How many calories do you really burn skiing?

TheBEast · Jan 3, 2013

myfitnesspal app is an excellent way to track food intake and exercise output. While the calories burned from skiing are suspect in the app it helped me last spring reduce my calorie instake, monitor and give me a better idea of what I was eating (and the calories I was consuming) and lose about 30 lbs in 3 months (and have kept it off to date). So in my mind the food tracking is as key as is exercise, but as others have said you need to fuel that exercise properly. Food tracking takes some effort and getting used to but once you work that into your routine it will become second nature and you'll make better choices food wise. Good luck!

from_the_NEK · Jan 3, 2013

Nick said:
See to me that just seems insane.

I ran the Boston Marathon and burned 3900 calories, also according to a HRM. How the hell can skiing a single day match up with running a marathon?

Marathon = 3-4 hours of activity. Skiing bumps bell to bell = 5-6 hours (minus lift time) of strenuous activity. Hard charging bumps all day long is an exhausting activity. I could see this burning calories on par with a marathon given the longer duration.

kingslug · Jan 3, 2013

It's impossible to just label "skiing" and trying to figure out calorie burn as there are too many variables. Are you cruising the blues, banging double d bumps, how about length of the trail and altitude. I'm sure when I'm at a 4000 vert mountain at 11000 feet panting my brains out I'm burning a hell of a lot more than just cruising around and banging some bumps on 1000 vert...and then of course the beers afterwards just blows the whole thing to hell...

skiNEwhere · Jan 3, 2013

I tele ski early and late season when the bowls and more difficult terrain isn't open. I am curious to how many calories I burn. I do know that I can alpine ski multiple days in a row even if I am out of shape, but I can't tele ski days in a row just because of how physically tiring it is, especially on my quads

BenedictGomez · Jan 3, 2013

Nick said:
See to me that just seems insane.

I ran the Boston Marathon and burned 3900 calories, also according to a HRM. How the hell can skiing a single day match up with running a marathon?

It cant. Heck, if you go hard on an elliptical machine for 1 hour sustained, that's only about 700 calories.

Skiing is great exercise, but a lot of these charts and apps are way overdoing it on the calories burned (for this and other activities). For instance, I don't believe playing violin for 1 hour burns 175 calories either.

Realistically, I imagine these "calories per hour of skiing" rates are based off the premise of a continuous 50 mile long ski run, in which you could ski for a full hour uninterrupted. The reality is, even the short breaks in lift line, riding the lift, and maneuvering to the run you intend will destroy the per/hour metrics, much like how stopping at a traffic light destroys your average mph on a trip.

SIKSKIER · Jan 3, 2013

[h=2]I think standing outside in your underwear burns quite a bit.

Metabolism and Cold[/h]Your body uses energy to regulate your temperature. This process is called thermoregulation and keeps your body close to the ideal temperature of around 98 degrees by sweating to cool us down or shivering to generate heat. In extreme weather conditions, our bodies work hard to keep our temperature regulated and this process requires more energy. According to the Appalachian State University, shivering uses energy in the form of carbohydrates at a rate five to six times the normal amount. Additionally, the winter months can lead to our bodies switching from carbohydrates to fat as a main source of energy.

Scruffy · Jan 3, 2013

Bump skiing may or may not be exhausting, depends on your skill level. Down hill lift served skiing is an anaerobic exercise; cross country skiing ( done right, i.e. hard charging ) is aerobic and will burn a lot more cal.

Nick · Jan 3, 2013

from_the_NEK said:
Marathon = 3-4 hours of activity. Skiing bumps bell to bell = 5-6 hours (minus lift time) of strenuous activity. Hard charging bumps all day long is an exhausting activity. I could see this burning calories on par with a marathon given the longer duration.

I'd be shocked if anyone could realistically ski , skis on the snow ski, 5 hours of bumps in a day. Literally 5 hours of bumping.

SO far based on what I'm seeing from AlpineReplay, I spend about a 60/40 split on snow and on the lift. So I'm only "skiing" for 20 - 25 minutes out of every hour I'm actively on the slopes.

Of that 20 - 25 minutes, probably at least 5 -10 is loading / unloading the chair, putting on my gloves, tightening boots, waiting in the lift line at the bottom, turning on and off a gopro, straightlining it on a runout, etc etc etc.

