When looking for a new way to get some exercise, pickleball is a great option. It requires an opponent making it a great chance to get your body moving and to have some fun with a friend.
However, if you are looking for concrete data to know your efforts aren’t going to waste then you probably want to know how many calories you are burning when you play a game of pickleball.
In this article, we explain everything you need to know about burning calories when playing pickleball. You can rest assured knowing that when you sweat during a game of pickleball, it is all for the good of your health!
How Many Calories To Play Pickleball?
Pickleball can burn a lot of calories, depending on a few different things. They can be divided into two categories: who you are and how you play. Naturally, playing a tougher, more intensive game will result in a greater calorie burn than playing a loose, easygoing game.
However, factors such as your weight, body composition, and more influence how quickly your body burns calories while you exercise. Don’t worry; we’ll go into great depth about everything later.
These numbers can be used to determine a general range:
A 160-pound person can burn 500 calories per hour playing pickleball. 700 calories can be burned each hour by a 200-pound person.
A 160-pound individual can play harder and burn up to 700 calories per hour, whereas a 200-pound person can play harder and burn up to 900 calories per hour.
Depending on your intensity and playing style, your step count can range between 4,000 and 7,000 steps.
Can Pickleball Aid In Weightloss?
Pickleball is a great way to help you lose weight!
No matter what sport you play, your body must be in a calorie deficit in order to lose weight. Pickleball is a great option for furthering your calorie deficit and allowing you to eat some more calories.
A calorie deficit is when you are essentially burning more calories than you are consuming. This allows your body to take energy from your fat reserves and begin to lose weight.
To lose one pound, you need to have a caloric deficit of around 3,500 calories, though your exercise level, age, and other factors can change this. Pickleball can actually help you lose weight if you play frequently and burn off those calories!
Calculating your basal metabolic rate (BMR), sometimes referred to as resting metabolic rate, will help you determine how many calories you burn each day.
Even while you sleep, your body continues to burn calories. Energy is required for every body process, including respiration, digesting, protein synthesis, and cell regeneration.
The base number for human calories is 2000 kcal per day, however, this is different for everyone. It is important for you to discover your own BMR and to determine a healthy calorie deficit for yourself or with a doctor to ensure you lose weight in a healthy way.
MET Calculation
Many popular physical activities are used to calculate the metabolic equivalent of task (MET), which is a number used to calculate how many calories are burned during each activity. The appropriate MET formula is:
Calories expended per minute = METs times 3.5 x (your body weight in kilos) / 200
There are many activities with generally recognized MET values. For instance, tennis is typically thought to have a MET value of 8. Depending on whether it’s a social or competitive game, singles badminton scores range from 5.5 to 7.
Pickleball is estimated to have a MET of 4.5 to 6.5 depending on age range, sex, and weight. This makes it slightly more active than badminton but not as great as tennis.
Health Benefits Of Pickleball
While it is fairly new, pickleball is an intense sport. And like anything else that involves movement, it comes with a lot of great health benefits!
Improved Cardiovascular Health
When playing pickleball you aren’t running or swimming but it does help get your blood pumping around your body and aid in breath control. All of which are great for your cardiovascular health.
Playing pickleball just 2-3 times a week can improve your cardio and lower the risk of hypertension, stroke, and even a heart attack.
Low Impact
Sports such as weight lifting, running, and dancing are extremely hard on the joints. This makes them less than ideal for those carrying more weight or with weaker joints. Pickleball is extremely low-impact.
It involves little to no stress on the joints and muscles making it excellent for players of all ages, weights, and medical conditions. You can beat your best score or demolish a friend on the court without worrying about your joints.
Mental Health
Another great benefit of pickleball is the improvement it can make to one’s mental health. As you play your body will release endorphins giving you an exercise high that helps combat depression and anxiety.
It is also a social sport allowing you to find a community of avid pickleball players and create some incredible relationships. This sense of belonging can aid in improving mental health conditions such as anxiety and depression.
Calories Burned: Singles Or Doubles
Pickleball played solo burns more calories than pickleball played with a partner. You don’t have to move as far and you don’t strike the ball as frequently when playing doubles pickleball.
Although there isn’t any concrete evidence of this yet, it is commonly agreed that playing doubles requires 25% less energy. That is based on the same energy-use ratio for tennis players in singles and doubles, which has undergone extensive research over time.
Bottom Line
Regardless of if you play singles or doubles or if you are even playing to lose weight, you will burn calories when you play pickleball.
As you can see, the exact number of calories burned is independent of each player. However, using generalized data, each player may lose around 195 to 350 calories per 30 minutes of pickleball.
So, grab your paddle and a friend and get to burn some calories with pickleball!
Pickleball has been played for decades, and it is a great way to let off some steam, engage in friendly competition, and improve your fitness levels.
Hi, my name is Joe Polls and my family and I are keen pickleball players. My parents actually met on a pickleball court, and the rest is history.
I have always loved pickleball, no matter how many times I hear that it’s not a real sport. It has helped me get through some challenging times in my life - whether that be a breakup, finals, or even bereavement. The reason I made my website is so that I can teach more people about the wonders of pickleball, and maybe even get them interested in playing.
Pickleball could always use more players, so what are you waiting for?
Please, enjoy my website and I hope it teaches you something of use. Who knows, maybe I’ll catch you out on the court one day!
