Weight training and running burn different number of calories, depending on exercise intensity, your body size, fitness level, gender and age. According to Dr. Chantal of Vella of the University of New Mexico, exercise intensity is the greatest factor in determining how many calories you burn.
Calories Burned
According to CaloireControlCouncil.org, if you weight about 150 pounds and lift weights for 30 minutes at moderate intensity--between 60 to 65 percent of your maximum heart rate--you would burn about 234 calories. If you run for 30 minutes at the same intensity, you would burn about 200 calories.
Considerations
There is no single set of numbers that describes exactly how many calories you will burn with any given exercise. However, people with more muscle mass will burn more calories than other people during exercise. If you run or lift weights for 30 minutes at 75 percent of your maximum heart rate, you will burn more calories than people who train at a lower intensity for the same amount of time.
After-Burn
According to Dr. Vella, your body continues to burn calories at a higher rate than pre-exercise state for several hours after your workout. This condition is called EPOC, or excess post-oxygen consumption, in which your body restores itself to its resting state. Any high-intensity exercise -- whether it is weight-lifting or running -- will elicit twice the number of calories burned after exercise than low-intensity exercise, which is about 50 to 55 percent of your maximum heart rate.
References
- Calories Control Council
- "IDEA Fitness Journal"; Exercise After-Burn; Chantal Vella; November 2004
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