study about increased calorie burn pushing stroller

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mrskmwatkins
mrskmwatkins Posts: 3 Member
in Fitness and Exercise
Because I had to search hard before I found the answer on this, I'm posting it here for others ...

If you are walking and pushing 35 pounds of stroller (baby + stroller + diaper bag), calculate your calories for 18% more calories burned at 3mph, 20% more at a brisker pace.

The whole article:


from the Pittsburgh Post, 3/18/13
http://www.post-gazette.com/news/health/2013/03/18/Walking-with-stroller-burns-more-calories/stories/201303180250

The average woman gains about 30 pounds during pregnancy. According to a study published in an the Journal of Science and Medicine in Sport, an Australian journal, last fall, new moms are less likely than other women of the same age to get the minimum amount of exercise they need for good health.

So the American Council on Exercise asked researchers at the Exercise and Health Program at the University of Wisconsin-LaCrosse to quantify the fitness benefits of walking with a baby stroller. They were roughly twice as much as had been previously thought.

The researchers recruited 15 female volunteers, age 19 to 41, and had them push a stroller loaded with a 35-pound weight, to simulate a baby, diaper bag, etc., on a treadmill at various speeds and inclines.

The calorie burn was 18 percent higher, on average, when walking with a stroller at 3 mph than walking without a stroller, the researchers found. At a slightly faster pace -- 3.5 mph -- the calorie burn was 20 percent higher.

The heart rates of the test subjects increased by about 12 beats per minute (6 percent) with each 2.5 percent increase in grade, the researchers found.

The intensity of exercise is measured by MET (standard metabolic equivalent). One MET is the amount of oxygen burned when a person is at rest. Activity that burns 3-6 METs is considered "moderate intensity." Anything more than 6 METs is considered "vigorous" intensity.

The Compendium of Physical Activities was developed by Bill Haskell of Stanford University in 1987 for use in epidemiological studies. It lists the estimated METs burned for a host of activities, from bicycling to mowing the lawn.

The Compendium has listed the MET equivalent of pushing a stroller as 2.5, but the University of Wisconsin-LaCrosse study indicated it actually is between 4 and 5, said Lisa Bush, co-leader of the study.



Read more: http://www.post-gazette.com/news/health/2013/03/18/Walking-with-stroller-burns-more-calories/stories/201303180250#ixzz2w2P1Je6l

Replies

  • jim180155
    jim180155 Posts: 769 Member
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    They should have related that to the subjects weight. If adding a 35 pound stroller increases calorie burn by 18% on average, it seems to me that a 90 pound woman is going to burn far more than an additional 18% of calories, while a 300 pound woman will barely see any increase at all.
  • Azdak
    Azdak Posts: 8,281 Member
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    They should have related that to the subjects weight. If adding a 35 pound stroller increases calorie burn by 18% on average, it seems to me that a 90 pound woman is going to burn far more than an additional 18% of calories, while a 300 pound woman will barely see any increase at all.

    Most studies don't include a calculator at end. The assumption is that most people can multiply a number by 18% and draw their own conclusions.

    However, to determine the significance of a study result, it does provide a good perspective to look at the actual numbers. A 70kg individual walking 3 mph on flat ground would approximately 210 calories in an hour. Adding the 35lb stroller would bring that up to 243 calories. At 3.5 mph, the amount goes from 252 to 302.
  • mrskmwatkins
    mrskmwatkins Posts: 3 Member
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    That's probably true, but at least it's a better starting point than just guessing.

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