If I sweat More During My Workout Do I Burn More Calories?
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Most people relate a good, hard sweat with excessive calorie burning. That’s why those who are trying to lose weight drive themselves to sweat their butts off ( literally). Burning calories and sweating are related activities, so it’s understandable why one has become synonymous with the other. Yet when you’re sweating a river during intense exercise, it isn’t the sweat that is burning away all those calories. It is the work that you’re engaging in that eats up calories; sweating is just a side effect of the workout.
Let’s talk about SWEAT. It’s really just water loss, not fat loss. Sweating is one way your body prevents itself from overheating.
SWEAT=WATER LOSS
No matter how much or little you sweat, it doesn’t always correlate to calories burned or how hard you’re working, it just means you’re hot and your body is preventing itself from overheating. A hot core temperature does NOT mean you are burning more fat.
Some of us sweat so much we look like we did our run in a pool, while the rest of us look as dry as we did before the workout even started. It seems like the more you sweat, the harder you’re working, which would also mean more calories burned, but that isn’t all that correct. I’ve had clients that work their butts off and don’t sweat an ounce and then I’ve had some that just sweat thinking about the workout.
Don’t use the amount you sweat as a good indicator as to the number of calories you’ve burned. What matters is how long and how intensely you’re working out. Any weight loss that you experience immediately after a workout is only water weight, and you’ll gain it right back as soon as you rehydrate yourself. So don’t worry about how sweaty you get.
So forget stressing about your sweat. Just keep moving. Remember: If you’re trying to lose weight, it’s more often about upping the intensity, not doing everything you can to sweat more.
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