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During the 2024 Summer Olympics , athletes from more than 200 res publica will contend in over 300 events . As you watch athlete sprint , leap , swimming and flip in pursuit of a gold palm , you might wonder : which Olympic upshot cut the most calories ?
There are two way to answer this question : looking at the total energy spent across a whole event or judging the biggest burst of vitality required in the course of a founder challenge .
Sha’Carri Richardson and Melissa Jefferson cross the finish line of the women’s 100-meter final during the 2024 U.S. Olympic Team Track & Field Trials. Running events are some of the most energetically taxing at the Summer Olympics.
Researchers unremarkably determine the zip toll of an activity as a measure of calorie per kilogram of body weight per hour ( kcal / kg / hour ) . So , if an recitation apply 2 kcal / kg / hour , you could require an average human weigh about 185 pounds ( 84 kg ) to burn 168 kilogram calorie , if they worked out for a full hour .
There are individual differences between people ; some will utilise less energy to execute the same activity , while others whose trunk weight is made up of more fat cells typically sting more . On average , an grownup at eternal rest will use 1 kcal / kg / hour , and any activity that want more than 6 kcal / kg / hour is classified as " vigorous - intensive " in thePhysical Activity Guidelines for Americans .
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Running demands more
Of all the sports at this year ’s Olympics , the function events will result in the most calories burned per kilogram of body exercising weight per hour .
Accelerating is much more energetically demanding than running at a constant speed , so consequence such as the 100 time — in which runners speed from 0 to 5 meters per second ( 16 foot per second ) in under a 2d — will use a large routine of calories in a inadequate period . calculation byPietro di Prampero , a professor of physiology at the University of Udine in Italy , bring out that during the first 0.85 second of Usain Bolt ’s world - record 100 - molarity dash , he was burning91.2 kcal / kg / hour .
" In terms of metabolic major power , of course , the most demanding [ of the run events ] are the 100 - meter dash , " di Prampero recite Live Science . " But in terms of overall vim , if you run a marathon , the amount of vim spent is much more . "
For every kilometer an athlete runs at a steady speed , they typically burn 1 kcal per kilo of consistency weight unit . This figure is sovereign of the runner ’s speeding , di Prampero said — so running a marathon burns 42 kcal / kg . The 2020 Tokyo human being ’s marathon Au medalist , Eliud Kipchoge of Kenya , weighs about 115 pounds ( 52 kg ) and burned 2,339 kcal by the clip he reached the finish line . The racetook him 2 time of day , 8 bit , which comes out to around 21 kcal / kg / time of day .
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Calorific cost of other Olympic sports
According to theCompendium of Physical Activities , a comprehensive review that compiled datum from hundreds of studies to count on the calorific monetary value of bodily function , cycling consequence above 20 miles per hour ( 32 klick / h ) fire 16.8 kcal / kg / hour . Rowing at racing speeds burns 15.5 kcal / kg / hour . Martial liberal arts are consider to use 10.5 kcal / kg / hour , andcompetitive trampolininguses 10.3 kcal / kg / hour .
When it comes to swim events , the energy demand varies depend on the stroke , the athlete ’s skill level and whether the event takes place in a kitty or in open water system .
" In elite swimmers , the most demanding stroke is breaststroke , " saidTiago Barbosa , a prof of sport science at the Polytechnic Institute of Bragança in Portugal . " After that fare butterfly , then backstroke . The most sparing is freestyle . "
Barbosa ’s earlier inquiry , published in theInternational Journal of Sports Medicinein 2006 , calculated that the monetary value of swimming breaststroke at 1.6 beat per second — more or less slower than Adam Peaty of England swam to win the gold in the 100 - m breaststroke at the 2020 Olympics — was around 30.4 kcal / kg / hour .
The open - water events may take more DOE , due to the athletes ' potential exposure to waves , idle words and cooler temperatures . However , Barbosa said swimmers can also relieve more energy by drafting — positioning themselves behind other swimmers to reduce drag — much like cyclists do atthe Tour de France .
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However , both di Prampero and Barbosa stressed that these calorific figures can vary greatly among individuals .
" We must be honest — these are all estimates , " di Prampero enounce .
" I say the average Olympian runner wipe out about 1 kcal / kg per km . But if you are a sound Caranx crysos , you may spend 0.95 , and if you have beneficial shoes , maybe 0.83 , " he said . " If the terrain is blotto , the cost goes up … at the Olympic stratum , even a 0.01 difference could be the dispute between the atomic number 79 decoration or not . "
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