With the long and cold winter finally coming to an end, our hibernation period has finished too. During this hibernation period, many of us have gained significant weight. I know, most of them are concerned about burning those extra calories to get back in their top-shape. However, going to gyms isn’t a popular choice. Likewise, I’m not too fond of the weight lifting and grunting of the reps either. Therefore, I have invested some time to surf through the nets and talked to instructors to find out some enjoyable and exciting recreational activities to burn my extra calories.
I have enlisted the most popular choice for the 7 top recreational activities and the calories they burn. Nonetheless, it might vary from individual to individual.
Understanding calorie scale and metabolic equivalent (MET)
While we talk about how to burn our fats and calories more quickly, we must know how people measure calories. Furthermore, calorie-burning has a direct relation with MET, aka metabolic equivalent.
MET most-profoundly means the amount of Oxygen required for 1kg body-weight to complete a specific task. Does this definition seem too hard? Well, merely putting, MET is the amount of calories burnt to complete a particular job. And calories in our body refers to the temperature that our foods provide to our body.
Therefore, when we want to burn calories, we want to increase the MET. For our help, ACSM has listed around 800 activities with their particular calorie-burning effects.
7 most top-rated and thrilling recreational activities with their calorie-burning effect
From running to kayaking, tennis to playing the cornhole board game, there are several recreational activities we love to do in our leisure. However, not all of them are efficient for calorie burning. In this list, I have selected only those that are easy to perform and destroys a reasonable sum of calories simultaneously.
So, here is our list of the top seven calorie-burning leisure activities.
Biking
Let’s grab the bicycle, put the helmet on, and explore places! Bike Riding is one of the most popular adventures around the world and effectively works to kill fats. People love roaming around sometimes, intensely, or with ample times with their bicycles to discover the unknowns.
It is a great way to burn fats (calories), shaping your biceps and triceps, and toning your legs. Moreover, it often requires heavy breathing, which strengthens your lungs. So, if you are looking for a way to lose weight, open your Google map, choose a destination, invite your friends, and start the ride. Oh yes, take some lunch items along with you for a pleasant and relaxing picnic at your destination.
But if you want a toned-down biking exercise, you may consider using motorized bicycles. This type of bicycle uses either gas or electricity to run. There are even hybrid types that use both! Because of this, they run much faster than regular bicycles. But that’s not to say they don’t burn enough calories. They only take you to your destination much quicker than a regular bike, but they are also great tools to help you work those muscles.
Calorie Consumption: Approximately 400-450 per hour at a moderate speed of 10-12 MPH.
Swimming
Is there anyone here who hasn’t heard of Michael Phelps? The G.O.A.T. swimmers to swim around the blue water of the Olympics is for many of us has a perfect shape; the long limbs, nicely build biceps and those six-packs!
Regular swimming might give you all of these. It has a massive advantage as it hardly affects your joints. Therefore, if you have a swimming pool at your home or you can access a nearby one, go there and float on the water like a butterfly.
You will be amazed to see how good you are feeling!
Calorie Consumption: 500-700 calories for a one-hour session.
Cornhole Game
Cornhole is an excellent option to burn your calories without taking much stress. It is a trendy old-school game that you will love to play around the corner of your home.
The game is super-easy to play. Once you select your cornhole board, you are all set to enjoy the game. From senior citizens to youngsters, everyone can enjoy a brilliant indoor game. Although it may not require much movement, the stretching of hand and limbs to put the ball in cornhole requires energy, which results in a calorie-burning effect.
Calorie Consumption: A 40-45 minutes session effectively burns around 200-250 calories.
Kayaking
If you are sitting on your comfy on the weekend, and hovering around on how to spend the whole day, then kayaking is your ultimate decision. It is a great way to spend your free time while you paddle around slowly to explore new places.
An expert speaks that kayaking burns around 200 calories per hour at a 2MPH paddling speed. Fortunately, most amateurs kayak on about 5MPH, helping to kill a substantial amount of fats. Moreover, it helps you to build your back and upper body muscles.
Calorie Consumption: An average kayaking session burns around 500-600 calories.
Running and Jogging
While many of us deny to include running, jogging, and slow walking as a recreational activity, there are no alternatives to them when it comes to calorie burning. Imagine yourself in a nearby park, walking or running with your friends or neighbors and chitchatting about different issues, is there anything better to it?
I bet you won’t find one. Additionally, these exercises provide you fresh air and increase your stamina. These are ideal for keeping you in an attractive shape too.
Calorie Consumption: 500-600 calories in an hour.
Jumping Rope
It is a simple yet effective indoor recreational activity to burn down your calorie level to an optimum level. All over the world, jumping rope has been a favorite past time for many people.
It requires excellent hand-eye coordination and makes you sweat within a short time. While you pick up your feet speed, the game helps to destroy your calories even quicker. Moreover, once you learn the basics, it is fun to know about the side swinging and other jumping rope tricks.
Calorie Consumption: It is a high-calorie burning activity with a 700-1000 calorie-burning effect per hour.
Football
Haven’t you seen those beautiful Picasso like moves from Leo Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo? While popularly known as Soccer to North Americans, football is the most popular game around the world. You can play it with your friends wherever you want, in your home yards, parks, fields and where not.
The beautiful game requires fast running, quick moves, vision, and so on. And the joy of scoring a stunning individual goal is next to none. It enables your burn calorie and keeps you fit while having a great fun time with your friends.
Calorie Consumption: A full ninety minutes of football game burns 1200-1400 calories.
Some other productive recreational activities to burn calories
Apart from these seven top-rated leisure time activities, there are some others which are popular too among people. These are-
- Tennis: With 600-800 calorie-burning ability, tennis is widely prevalent among youngsters. Hit, run, stop, start- the rhythm is quite fascinating too.
- Martial Arts: While it enables you to learn the basic self-defense tactics, it burns around 700-900 calories per hour. It makes your limbs extremely flexible.
- Frisbee: Most Americans have tossed up a frisbee with their friends during their childhood. With 200-250 calorie-burning ability per-hour, it isn’t a bad option at all to pass your free time and relieve stress.
Conclusive verdict
If you are looking to burn your calorie, you might include any of these seven informal recreational activities in your routine. Nonetheless, if you have any sorts of physical constraints, you should consult your physician before taking up these activities.
This enlistment has been carefully selected to help you burn your calories while providing you with some fun. I thoroughly believe that these leisure activities will surely help you on your merry way to destroy the extra calories.
I’m a 20-something stay-at-home mother and wife. I have an amazing husband, a beautiful daughter, two loving dogs, and a lazy cat. I wouldn’t change my life for anything! I love to read, listen to music, cook and blog!
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