Calories burned riding a MOTORCYCLE...

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PixiePerry
PixiePerry Posts: 9 Member
in Fitness and Exercise
I've searched google and found several articles supporting the fact that you are indeed burning calories riding a motorcycle.
However, there is no option for "riding a motorcycle" in the diary choices on this site. So I wanted to share this website with other bikers, so you could enter your "riding" into your daily dairy.

> Go to this website: http://www.caloriesperhour.com/index_burn.html
> fill in your weight, and the amount of time spent riding (hrs/minutes)
> click on "ACTIVITY CALCULATOR"
> in the search area, type in "MOTORCYCLE"
> click on where it says, "RIDING SCOOTER OR MOTORCYCLE"
> click "CALCULATE"
** For a person of my weight, I burn 272 calories per HOUR!

Using this calculator, I found out that I actually burned 3,266 calories this weekend on a 2 day trip to the mountains (over 500 miles on the bike). I sweated my rear off in near 90 degree temps, drank tons of water, and "manhandled" a 600 pound bike through the mountains and on the interstate. Yes, I was "riding and sitting" the entire time, but the fact that I was out on the bike and not sitting on the couch makes my weight loss goals much more FUN.

Here's a few articles that lay out the ways that you are burning calories:

http://www.weightlossblogger.org/2010/02/riding-motorcycle-can-burn-calories.html
http://blog.leatherup.com/2010/05/11/motorcycle-riding-burns-calories/
http://www.google.com/search?q=burning+calories+riding+a+motocycle&ie=utf-8&oe=utf-8&aq=t&rls=org.mozilla:en-US:official&client=firefox-a

Hope this helps some other avid bikers out there!!

Pixie
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Replies

  • Gsc122
    Gsc122 Posts: 36
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    I'd say that tracking calories from your motor cycle will be difficult thing to get accurate.probably similar to
    Strength training. don't think me being a daisy downer. :)
    I just wanted to make sure you don't substitute it completely
    For a normal work out routine.
  • happybunnysbabe57
    happybunnysbabe57 Posts: 191 Member
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    i use that site also to post my riding but i only put 1/3 to half of the time i actually ride because i dont drive i ride bit ch lol so i dont think i burn as many calories sitting on the back but it is still burning something cuz i can feel it in my legs and sides from holding steady and leaning some around bends.
  • titletown
    titletown Posts: 377 Member
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    Hmm, mine says 247 calories burned in an hour.

    Good enough reason to get the bike out more often, thanks for sharing ;)

    I don't think I'll count those calories though, just an added bonus if it's true.
  • chrisdavey
    chrisdavey Posts: 9,834 Member
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    Stress burns cals. Hanging off the side of my bike certainly stresses me out from time to time haha

    195cals/hr at 172lbs for me.
  • titletown
    titletown Posts: 377 Member
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    Hmm, seems I even burn 33 calories shaving in the morning LOL
  • taso42_DELETED
    taso42_DELETED Posts: 3,394 Member
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    I ride every day about 80 minutes total. I never log it or count it. If anything, it's a buffer for inaccuracies elsewhere in my logging.
  • freebird240
    freebird240 Posts: 33 Member
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    Thanks pixy.... I was riding my bike today too and never thought about it... right on
  • chrisdavey
    chrisdavey Posts: 9,834 Member
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    Another positive to bike riding is that I can do my hip stretches on the way to mma training instead of when I get there. Can't do that in a car!
  • littlesuzieq
    littlesuzieq Posts: 103
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    This is awesome! I probably won't log the calories burned but what an excellent argument to go for a ride. I'll be taking my baby out tonight and getting in some of those "hip stretches" (thanks for the idea chrisdavey!) taming some twisties. I just have to make sure I get in an equal amount of left hand and right hand sweepers. Love it! I'm off to plan my route...

    2 hours = 406 calories for me
  • biggestkahuna
    biggestkahuna Posts: 21 Member
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    590 cals burned. Awesom
  • biggestkahuna
    biggestkahuna Posts: 21 Member
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    Whenever I ride the tail of the dragon afterwards I feel like I ran a 10k
  • Misdy
    Misdy Posts: 81 Member
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    Bahaha that's amusing! I ride a REALLY girly scooter around town, now I learn I'm actually burning calories while doing so? Snap!
  • chrisdavey
    chrisdavey Posts: 9,834 Member
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    Stress burns cals. Hanging off the side of my bike certainly stresses me out from time to time haha

    195cals/hr at 172lbs for me.

