Accurate measurement of calories burned during a Bosu step class depends on your weight and skill level, as well as the intensity and length of the class. Using a heart rate monitor provides an accurate assessment of your intensity level during a Bosu step class. Applying guidelines developed by the scientific community for individual physical exertion and for the level of intensity of an activity can also give you an estimate of calories burned.
Bosu Balance Trainer
Bosu Balance Trainer -- more commonly referred to as a Bosu ball -- is a dome-shaped ball attached to a stable platform base. Exercises have been developed to use both sides of the Bosu ball. Stepping up and down on a Bosu as in a traditional step class, is quite challenging since you are stepping on and off an unstable surface, recruiting more of the leg and core muscles, which increases exertion compared to stepping on and off a stable surface, such as a bench step, and means that you could conceivably burn more calories.
METs
Levels of physical activity can be quantified by estimating the inherent intensity of the activity measured as metabolic equivalents, or METs, rather than the individual's level of intensity while performing the physical activity. Sitting quietly, for example, is given a 1.0 MET rating, and according to a 2007 article published in the Journal of Physical Activity and Health, step aerobics has a MET of 8.5. An activity greater than 6 METs is estimated to burn at least 7 calories per minute using the Centers for Disease Control and American College of Sports Medicine's guidelines.
Weight and Calories Burned
Using your weight, you can calculate the number of calories you burn during a Bosu step class. The Compendium of Physical Activities Chart published in 2000 by B.E. Ainsworth and colleagues in Medicine & Science in Sports & Exercise and referenced in a Mayo Clinic article titled "Exercise for Weight Loss: Calories Burned in 1 Hour" lists various activities and calories burned according to a person's weight. Categorizing a Bosu step class as high impact, if you weighed 160 lbs., you would burn 511 calories in an hour. A weight of 200 lbs. would compute to burning 637 calories, and weighing in at 240 lbs. would burn 763 calories in an hour.
Skill Level and Calories Burned
Len Kravitz and Chantal A. Vella, writing for American College of Sports Medicine's Current Comments in "Energy Expenditure in Different Modes of Exercise," classify bench step as a Group II activity. In Group II activities, "the rate of energy expenditure will vary greatly, depending on the person's performance ability. With higher skill levels, a person can work harder and longer, and consequently burn more calories." The better you become at mastering Bosu step techniques, the more calories you can burn.
Considerations
Bosu master trainer Shannon Fable cautions against performing a traditional step class using the Bosu Balance Trainer. In her article, "Bosu Cardio Express," she suggests that fitness professionals should avoid creating an entire step class on the Bosu. Programming for the Bosu is primarily created to improve balance and challenge the muscles during strength training and nurture the mind-body connection. The Bosu Balance Trainer can be used to perform simple cardio activities as long as you proceed with caution and limit the time you are stepping on and off the ball. Compared to a bench step with one riser at a height of 6 inches, a fully inflated Bosu Balance Trainer measures 8 to 10 inches in height.
Additional Tips
Techniques used to increase the intensity of a physical activity include performing the activity for a prescribed period of time in your target heart rate zone. Rhythmic movement to music is helpful and can keep you motivated throughout your workout. Use music with beats per minute that also support a safe workout. Lawrence Biscontini, a Bosu master trainer, who created several workout videos using the Bosu, suggests following the American College on Exercise guidelines of using music with 100 to 120 BPMs for "slower step-like training" and 120 to 129 BPM for "Bosu core conditioning emphasizing cardiovascular endurance." He also says that "prudent, common sense is always the most important option."
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