Calories to Exercise Calculator
Turn a calorie target into the minutes of exercise needed for walking, running, cycling, or swimming based on your body weight.
kcal
kg
Weight unit
Highlighted activity
Burns about 4.3 kcal/min
- 1
Calories burned per minute
3.5 × 3.5 × 70 ÷ 200 = 4.288MET × 3.5 × body weight in kg ÷ 200 — the standard ACSM estimate. - 2
Minutes of exercise
500 ÷ 4.288 = 116.6
How does this calculator work?
To burn a target number of calories, divide them by your calories-per-minute rate, which equals MET × 3.5 × your weight in kg ÷ 200. Higher-MET activities like running and heavier body weight burn faster, so they need fewer minutes than lighter activities such as walking.
Formula
How this is calculated
Enter the number of calories you want to burn and your body weight. Pounds are converted to kilograms by dividing by 2.205. Pick one activity to highlight; all four are still compared in the chart.
Each activity has a MET (Metabolic Equivalent of Task) value: brisk walking 3.5, running 9.8, cycling 7.5, and swimming 6.0. The calories burned per minute is MET × 3.5 × weight in kg ÷ 200, the standard ACSM estimate. Dividing your calorie goal by that rate gives the minutes required, so heavier bodies and higher-MET activities reach the goal faster.
Results are approximate. Real energy expenditure varies with intensity, fitness, terrain, technique, and individual metabolism, so treat the minutes as planning estimates rather than exact measurements. Inputs must be positive numbers; zero or negative values produce no result.
Frequently asked questions
A MET (Metabolic Equivalent of Task) expresses how much energy an activity uses relative to sitting still. Running at 9.8 METs burns nearly three times the energy of brisk walking at 3.5 METs.
Heavier bodies expend more energy to move, so they burn more calories per minute at the same activity. That means a heavier person needs fewer minutes to burn the same number of calories.
No. They are estimates based on average MET values. Actual burn depends on intensity, pace, technique, fitness, and metabolism, so use them as a guide.
Also known as
TG we-Calculate Editorial Team. (2026). Calories to Exercise Calculator [Online calculator]. TG we-Calculate. https://we-calculate.com/calculator/calories-to-exercise-calculator
TG we-Calculate Editorial Team. "Calories to Exercise Calculator." TG we-Calculate. 2026. https://we-calculate.com/calculator/calories-to-exercise-calculator.
TG we-Calculate Editorial Team, "Calories to Exercise Calculator," TG we-Calculate, 2026. [Online]. Available: https://we-calculate.com/calculator/calories-to-exercise-calculator
@misc{wecalculate_calories_to_exercise_calculator, title = {Calories to Exercise Calculator}, author = {{TG we-Calculate Editorial Team}}, howpublished = {\url{https://we-calculate.com/calculator/calories-to-exercise-calculator}}, year = {2026}, note = {TG we-Calculate} }
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