How Many Calories Does Weight Training Burn?

Weight training is an effective way to burn calories and build muscle. But just how many calories does it burn? The answer depends on a number of factors, including your weight, muscle mass, and the intensity of your workout.

To understand how many calories weight training burns, it’s helpful to know a bit about how the body uses energy. When you exercise, your body burns calories to fuel your muscles. The more intense the exercise, the more calories you burn.

Weight training is considered an intense form of exercise, and it can burn a significant number of calories. According to the American Council on Exercise, a 155-pound person can burn up to 210 calories in a 30-minute weight training session. That number increases to 315 calories for a person who weighs 185 pounds.

The number of calories burned during weight training also depends on the type of exercises you’re doing. Compound exercises, such as squats and deadlifts, tend to burn more calories than isolation exercises, like bicep curls. Using heavier weights also burns more calories than using lighter weights.

Another factor that affects the number of calories burned during weight training is your muscle mass. People with more muscle mass tend to burn more calories, even at rest, than those with less muscle mass. This is because muscle tissue is more metabolically active than fat tissue. So, the more muscle you have, the more calories you’ll burn during weight training.

The intensity of your weight training session also plays a role in how many calories you burn. High-intensity weight training, such as circuit training or supersets, burns more calories than a traditional weight training session. This is because your heart rate is elevated during high-intensity weight training, which means your body is burning more calories to fuel your muscles.

One way to estimate the number of calories burned during weight training is to use a calorie calculator or a heart rate monitor. These tools can help to estimate the number of calories burned based on the intensity and duration of the workout, as well as the individual’s weight and body composition. However, it is important to keep in mind that these estimates are just that – estimates – and may not be entirely accurate.

Another way to estimate the number of calories burned during weight training is to use the concept of metabolic equivalents, or METs. A MET is a way to measure the energy expenditure of an activity, and is defined as the amount of oxygen consumed by the body per minute. The more intense an activity, the higher the METs will be. For example, a moderate weight training workout might have a MET value of around 3, while a vigorous weight training workout might have a MET value of around 6.

To put things in perspective, on average a person who weight 150lbs will burn around 150 calories in 30 minutes of moderate weightlifting and around 300 calories in 30 minutes of vigorous weightlifting.

Another important factor to consider when trying to determine how many calories weight training burns is the after-burn effect, also known as the “excess post-exercise oxygen consumption” (EPOC). This is the increased oxygen consumption that occurs after a workout, as the body works to restore itself to its pre-exercise state. Studies have shown that weight training can have a significant EPOC, which can result in an additional calorie burn for several hours after the workout has ended.

In summary, the number of calories burned during weight training can vary greatly depending on a number of factors, including the intensity of the workout, the duration of the workout, and the individual’s weight and body composition. To estimate the number of calories burned, it can be helpful to use a calorie calculator or heart rate monitor, or to use the concept of metabolic equivalents. Additionally, the after-burn effect can also play a role in the total number of calories burned during weight training.