Swimming, running and biking are all aerobic activities that can improve your cardiovascular condition and burn calories at a high rate. These are continuous activities that allow you to determine your calorie expenditure rate with a high degree of accuracy. You can calculate the calories you burn from swimming, running and biking with a standard formula for each gender.
VO2 Max
VO2 max is short for "maximum volume of oxygen." It represents the maximum rate at which you're able to use oxygen and is a good general indicator of your physical condition. You can estimate your VO2 max by running as far as you can in 12 minutes. The following equation provides your VO2 max: [(D - 505) / 49.2]. The "D" in this equation is your maximum 12-minute running distance in yards.
Heart Rate
Your calorie expenditure calculation will be most accurate when you keep your heart rate above 90 beats per minute and below 150 beats per minute. This is the range in which your heart rate provides the best estimate for your calorie expenditure rate. You may need to adjust the speed of your swimming, running or biking to keep your heart rate within this range.
Formulas
The Journal of Sports Sciences offers the following formula to calculate calorie expenditure in men: Calories = [(0.380 x VO2 max) + (0.450 x Heart Rate) + (0.0468 x Weight) + (0.274 x Age) - 59.3954] x Time / 4.184.
Women use the following formula: Calories = [(0.404 x VO2 max) + (0.634 x Heart Rate) + (0.179 x Weight) + (0.271 x Age) - 95.7735] x Time / 4.184.
Example
Assume your average heart rate for a 37-minute biking, swimming or running session is 127 beats per minute. You're 34-year-old man weighing 172 lbs. with a VO2 max of 26.2. The calorie expenditure for this exercise session was [(0.380 x 26.2) + (0.450 x 127) + (0.0468 x 172) + (0.274 x 34) - 59.3954] x 37 / 4.184 = 222 calories.
Estimates
A person weighing 160 lbs. burns approximately 292 calories per hour when bicycling at 10 mph, according to MayoClinic.com. Running at 8 mph burns 986 calories per hour for a 160-lb. person. Swimming burns about 511 calories per hour if you weigh 160 lbs.
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