Long drives wear you out, but is it any more burn than just sitting around?

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CarvedTones
CarvedTones Posts: 2,340 Member
in Fitness and Exercise
The title is pretty much the question:

Long drives wear you out, but is it any more burn than just sitting around?

I just did a 4 day weekend and drove 18 hours to see my son for two and a half days. Good visit; it was worth it. It made me wonder - is there any extra burn to a drive? I feel physically worn out at the end of one, but I suspect it is more from confinement and not moving than from exertion. Driving a race car burns a lot, but I am talking about cruise control on the freeway with only a few turns at stops along the way and at each end. Not aerobic and not anaerobic, so I guess I know the likely answer...

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  • L1zardQueen
    L1zardQueen Posts: 8,754 Member
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    What is the calorie burn for reading a book? Probably along those lines. Paying attention, flipping pages.
  • Nony_Mouse
    Nony_Mouse Posts: 5,646 Member
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    Yup, you actually do burn more calories driving: https://captaincalculator.com/health/calorie/calories-burned-driving-calculator/
  • CarvedTones
    CarvedTones Posts: 2,340 Member
    edited October 2018
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    Nony_Mouse wrote: »
    Yup, you actually do burn more calories driving: https://captaincalculator.com/health/calorie/calories-burned-driving-calculator/

    That seems high. 2.5 MET? That would mean I burned several hundred calories each way (9 hours of actual driving in each direction). OTOH, I guess how much effort it is can depend on a few factors. For logistical reasons, I swapped cars with him and will swap back when he visits during the holidays. My car seems to have better power steering and is more wind resistant. On the way back, driving his car, my arms were tensed substantially more often that on the way up. That is something I had not thought about; it's basically low intensity isometrics that adds up over time.

    I notice I got a couple of Woos for asking a question and now it turns out it wasn't a stupid question at all.
  • MeanderingMammal
    MeanderingMammal Posts: 7,866 Member
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    CarvedTones wrote: »
    Nony_Mouse wrote: »
    Yup, you actually do burn more calories driving: https://captaincalculator.com/health/calorie/calories-burned-driving-calculator/

    That seems high. 2.5 MET? That would mean I burned several hundred calories each way (9 hours of actual driving in each direction). OTOH, I guess how much effort it is can depend on a few factors. For logistical reasons, I swapped cars with him and will swap back when he visits during the holidays. My car seems to have better power steering and is more wind resistant. On the way back, driving his car, my arms were tensed substantially more often that on the way up. That is something I had not thought about; it's basically low intensity isometrics that adds up over time.

    I notice I got a couple of Woos for asking a question and now it turns out it wasn't a stupid question at all.

    If you think about it, brain activity is one of the bigger contributors to BMR. If you're focussed on the drive, then you've got more activity.
  • Stockholm_Andy
    Stockholm_Andy Posts: 803 Member
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    Would you of otherwise just of been sat on your *kitten* for the 18 hours this weekend?

    For we if I have that much driving I'm missing a lot of other activity.

    I'm sceptical about cruise control driving burning more than negligible calories but even if it does its less than I would do otherwise.
  • AnnPT77
    AnnPT77 Posts: 32,154 Member
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    MeanderingMammal wrote: »
    CarvedTones wrote: »
    Nony_Mouse wrote: »
    Yup, you actually do burn more calories driving: https://captaincalculator.com/health/calorie/calories-burned-driving-calculator/

    That seems high. 2.5 MET? That would mean I burned several hundred calories each way (9 hours of actual driving in each direction). OTOH, I guess how much effort it is can depend on a few factors. For logistical reasons, I swapped cars with him and will swap back when he visits during the holidays. My car seems to have better power steering and is more wind resistant. On the way back, driving his car, my arms were tensed substantially more often that on the way up. That is something I had not thought about; it's basically low intensity isometrics that adds up over time.

    I notice I got a couple of Woos for asking a question and now it turns out it wasn't a stupid question at all.

    If you think about it, brain activity is one of the bigger contributors to BMR. If you're focussed on the drive, then you've got more activity.

    Brain is a big calorie consumer, but I don't know that "thinking harder" burns more. That little sucker is humming away in there doing stuff all the time. I know that the research says higher IQ isn't larger burn, and I think there's some suggesting that setting people hard intellectual problems doesn't move the needle much either. No cites at hand, though.
  • JeromeBarry1
    JeromeBarry1 Posts: 10,182 Member
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    https://632e345c-a-62cb3a1a-s-sites.googlegroups.com/site/compendiumofphysicalactivities/references/16 - Transportation2 - 2011 Compendium PA.pdf?attachauth=ANoY7crK3LM81dziDEaLfWgN20w3WscjgQP148QcfI_UxlJdZJMuA8WrVBo6JX5ZmYnTDNofdbpWCpyFvJHrdHL6d5_GqFpJcAV4xCV0Q3m-M_8-EtqwIfZcZTFGPwQxak9-HYGmTHBQNF_YUrjQCqOUEOqTNag7TKN1IFVip0jMWuSnof9s8fHZg0SiI5gGy0zm12oezaWWE5ZhZPpBeQ1e-B6lyiqZRC2F5h7ALod0IF3catJeBEf5y802_ZgnQdw3LMzg7BOOPauN8aFVF0yUgeWm5XcFDfw_y121YseCt2Du1D1mfSA=&attredirects=0

    This was linked from the captaincalculator site. Motorcycle riding is a higher burn than cage driving.
  • CarvedTones
    CarvedTones Posts: 2,340 Member
    edited October 2018
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    Stockholm_Andy wrote: »
    Would you of otherwise just of been sat on your *kitten* for the 18 hours this weekend?

