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The game of rugby and correct calorie burned

aobrien720
aobrien720 Posts: 5
edited November 2024 in Fitness and Exercise
I play rugby and I have 2 hour practices full of a bunch of running and a lot of lifting and tackling. Though when I log it here on fitnesspal it tells me I burned 957 calories for just an hour which I do not think is correct at all. How would I correctly measure or estimate the calories that are burned?

Replies

  • fitfabforties
    fitfabforties Posts: 370 Member
    I have no idea.....I just saw the word "rugby" and wanted to say....that's so cool!!!!.....my favourite sport to watch!!!

    ....go All Blacks!!!:):drinker:
  • aobrien720
    aobrien720 Posts: 5
    Rugby is an awesome sport I love it so much! Yes All Blacks!!!!!! :love: :drinker: :bigsmile:
  • BrianSharpe
    BrianSharpe Posts: 9,248 Member
    It's really hard to say with any certainty but I agree 957 calories for 1 hour is very unlikely ( a 200lb person would burn about 756 running steady @ 6mph for an hour).

    Even a HRM wouldn't give that accurate a number as they're only really designed for steady state cardio.
  • DWBalboa
    DWBalboa Posts: 37,259 Member
    You would be best getting a HRM (If you don’t already have one) that also tracts calories burnt as there are too many variables to account for to just use an arbitrary number that someone else has recorded. I coach and play soccer and my burn can very rather widely.
  • iggyboo93
    iggyboo93 Posts: 524 Member
    I played in a women's rugby league. Honestly, I would have been in too much pain to care how many calories I burned.
  • BigGuy47
    BigGuy47 Posts: 1,768 Member
    The last time I played rugby was thirty years ago (college). If I recall correctly, any calories burned during the game were well offset by the massive post game beer fest. What a fantastic game. During the game you would do your best to inflict pain on the opposing team. Once the game was over both teams would gather and celebrate at a local pub.

    Our hooker was nicknamed Spinks. He had his front teeth knocked out which made him look like the boxer Leon Spinks. Spinks was the smallest guy on our team. About five minutes into the game he would walk up to the biggest guy on the other team and smash him right in the mouth. After the game Spinks and the big fellow would share beers. Good times.

    What were we talking about again ??? Oh yeah, calories. I have no idea.
  • aobrien720
    aobrien720 Posts: 5
    The last time I played rugby was thirty years ago (college). If I recall correctly, any calories burned during the game were well offset by the massive post game beer fest. What a fantastic game. During the game you would do your best to inflict pain on the opposing team. Once the game was over both teams would gather and celebrate at a local pub.

    Our hooker was nicknamed Spinks. He had his front teeth knocked out which made him look like the boxer Leon Spinks. Spinks was the smallest guy on our team. About five minutes into the game he would walk up to the biggest guy on the other team and smash him right in the mouth. After the game Spinks and the big fellow would share beers. Good times.

    What were we talking about again ??? Oh yeah, calories. I have no idea.
    Ya Rugby has a way of making you forget about everything...I am not sure if it all the great people, the alcohol or maybe being knocked in the head to many times haha. No but I was always curious about the calories.
  • aobrien720
    aobrien720 Posts: 5
    Yes there is a lot of pain but I have always been curious.
  • k8eekins
    k8eekins Posts: 2,264 Member
    aobrien72:
    I play rugby and I have 2 hour practices full of a bunch of running and a lot of lifting and tackling. Though when I log it here on fitnesspal it tells me I burned 957 calories for just an hour which I do not think is correct at all. How would I correctly measure or estimate the calories that are burned?

    Recommend you get yourself a Heart Rate Monitor [eg Polar] for a measure of your body's efficiency (+/-), for there are way too many variables to consider; Gender + Age + Height + Weight + Sport (Rugby 7s/Rugby 15s) + Intensity (Skills & ability level vs Practice) + Duration (2 hours), ... The margins of error have to be taken into consideration being that you're in a team sport, where your emotions can affect your heart rate estimation; It might spike or dip depending on your personal performance vs your team's (team mates) performance, even at practice.
  • aobrien720
    aobrien720 Posts: 5
    aobrien72:
    I play rugby and I have 2 hour practices full of a bunch of running and a lot of lifting and tackling. Though when I log it here on fitnesspal it tells me I burned 957 calories for just an hour which I do not think is correct at all. How would I correctly measure or estimate the calories that are burned?

    Recommend you get yourself a Heart Rate Monitor [eg Polar] for a measure of your body's efficiency (+/-), for there are way too many variables to consider; Gender + Age + Height + Weight + Sport (Rugby 7s/Rugby 15s) + Intensity (Skills & ability level vs Practice) + Duration (2 hours), ... The margins of error have to be taken into consideration being that you're in a team sport, where your emotions can affect your heart rate estimation; It might spike or dip depending on your personal performance vs your team's (team mates) performance, even at practice.
    Ya thanks I am going to look into it. There are way to many variables to determine an accurate number for everyone.
  • 777Gemma888
    777Gemma888 Posts: 9,578 Member
    I play rugby and I have 2 hour practices full of a bunch of running and a lot of lifting and tackling. Though when I log it here on fitnesspal it tells me I burned 957 calories for just an hour which I do not think is correct at all. How would I correctly measure or estimate the calories that are burned?

    Are you playing Rugby Union or Rugby League? More importantly, what is your position? You've mentioned running, lifting and tackling which prompts me to assume that you're a Forward. Which position? A prop will NOT be burning the same amount of calories as a Flanker[openside/blindside] or a Lock ~ Number 8 [who tend to be the leaner/muscled Forwards VS the Prop & scrum half [x2] who can be fat and efficient at their positions. Then there is the speed of the game to consider too ~ are you playing 15s or 7s? If you're playing 1st 15s or 1st 7s level rugby, your skill set and requirements are higher, demanding specific speed training [cardio days ~ usually 2 to 3 times per week] and weight room time too [at least 3 times per week] to factor in@burns and not just lumping them all together@lifiting, running & tackling during practice.

    Agree@heartrate monitor, variables and margins of error aside. There are far too many lull moments within one game/practice session to determine where you accurately fall within the estimations of burns for rugby.
  • GYMM8
    GYMM8 Posts: 1
    I play rugby and am also a personal trainer and sometimes as play as flanker and sometimes as right wing and I can tell you that the physical demands between the two positions are very different. If you wanted a comparison then flanker would be more like doing 80 minutes of HIIT mixed resistance and cardio when you consider the involvement of lineout and scrums and more involvement in rucks and mauls than the backs. The wing position is more like fartlek training with chucking in some high intensity resistance work every now and then.
    I feel a lot more hungry after playing flanker than I do at wing that much I can tell you so number of calories varies quite a bit. There is no general MET value (nn x body weight kg) per hour that can be equated to playing rugby as the physical requirements vary from position to position and body weight etc but would be at least 1000 calories during a match if you wern't being lazy!
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