# Understanding MET Minutes **URL:** \ **Category:** Training Q&A \[Moderated\]\ **Created:** [October 20, 2026, 2:35pm UTC](https://forum.barbellmedicine.com/t/understanding-met-minutes/20190 "2026-10-20T14:35:29Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 5\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![David\_Oswald](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/838e76/32.png) [@David\_Oswald](https://forum.barbellmedicine.com/u/David_Oswald)\ **Post date:** [October 20, 2026, 2:35pm UTC](https://forum.barbellmedicine.com/t/understanding-met-minutes/20190/1 "2026-10-20T14:35:29Z")
I thought I was doing the bare minimum at 150 minutes of LISS a week so I plugged last week’s cardio into Gemini and it spit out 1,200 MET minutes last week. Are these calculations valid? This would be double the minimum recommendations. For context I’m 39 and my resting heart rate is around 55 BPM. | **Exercise** | **Duration** | **Avg HR** | **% of Your HRR** | **Personalized METs** | **Weekly MET-Minutes** | | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | | **Spin Bike** | 45 mins | 120 BPM | 51.6% (Moderate) | **7.8 METs** | **349 MET-minutes** | | **Rowing Machine** | 45 mins | 130 BPM | 59.5% (Vigorous) | **8.8 METs** | **396 MET-minutes** | | **[Incline Walking](https://www.google.com/search?q=Incline+Walking)** | 30 mins | 130 BPM | 59.5% (Vigorous) | **8.8 METs** | **264 MET-minutes** | | **Stair Climbing** | 30 mins | 130 BPM | 59.5% (Vigorous) | **8.8 METs** | **264 MET-minutes** | **Total Personalized Volume:** **1,273 MET-minutes** ---
**Author:** ![Jordan\_Feigenbaum](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/flex001/user_avatar/forum.barbellmedicine.com/jordan_feigenbaum/32/1315_2.png) [@Jordan\_Feigenbaum](https://forum.barbellmedicine.com/u/Jordan_Feigenbaum)\ **Post date:** [October 20, 2026, 3:10pm UTC](https://forum.barbellmedicine.com/t/understanding-met-minutes/20190/2 "2026-10-20T15:10:52Z")
No, the calculations aren’t valid…though they’re not far off! A MET is a fixed estimate of an activity’s energy cost relative to sitting still, where 1 MET is about 3.5 mL of oxygen per kilogram per minute. Each activity draws its number from a published compendium built on (now) population averages. The value belongs to the activity, not to you, so there’s no legitimate step where you scale it up by your percent heart-rate reserve. Your heart rate does map to how hard the effort is relative to your own fitness, but this is a different thing from the energy the activity costs. Using the same week through standard compendium values and it looks closer to this: - Spin, 45 min at ~7 METs ≈ 315 - Rowing, 45 min at ~7 ≈ 315 - Incline walking, 30 min at ~6 ≈ 180 - Stair climber, 30 min at ~9 ≈ 270 That comes to roughly 1,080 MET-minutes, which is still at the maximum of the guideline minimums. Pretty good! -Jordan For more on METs: > **[Max Heart Rate Zone Calculator](https://www.barbellmedicine.com/resources/max-heart-rate-and-zone-calculator/)** > > Enter your age below in the calculator to see the predicted heart rates for each of the 5 Training Zones. ---
**Author:** ![David\_Oswald](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/838e76/32.png) [@David\_Oswald](https://forum.barbellmedicine.com/u/David_Oswald)\ **Post date:** [October 20, 2026, 3:20pm UTC](https://forum.barbellmedicine.com/t/understanding-met-minutes/20190/3 "2026-10-20T15:20:06Z")
Thank you. I thought I was doing the minimum and I was actually doing far more. I think I’m going to actually reduce my total time by about 30 minutes and focus on intensity twice a week as this is a lot of time in the gym. Quick question. Is there a pronounced benefit to having a “long day” of cardio a week? So if I reduce my total time doing cardio form 150 minutes to 120, and add HIIT twice a week, does it make sense to have a single 45 or 60 minute session? Does a single long effort provide an adaption that multiple 30 minute sessions miss? ---
**Author:** ![Jordan\_Feigenbaum](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/flex001/user_avatar/forum.barbellmedicine.com/jordan_feigenbaum/32/1315_2.png) [@Jordan\_Feigenbaum](https://forum.barbellmedicine.com/u/Jordan_Feigenbaum)\ **Post date:** [October 20, 2026, 5:26pm UTC](https://forum.barbellmedicine.com/t/understanding-met-minutes/20190/4 "2026-10-20T17:26:00Z")
We don’t _really_ know, but I do suspect there are unique advantages to longer efforts when it comes to building cardiorespiratory fitness. ---
**Author:** ![David\_Oswald](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/838e76/32.png) [@David\_Oswald](https://forum.barbellmedicine.com/u/David_Oswald)\ **Post date:** [October 20, 2026, 6:14pm UTC](https://forum.barbellmedicine.com/t/understanding-met-minutes/20190/5 "2026-10-20T18:14:58Z")
Thanks Jordan, I appreciate it.