For most runners and fitness-freaks, the treadmill is an essential exercise equipment. It’s an easy way to get your workout in when it’s dark outside or the weather is not good.
The treadmill can be effectively used for making muscles, improving heart strength, and burn calories which helps in weight loss. But how accurately can you check the calories burned on the treadmill?
Confused. Right? No need to worry. Here is a comprehensive guide for you to measure exactly the number of calories you burn on the treadmill with your workouts.
Table of Contents
How Many Calories Burned On a Treadmill?
The calories burned on a treadmill can vary depending on your type of workout, your weight and speed. The range can also significantly vary on the speed of your walking, running or jogging. So, let’s explore each scenario closely to help you know better-
Calories Burned by Walking on a Treadmill
When you walk on the treadmill, you burn considerably less calories when compared to when you run. So, if you want to count your calories burned by walking on a treadmill, you need to perform brisk walk on the treadmill.
For example- If you brisk walk for 20 minutes and your body weight is 95kgs, then the number of calories burned by you will be 126. Similarly, a person with a body weight of 85kgs will burn fewer calories for the same distance and same speed, i.e. 113
It means the more you weigh, the more calories will be burned when you perform an exercise.
Calories Burned by Running on a Treadmill
Running on a treadmill activates more muscles, which contributes to efficiently burn excess calories. When you want to count the number of calories burned while running, the stride length and the speed of the machine are very important factors. They determine the distance you ran on the treadmill.
For example: If your weight is 95kgs and you ran 10min/mile for 20minutes of duration, then the number of calories you will burn- 333
Similarly, if you run at the same pace for the same time duration, but your weight differs and it is 85kgs, then the number of calories burned- 298
Calories you burn with Interval Training
High-Intensity Interval Training aka HIIT is the best method if you want to burn more calories in less interval of time. The concept is simple- work extra hard with short intervals of exercises which last anywhere from 15 seconds to a few minutes at a time.
This burns a lot of calories due to higher oxygen consumption, which in turn, helps contribute to weight loss. The number of calories you burn doing HIIT exercise depends on two factors- duration and intensity.
Calories you burn on Treadmill Incline
Raising the incline level of your treadmill burns more calories than walking on a flat surface. The raised incline also led you to build strength in the lower body due to higher resistance.
For every degree of the incline, the number of calories burned on a treadmill increases by about 12%
If you wish to burn much more calories, just increase the level of and speed of your incline. Or you can also add in a component like bursts of HIIT activity in order to burn more calories.
Factors Involved in Calculating the Number of Calories
There are several factors that can impact the calories burned on a treadmill. So, let’s explore some important factors that can increase or reduce your calorie game-
1. Speed: It plays a vital role in calorie burn. Covering more distance in little time, you will burn more calories. The reason is that your intensity will be high. Also, more calories will be burned if you work out at higher speed after exercise.
2. Weight- your weight highly determines the number of calories you will burn on a treadmill. It’s simple- the more you weigh, the more time you spend on the machine and more calories you will burn.
For example, as per the report of Harvard Health Publishing, a person with a weight of 185-pound burns more calories at 5 mph in 20 minutes on a treadmill as compared to a 125-pound person at the same speed — 237 versus 160 calories, respectively.
- Workout Intensity– The more the pace of an exercise, the more calories you will burn. It’s directly proportional, for example, running at 7 mph burns more calories than running at 4 mph.
- Stride length– A shorter stride will let you quickly pick up and down your feet, which in turn will burn more calories.
3. Gender- It’s a fact that men will generally burn more calories as compared to women doing the similar physical activity. This is due to the reason that men have more muscle and less body fat than women of the same age and weight.
- Motorized treadmills– Walking or running on a manual treadmill burns more calories as compared to a motorised treadmill. The reason behind is, manual treadmill requires more energy and in a motorised treadmill, there is a moving belt and smooth platform which reduces your calories burned per mile.
- Handrails– Most of them have this habit of holding the handrails when they are running or walking on the treadmill. Do you know it can reduce your calorie count? Moreover, it also imbalances your posture and body alignment. Remember, the treadmill calorie calculators do not consider handrails in the count, so avoid using them.
- Incline– It is the most effective way to increase your calorie count. When you walk or run on an incline, it churn out more fat and hence burn extra calories than running on a flat surface. Extra 4 to 6 calories per minute can be burned depending on the level of incline.
- Efficiency- If your motions are smooth, then you are likely to burn fewer calories over a given distance. It varies from person to person as some speeds are more natural and efficient for an individual.
As you read, the calorie count varies and depends on the above-mentioned factors. So, you should try our best to make work all the factors in your favour to burn more calories and get the desired results.
Treadmill Calorie Displays
Several treadmills have a calorie display. This is a small screen which tells you about the number of calories you have burned. It has the computer mechanisms fitted inside it which display the count using the standard mathematical formulas.
This equipment basically asks you for your weight. So remember to enter your weight by involving your belongings like your shoes and clothes to retain its accuracy. If your weight is more, then the number of calories you burn will also be more. If the machine does not ask your weight, it means the results are inaccurate.
If the machine asks only to enter weight, it gives the approximate number of the calories burned which is based on the distance, speed, the incline and the weight entered by you. Few of the treadmill also comes with heart rate estimates.
The calculation of Treadmill Heart Rate
Some treadmills have a heart rate monitor with a chest strap. It helps in considering exercise intensity for providing the best possible calorie estimate. Some treadmills come with wireless heart rate monitors.
This procedure may or may not provide accurate calorie count. But it is surely more accurate as compared to the ones which are based on your speed, your weight and distance.
Other than heart rate monitors along with a chest strap, there are several other methods also for measuring your heart rate. It includes wrist worn monitors, grips on exercise equipment or finger clips etc. So, the accuracy level depends on the functioning of each equipment.
If you want you can also vary treadmill intensity and speed to check the accuracy of your heart rate monitor for calorie count. Start doing a workout at your normal speed. Then alter a variable, such as an incline. If your heart rate or calorie burn estimate does not increase with the increase in workload and incline, then your monitor is not accurate.
Conclusion
Most people find exercising at the comfort of their homes and treadmills is one of the best sources for that. It allows you to carry your workout according to your level of fitness but you should also be aware of your calorie count to get the desired results and lose those calories in a go.
In case you have some questions or queries, feel free to drop it in our comment section below.
