to me? Yesterday I went for a long bike ride (130 minutes) and set the workout app to Outdoor Biking.  I also wore my Polar watch and my Polar heart rate chest strap (which does not connect to the watch) to see if the results were consistent.  I also used MapMyRide app on my iPhone 5s to verify speed/mileage.  At the end of the ride, MapMyRide told me I had ridden 28.05 miles and the apple watch told me 27.95. Close enough. The Apple Watch and the Polar Watch said I had biked for 130 minutes.  Both watches and mapmyride are set with my "statistics" Female, age 51, 5'5, 147lbs.

 

Now for the inconsistency: The Polar Watch told me I had burned 830 calories with an average heart rate of 124.  The Apple Watch told me I burned a TOTAL of 559 ( Active 371 Resting 188) with an avg heart rate of 124.  Why the calorie calculation difference? Any biking calorie calculator (adjusted for weight and biking speed) will also show that your burn a minimum 500 calories/hr, although they don't take into consideration heart rate.  How can the Apple Watch calculation be so much lower?

 

Finally, the Activity App said at the end of the day, I only had "Exercise" of 65 minutes, but the Workout shows 130 minutes? why wouldn't the Exercise be at least the same as the Workout, if not higher given other activities (like walking the dog) throughout the day?

iMac, OS X Mountain Lion

Posted on May 3, 2015 7:52 AM

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Q: Inconsistant Results: Workout/Activity/Exercise

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  • by deggie,

    deggie deggie May 27, 2015 12:33 PM in response to josephine280
    Level 9 (54,563 points)
    iPhone
    May 27, 2015 12:33 PM in response to josephine280

    The watch can account for elevation which is why they suggest that calibration be done on level ground. It also factors in your heart rate. I believe in your case Runkeeper is wrong about the calories a leisurely 4 mile walk is not going to burn 412 calories.

  • by josephine280,

    josephine280 josephine280 May 27, 2015 12:55 PM in response to deggie
    Level 1 (0 points)
    May 27, 2015 12:55 PM in response to deggie

    Every calculator I found on the web showed a calorie burn of at least the high 300s for that pace and and total distance. So I'm wondering if Apple's calculation is off or I just somehow have such a low HR that I'm burning fewer calories than one would normally expect. I doubt that it's the latter, as I'm not particularly fit.

  • by deggie,

    deggie deggie May 27, 2015 12:56 PM in response to josephine280
    Level 9 (54,563 points)
    iPhone
    May 27, 2015 12:56 PM in response to josephine280

    What was your average heart rate during your walk?

  • by josephine280,

    josephine280 josephine280 May 27, 2015 1:02 PM in response to deggie
    Level 1 (0 points)
    May 27, 2015 1:02 PM in response to deggie

    I don't know how to find the average HR. Health has a record of the workout stats, and it has a separate record of my HR, but I don't know where to go to find the average HR for the workout.

  • by josephine280,

    josephine280 josephine280 May 27, 2015 1:04 PM in response to josephine280
    Level 1 (0 points)
    May 27, 2015 1:04 PM in response to josephine280

    Found it in Activity. 122 BPM

  • by deggie,

    deggie deggie May 27, 2015 1:11 PM in response to josephine280
    Level 9 (54,563 points)
    iPhone
    May 27, 2015 1:11 PM in response to josephine280

    Check the Activity app on your iPhone.

     

    Also when you complete a workout you can scroll down and it will give the average heart rate.

  • by josephine280,

    josephine280 josephine280 May 27, 2015 1:18 PM in response to josephine280
    Level 1 (0 points)
    May 27, 2015 1:18 PM in response to josephine280

    Yeah, I found it. I just couldn't post because the thread had reached some limit? HR was 122.

  • by deggie,

    deggie deggie May 27, 2015 1:21 PM in response to josephine280
    Level 9 (54,563 points)
    iPhone
    May 27, 2015 1:21 PM in response to josephine280

    That should get you a bit higher than you are showing depending on your age and weight. Did you have your iPhone with you during this walk?

  • by josephine280,

    josephine280 josephine280 May 27, 2015 1:25 PM in response to deggie
    Level 1 (0 points)
    May 27, 2015 1:25 PM in response to deggie

    Yes. I'm 5'8" and 192 lbs. I used to run but I had several injuries and have been fairly sedentary in the last year (which is why I'd be surprised if my heart rate was particuarly low).

  • by deggie,

    deggie deggie May 27, 2015 1:28 PM in response to josephine280
    Level 9 (54,563 points)
    iPhone
    May 27, 2015 1:28 PM in response to josephine280

    You might want to show your doctor your Activity results. My Doctor says most apps an suggested calculators are far too liberal in estimating calories burned.

  • by josephine280,

    josephine280 josephine280 May 27, 2015 1:32 PM in response to deggie
    Level 1 (0 points)
    May 27, 2015 1:32 PM in response to deggie

    I've heard that too. It doesn't really matter to me much, since I'm going to exercise at whatever level I can manage, anyway. I'm really only interested in HR in so far as we've got a lot of heart disease history in our family. Thanks, though.

  • by ChangedtoGSIII,

    ChangedtoGSIII ChangedtoGSIII Jun 7, 2015 4:37 PM in response to Winston Churchill
    Level 1 (0 points)
    Jun 7, 2015 4:37 PM in response to Winston Churchill

    You're missing the point.  If you read Apple's published information about calibrating the watch, Apple says the purpose of calibrating the watch is so you can use the watch outside without bringing your iphone.  That's the ONLY reason Apple states.  So, calibrating the watch has NOTHING to do with using the watch indoors. 