    For we if I have that much driving I'm missing a lot of other activity.

    I'm sceptical about cruise control driving burning more than negligible calories but even if it does its less than I would do otherwise.

    My activity is so variable that I select sedentary and add it in. I am also a skeptic about the calories burned, but I didn't really consider the light isometrics adding up. My son's car is a Cube and it was windy; I can believe I burned more than on the way up. You have to fight the wind to stay in your lane and the steering is power assist rather than full power steering. It's not a lot of effort, but I guess it might be comparable to a light stretch band.

    EDIT - I am not convinced enough to log it.
  • pondee629
    pondee629 Posts: 2,469 Member
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    Tacklewasher wrote: »
    CarvedTones wrote: »
    I notice I got a couple of Woos for asking a question and now it turns out it wasn't a stupid question at all.

    MFP really needs to get rid of the woos

    What does/do the "woo" mean?
  • CarvedTones
    CarvedTones Posts: 2,340 Member
    edited October 2018
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    pondee629 wrote: »
    Tacklewasher wrote: »
    CarvedTones wrote: »
    I notice I got a couple of Woos for asking a question and now it turns out it wasn't a stupid question at all.

    MFP really needs to get rid of the woos

    What does/do the "woo" mean?

    It means folklore about dieting/fitness that is usually based on junk science. Cleanses, spot reducing, drinking apple vinegar, etc...

    If you see a post with a lot of woos, it is probably not something you should believe.
  • MeanderingMammal
    MeanderingMammal Posts: 7,866 Member
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    AnnPT77 wrote: »
    MeanderingMammal wrote: »
    CarvedTones wrote: »
    Nony_Mouse wrote: »
    Yup, you actually do burn more calories driving: https://captaincalculator.com/health/calorie/calories-burned-driving-calculator/

    That seems high. 2.5 MET? That would mean I burned several hundred calories each way (9 hours of actual driving in each direction). OTOH, I guess how much effort it is can depend on a few factors. For logistical reasons, I swapped cars with him and will swap back when he visits during the holidays. My car seems to have better power steering and is more wind resistant. On the way back, driving his car, my arms were tensed substantially more often that on the way up. That is something I had not thought about; it's basically low intensity isometrics that adds up over time.

    I notice I got a couple of Woos for asking a question and now it turns out it wasn't a stupid question at all.

    If you think about it, brain activity is one of the bigger contributors to BMR. If you're focussed on the drive, then you've got more activity.

    Brain is a big calorie consumer, but I don't know that "thinking harder" burns more. That little sucker is humming away in there doing stuff all the time. I know that the research says higher IQ isn't larger burn, and I think there's some suggesting that setting people hard intellectual problems doesn't move the needle much either. No cites at hand, though.

    I wouldn't anticipate that IQ has a bearing. It'd be interesting to see what the effects are. Admittedly N=few anecdata but a couple of hours of standard driving is less fatiguing than a couple of hours of high speed commentary driving.

  • CarvedTones
    CarvedTones Posts: 2,340 Member
    edited October 2018
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    I am not sure how many calories I burned thinking about this, but I think it is the cumulative effect of hours of light isometrics. Driving on a windy day in a light high profile vehicle that requires more effort than most cars to steer intensifies the isometrics but I am still not convinced it burns all that much. Maybe 50 calories an hour in excess of what you would burn just sitting around. Maybe.
  • jennifer_417
    jennifer_417 Posts: 12,344 Member
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    I just changed jobs and have to drive all day now, and it does wear me out. I think it may have to do with the level of mental attention that has to be devoted to driving, rather than any physical exertion. Probably not a significant calorie burn difference from sitting on the couch, unfortunately.
  • jgnatca
    jgnatca Posts: 14,464 Member
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    A more efficient brain is cooler.

    https://www.inc.com/john-brandon/want-to-improve-your-autopilot-mode-for-repetitive-tasks-scientists-just-found-a-way.html

    Anecdotally my father, end stage COPD, gasps for breath after ten steps. But he can drive nearly forever as the oxygen requirement is about the same as for sitting.
  • MeanderingMammal
    MeanderingMammal Posts: 7,866 Member
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    jennifer_417 wrote: »
    I just changed jobs and have to drive all day now, and it does wear me out. I think it may have to do with the level of mental attention that has to be devoted to driving, rather than any physical exertion. Probably not a significant calorie burn difference from sitting on the couch, unfortunately.

    As a cyclist, and motorcyclist, the knowledge that people aren't mentally engaged whilst driving is unsurprising.

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