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Calories Burned Calculator

Estimate calories burned during any workout using research-based MET values, your body weight and duration. Free calories-burned calculator for 19+ activities.

MB By Mustafa Bilgic · Updated 2026-06-13 · 5 min read · Fitness Tools

This calories-burned calculator estimates how much energy you use during exercise based on the activity, your body weight and how long you train. It uses MET values (Metabolic Equivalents) from the Compendium of Physical Activities — a research database that assigns an energy cost to hundreds of activities. Heavier bodies and longer or harder sessions burn more.

Treat the result as a solid estimate, not a precise meter. Real burn depends on intensity, fitness, terrain and individual metabolism, none of which a formula fully captures.

Estimate calories burned

Units

Weightin kilograms

Activity

Duration (minutes)

–

calories burned

–

Per minute

–

Per hour

How the calculation works

The formula is: calories/min = MET × 3.5 × body-weight(kg) ÷ 200. A MET of 1 is your resting metabolism; an activity with a MET of 8 burns roughly eight times the energy of sitting still. Because body weight is in the equation, a 90 kg person burns noticeably more than a 60 kg person doing the identical workout.

Don't out-eat your effort

It's easy to overestimate exercise burn and reward yourself with more food than you used. A hard 45-minute session might burn 300–450 calories — about one large muffin. Exercise is brilliant for health, strength and body composition, but for fat loss your overall calorie balance does the heavy lifting.

Why lifting "burns less" but builds more

Weight training often shows a lower calorie burn per minute than running, but it has a hidden edge: it builds and preserves muscle. More muscle raises your resting metabolism, and the recovery process after intense lifting keeps energy expenditure slightly elevated for hours. For long-term body composition, resistance training is one of the best investments you can make — see how to build muscle.

Use it with your goals

Pair your activity burn with your TDEE to understand your full daily energy picture, time your fuel around sessions with pre & post-workout nutrition, and structure efficient sessions using our interval timer.

Sources & further reading

Ainsworth BE, et al. "2011 Compendium of Physical Activities." Med Sci Sports Exerc. — PubMed.
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention — Measuring Physical Activity Intensity (METs).
American College of Sports Medicine — ACSM's Guidelines for Exercise Testing and Prescription.

External links are provided for reference and do not imply endorsement. arsenal.fit is an independent publisher and is not affiliated with any cited organisation.

Not medical advice. arsenal.fit publishes general educational fitness information. It is not a substitute for professional medical guidance. Talk to a doctor before starting a new exercise programme, especially if you are pregnant, recovering from injury or illness, or managing a health condition. Sources are cited from public health and exercise-science organisations (CDC, ACE, NSCA, ACSM, PubMed).

Frequently asked questions

How are calories burned calculated?

Using MET values: calories per minute = MET × 3.5 × your weight in kg ÷ 200. MET values come from the Compendium of Physical Activities, a peer-reviewed research database.

Why does body weight change the result?

Moving a heavier body costs more energy, so a heavier person burns more calories doing the same activity for the same time. That's why weight is part of the formula.

Is this more accurate than my watch?

Both are estimates. Fitness watches add heart-rate data but still rely on algorithms. MET-based estimates are a reliable ballpark; expect any method to be off by 10–20%.

Does lifting weights burn many calories?

Per minute, usually less than running — but it builds muscle, which raises your resting metabolism, and it elevates calorie burn for a while afterward. Its long-term value exceeds the in-session number.

Should I eat back my exercise calories?

If your TDEE estimate already includes an activity multiplier, generally no. Eating back exercise calories on top often stalls fat loss because both estimates carry error.