What is best to burn calories quickly?

Jacquibennett
Jacquibennett Posts: 95 Member
edited October 7 in Fitness and Exercise
What do people think is the best form of exercise for burning calories quickly out of these?
Exercise bike, cross trainer, treadmill (walking fast) or swimming.

I know it all depends really on how much gusto you put into each activity but lets assume you put the same amount of effort into each, which would be best?

Thanks all :happy:
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Replies

  • mhamlin
    mhamlin Posts: 35 Member
    Elliptical or weight belt and treadmill works best for me. Good Luck!
  • merice107
    merice107 Posts: 1
    Swimming (uses your whole body) or treadmill intervals. Keep the treadmill on at least a 1% incline. A 0% incline is like going downhill. The higher the incline the better!
  • Helloitsdan
    Helloitsdan Posts: 5,564 Member
    HIIT is the only way.
  • melsinct
    melsinct Posts: 3,512 Member
    I would say swimming, you use many more muscles (arms, legs, back) so it is a total work out, not just on your legs like walking or running. The key is to do whatever activity that you like best. The best exercise is the one you will actually do!
  • Alicja_W
    Alicja_W Posts: 169
    i think that swimming may not be the best to burn calories but its the best to exercise all parts of your body :happy: but for the calories i think eliptical will be goof :flowerforyou:
  • wellbert
    wellbert Posts: 3,924 Member
    Whichever gets your heart rate up. I'd choose to do the exercise bike out of the list. Spin class maybe?
  • RachelSusannah2012
    RachelSusannah2012 Posts: 7
    I would think swimming. :)
  • munkeyfunk
    munkeyfunk Posts: 141 Member
    Running 100%
  • Matthew_Wilde
    Matthew_Wilde Posts: 28 Member
    Why not put each one in your exercise log, and see which give the most.

    I think its running.
  • marycmeadows
    marycmeadows Posts: 1,691 Member
    I like the elliptical or arc trainer -- and the stair climber.... :) (Let me rephrase that -- I don't like the stairclimber - but it's a great calorie burner!)
  • ladylu11
    ladylu11 Posts: 631 Member
    on the treadmill the higher the incline the more you burn.
    on the elliptical, the higher the resistance the more you burn
  • StressedChaos
    StressedChaos Posts: 86 Member
    I would think that doing HIIT on the treadmill is your best option out of the choices given.
  • msmichelelynn
    msmichelelynn Posts: 15
    From what I've heard, Zumba is an amazing calorie burner. I have seen some impressive results with people who partake.
  • fasttrack27
    fasttrack27 Posts: 324
    Based on the four options you listed, I'd say swimming. If you qualify the bike by saying 'spin class', then I might pick that one instead (or rotate between them - better yet)
  • engineman312
    engineman312 Posts: 3,450 Member
    i'm a budding triathlete, and my favorite thing about it is that i pretty much have to swim, bike, run, and lift pretty equally over the course of the week. it helps prevent injuries and build a lot of power.
  • fredd500
    fredd500 Posts: 106 Member
    Technically if you put the same effort into something, you can expect the same return i.e. weight loss. What I think you are asking is which exercise allows you to expend the most effort for the same amount of time and that unfortunately comes back to how much effort you put in over that time. If you push yourself to your limit, you will probably find that elliptical or swimming will hurt less for the same effort and time due to them being low impact exercises. Running puts a lot of pressure on your joints and cycling can cripple your knees if the bike isn't properly adjusted.
  • gj4man
    gj4man Posts: 52 Member
    Have you not got access to a rowing machine? That's supposed to be just about the most effective cardio in terms of calories burned.
  • auticus
    auticus Posts: 1,051 Member
    Running. If I run for an hour I burn over 1000 calories. Swimming, row machines, etc... are also good but they don't come to the level of running in terms of calories burned. At least for me.

    Important note though if you have knee or back issues or are very overweight, I'd reccomend light impact cardio until some weight has been lost. In those instances swimming or the eliptical are the best options (again IMO)
  • Stepmom1
    Stepmom1 Posts: 155 Member
    Its not on your list, but adding the resistance of weights in your training, helps you burn calories and fat very effectively. IT makes your body work harder, therefore, more calories and fat are used to help you do that. :happy:
  • kahlee2000
    kahlee2000 Posts: 77
    Swimming. It takes more energy to move through water than through air. I use the pool everyday and in 1 hour I burn over 1300 calories.
  • Biggipooh
    Biggipooh Posts: 350
    Wherever you get your heartrate the highest.
  • Weathers58
    Weathers58 Posts: 246 Member
    Running 100%

    i agree 100% and if you dont burn enough for you find the steepest hill you can and run up it as fast as you can. beats swimming hands down....no contest
  • Sweet_Potato
    Sweet_Potato Posts: 1,119 Member
    Swimming. It takes more energy to move through water than through air. I use the pool everyday and in 1 hour I burn over 1300 calories.

    How did you determine that? I put my swimming into the MFP calculator as "Swimming laps, freestyle, light/moderate effort " and it says I burn 369 calories/hour (which is still a lot, but nowhere near the amount you quoted).
  • MrsNoir
    MrsNoir Posts: 236 Member
    The best way to find out is wearing a HRM. What works for some people doesn't necessarily work for everybody else. I do dancing, I burn about 58 calories per song if I'm too inspired. Nothing else burns that much for me as dancing to the beat :D. You can wear HRM under water too, so you could try all exercises once and decide upon the HRM results :D
  • Tracey_Smith
    Tracey_Smith Posts: 199
    Squash for me, it's a killer :smile:
  • DEE4560
    DEE4560 Posts: 139
    I like the elliptical or arc trainer -- and the stair climber.... :) (Let me rephrase that -- I don't like the stairclimber - but it's a great calorie burner!)

    I hear you there. I HATE it too! But the amount of calories you know you are burning is well worth the time.
  • sarahbear1981
    sarahbear1981 Posts: 610 Member
    The best way is swimming. Breaststroke is the best stroke to use because it targets several core muscle groups. There is resistance from the water as well. Not to mention your body is burning calories to maintain homeostasis in the cold water. Try an hour straight you will be pleased with the burn.
  • ZombieChaser
    ZombieChaser Posts: 1,555 Member
    Based on the four options you listed, I'd say swimming. If you qualify the bike by saying 'spin class', then I might pick that one instead (or rotate between them - better yet)

    Agreed! I think a mix of a few types of exercise (or equipment) would get you the best results, as you're working different parts of your body. For me, spin class and my mounted mountain bike (varying between gears) and elliptical is proving to be very successful :)
  • ninerbuff
    ninerbuff Posts: 48,989 Member
    The exercise that uses the most muscles will usually burn the most if all were done equally. That would be swimming.


    A.C.E. Certified Personal Trainer
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  • bcattoes
    bcattoes Posts: 17,299 Member
    I would think swimming.
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