Biking to Walking Calories Burned Calculator

Cycling generally burns more calories than walking when comparing the same duration and intensity of exercise, making it a more time-efficient workout for calorie burning and weight loss. However, several factors influence the exact calorie expenditure for each activity, including your weight, speed or intensity, terrain, and workout duration.

Calories Burned: Biking vs. Walking

• Calorie burn for cycling: For example, a 150-pound person cycling at a moderate pace (12–13.9 mph) can burn about 285 calories in 30 minutes, while cycling at a higher intensity (14–15.9 mph) can burn around 357 calories in the same time frame. A 180-pound person cycling moderately for an hour can burn around 654 calories.
• Calorie burn for walking: The same 150-pound person walking at a moderate pace (4 mph) burns around 179 calories in 30 minutes, and walking briskly (4.5 mph) can burn about 250 calories in 30 minutes. Generally, walking burns fewer calories per hour compared to cycling at comparable intensities.
• For a 190-pound person, cycling at 15 mph burns about 863 calories per hour, whereas walking at 4 mph burns 345 calories per hour, highlighting a roughly 2.5 times greater calorie burn with cycling at those intensities.

Factors Affecting Calorie Burn in Both Activities

• Body weight: Heavier individuals burn more calories doing the same activity at the same intensity.
• Intensity and speed: The faster and more intense the exercise, the more calories you burn, whether cycling or walking.
• Duration: Total calories burned increases with how long you exercise.
• Terrain and surface: Uphill cycling or walking on sand or grass increases calorie burn due to increased effort.
• Impact and joint stress: Cycling is lower impact than walking, which might make longer or more intense sessions possible for some people.

Practical Considerations

• Cycling efficiency: The lower joint impact of cycling allows longer or higher intensity workouts, which translates to increased calorie burn.
• Equipment: Walking requires minimal gear, while cycling requires a bike and helmet, which might affect accessibility and consistency.
• Health benefits: Both cycling and walking effectively reduce obesity risk and improve cardiovascular health, but cycling tends to show higher benefit for weight loss and fitness per time invested.

How Much Biking to Burn 2,000 Calories?

• A 180-pound person cycling moderately (12-13.9 mph) would need around 3 hours of cycling to burn approximately 2,000 calories.
• Walking at a brisk pace (around 4.5 mph) requires significantly more time—about 8 or more hours—to reach the same calorie expenditure.

Conclusion

While cycling burns more calories per hour than walking, thus being more efficient for weight loss or burning a high number of calories in less time, walking remains an excellent, accessible cardiovascular exercise. Your choice may depend on personal preference, joint health, equipment availability, and time constraints.