How Many Calories Are Burned During Exercise?

If you have made a commitment to improve your fitness, you may be investigating all of the different pieces of exercise equipment available and trying to determine which one will help you burn the most calories, giving you the best workout possible.

One measurement to determine the cardio fitness you are achieving from the machine is the number of calories burned. Calorie burning gives you an indication of how many extra calories you are expending to complete the exercise. If you continue to burn more calories everyday that you consume, the result will be a net weight loss. Remember that 3,500 calories equals one pound of fat!

It can be confusing given the vastly different exercise machines out there. This calorie comparison chart gives you an opportunity to quickly see how the various pieces of cardiovascular equipment stack up against one another.

Equipment	Amount of Time	Number of Calories Burned
Treadmill	60 minutes	705 - 865
Stationary Cycle	60 minutes	596 – 604
Cross Country Ski Machine	60 minutes	595 – 678
Rowing Machine	60 minutes	606 - 739
Stair Climber	60 minutes	637 - 746
Elliptical Trainer	60 minutes	645 - 710
Moderate Swimming	60 minutes	345 - 450
Intense Step Aerobics	60 minutes	600 - 650
Jogging	60 minutes	397 - 556
Moderate Skating	60 minutes	295 - 400

With regards to the elliptical trainer specifically, most manufactures claim that you can burn up to 720 calories an hour with an elliptical workout. Here's some weight and sex specific estimates:

•  150 pound woman, 30 minutes of elliptical exercise: 387 calories

•  180 pound man, 30 minutes of elliptical exercise: 464 - 500 calories

•  120 pound woman, 30 minutes of elliptical exercise: 310 calories

There are many individual factors such as your metabolic rate, and equipment related factors that affect the number of calories burned on each piece of equipment:

•  Interval training

•  Tension settings

•  Weight

•  Body Composition – muscle to fat ratio

•  Whether you are new to exercise or a regular exerciser

•  If you are male or female

•  Upper body usage.

For example, on a treadmill, if you have increased the incline significantly, you will be burning more calories than if you were working on a straight plane. On the rowing machine, if you have set the tension quite high, you will be burning more calories than if the tension was fairly light. You get the picture. The harder you challenge yourself, the greater the results. Try not to get too hung up on calories burned during your workout. While this is useful information to help you gauge how you are working at each workout, it is only an estimate. The most important factors are working out to the best of your ability and having fun!

All the best,

Blake