How Many Kalori Burned During Sex?

JAKARTA - During sex, heart rate increases, breathing becomes faster, and you may sweat. These are all physical businesses that can burn calories. Like other physical activities, sex does burn calories, although not as much as expected.

Reported by VOI from the Very Well Health page on Monday, February 17, the average person burns about 3 to 4 calories per minute during sex with moderate intensity, but certain factors can affect whether you burn less or less calories than the average.

Sex does burn calories, but is not the same as high intensity interval (HIIT) training or weightlifting sessions at the gym. You also burn calories while doing daily activities such as walking, standing, reading, and sleeping. Sexual activities, including foreplay, kissing, oral sex, and penetration can contribute to daily calorie expenses.

While sex may not be the most effective calorie-burning strategy, this activity still contributes to the overall level of activity and can be a fun and healthy way to connect with your partner.

Research shows that on average, men burn about 4.2 calories per minute during sex. Meanwhile, women burn 3.1 calories per minute.

However, the number of calories burned varies between individuals, depending on factors such as intensity and duration of sex as well as individual differences in body and age composition.

If extended to an hour, men burn about 252 calories during sex, and women burn about 180 calories. Despite imagining an hour-long training session in bed sounds fun, in fact, the average duration of sexual intercourse is only about six minutes, according to one study. This means a man will burn about 25 calories during an average sex session, and a woman about 19 calories.

However, the average sex session in this study does not take into account the time spent on foreplay activities, such as kissing, or other activities, such as sex positions. If you are more active during sex, spending more time on foreplay, or sexual activity tends to last longer, most likely you will burn more calories.

Like individual factors, body composition and age that affect the number of calories you burned during sex, sex-related factors themselves can also affect the total calorie burning.

In terms of burning calories, a position that requires more effort will burn more calories. The sex position where you are above requires more sustainable body, energy, and effort movement, so that it naturally burns more calories. Likewise, changing positions during sex will make your body continue to move and contribute to higher calorie burning.

The intensity of your movement also affects how many calories burned during sex. Slow and sensual sex sessions will burn less calories than intense encounters. It's like walking versus running, your heart rate is moving faster. This causes your calories to burn more.

Like other physical activities, the longer you have sex, the more calories you burn. Take time for foreplay to make your pleasure longer, calorie spending increases along with your heart rate, even foreplay can make your heart beat faster.

The science of orgasm and burning calories is still unclear. Orgasms may contribute little to calories burned during sex, but how many calories burned during orgasms are difficult to calculate.

Research shows that heart rate tends to peak ahead of orgasm, and physical effort to achieve this point contributes to overall calorie spending.

Sex is a healthy way to stay active, but the main focus is intimacy and pleasure, with exercise as an added benefit. Depending on the sex position chosen and how long sexual activity lasts, sex can be considered a form of light to moderate exercise.

Routine exercise provides more comprehensive health benefits and more significant calorie burning. Adults should get at least 150 minutes of aerobic exercise with moderate intensity every week, combined with muscle strengthening activity, such as lifting weights or strength training, at least two days per week. If you've just started exercising or haven't exercised for a long time, start it gradually and increase the intensity in line with increased tolerance and strength.

Consider sex an additional exercise that can be enjoyed with your partner, and prioritize separate training sessions to achieve fitness goals.

Apart from sex, many other activities can help you burn calories and improve overall health. Here are some options, depending on preferences and fitness levels. For people with a weight of 86 kg, 30 minutes of exercise will burn:

- Fast walking: 173 calories

- Cycling: 173 calories

- Dance: 194 calories

- Run: 432 calories

- Swimming: 259 calories

Daily activities can also increase calorie spending, such as:

- Work in the park: Cutting grass, sweeping leaves, or gardening is an activity that moves the body and burns calories.

- Up the stairs: Avoid elevators and up stairs whenever possible. This is a simple way to burn extra calories throughout the day.

- Walk: If possible, walking is better than driving while on duty, visiting friends or family, or exploring the surrounding environment.