[AmandaB]

Hi
I'm new to this web site and I think it's great. I have just started Weight watchers but I have only got stuff by buying in from their web site. None of the stuff I bought had the value of the points you can gain because of exercise. I am going to the gym for an hour a day, three times a week. I would like to know how to work out this (the machines are telling me that I'm burning approximately 400 calories while I'm there)
Thanks for your help

[Thenewanjie]

i think that for every 20 minutes you exercise PAST the 20 minutes/day required, you get one point. So exercising for an hour a day will get you 2 extra points per day, but an hour a day 3 times a week will get you 2 extra points for the week. (I think that is how is works, but I think you are supposed to try and get in that 20 minutes per day of exercise, also.)

[gsc4]

Be a little wary of the accuracy of the calories burned displays on fitness machines. A mainstream fitness magazine did a study a while back (sorry, I don't remember exactly where I read this) and they concluded that most of the health club quality fitness machines were OVER-estimating calories burned by at least 10%. Some machines were more inaccurate than others. They suggested entering a weight about 10-20% lower than your actual weight to compensate for the inaccuracy. Don't worry, the weight you enter has nothing to do with how the machine sets resistance, weight is only used to calculate calorie expenditure.

You are better off measuring your workout by the Perceived Rate of Exertion (PRE) scale. This method matches the WW Light - Moderate - High categories of calculating earned activity points closer.

You need to buy yourself a WW Activity points slider or WW calculator. Either of these will calculate WW Activity points for you. Or sign up for WW online and there is an Activity Points calculator there also.

[AmandaB]

Thanks guys this has helped. (I have to admit there are some equipment in the gym that says I'm burning lots of calories and others that I feel like I'm burning lots of calories tell me that I haven't done many.