Which exercise burns calories the fastest: Walking, cycling or swimming?

Swimming can increase physical fitness and cardiovascular health. Photo / 123rf

Which exercise delivers weight loss the fastest? Experts measure up walking versus running, swimming, HIIT and weights.

I live by most of the health rules. I eat at least five a day, clock my fibre intake and hit a healthy protein portion. But there are times when I want to shed a bit of weight. Like most people, the idea of enduring a rumbling stomach for weeks on end and spending hours in the gym is daunting. But it really doesn’t need to be that difficult.

To lose 450g of fat a week — a realistic starting point for healthy, sustainable weight loss — we need to be in a 500-calorie deficit a day, says Sam Quinn, a personal training lead at Nuffield Health. This is about 1500 for women and 2000 for men. One way to achieve this is to cut 250 calories (for reference, a four-finger Kit Kat is 209 calories while a Kit Kat Chunky is 263 calories) from our diet and burn a further 250 through exercise, he notes.

So how do we go about burning those 250 calories? “My biggest piece of advice is to find what works for you and do the activities you enjoy,” Quinn advises. “There is no best form of exercise to burn calories. It’s about finding the types which are most suitable for your ability.”

But if you want to know exactly what 250 calories worth of exercise looks like, Quinn has broken it down for us. Here’s what’s typically required of popular exercises — including walking, running and swimming — to burn 250 calories.

A 35-minute walk at a brisk pace will burn aboutd 250 calories. Photo / 123rf

Walk 3500 steps

“Walking is free, simple and effective and shouldn’t be underestimated when attempting to burn calories,” says Quinn.

As a rough guide, adding a 35-minute walk to your day (about 3500 steps) at a brisk pace will burn aboutd 250 calories, he says.

Walking counts as a moderate aerobic exercise, meaning it makes our heart and lungs work harder, improving our cardiovascular health and reducing our risk of heart disease and strokes. The quads (muscle at the front of thigh), hamstrings (muscle at back of thigh) and calf muscles are all engaged and therefore strengthened by regular walking.

“It is a low-impact form of exercising, so can be good for people who are starting their weight loss journey, or if high-intensity and high-impact exercise isn’t suitable for them,” Quinn says.

Run 4km

“Running or jogging is one of the most popular forms of exercise,” Quinn says. “It can transform strength, fitness levels, mental health and body composition. It’s a great form of exercise for burning calories.”

The average person would need to run about 4km to burn 250 calories. Though the figure will depend on the intensity of the run and the gradient, Quinn notes.

As well as aiding weight loss, running is a vigorous, high-impact exercise that improves cardiovascular and mental health, he says. It also strengthens joints and muscles, including the glutes (buttocks), core and upper body, on top of those engaged when walking.

Swim 35 lengths

“Swimming is a low-impact, full-body workout which is great for burning lots of calories,” Quinn says. Swim 35 lengths in a 50m pool to burn 250 calories, he suggests.

As well as supporting weight loss, “swimming helps build muscle and strength while putting minimal strain on the joints compared to exercises such as running or HIIT”, he notes.

Swimming has the bonus of toning muscles in the shoulders, torso, core and glutes, as well as improving posture and flexibility.

It will also increase physical fitness and cardiovascular health, Quinn says. To burn more calories, simply increase the duration or intensity of your swim or swap up the stroke (butterfly will burn the most, while breast stroke will burn the least), he suggests.

High-intensity interval training (HIIT) is a quick and effective workout that involves performing bouts of maximum-effort exercise followed by rest. Photo / 123rf

Perform a 25-minute round of HIIT

“High-intensity interval training (HIIT) has become a very popular form of exercise and fat loss training strategy,” Quinn says.

The quick and effective workout involves performing bouts of maximum-effort exercise — think burpees, star jumps and squats — followed by lower-intensity exercise or rest.

One round of HIIT lasting only 25 minutes can burn 250 calories.

“HIIT training works by raising the heart rate and putting additional demand on working muscles to burn more calories than slower-paced walking, swimming or cycling.”

“It can help strengthen the body’s bones and muscles whilst boosting cardiovascular fitness and heart health,” Quinn notes.

“However, HIIT training should be considered with caution as it is not suitable for novices, people with poor fitness levels or underlying medical conditions, due to its intensity.”

Cycle 12km

“Cycling is a low-impact form of exercise which can be a very effective way of burning calories,” Quinn says.

Covering about 12km will burn about 250 calories, though the figure will vary depending on intensity, gradient, resistance and speed, he notes.

While the leg muscles — quads and glutes — are given the biggest workout from cycling, it also engages the core and upper body. “Cycling also helps to condition the cardiovascular system,” he adds.

Lift weights for an hour

Resistance training — exercises like sit-ups, push-ups and crunches — and lifting weights are brilliant for building muscle and strength while improving joint and bone health.

To burn 250 calories, about an hour of training would be required.

“While they don’t burn a massive amount of calories during the activity (meaning they need to be performed for longer to hit 250 calories), it will help improve body composition and increase lean mass,” Quinn notes. “This will ultimately help to burn more calories at rest and keep you burning more calories after you have finished your workout.”