There are various ways to judge the overall success, or progression during a diet or exercise routine. The idea of counting a specific metric to do such is all over mainstream media in our society. Those individuals who are looking to lose weight count calories, carbohydrates, points, fat, etc. When it comes to diet and exercise regimens, we are programmed in our society to think of our success or failure in our workout by looking primarily at one thing – calories burned. Let’s examine an alternative to the traditional method, and look at the use of METs in evaluating the overall success of an exercise program. First, what exactly is a MET anyway? A MET or Metabolic Equivalent of Task is a ratio that compares an individual’s metabolic rate
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So, 1 MET is the rate at which oxygen is consumed by an adult at rest. This can also be referred to as Resting Oxygen Consumption. The harder an individual works, the more oxygen the body requires, and so therefore, the MET level increases with the intensity of the specific activity performed. So what is the significance of METs to an individual training according to a specific exercise regimen? METs are important to any exercise program because, simply put, they tell you how much intensity you are applying to your workout. If you are using an exercise machine at a gym, many cardio machines will provide this information on the screen which provides you real time data, while you are performing the task. As your fitness level increases, you should be able to achieve a higher MET level with the same level of effort previously put forth. To put it another way, if you maintain your exercise regimen, you will be able to perform the same tasks with a lower level of exertion (lower MET level) than previously able. For example, let’s say that you could run 1 eight minute mile on a treadmill at a MET level of …show more content…
One can determine the activities to be performed by consulting a MET chart. There are several websites where detailed MET charts are available online. One such website belongs to The Arnold School of Public Health Prevention Research Center. The school has a detailed chart of METs for various activities, and the chart can be viewed at: http://prevention.sph.sc.edu/tools/docs/documents_compendium.pdf . If you still want to rely on calories burned, METs can be converted to calories burned, by using this equation: kcal/min = METs × body weight in kilograms ÷ 60. Keep in mind, that calories burned are contingent upon the weight of an individual that is performing the task – i.e. it takes more energy to move more weight than less weight. METs are a better overall indicator of workout success, because it takes the weight variable out of the equation, and allows for assessment regardless of a specific weight. Are METs or calories burned more accurate? These are essentially two different variables. METs measure the level of intensity of a task being performed, while calories burned represent the total amount of energy
So, 1 MET is the rate at which oxygen is consumed by an adult at rest. This can also be referred to as Resting Oxygen Consumption. The harder an individual works, the more oxygen the body requires, and so therefore, the MET level increases with the intensity of the specific activity performed. So what is the significance of METs to an individual training according to a specific exercise regimen? METs are important to any exercise program because, simply put, they tell you how much intensity you are applying to your workout. If you are using an exercise machine at a gym, many cardio machines will provide this information on the screen which provides you real time data, while you are performing the task. As your fitness level increases, you should be able to achieve a higher MET level with the same level of effort previously put forth. To put it another way, if you maintain your exercise regimen, you will be able to perform the same tasks with a lower level of exertion (lower MET level) than previously able. For example, let’s say that you could run 1 eight minute mile on a treadmill at a MET level of …show more content…
One can determine the activities to be performed by consulting a MET chart. There are several websites where detailed MET charts are available online. One such website belongs to The Arnold School of Public Health Prevention Research Center. The school has a detailed chart of METs for various activities, and the chart can be viewed at: http://prevention.sph.sc.edu/tools/docs/documents_compendium.pdf . If you still want to rely on calories burned, METs can be converted to calories burned, by using this equation: kcal/min = METs × body weight in kilograms ÷ 60. Keep in mind, that calories burned are contingent upon the weight of an individual that is performing the task – i.e. it takes more energy to move more weight than less weight. METs are a better overall indicator of workout success, because it takes the weight variable out of the equation, and allows for assessment regardless of a specific weight. Are METs or calories burned more accurate? These are essentially two different variables. METs measure the level of intensity of a task being performed, while calories burned represent the total amount of energy