Rock climbing is one of the best ways of physical exercise. This exercise needs both mental and physical strength to reach the goal. Many people choose climbing very often instead of going to the gym. But, does rock climbing burn calories like gym exercise? How many calories can be burned by rock climbing?
Well, the answer is, yes, rock climbing can burn calories like gym exercise. According to many studies, rock climbing can burn as many calories as going to the gym. It is estimated on average 700 calories to burn by rock climbing. But, it is not super accurate. Depending on height, weight, and different body types, it may vary. Also, different climbing strategy burns calories differently. Let’s see how many calories you can burn by rock climbing in detail. But first, you need to understand what calories exactly mean.
Key Takeaways
- Consider what calories stand for, and what calorie burning means.
- What is MET value, and how to calculate calories burned with it?
- How different climbing causes calories to be burned differently.
- A few things to consider to measure how much you may burn.
What is Calories Stand for?
Calories stand for unit energy that makes us able to do things and work. It is more like a chemical that is formed by digesting food elements in our body. Also, a unit of calories is a measurement of the energy gained by food. It is the solitary unit of measuring energy.
In rock climbing, the human body needs units of calories to produce energy. It is the main key to your mental and physical strength. Not having enough calories to produce energy will decrease the ability to climb for a longer and higher destination.
What do Burning Calories Mean?
Burning calories does not mean literally burning something. When your body is sweating, it is your body burning your calories to create energy to do work like climbing. It is also directly linked with weight loss, weight gain, or weight maintenance. Those who lose weight easily must burn more calories than they eat. Eating healthy food can help you to gain calories easily.
Heavy work requires a lot of calories. While rock climbing, you have to climb very high to reach the destination. Climbing requires mental and physical strength. This strength comes from bioenergy produced by units of calories. As higher you climb, your body drains more calories.
To know more or less how many calories burn by rock climbing, you need to know what the MET value is.
What is MET Value?
MET which means “metabolic equivalents”. One MET is defined as the energy you use when you’re resting without doing any activity and it is calculated and defined as 1 kilo calories of energy divided by 1kg weight and then divided by 1 hour.
So your weight in kilograms is how many calories you burn in one hour just by sitting or resting. An activity like walking slowly requires twice the energy of just taking a rest, and has a MET value of 2. MET values have been assigned to different activities and sports.
See Also: How Do Mountain Climbers Sleep?
How Rock Climbing can Burn Calories?
Any kind of physical work can burn calories to create workability. Either you go to the gym for working out or go wall and rock climbing. Rock climbing is an ultimate physical exercise that needs both mind and body to concentrate. Climbing drains a lot of energy.
Rock climbing does not always drain the same amount of calories to produce energy. Different types of body structures burn calories differently. People who have large arms and legs or have more muscles burn more calories, even while resting. Men usually have less body fat and more muscle than women of the same age and weight. That indicates that men burn more calories.
Also, just climbing rocks on and off as you wish will not affect burning calories the same or it will even affect you badly. Same as gym practice. People do not become a bodybuilder by working out for a few days a month.
It needs regular practice in a proper routine to burn a specific amount of calories.
Consistency
It is very important to remain consistent in rock climbing. More important to maintain burning calories. Climbing consistency does not mean climbing every day morning or evening. Consistency in climbing means you climb consistently. Maybe, once or twice a week.
In this way, your body will adopt the regularity of burning calories. This adoption will make you healthy instead of weak and injured.
Framework
Make a framework for the climbing routine. Mark on the calendar for climbing dates. This framework also decides how long you are going to climb. This helps you to build an essential supporting structure for climbing.
This framework is important to maintain how many calories your body burns during climbing. If you go on climbing without a framework you may feel dizzy and tired as your body burns more calories. Also, it can help you to fulfill your climbing practice regularly.
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How Many Calories Burned by Rock Climbing?
Let’s see how many calories you may burn by rock climbing.
On average, rock climbing can burn between 500 to 900 Calories per hour. The total amount of calories burned will depend on the duration of your climbing workout, the kind of climbing, and the intensity and route grade.
Other research indicates that an average climber burns between 8 to 10 calories per minute while climbing. Assuming your arena takes one hour to climb, this still gives us a caloric burn of around 600 to 800 calories.
An easy way to calculate your burning calories is to multiply your weight by the value from MET. Let’s say you climb for an hour more or less. As I weigh 58.5 kg, I can calculate how many calories I may burn within an hour. The answer is 468 calories. You might be thinking how do I calculate that? Pretty simple math as I said, multiplying 58.5 kg with 8 = 468.
Remember that you can only include the time you spent actively climbing. This means that you will need to cut out the time you spend resting, chatting, or belaying. By doing so, you may find your estimated calories burned by climbing.
Yes, it is true. Not all kinds of climbing burn the same amount of calories. There are a few varieties of climbing to consider. But first, your need to know the MET value for certain types of climbing.
To measure that, you need to see this:
- 8 For regular rock or mountain climbing.
- 7.5 For rock climbing, ascending rock with high difficulty.
- 5.8 For easy rock climbing, navigating rock with low-to-moderate difficulty.
Now, this chart indicates and clarifies how different climbing may burn calories differently.
If you are practicing climbing indoors using belays that make it easy, will burn a lesser amount of calories. Which is 5.8 multiplied by your weight. Mine will be 339.3 calories.
If it is a normal hiking type of climbing that requires a medium amount of energy. So, for regular rock or mountain climbing which requires more time, multiply your weight by 8 to see how many calories you can burn. For an average climber, it is around 700 calories.
For high-difficulty climbing that requires less time but more energy, multiply with a 7.5 MET score to see how many calories you burn. Although, these results are not very exact. These results depend on your height and body type.
A Few Things to Consider
Many studies suggest that weight is a significant factor. As your body needs more energy to function when you are carrying extra weight. Those who are heavier than normal may burn more calories while climbing.
Moreover, climbers who climb more often or with heavier gear may also burn more calories. As they carry the extra weight forces more effort which in turn burns more calories.
Remember that, unless you have calculated it in such a way to get lab data, the number of calories you burn rock climbing will be an estimate. This means that you should leave errors when calculating so that you can fulfill your fitness goals.
FAQs
Is rock climbing good for weight loss?
Rock climbing is good enough for weight loss as it is a very comprehensive exercise that is strength training and cardio training combined. A good climbing exercise plan can be a way to burn calories to keep your heart well.
Is it all right to rock climb every day?
No, you should not climb every day. At least not for long periods of time. As a beginner, your tendons and ligaments need time to heal and rest and get better again. This is why it is better to create a schedule for rock climbing.
Is rock climbing cardio or strength?
According to a study by the British Journal, the cardio and energy used when rock climbing is the same as when you are running at a speed of 10 to 12 minutes a mile.
Is climbing good for losing belly fat?
Yes, you can lose belly fat by climbing rocks. It is a great cardiovascular exercise that gives you a lot of control over your heart rate and blood circulation. The great thing is that it can be easier to boost the training power and strain on your body than by just walking or running.
Is climbing better than gym?
Climbing makes a solid cardio workout with a load of muscle-building. Factoring in the problem-solving component, improved balance, coordination, and social benefits, going for a climb does more for your body and mind than just going to the gym.
Final Thoughts
Rock climbing is a great way to burn calories like working out in a gym. You can try burning your extra calories by climbing. It also depends on your body type, weight, and the way you climb. There are a few kinds of climbing that can drain your energy on a huge level. Counting how many calories your can burn is to multiply your weight with MET values. Remember, the result may be close enough to estimate, not accurately 100% correct.