    I have since found out that I burn 85cals/hr doing nothing so it's more like 100ish extra cals per hour.

    ie. I wouldn't go eating back all those bike riding exercise cals.

    I'm going on 7hr road trip on my uncle's BMW this Friday. Can't wait!
  • evanpdixon
    evanpdixon Posts: 20 Member
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    Sorry to dig this up from the grave, but I just returned from a weekend trip from Charlotte, NC to Birmingham, AL and back. We rode over 1000 miles in two days, at least 16 hours total riding. Probably more. My food choices were less than optimal but this makes me feel a little better. Although, I find it hard to believe I burned almost 6500 calories just riding (that's what the calculator says for me).
  • Di3012
    Di3012 Posts: 2,250 Member
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    What exactly is it that burns the calories whilst sitting on the motorcycle?
  • icimani
    icimani Posts: 1,454 Member
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    I'm a rider too - good to know I'm burning caliries when I ride!

    Whenever I ride the tail of the dragon afterwards I feel like I ran a 10k

    Understandable! I used to live close to there but that was before I learned to ride, and befroe they started catering to bikers.. When I lived there we called "Vomit Road" because everyone but the driver got car sick!
  • icimani
    icimani Posts: 1,454 Member
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    What exactly is it that burns the calories whilst sitting on the motorcycle?
    [/quote

    I'm just guessing, but here would be my ideas...

    - You have to be much more alert on a motorcycle. You're not sitting in a metal cage so you have be a much more of a defensive driver. I know I get a lot more tired riding a bike than I do in a car.

    - You're always adjusting your balance to keep the bike balanced so I'm guessing that it's working the core muscles a bit, especuially riding curves.

    - At every change in speed you're working the gears which means hand work and foot work. And any time you come a complete stop you're putting at least one foot on the ground.
  • Di3012
    Di3012 Posts: 2,250 Member
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    Seriously, what exertion is it that burns the cals whilst sitting still on a motorbike though?

    Not talking about stress etc, that happens everyday in everyday life to people.

    I will tell you what burns calories, exertion, moving about - physically - not sitting on the seat of a motorbike.

    This borders on the ridiculous. Hold on, I wonder how much I burn when sitting in my car on a motorway. Especially if I am stressed by lorries being either side of me threatening to cut me off at any moment and then of course, waiting in a queue to get through the toll tunnel - do I have the correct change or do I have to go into the queue that has an assistant in it?

    I do realize however, that this thread is just mucking about :)
  • Di3012
    Di3012 Posts: 2,250 Member
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    What exactly is it that burns the calories whilst sitting on the motorcycle?
    I'm just guessing, but here would be my ideas...

    - You have to be much more alert on a motorcycle. You're not sitting in a metal cage so you have be a much more of a defensive driver. I know I get a lot more tired riding a bike than I do in a car.

    - You're always adjusting your balance to keep the bike balanced so I'm guessing that it's working the core muscles a bit, especuially riding curves.

    - At every change in speed you're working the gears which means hand work and foot work. And any time you come a complete stop you're putting at least one foot on the ground.

    Moving your feet on the ground?? Keeping balance? ...but 99% of people do these things everyday in day-to-day living, the calories burned would be negligible. Put it this way, they certainly wouldn't burn the amount of calories some of you lot are coming up with LMAO
  • Cpsnisi
    Cpsnisi Posts: 22 Member
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    It is definitely more work to ride a motorcycle than to sit in a car. Just keeping yourself upright takes more energy - similar to the difference between sitting on a stability ball and sitting in a recliner. Plus your muscles are constantly working as you lean, adjust, and shift your weight. I'm talking major muscle groups, your back, shoulders, legs, etc., not just moving your wrists, fingers, and ankles to work the controls

    Is it HARD work? No. Is it the equivalent of a workout? Of course not. But you ARE burning more energy than when idle. And as with all exercise, it's the time put in that makes the difference. When you ride for 2 or 4 or 10 hours a day, it really adds up.

    To put it in perspective...
    According to the calculator linked above, I burn 142 calories per hour of riding.
    According to the MFP database, I burn 141 calories per hour of walking at 2mph (a very slow pace).

    Am I working as hard riding my motorcycle as going for a slow, lesiurely walk? Sometimes yes, sometimes no. It depends on the roads and conditions. Riding on a straight, flat stretch of highway with no wind is much less work than riding in gusting crosswinds on twisting mountain roads. But that's why it's an estimate.

    Personally, I don't think that calculator is any further off than the MFP database, which is admittedly questionable sometimes. Like anything else, use some common sense if you're going to log it.

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