Calories Burned Calculator

How calories burned are calculated

Exercise scientists measure effort in METs (metabolic equivalents). One MET is the energy you use sitting quietly at rest. An activity rated at 4 METs uses about four times as much energy as resting.

The standard equation, used by the American College of Sports Medicine, is:

Calories per minute = MET × 3.5 × Body weight (kg) ÷ 200

Multiply by the minutes of activity to get the total. The 3.5 is the oxygen (in mL per kg per minute) the body uses at rest.

Worked example

A 160 lb (72.6 kg) person walks briskly at 3.5 mph (4.3 METs) for 30 minutes:

4.3 × 3.5 × 72.6 ÷ 200 × 30 ≈ 164 calories

The same person running at 6 mph (9.8 METs) for 30 minutes burns about 373 calories.

Gross and net calories

The total above includes the calories your body would have burned anyway at rest. The net figure subtracts that resting amount, using MET − 1 in the same formula. Net calories are the better number to use when you are tracking a calorie deficit for weight loss.

MET values for common activities

• Yoga: about 2.5
• Walking at 3 mph: about 3.5
• Weight lifting, moderate: about 3.5
• Elliptical trainer, moderate: about 5.0
• Swimming laps, moderate: about 5.8
• Cycling at 12 to 14 mph: about 8.0
• Running at 6 mph: about 9.8
• Jumping rope: about 11.8

These values come from the Compendium of Physical Activities, a research list of the energy cost of hundreds of activities.

How to use the calories burned calculator

1. Choose your activity. Pick the closest match from the list. If your activity is not there, choose "Other" and enter its MET value.
2. Enter your body weight. Heavier people burn more calories doing the same activity, because they move more mass.
3. Enter the duration in minutes. Count only the time you were active, not rest breaks.
4. Read the results. You see the calories burned, the rate per hour, the extra calories above what you burn at rest, and a comparison of popular activities for the same time.

The results are estimates for an average person. Your real burn depends on your fitness, age, sex, body composition, the terrain, the weather and how hard you actually work. Fitness trackers and heart rate monitors can give a more personal figure.