Accuracy of Polar "calories burned" study: in plain english

[easterbird]

Maillotpois: thanks for reply...yes it was 1988 when I was 40 and 'stuck' at same weight. Of course after having study done I 'forgot' about it or ignored it until now. And gained and lost same 30-40 # several times so numbers are probably even worse right I am a retired chemist,love data and I really weigh,measure,count stuff including the wine I do consume. I have a spread sheet where I calculate nutritional info for my own recipes( a nut in other words
I really am a new rider so don't know about the right drinks,I just found some more stuff on nutrition etc here on TE so will read and see what I can find. I tried a drink called endurance formula gatorade!!YUCK!! are they all that bad?

[maillotpois]

Sounds like you're a good nut.

Try a bunch of different drinks - regular gatorade, powerade, cytomax, whatever. Maybe dilute them a bit. There are a lot of options out there and it should certainly help the cramping.

[SnappyPix]

OwnCal predicts my VO2 max to be 51. Testing showed it to be 41.

I'm very dubious about Polar's fit-test and VO2 max calculations. I've got the Polar F11 and the fit-test can vary over quite a large range for me - anything between 43 and 59, for example. 59 puts me in the elite group for my age. I don't think so!!
Interestingly, if I take the test under "ideal" conditions - ie rested, caffeine/alcohol free, no distractions, etc. the result is typically lower.
If I take the test when I've had my first cup of tea and/or have had a couple of glasses of wine the night before, the results are higher.
As I understand, the test is based not just on the resting heart rate, but on heart rate variability for the duration of the test (along with gender, height, weight, etc). A faster, more erratic resting heart rate puts me in a fitter VO2 category.