I came across an article* this morning that caught my attention. It was titled, “Here are 5 exercises that will burn 200 calories in less than 3 minutes.” (These are the exercises, if you are interested: burpees, jumping jacks, running with high knees, mountaineer, and jump squat.) The article states that “a recent study showed that performing a sequence of one or more exercises at a brisk pace in in 150 seconds would be an effective workout to burn 200 calories in no time.” So, let’s look at this article with the proper scrutiny.
First, there is no citation for the “recent study.” So, this should be a big red flag. I didn’t search for it, because I suspect it either doesn’t exist or it is grossly misrepresented in the present article.
Second, I assume that (if it exists) the “recent study” did not suggest that 200 calories could be burned in “no time” and (I hope) that the author of the article is being figurative, because, well, “no time” is literally no time.
So, the question remains: “Can any exercise burn 200 calories in 3 minutes?” The simple answer is that likely every exercise burns more than 200 calories in 3 minutes. WHAT??! Indeed, it is true. How? Because the author of the article doesn’t understand (or does) what is a “calorie.” A calorie is the amount of heat energy required to raise one gram of water one degree Celsius. This is not to be confused with a food Calorie (big “C”). We often use Calories when talking (in lay terms) about food energy and metabolism. A Calorie is a kilocalorie (kcal) or 1000 calories. So, 200 calories are actually 0.2 kcal (or 0.2 Calories). Much less impressive!! So, yes, you CAN expend 200 calories in 3 minutes (in almost “no time”—literally).
Resting energy consumption is approximately 3.5 ml/kg/min. Oxygen consumption for a 70 kg individual at 200 calories per 3 minutes is 0.19 ml/kg/min (I won’t bore you with the calculation, but that is far less than resting metabolism [roughly 1.25 kcal/min—3.75 kcal in 3 minutes]).
This does not mean that it is better to just stay on the couch. The exercises listed can burn calories. Most exercise of moderate-to-vigorous intensity will likely expend 15-25 kcal/min (depending on several variables). The “100 kcal rule” states that, whether you walk, jog, or run, you burn 100 kcal (100,000 calories) per mile. Performing the exercises described as a HIIT (high-intensity interval training) workout can have the added benefit of an elevated post-exercise metabolism (i.e., you might expend an addition 200 calories per 3 minutes for hours after ending the exercise session).
So, today’s take-home message? Exercise and mind your calories (and Calories). (In addition, read fitness articles carefully and with some skepticism!!)
Be your best today; be better tomorrow.
Carpe momento!!
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Here are 5 exercises that will burn 200 calories in less than 3 minutes