Burning calories while giving a massage

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  • Chrisy424
    Chrisy424 Posts: 1 Member
    204 per hour. Here you go. I was also curious as a massage student. This site is good for other occupations too. http://calorielab.com/burned/?mo=se&gr=11&ti=Occupation&wt=150&un=lb&kg=68
  • iamnotfittoliveamongman
    iamnotfittoliveamongman Posts: 1 Member
    i ama new LMT and just started work at a spa. i average 3-5 50 min massage three days a week. i weigh 220 and am 5'1" and a few different online sources says i would burn on average around 328 for a 50 min, ~500 for a two hour. when i track it in my apps though i always deduct 50-100 (easy/hard days) cal from what the calculators say just because everyone diferent, and i want to know im burning the right amount.

    for people who say its not a work out. it IS. evening after training for 8 months, you work your quads, glutes, and are moving your whole body to do the work (properly). i work up a sweat depending on work requested. if its deep tissue im practically dripping. that two hr med-deep? I had to keep a towel on me to wipe off sweat!
  • Sued0nim
    Sued0nim Posts: 17,456 Member
    So an hours massage is a similar burn to an hours yoga ? Yeah I'd buy that

    Remember while it feels like hard work it's not really cardio nor is it actively, consistently engaging the biggest muscles in the body (glutes, legs etc)

    Sweat is no determinant of calorie burn
  • BRMT86
    BRMT86 Posts: 1 Member
    Hey People,

    I'm an Aussie Remedial Massage Therapist (CMT in US?) - who is studying Exercise Physiology & is a practising Personal Trainer. I run my own business out of GreenZone Gym.

    Long story short - I was tired all the time. Guess why? (Look below - I'm also a Lecturer, forgive me)

    Conservative estimate below -

    Weight: - 58kg/128lb
    Height: 167cm/5"7
    Calorie intake: 1500-1800 per day
    BMR: 1280 kcal
    Total daily calorie burn except BMR:
    200-360kcal per client = x6 clients = 1200kcal conservatively
    Workout = 500 kcal
    Daily movements = 800 kcal

    Total Estimated Calories output: 3780 kcal.

    No wonder I'm exhausted. So, I made a 6 pack challenge with my housemate as to whom could get the better 6 pack in six weeks. (Note: I wanted to prove that a 6 pack is difficult & painful to maintain - I proved myself wrong, which was a fantastic learning curve. I've been training for years and don't distribute fat around my abdominal, so there are many factors in play here.)

    Week 1 = 60kg = 1500kcal per day (23-25% body fat)
    Week 2 = 60kg = 1700kcal
    Week 3 = 60kg = 1900kcal(20% BF)
    Week 4 = 59kg = 2100kcal(19-20% BF)
    Week 5 = 59kg = 2300kcal (six pack clearly visible)
    Week 6 = 58kg = 2500kcal (18% BF)

    I dropped 5% body fat into 18% total, only losing 2kg in total body mass. My strength and vitality overall increased also.

    Now I eat an easy 2100kcal per day, eating the same on the weekend off to recover lost energy. Turns out I can put on muscle, sleep better, move better, less brain fog all with just slowly increasing my calories & eating high quality nutrient-dense, low GI food.

    I experiment alot with my body, and always trend towards supporting it than judging it. If I'm hungry - I eat. I also do fasted cardio in the morning too.
  • lorrpb
    lorrpb Posts: 11,463 Member
    Zombie 🧟‍♀️ thread 2011
  • charliwarli
    charliwarli Posts: 33 Member
    drasr wrote: »
    A good HRM can help calculate those calories. But since you are not doing something that elevates your Heart Rate by a significant amount, most likely you won't be burning too many calories. Though you will be building more muscle which may indirectly help.

    I'm an LMT with a heart rate monitor. My heart rate goes up to about 125 during a massage, and I bust a sweat every time. Extra deodorant is always necessary, lol. I burn about 3000 calories a day when I'm at work.
  • charliwarli
    charliwarli Posts: 33 Member
    Sued0nim wrote: »
    So an hours massage is a similar burn to an hours yoga ? Yeah I'd buy that

    Remember while it feels like hard work it's not really cardio nor is it actively, consistently engaging the biggest muscles in the body (glutes, legs etc)

    Sweat is no determinant of calorie burn

    I'm in an active lunge and squats during my treatment sessions, and my heart rate can go up to about 125 for a substantial time while working on each person. I'm also often engaged in sustained pushes while helping clients do passive stretching, where I bear the weight of their limb and take it through its range of motion, and do PNF stretching where they're actually actively pushing against my strength.
  • AnnPT77
    AnnPT77 Posts: 34,287 Member
    This is a very old thread. There is some bad advice in the old posts, as is often the case with old threads.

    Heart rate monitors can tend to over-estimate calories for activities involving strength/strain (internal pressure drives up heart rate, but doesn't as much affect oxygen requirements; it's oxygen demand that correlates with energy expenditure - heart rate is just a proxy), IMU.

    The Compendium of Physical Activities**, a science-based site, lists standing massage at 4.0 METS (though this is an estimated rather than research-based number). This is similar to the METS value for power yoga, among other things, so maybe the yoga idea wasn't crazy.

    ** On this page: https://sites.google.com/site/compendiumofphysicalactivities/Activity-Categories/occupation

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