The average person will burn 300 to 500 calories per hour canoeing. The number of calories burned will depend on your weight, the distance and speed you cycle, and the type and level of terrain.
Canoeing with moderate effort at 5mph (3min/mile, or 8kph) a 200 pound person is estimated to burn 498 calories per hour.
How many calories are burned canoeing?
Calories burned per minute = (MET x body weight in Kg x 3.5) ÷ 200
“MET” is a measurement of the energy cost of physical activity for a period of time. You can find an activity’s MET on the chart above.
A task with a MET of 1 is roughly equal to a person’s energy expenditure from sitting still at room temperature not actively digesting food.
A task with a MET of 2 uses twice as much energy as a task with a MET of 1. A task with a MET of 10 uses 10 times as much energy as a task with a MET of 1.
MET values “do not estimate the energy cost of physical activity in individuals in ways that account for differences in body mass, adiposity, age, sex, efficiency of movement, geographic and environmental conditions in which the activities are performed. Thus, individual differences in energy expenditure for the same activity can be large and the true energy cost for an individual may or may not be close to the stated mean MET level as presented in the Compendium.” (as quoted from the main page of the Compendium of Physical Activities).
A person weighs 180 pounds (81.65kg) and portages (a task that has a MET value of 7) for 1 hour (60 minutes).
Calories Burned from Canoeing (per minute) = (7 x 81.65 x 3.5) ÷ 200 = 10.00
Calories Burned from Canoeing (for 60 minutes) = 10.00 x 60 = 600
Sources and External Resources
- Ainsworth BE, Haskell WL, Herrmann SD, Meckes N, Bassett Jr DR, Tudor-Locke C, Greer JL, Vezina J, Whitt-Glover MC, Leon AS. The Compendium of Physical Activities Tracking Guide. Healthy Lifestyles Research Center, College of Nursing & Health Innovation, Arizona State University. Retrieved May 11, 2015, from the World Wide Web.
- Arizona State University Healthy Lifestyles Research Center – Compendium of Physical Activities – Water Activities – Provides MET values for water activities, including canoeing.
- Learn about “MET” and the compendium of physical activities from Arizona State University, University or South Carolina, and Wikipedia. There is a summary of general physical activities defined by intensity from the CDC and the Harvard School of Public Health.
- Recommendations on physical activity for health from the Harvard School of Public Health and the WHO.
- Find out about the health benefits of canoeing with “Canoeing and kayaking – health benefits” by Australia’s BetterHealth Channel, “8 ways paddling can improve your health” by OntarioParks.ca, and “Nine health benefits of paddling” by GoPaddling!.
- Learn to canoe with “Learn how to canoe” in Men’s Journal, “Learn the Basics of How to Canoe” by YouTube user Ontario Lake Country, “Learn to Paddle a Canoe By Using the J-Stroke” by YouTube user PaddlePortageCanoes, or take the Paddle Canada National Canoeing Program.
- Learn to choose a canoe with “How to Choose a Canoe” by REI,
- Learn expert canoeing tips with “Top Expert Tips to Solo Your Canoe” by Paddling Magazine, “Go from novice paddler to expert canoeist with these 7 steps” by Cottage Life, “Expert Canoeing Advice to Master the J-Stroke” and “Top Expert Tips to Solo Your Canoe” by Youtube’s Canoeroots, and “Top 5 River Canoe Tips to Help Make You a Better Paddler” by PaddleTV.
- The most popular canoeing forums are CanoeTripping.net, Canoeing.com Forums, Paddling.com Forums, Trailspace, and Reddit’s r/canoeing and r/whitewater.