Most treadmills give an estimated number of calories burned based on your age, weight and the amount of work you do during your treadmill session. The computer inside your treadmill is performing a calculation based on METs, or metabolic equivalents. Using METs and your body weight, you can perform the same estimate for yourself. Treadmill estimates are often based on the gross caloric burn, or total calories burned, instead of the net caloric burn, which is the number of calories your exercise burned above what you would have burned at rest. Use a net calorie calculation to more accurately assess the value of your workout.
Estimate Net Calories Using METs
Step 1
Divide your body weight in pounds by 2.2 to convert it to kg. For example, if you weigh 180 lbs., your weight in kilograms is 81.8.
Step 2
Multiply your weight in kilograms by 3.5 and the MET reading on your treadmill. For example, if your workout had an average MET of 6.2 and you weigh 81.8 kg, multiply 6.2 by 81.8 by 3.5 to arrive at 1,775.
Step 3
Divide the answer by 200 to calculate the number of calories you burned per minute in your workout. For example, 1,775 divided by 200 equals 8.875 calories per minute.
Step 4
Multiply the number of calories burned per minute by the number of minutes you worked out. For example, a 30-minute workout at 8.875 calories per minute burned 266.25 net calories.
Simplified Per-Mile Estimate for Walking
Step 1
Multiply your weight in pounds by .53 to estimate the total calorie burn per mile. For example, if you weigh 180 lbs., you burn approximately 95.4 total calories for every mile you walk because 180 times .53 equals 95.4.
Step 2
Multiply the total calories burned per mile by the number of miles you walked. For example, if you walk four miles, you burn approximately 381.6 total calories.
Step 3
Multiply your weight in pounds by .3 to estimate the net calories you burn per mile while walking. For example, if you weigh 180 lbs., you burn approximately 54 calories more per mile walked than you would at rest because 180 times .3 equals 54.
Step 4
Multiply the number of net calories burned per mile by the number of miles you walked to estimate the total number of net calories burned during your walk. For example, if you walk four miles, your net calorie burn is approximately 216 calories because four times 54 equals 216.
Simplified Per-Mile Estimate for Running
Step 1
Multiply your weight in pounds by .75 to estimate your total caloric burn per mile. For example, if you weigh 180 lbs., you burn approximately 135 total calories for every mile you run because 180 times .75 equals 135.
Step 2
Multiply the total calories burned per mile by the number of miles you walked. For example, if you run four miles, you burn approximately 540 total calories.
Step 3
Multiply your weight in pounds by .63 to estimate the net calories you burn per mile while running. For example, if you weigh 180 lbs., you burn approximately 113.4 calories more per mile run than you would at rest because 180 times .63 equals 113.4.
Step 4
Multiply the number of net calories burned per mile by the number of miles you ran to estimate the total number of net calories burned during your run. For example, if you run four miles, your net calorie burn is approximately 453.6 calories, because four times 113.4 equals 453.6.
References
- American College of Sports Medicine; Metabolic Equations for Gross VO2 in Metric Units
- Illinois State University Department of Health, Physical Education and Recreation; Metabolic Equations: ACSM Formulas; M. J. Adams
- "Advanced Fitness Assessment and Exercise Prescription"; Vivian H. Heyward; 2010
- "Medicine & Science in Sports & Exercise"; Energy Expenditure of Walking and Running: Comparison with Prediction Equations; Hall, et al.; December 2004
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