    There is a problem with how the watch calculates total calorie burn.  It's obvious from your posts that you don't understand the frustration of those of us who have Garmin/Polar watches with Heart Rate Monitors (HRMs, the straps we wear on our chests) and have results from these devices that are 50% to 100% higher from the results produced from the Apple Watch.  Also, you can enter your age, weight, average heart rate during the exercise, and the time spent exercise on one of literally 100s of websites, like WebMD, and they all provide accurate results that are considerably higher than the Apple Watch. 

    If Apple can't produce correct results, then Apple shouldn't be marketing the watch as a fitness device, which they do on the Apple Watch home page.  I don't understand why they even bother with an exercise app (yes, they made one, it's on the watch) with various aerobic exercises; most produce incorrect results.

    The good news is I can use the stats from my Apple Watch, enter them into an online calorie burn calculator, then manually enter those results into MyFitnessPal.  I just wish I could use reliable results from my Apple Watch.

  • by ChangedtoGSIII,

    ChangedtoGSIII ChangedtoGSIII Jun 7, 2015 4:49 PM in response to bevaroo117
    Level 1 (0 points)
    Jun 7, 2015 4:49 PM in response to bevaroo117

    100% Agree. 

     

    I contacted support, they sent me a box so I can send them my watch.  I explained there's nothing wrong with the watch, the problem is with the Algorithm determining calories burned.  I thanked the support person, but told him I didn't want ship my watch off somewhere for two weeks so they could do a software refresh that would do nothing more than erase my settings.  I did ask him to escalate the issue.  He told me he would; maybe he did. :-)

     

    The following day, I went to a local Apple Store, they (it was mid afternoon and quiet, so there was a small group of Applites) told me that the Apple workers who have Apple Watches have the same problem.  They have escalated to Apple Tech Support and they hope the issue will be resolved with a software update.

  • by Winston Churchill,

    Winston Churchill Winston Churchill Jun 8, 2015 5:57 AM in response to ChangedtoGSIII
    Level 10 (103,708 points)
    Apple TV
    Jun 8, 2015 5:57 AM in response to ChangedtoGSIII

    ChangedtoGSIII wrote:

     

    You're missing the point.  If you read Apple's published information about calibrating the watch, Apple says the purpose of calibrating the watch is so you can use the watch outside without bringing your iphone.  That's the ONLY reason Apple states.  So, calibrating the watch has NOTHING to do with using the watch indoors.

    You may live in a better climate than I do, but if my treadmill was outdoors it would represent a hazard with rain and electricity.

     

    cal.jpg

     

    Personally, I don't think Apple expect you to use a treadmill outdoors either, so I think it's you that might be missing the point and that calibration is intended to improve accuracy indoors too.

  • by bevaroo117,

    bevaroo117 bevaroo117 Jun 8, 2015 6:44 AM in response to ChangedtoGSIII
    Level 1 (0 points)
    Jun 8, 2015 6:44 AM in response to ChangedtoGSIII

    It's obvious from your posts that you don't understand the frustration of those of us who have Garmin/Polar watches with Heart Rate Monitors (HRMs, the straps we wear on our chests) and have results from these devices that are 50% to 100% higher from the results produced from the Apple Watch.  Also, you can enter your age, weight, average heart rate during the exercise, and the time spent exercise on one of literally 100s of websites, like WebMD, and they all provide accurate results that are considerably higher than the Apple Watch.

    If Apple can't produce correct results, then Apple shouldn't be marketing the watch as a fitness device, which they do on the Apple Watch home page.  I don't understand why they even bother with an exercise app (yes, they made one, it's on the watch) with various aerobic exercises; most produce incorrect results.

    The good news is I can use the stats from my Apple Watch, enter them into an online calorie burn calculator, then manually enter those results into MyFitnessPal.  I just wish I could use reliable results from my Apple Watch.

    Just want to echo what ChangedtoGSIII said above, I wholeheartedly agree.  Winston Churchill and  Apple themselves "don't understand the frustration of those of us who have Garmin/Polar watches with chest-strap HRMs."  I am not a casual exerciser, I do intense activity several times a week, sometimes for several hours at a time for distance road cycling.  Sometimes I burn up to 4000 calories a day from exercise, so it's important I have an accurate understanding of my output so I don't overeat or undereat.  Chest-strap HRMs are the most accurate heart-rate measures, and combined with your age/weight/height metrics can give pretty accurate caloric output data in the Garmin or Fitibit or Polar platforms.  The Apple watch does not do this the way those brands do. 

     

    Those folks above who keep commenting that "the heart rate on the apple watch is the same as my treadmill right now" or who compare the Apple Watch HR reading to their fitness equipment sensors readings don't get it.  When you put your hands on the sensor of exercise equipment it is probably telling you the correct HR at that exact moment, sure.  But only for the 10 seconds you have your hands there.  Serious athletes don't use the sensors on equipment because they don't provide accurate OVERALL picture of your workouts.  And the treadmill at the gym is designed for an average person of the weight you enter.  It doesn't factor height or sex to determine caloric output... nor does it track every second of your HR like a chest-strap HRM would.

     

    4 weeks into owning my Apple Watch and the fitness tracking is still unreliable.  The overall workout data is wildly inaccurate.  The HR stops tracking halfway through workouts. My total resting calories are measured at 2988 daily on the Apple Watch when they should be 1600 according to my basal-metabolic rate (BMR) as agreed upon by physiologists everywhere.  Apple Watch is useless as a fitness data tracker and it should be EASY for them to fix the algorithm to make it right.

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