A calorie is a unit of energy that people get from food. The body uses calories to keep you functioning even while you sleep or rest.
Sleeping
A person who weighs 150 lbs. burns about 64 calories per hour while sleeping; someone who weighs 200 lbs. burns approximately 86 calories per hour while sleeping, according to Fit Watch.
At Rest
Eating burns about 140 calories per hour; watching TV or reading burns around 75; and doing homework, or anything that requires heavy concentration or brain activity, burns around 110.
Sleep-related Breathing Disorders
Researchers at the University of California, San Francisco, found that the average resting energy expenditure for people with sleep-related breathing problems was 1,763 calories per day. However, people who snored actually burned more calories -- and average of 1,999 per day while resting.
Benefits
Your resting metabolic rate, or RMR, is the amount of calories you use while at rest. Knowing your RMR can help you determine how many calories you should be consuming per day to stay healthy (see Resources).
References
- Tooele County Department of Health: Calories Burned During Activity
- Fit Watch: Calories Burned
- UPI: Snoring Linked to Calories Burned
- Advanced Exercise Sciences: What Is Resting Metabolic Rate and Why Is It Important?
- Medical News Today: More Calories Burned At Rest By People With Sleep-Related Breathing Disorders
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