So realistically ... I'd be surprised if many people in a full 8AM - 4PM day of skiing if the average person is actually actively making turns for a total of 2 hrs per day.

jrmagic · Jan 3, 2013

I just assume I am getting a reasonable workout and burned some calories and leave it at that. The old mantra that you can not outtrain a bad diet holds true regardless. So Nick for your purposes at the AZ Summit, even if you go hog wild on food and drink for 2 days (not counting Sunday as that's mroe ski and leave without partynig) you will likely add at most 4,000 calories on top of your norm which is a little more than a pound not counting any extra calories that you may burn so I say just have fun :grin:

Cheese · Jan 3, 2013

uphillklimber said:
Nick, When I ski , I actually beat my chair back down the mountain, and not by a little bit.

Stop tucking the bunny hills and ski some gnarly terrain where you have to take a break now and then!

TropicTundR · Jan 3, 2013

Anyone use their Garmin connected to a pulse meter?

UVSHTSTRM · Jan 3, 2013

I run a lot and typically burn about 600-800 calories an hour. I find it hard that I burn the same amount while skiing/riding. Especially when you consider that it is said that you need 20-30 minutes of continous cardio to really have affective calorie burn. And when you consider that you ski/ride at 10-15 minute clips then take 10-15 minute breaks I find it even more unlikely that a skier can burn 800 calories an hour. Don't get me wrong, I would still think it does wonder for ones muscles. I by no means am an expert and could be way off.

steamboat1 · Jan 4, 2013

Doesn't seem to matter what I do. I've been between 178 lbs. & 184 lbs. for 20 years (5' 11"). Got quite a beer belly too. I find the belly helps with the forward lean & keeping my weight downhill.

SIKSKIER · Jan 4, 2013

steamboat1 said:
Doesn't seem to matter what I do. I've been between 178 lbs. & 184 lbs. for 20 years (5' 11"). Got quite a beer belly too. I find the belly helps with the forward lean & keeping my weight downhill.

It also helps to save that joint that fell out of your mouth when your on the lift.:smile:

kingslug · Jan 4, 2013

Nick said:
I'd be shocked if anyone could realistically ski , skis on the snow ski, 5 hours of bumps in a day. Literally 5 hours of bumping.

SO far based on what I'm seeing from AlpineReplay, I spend about a 60/40 split on snow and on the lift. So I'm only "skiing" for 20 - 25 minutes out of every hour I'm actively on the slopes.

Of that 20 - 25 minutes, probably at least 5 -10 is loading / unloading the chair, putting on my gloves, tightening boots, waiting in the lift line at the bottom, turning on and off a gopro, straightlining it on a runout, etc etc etc.

So realistically ... I'd be surprised if many people in a full 8AM - 4PM day of skiing if the average person is actually

actively making turns for a total of 2 hrs per day.

Depends on vertical and how long you can sustain a single run...I've been on mountains that take 35 minutes to get down. Its what kills us easterners when we go to these places as we are used to under 2K vert so we are trained that way..

Nick · Jan 4, 2013

^Very good point.

PomfretPlunge · Jan 4, 2013

Nick said:
I'd be shocked if anyone could realistically ski , skis on the snow ski, 5 hours of bumps in a day. Literally 5 hours of bumping.

At the Mogul Logic camps it starts at about 9:30 AM, 30-45 min of flats, then bumps until 2, with breaks. Basically maybe 3-3:30 hours per day on bumps. And everybody is completely wiped by the end, every day. After lunch the kids in training and the coaches go do tramp/gym/cardio for hours... but the adult crowd is wrekked. 5 hours would be impossible! <pant..tongue hanging out...quads freezin up..puff puff..ackk.. ohh but so much fun

>

JaniceOC · Feb 5, 2013

Great information here

FRITOLAYGUY · Feb 5, 2013

anyone ever use alpinereplay app? It keeps track of calories burned after you enter your weight etc, im looking at my day at okemo a few weeks ago it says i skied 14.1 miles, i burned 777 calories skiing a total of 36 minutes, 89 minutes on chairlifts and 1491 total calories burned during the day im not sure how they get that number maybe traversing between lifts etc who knows but its a pretty cool app to see your top mph, sustained speed, total vertical, it seems to be pretty accurate i just find it funny that at a mtn for 6hrs and 10 runs is only 36minutes of actual ski time.

Nick · Feb 6, 2013

Yup! Hey Fritolayguy; check out the AlpineZone leaderboards on AlpineReplay.

Just search in groups. Free to join!

How many calories do you really burn skiing?

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