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At its simplest, weight management boils down to energy intake (what you consume during the day) versus energy output (physical activity and normal bodily functions). Physical activity and exercise are not only important for improving insulin sensitivity, blood pressure, cardiovascular health and even mental health, but also key to helping you manage or lose weight alongside a balanced diet.
Because physical activity may mean different things to different people based on one’s history with exercise, how their body is able to move, their age and their overall health and interests, you may be wondering how many calories you can burn by participating in different types of activities.
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The Calories Burned Calculator below can help you estimate how many calories you burn when completing a specific activity for a set period of time. While the estimates are very broad, this information can serve as a helpful starting point for anyone interested in learning how much energy their physical activity requires.
Calories Burned Calculator
Methodology: Why You Can Trust Our Calories Burned Calculator
To create this calculator, Forbes Health relied on physical activity data sourced by Harvard Health. This data curates calorie expenditures for an array of exercise activities performed for 30 minutes by people with four different body weights.
When an individual enters their body weight into the Forbes Health calculator, the formula uses the weight option in the data set closest to the user’s input to estimate their total calories burned. It also uses the 30-minute interval in the baseline data as a multiplier to account for the length of active time entered by the user.
Due to these limitations, this calculator provides a very general estimate of calories burned during activity and should not be used for medical purposes.
How Many Calories Should I Burn a Day for Weight Loss?
The number of calories you can burn in a day is dependent on a variety of factors, including your age, sex, body weight and more. These factors, coupled with different types of physical activity or exercise, determine how many calories you’re able to burn daily (you even burn calories when you sleep).
The cornerstone of weight loss is burning more calories than you consume, which is where our Calories Burned Calculator can come in handy, as it can help you plan your exercise routine if you have a certain weight loss goal in mind. In general, healthy weight loss occurs at a pace of 1 to 2 pounds per week, which amounts to a reduction in net calories by 500 per day for many people, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
While reducing the number of calories you consume (via a more restrictive diet or other food modification) may be beneficial for weight loss in the short term, recent research reveals that only restricting calories over the long term may actually result in a reduced metabolic rate and increase in appetite, making weight loss difficult to maintain[1].
Because of this effect, some research around weight loss and weight management recommends thinking beyond simply reducing calories and instead working to understand the different components of the food you eat in terms of how satisfied you feel after eating and the types of foods you’re consuming (energy-dense foods like fruits and vegetables versus less energy-dense foods like white bread and chips).
While the process of weight loss itself requires a calorie deficit on a biological level, if you’re looking for sustainable approach to weight loss or weight management, it may be beneficial to address the types of foods you eat (i.e focusing on a nutrient-dense menu), as well as your overall relationship with food and eating.
What Exercise Burns the Most Calories?
The more you elevate your heart rate during physical activity, the more energy you exert and thus the more calories you burn. While everyone has a different output level that depends on a number of factors, there are a few types of exercise that tend to burn more calories than others. Some of these activities include:
- Biking (stationary or outdoors)
- Swimming (which has the additional benefit of being a low-impact exercise)
- Rowing
- Running
- Jumping rope
- High-intensity interval training (HIIT), an alternation of periods of intense movement and rest
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How Many Calories Do I Need to Eat a Day?
The amount of calories you should aim to eat daily depends on a few factors, including your age, sex, weight, height and level of physical activity. However, current calorie requirements, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture and U.S. Department of Health and Human Services’ Dietary Guidelines for Americans 2020-2025, suggest females ages 19 to 30 require about 1,800 to 2,400 calories a day, and males ages 19 to 30 require about 2,400 to 3,000 calories a day. Adults ages 31 to 59 generally require fewer calories, according to the guidelines: Most females require about 1,600 to 2,200 calories a day and males require about 2,200 to 3,000 calories a day[2].
It should be noted that these calorie ranges are what a person needs to survive—not necessarily to thrive (especially if one is active)—so the first step in understanding how many calories you need daily includes talking with your health care provider or a nutritionist.
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Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
How can I calculate how many calories I burn?
If you’re looking for an estimate of how many calories your body burns daily, consider calculating your total daily energy expenditure, or TDEE, with the Forbes Health TDEE Calculator. TDEE estimates how many calories your body burns daily by accounting for three major contributing factors: your basal metabolic rate (BMR), your activity level and the thermic effect of food metabolism.
How many calories do I naturally burn a day?
Your basal metabolic rate (BMR) is the amount of energy your body needs daily to continue basic bodily functions like keeping your heart beating, breathing and regulating body temperature. Most people burn 40 to 55 calories per hour while sleeping and a bit more while sitting up and watching television or reading, according to Harvard Medical School researchers.
Your BMR may change over time due to factors like illness, muscle mass changes and/or age. Your BMR may also slow due to a severe restriction of caloric intake, which is why maintaining weight loss in the long term can be difficult for people who exclusively count calories.
Is burning 500 calories a day too much?
The appropriate intensity and duration of physical activity (which largely affects how many calories you burn) is unique to every individual. Outputs that feel good and sustainable vary from person to person. Your health care provider can help you determine how much activity is safe for you based on your health status, general energy intake, lifestyle factors and more.
If you’re currently living with extra weight or obesity and looking to lose weight, burning 500 calories a day via safe physical activity could be a good place to start, as it may result in the loss of 1 pound a week. Consult your health care provider before starting a new exercise regimen to ensure its safety for your specific situation.
