Ways to Lose Fat Without Running: Information on Activities that Burn Many Calories.
How to Lose Body Fat
If you are looking for ways to burn calories and melt away body fat without having to do a monotonous activity like running, you are in luck. There are numerous activities and exercises that can be done that will help you achieve your goals without having to ever step foot onto a treadmill. But before getting to those activities, it’s best to look at how one should go about actually losing body fat. In reality, losing fat is basically a numbers game. One pound of fat is equal to 3500 calories, so in order to lose one pound of fat a week, you would need to put your body into a 500 calorie deficit every day of the week. As most people who struggle with weight loss know, this is not an easy task.
So how would one go about cutting out 500 calories a day? Well, the first thing you will need to do is figure out how many calories your body actually needs you to consume each day. A simple way of finding this out is to go to MayoClinic.com and use their Calorie Calculator to figure out what your specific number is. To do this, all you have to do is put in your age, weight, height, and sex and the calculator will spit out a fairly accurate estimate. Once you have that number, subtract 500 calories from the total and you will have the maximum number of calories you can eat a day to lose weight. For example, if the calculator says you need to eat 2000 calories to maintain your weight, you need to subtract 500 from that total and you would get 1500 calories a day in order to lose one pound of fat a week.
In order to keep yourself on the right path, it would be wise to write down everything that you eat as well as the total number of calories for each food and drink item every day. You won’t always have to do this, but it would be very beneficial to do it for at least a month. You’d be surprised how many calories you are consuming on a regular basis. Doing this will also give you a better understanding of how many calories are in certain food items and will also help you become more familiar with food labels. If you are unsure how many calories are in a particular food item, you can go to CalorieKing.com and search their food database for the exact item or something similar. If you don’t want to write everything down free hand, you can go to FitDay.com and use their free online journals to keep track of your calorie intake. Keeping a food log is a lot of work, but the rewards will come as you achieve your fat loss goals.
Activities that Burn Lots of Calories (and Fat by Extension)
Now that you know that losing fat is basically a numbers game, finding activities that can help you burn many calories is an excellent way to give yourself an extra edge. If you have a bad day nutritionally, burning extra calories from exercise will help to keep you on track. If you are perfect with your nutrition, it will help to speed up the process of losing body fat. Other health benefits are also prevalent in a lot of these activities, such as strengthening the heart and lungs.
Here is an excellent chart from Men’s Fitness found on FindArticles.com that has a list of activities and the amount of calories they burn (obviously ignore the running section if you choose not to do it):
THE CHART
ONE HOUR OF ACTIVITY 155 LBS 190 LBS
CARDIO
Running, 12 minutes per mile 562 689
Running, 10 minutes per mile 703 862
Running, 8 minutes per mile 879 1,077
Running, 7 minutes per mile 984 1,207
Running up stairs 1,055 1,293
Swimming laps, freestyle,
vigorous effort 703 862
Swimming laps, freestyle,
moderate effort 562 689
Bicycling, 12-13.9 mph,
moderate effort 562 689
Bicycling, 16-19 mph,
very fast 844 1034
Mountain biking 598 733
Bicycling, stationary,
moderate effort 492 603
Bicycling, stationary,
vigorous effort 738 905
Walking, pushing or pulling
a stroller with child 176 215
Walking, up stairs 562 689
Walking, 3 mph, moderate pace,
level surface 246 302
Walking, 4.5 mph, brisk pace,
level surface 316 388
Walking, 3.5 mph, uphill 422 517
Rowing, stationary, moderate effort 492 603
Rowing, stationary, vigorous effort 598 733
RESISTANCE TRAINING
Weightlifting, vigorous effort 422 517
Weightlifting, light or
moderate effort 211 259
RECREATION
Fishing in a stream,
in waders 422 517
Ice fishing, sitting 141 172
Stretching (hatha yoga) 281 345
CHORES
Washing car, vigorous effort 316 388
Vacuuming 176 215
Grocery shopping 246 302
Making your bed 141 172
Moving furniture 422 517
Sweeping 281 345
Auto repair 211 259
Installing rain gutters 422 517
Hanging storm windows 352 431
Painting 316 388
Chopping wood 422 517
Mowing the lawn 422 517
Operating a snowblower 316 388
Shoveling snow 422 517
Baling hay 562 689
Milking a cow 211 259
SPORTS
Basketball 562 689
Billiards 176 215
Bowling 211 259
Boxing (punching a heavy bag) 422 517
Football, touch or flag 562 689
Golf, carrying clubs 387 474
Golf, using a cart 246 302
Handball 844 1034
Judo, jujitsu, karate, kickboxing,
tae kwon do 703 862
Racquetball 492 603
Rope jumping, moderate effort 703 862
Soccer 492 603
Tai chi 281 345
Tennis, singles 562 689
Backpacking 492 603
Hiking 422 517
Kayaking 352 431
Snorkeling 352 431
Surfing, body or board
variety 211 259
AT WORK
Desk work 127 155
Carpentry 246 302
Fire fighting (climbing ladder
with full gear) 773 948
Policing (making an arrest) 562 689
Sitting in a meeting 105 129
Bartending 176 215
Making photocopies 176 215
Walking around the office
at a moderate pace 246 302
WINTER SPORTS
Ice hockey 562 689
Ice skating, 9 mph 387 474
Ice skating, over 9 mph 633 776
Cross-country skiing, 4.0-4.9 mph,
moderate effort 562 689
Cross-country skiing, 5.0-7.9 mph,
vigorous effort 633 776
Cross-country skiing, uphill 1,160 1,422
Curling 281 345
Downhill skiing, moderate effort 422 517
Sledding, tobogganing,
bobsledding, luge 492 603
Snowshoeing 562 689
Snowmobiling 246 302
MISCELLANEOUS
Watching television or a movie 70 86
Sleeping 63 78
Gardening 352 431
Reading 91 112
Toweling off
after a shower 281 345
Sex, vigorous effort 105 129
Sex, moderate effort 91 112
Sources
MayoClinic.com (2011, February 19). Calorie Calculator. Retrieved from https://www.mayoclinic.com/
CalorieKing.com (2011, February 19). Food Search. Retrieved from https://www.calorieking.com/
FitDay.com (2011, February 19). Free Diet and Weight Loss Journal. Retrieved from https://www.fitday.com/
FindArticles.com (2011, February 19). 85 common ways to burn more fat: we break down the calorie-consuming events in your day and show you how to turn up the heat - Outdoor Fitness. Retrieved from https://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m1608/is_11_18/ai_93009049/