Calories Burned By Strength Training

lisalsd1

Just out of curiosity, does anyone know how to convert the minutes of strength training to calories burn? I know it's probably dependent on weight, sets, reps, etc. BUT is there a general way to estimate how many cals burned?

draby2011

When i do strength training, im usually on circuit. Circuit training is undercardiovascular here on MFP. My personal trainer said they were pretty comparable.

lisalsd1

I thought it was pretty comparable; it feels comparable to running. I read once that light cardio can be estimated as 5 cals/min, medium intensity at 7 cals/min, and intense as 10 cals/min. I was estimating the strength training around 7 cals/min.

ghostrider1970

Strength training doesn't burn a lot of calories, especially if you can't train with enough intensity

cwolfman13

It depends...if you are actually doing "strength" training then it's probably about as effective for calorie burn as an easy walk...meaning not a whole lot. This is because when you're actually doing a strength routine you'll need proper rest between sets to keep getting the weight up for all of your sets and reps. Keep in mind, the purpose of strength training isn't for the immediate calorie burn...you burn more calories over the next 24-72 hours while your body repairs than you do performing the actual exercise. It is also a long term investment in your body composition.

If you're doing circuit type training with weights, you'd burn some more...probably around 7 per minute or so if you were really moving and not resting much.

I pretty much just used to chalk it up to a couple hundred calories and have a protein shake to eat those calories back. Again, weight training isn't really about the right now burn...it's a longer term investment.

hlreed

I use a heart rate monitor to calculate calories burned whether I'm doing strength training or cardio. Good luck!

257_Lag

Under Cardiovascular there is an entry called Strength Training that gives me about 150 for 30 minutes. That's good enough for me, I'll take my victory on the scale if it is actually more than that.

MoreBean13

There's no good way to measure it- HRMs don't work for this application. Just log it under cardio, as strength training. My experience is the estimate MFP gives is good enough.

prosperkat

When working with my trainer we do a pretty intense standing strength routine that has my heart rate up for the first 20-30 min. I log that under cardio circuit training. The second half is floor / bench work - I do not log that under cardio at all.

sharonfoustmills

I use a hrm to track mine. fifteen minutes of non-stop work with light weights (less than 20 lbs) burned 96 calories in 15 minutes-- for me this was quite a bit of arm work and a little leg work (squats with about 30 lbs- keep in mind I am squatting a 260-something pound body already)

lorenzovonmatterhorn7549

It really depends on the activity,the amount of weight and the workout intensity. I run a fitness bootcamp on Saturdays. One on the attendees was wearing a HRM, she burned over 800 calories in an hour doing HIIT.

ninerbuff

I use a heart rate monitor to calculate calories burned whether I'm doing strength training or cardio. Good luck!

Heart rate monitors ARE NOT accurate at calculating calories burned while strength training. They calculate heart rate and are designed for cardiovascular activities.
If one wore an HRM to a scary movie, they may end up burning 1000 calories before it's done according to the HRM. So yeah, not accurate for strength training.

A.C.E. Certified Personal and Group Fitness Trainer
IDEA Fitness member
Kickboxing Certified Instructor
Been in fitness industry for 30 years and have studied kinesiology and nutrition

ninerbuff

In general, most people will burn between 300-375 calories in an hour on a challenging strength training program.

A.C.E. Certified Personal and Group Fitness Trainer
IDEA Fitness member
Kickboxing Certified Instructor
Been in fitness industry for 30 years and have studied kinesiology and nutrition