How to Calculate the Calories Burned in a Workout
Exercise is an essential part of a healthy lifestyle. If you want to lose weight, exercise can help speed up the process. If you are trying to maintain your current weight, exercise will allow you more flexibility with your diet. Knowing how to calculate the amount of calories you burn during your workout can come in handy when counting calories. You don't have to be a math wizard to calculate calories burned, because your computer will do most of the work for you. A journal can help you keep track of the total calories your burn over the course of your diet.
Instructions
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Weigh yourself. Some online calculators will require you to input your weight, height, age and gender.
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Write down what kind of exercise you did during your workout, including the intensity and duration. Measure the intensity of the exercise by gauging the overall feeling of difficulty. Light intensity equals easy exercise, like stretching. Moderate intensity equals mild yet somewhat strenuous exercise, like using an elliptical trainer or a rowing machine. High intensity equals hard, strenuous exercise, like running, cycling or kickboxing.
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Find an online calculator that calculates the calories burned for physical exercise. Some calorie calculators will ask you to input more detailed information than others. The result, however, is always an estimate because other factors, such as metabolism, exact workout intensity and heart rate come into play when it comes to caloric burn.
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Choose the type of exercise from the list provided on the website.
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Input all information that is requested. Click "Submit" and wait for the total number of calories burned to appear. Write down the total calories in your journal.
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Repeat for any other exercises performed.
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Add the calories for each exercise to get the estimated total amount of calories burned during your workout and log in your journal.
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References
Resources
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