If you're trying to lose weight, burning off about 3,500 calories per week will help you lose about 1 lb. each week. You may reach this goal through exercise alone if you burn at least 500 calories per day through exercise. However, not all exercises pack the same punch. Activities that require the most physical exertion are the most likely to burn at least 500 calories within 30 to 60 minutes.
Running in Intervals
Running at a pace of about eight miles per hour for one hour is enough to burn off approximately 986 calories for someone who weighs about 160 lbs., 1,229 calories for someone who weighs 200 lbs. and 1,472 calories for someone who weighs 240 lbs., according to MayoClinic.com. However, you don't need to overextend yourself if you're unable to keep up such a pace. Interval training, which involves alternating between moderate intensity and higher intensity exercise, burns off more calories than running at the same low to moderate pace for the same amount of time. A 2007 study published in the "Journal of Applied Physiology" found that people who continuously cycled at a moderate pace burned off 37 percent fewer fat calories than people who cycled in intervals. Study participants alternated between 10 four-minute-long bursts of high-intensity exercise and two minutes' worth of moderate-intensity "rest" intervals.
Jumping Rope
The act of jumping with rope tones the arms and legs while boosting the heart muscle. As a result, jumping rope would burn off about 730 calories in one hour for a person who weighs 160 lbs., 910 calories for someone who weighs 200 lbs. and 1,090 calories for someone who weighs 240 lbs. Consider jumping rope in intervals -- for example, 100 rapid jumps for every 30 moderate-paced jumps -- to diversify your workout and speed up calorie burning.
Rollerblading
Rollerblading isn't merely a way to get from Point A to Point B. By investing in a pair of rollerblades and skating back and forth between work, school and home, you may burn about 913 calories in an hour if you weigh 160 lbs., 1,138 calories if you weigh about 200 lbs. and 1,363 calories if you weigh about 240 lbs. For optimum benefits, continue to propel yourself by moving your legs and blades rather than coasting. Remind yourself that your goal is to burn more calories, not just to reach your destination at a faster pace than you would by walking.
Swimming
Swimming burns calories at a rapid pace because it is also a full-body workout. By swimming laps for one hour you would burn off about 511 calories if you weigh 160 lbs., 637 calories if you weigh 200 lbs. and 763 calories if you weigh 240 lbs. You may choose it as your primary workout method, but consider using it as part of a cross-training regimen. Cross-training, or incorporating multiple forms of exercise in a training program, can enhance weight loss if you keep up a moderate pace and exercise for at least 30 minutes during each session, according to the American Council on Exercise. You might, for example, jog for 20 to 30 minutes and then cool off as you swim laps for another 20 or 30 minutes.
References
- American Council on Exercise: What are the Benefits of Cross Training and How Can I Incorporate It Into My Training Routine?
- MayoClinic.com: Exercise for Weight Loss: Calories Burned in One Hour
- "Fitness" magazine: Three Ways to Burn 500 Calories: Stairclimber
- Reader's Digest: Burn More Calories in Less Time
- ShapeFit: Cardio Exercises to Burn Major Calories
- University of Guelph: Interval Training Burns More Fat, Increases Fitness, Study Finds
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