The speed that you run also plays a role, but mainly on how long it takes to burn the calories. The faster you run, the less time it takes to hit the 1k calorie mark. Ultimately, these are 4 metrics that matter when doing this calculation.
Speed
Time
Distance
Calories
Two things to note from the table above
1) Heavier people burn a lot more calories than lighter people – For instance, a 220 pound person only needs to cover 5.7 miles when running at 7mp/h. This is very different from a 150 pound person that needs to cover a whopping 8.4 miles when running at the same speed.
I think this is actually quite encouraging for people who are a bit heavier. It should be motivating to know that if you weigh more than 200 pounds, every mile you cover burns over over 170 calories.
2) The faster you run the less time it takes – If running at 5mp/h, it will take a 180 pound person 81 minutes to cross the 1k calorie mark. If that same person bumps their speed up to 9mp/h, the time needed drops to 47 minutes. That’s almost half the time to achieve the same goal. So if you want to burn 1000 calories as quickly as you can, running fast is the answer.
Is it necessary to burn 1000 calories to lose weight?
This is a more achievable target for most people. It doesn’t require a drastic shift to your diet, it can be done in less than 45 minutes, and it works out to 800 calories in total. Consistently creating a calorific deficit of 800 calories will help you drop weight super fast.
Are there any lessons to be learned here?
Lesson 1 – You need to cover a substantial distance in order to burn 1000 calories. For most people, it works out to 6 miles or more. This is not a small distance by any means. It still amazes me to think that even if I run a sub 40 minute 10k (as a 180 pound person), I won’t break the 1000 calorie mark.
Lesson 2 – If you haven’t run 10k’s before, give yourself time to build the fitness needed to burn 1000 calories on a treadmill. You can’t just jump from 4 mile runs to 8 mile runs overnight. It’s a perfectly healthy goal to set for yourself, but you must be patient and learn to appreciate the process of improving your stamina and fitness over time.
The Foolproof Strategy For Burning 1000 Calories on a Treadmill
- Session 1 Goal: 5.5 miles
- Session 2 Goal: 6 miles
- Session 3 Goal: 6.5 miles
- Session 4 Goal: 7 miles
- Session 5 Goal: 7.5 miles
- Session 6 Goal: 8 miles
Personal Attempt To Burn 1000 Calories
I like to practice what I preach, so rather than simply writing an article, I set myself the challenge of burning 1000 calories on the Treadmill at my local Virgin Active. I have to admit that my initial plan was to smash this goal on my first attempt. Let’s just say that I was a little bit over ambitious 😳
1st Attempt Summary: "You're only halfway there mate!"
Like I said, I wasn’t expecting to feel so gassed by the 5km mark, and might have overestimated by my current fitness levels.
2nd Attempt Summary: Baby Steps Brother
True to my word, I am now tackling this particular challenge, step by step and stride by stride. I know that my current max distance on a treadmill is about 5 miles, so the the next goal is to get to 5.5 miles. I am essentially following the advice outlined in the foolproof strategy above.
Final Thoughts
Don’t be fooled by the seeming simplicity of burning 1000 calories on a treadmill. I’m a reasonably fit dude that can run sub 20 minute 5k’s without blinking. I have been humbled by the endurance fitness needed to actually conquer this beast.
To close, all I really want to say is that burning 1000 calories on a treadmill is a super fun challenge to set for yourself. In fact, it’s probably the simplest way to prepare for a 10k race. My only hope is that you give yourself the time and patience to build the fitness needed conquer this challenge.
If you do, you could become a 1000 calorie treadmill champion. It’s an honorable achievement that will make you a better long distance runner and could help you drop a few pant sizes in the process. Sounds like a pretty sweet deal to me 😎.