About the Calories Burned Calculator
This calories burned calculator estimates the energy you use during exercise and everyday activities. Choose an activity, enter your body weight and how long you did it, and it returns total calories, calories per hour and per minute, plus a comparison with other popular workouts of the same length.
It uses MET (metabolic equivalent of task) values from the Compendium of Physical Activities, the reference researchers use to rate activity intensity. One MET is roughly the energy you burn sitting quietly; running at 6 mph is about 9.8 METs, meaning nearly ten times resting energy use. Heavier people burn more calories doing the same activity, which is why weight is part of the calculation.
Use it to plan workouts around a calorie target, log activities a fitness tracker misses, or compare options such as walking versus cycling. Results are population averages: fitness level, terrain, technique and effort can move your real burn up or down by 10–20% or more, so treat the number as a solid estimate rather than a lab measurement.
With the default inputs, the calories burned is 373 kcal. Change any value above to recalculate instantly.
How to use the calories burned calculator
- 1Pick the activity that best matches your workout and its intensity.
- 2Enter your current body weight in pounds or kilograms.
- 3Enter how many minutes you did the activity.
- 4Read total calories burned, plus the per-hour and per-minute rates.
- 5Compare the chart to see what other workouts would burn in the same time.
Formula and method
The calculator uses the standard ACSM equation for energy expenditure. One MET is defined as an oxygen uptake of 3.5 ml per kilogram of body weight per minute, and burning one kilocalorie takes about 5 litres of oxygen — which is where the divide-by-200 comes from (3.5 ÷ 1000 × 5 = 1/200 after rearranging).
MET values come from the Compendium of Physical Activities, which lists average intensities measured across many studies. The result is gross calories, meaning it includes your resting metabolism during the activity. The fat-equivalent figure divides by 3,500 kcal per pound, a common approximation that overstates real fat loss over long periods.
- MET
- Metabolic equivalent of the activity (1 = resting)
- weight
- Body weight in kilograms (pounds ÷ 2.2046)
- minutes
- Duration of the activity
Worked examples
160 lb person running 30 minutes at 6 mph
160 lb is 72.57 kg. Running at 6 mph is 9.8 METs, so the burn rate is 9.8 × 3.5 × 72.57 ÷ 200 ≈ 12.4 kcal per minute. Over 30 minutes that is about 373 calories, or roughly 747 per hour.
70 kg walker, 60 minutes brisk walking
Brisk walking at 3.5 mph is 4.3 METs. 4.3 × 3.5 × 70 ÷ 200 = 5.27 kcal per minute, so an hour burns about 316 calories.
200 lb lifter, 45 minutes of vigorous weights
200 lb is 90.72 kg. At 6 METs the rate is 6 × 3.5 × 90.72 ÷ 200 ≈ 9.53 kcal per minute, so 45 minutes burns about 429 calories — roughly 0.12 lb of fat-energy equivalent.
Frequently asked questions
How accurate is a calories burned calculator?+
MET-based estimates are usually within about 10–20% for an average person. Fitness level, efficiency, terrain, wind, and how hard you actually worked all shift the real number, so use it as a guide rather than an exact count.
How many calories does walking 10,000 steps burn?+
Ten thousand steps is roughly 4–5 miles, which takes 80–100 minutes at a moderate pace. For a 160 lb person that is about 350–450 calories, depending on speed and terrain.
Why do heavier people burn more calories?+
Moving a larger body takes more energy, so calorie burn scales with body weight. At the same MET value a 200 lb person burns 25% more calories than a 160 lb person in the same time.
What is a MET?+
A MET (metabolic equivalent of task) compares an activity’s energy cost with sitting still. One MET is about 3.5 ml of oxygen per kg per minute; an activity rated 8 METs burns roughly eight times your resting rate.
Are fitness tracker calorie numbers more accurate?+
Trackers combine heart rate and motion data, which can help, but studies show wrist devices often misestimate energy expenditure by 20% or more. Neither method is lab-accurate; consistency matters more than precision.
Should I eat back the calories I burn exercising?+
If you are trying to lose weight, many people eat back only part of their exercise calories because estimates tend to run high. Use a TDEE or calorie deficit calculator to set an overall daily target instead.
This tool gives general estimates and is not medical advice. Talk to a doctor or qualified professional about your health, diet or training.