Squats are the most effective way to burn calories. It is a compound exercise that burns calories and helps tone your legs and buttocks. Adding squats to your workout routine can improve your overall muscle strength. However, how many calories these exercises burn depends upon various factors.
How many calories do squats burn?
Multiple factors are involved in calculating how many calories you can burn while performing squats. However, on average, one squat at moderate intensity can burn around 0.2 to 0.3 calories. Thus, for every 1-minute normal-intensity squats, you will burn around five to seven calories.
What is MET’s role in calculating calories burned?
MET value will give you an idea of how much energy your body uses during the squats. The more complex the exercise, the higher the MET value. For instance, the MET value of a normal seated position is 1.
Formula: Calories burned per minute = (MET Value x bodyweight in kg x 3.5)/200
Calculating calories burned in squats using the MET formula
Using the MET formula will give you a good estimate of your calorie expenditure. For example, a person weighing 150 pounds will burn approximately 250 to 571 calories per hour, depending on squat intensity.
Low intensity
MET value for low-intensity squats is 3.5. Low intensity is typically considered as a warm-up, where you perform the lightweight exercise with longer rest time between sets or moderate weight exercise with shorter rest time between sets.
Calories burned per minute = (68 x 3.5 x 3.5)/200 = 4.16
Calories burned per hour = 4.16 x 60 = 250
Normal intensity
MET value for normal intensity squats is 5. This is when you use heavyweight and perform each exercise with a short rest time between sets.
Calories burned per minute = (68 x 5 x 3.5)/200 = 5.95
Calories burned per hour = 5.95 x 60 = 357
High intensity
MET value of high-intensity squats is 8. High-intensity training is a moderate exercise where you use heavyweight and perform the exercise as quickly and intensely as possible, with very little or no rest time between sets. Jump squats are an excellent example of a high-intensity squat.
Calories burned per minute =(68 x 8 x 3.5)/200 = 9.52
Calories burned per hour= 9.52 x 60 = 571.2
To help you understand better, here is a range of calories burned for a person who weighs 150 pounds (68 kgs).
Squat workout time
Low intensity (3.5 MET)
Normal intensity (5 MET)
High intensity (8 MET)
5 minutes
21
30
48
15 minutes
62
89
143
30 minutes
125
179
286
45 minutes
187
268
428
1 hour
250
360
571
Factors influencing calorie burn during squats
Besides the intensity of the workout, there are other factors that influence calorie burn during squats.
Body fat percentage
Muscles burn more calories than fat, so having less muscle mass and more body fat results in fewer calories burnt.
Age and sex
Age is a primary factor that decides the number of calories burnt. This is because younger people have a higher metabolic rate than older people.
Similarly, the metabolic rate in males is higher than in females resulting in more calories burned in males.
The efficiency of movement
When you perform squats with the proper form and technique, you will be able to target more muscle groups. This will result in more calories burnt.
Geographic conditions like high altitude
When you exercise at a higher altitude, your body has to work harder. This means that you will burn more calories.
Are squats a good way to burn calories?
Whether you are trying to build muscular strength or burn calories, squats can be great additions to your routine. Although the primary goal of squats is to target lower body muscles, they also engage abdominal muscles and hip flexors.
The correct form of squats remains standard across all its variations. Focus on the following:
Standing your feet shoulder-width apart
Keeping the knees in line with the toes
Maintaining a neutral spine
Keeping your chest up and hips backward.
How many squats burn 100 calories?
It is quite easy to calculate the caloric expenditure of 100 squats. Let us assume that a man weighing 150 pounds can perform 20 half squats with normal/moderate intensity per minute. At this rate, he can perform 100 half squats in 5 minutes.
If a single squat burns 0.3 calories (as mentioned above), the same man burns 30 calories for every 100 squats he executes.
Here is a chart for calories burned in moderate-intensity workouts (20 squats per minute).
No. of Squats
130 lbs (58.9 kgs)
140 lbs (63.5 kgs)
150 lbs (68 kgs)
160 lbs (72.5 kgs)
170 lbs (77.1 kgs)
180 lbs (81.6 kgs)
190 lbs (86.1 kgs)
200 lbs (90.7 kgs)
1 squat
0.25
0.27
0.29
0.31
0.33
0.35
0.37
0.39
10 squats
2.5
2.7
2.9
3.1
3.3
3.5
3.7
3.9
20 squats
5
5.4
5.8
6.2
6.6
7
7.4
7.8
30 squats
7.5
8.1
8.7
9.3
9.9
10.5
11.1
11.7
50 squats
12.5
13.5
14.5
15.5
16.5
17.5
18.5
19.5
75 squats
18.75
20.25
21.75
23.25
24.75
26.25
27.75
29.25
100 squats
25
27
29
31
33
35
37
39
Post-workout calorie burn from squat workouts
Interestingly , your body continues to burn calories post-workout. This is called excess post-exercise oxygen consumption (EPOC)[2]American Council on Exercise: 7 Things to Know About Excess Post-exercise Oxygen Consumption (EPOC). EPOC occurs after an intense workout. This happens when your body tries to get your muscles back to their regular state.
However, how many calories you burn through EPOC differs depending on your workout intensity. The higher the intensity [3]Harvard T.H. Chan: HIIT (High Intensity Interval Training) of your workout, the more calories you can burn post-workout.
Conclusion
Squats are an excellent way to burn calories. Additionally, squats trigger metabolic responses conducive to weight loss. Squats not only help you lose fat by burning calories but also aids in muscle growth.
The number of calories you burn during squats depends on various factors. Nevertheless, incorporating squats into your workout routine is guaranteed to help you achieve many of your fitness goals.
The squat is a multi-joint exercise that uses some basic movement patterns to enhance lower body strength. From variations to benefits, this article will teach you everything you need to know about squats.
Single leg squat is a basic squat variation that works the lower body in a unilateral manner. This article covers the steps to do this exercise followed by its safety measures, benefits, and variations.
Squats are generally quad-dominant exercises. However, if you wish to train glute muscles through squats, the variations and tips provided in this article can help you.
Overhead squat is a strength exercise that gives you a full-body workout. This article explores all the tips and benefits you need to know before doing this exercise.
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