For many fitness enthusiasts and people looking to lose weight, finding ways to burn calories is really important. But ZOZOFIT knows that before you start finding ways to burn calories, you need to remember how important calories are. 

So what are calories? Calories are units of energy we get when we eat and drink different things. Most things have calories — and that’s good because we need that energy to move throughout our day and live our lives. But, when we eat more calories than we are able to burn (through both everyday activities and exercise), we will gain weight in the form of fat. 

To lose fat, we have to burn calories. This often means trying to get into a calorie deficit, where we burn more calories than we consume. Once we’ve burned calories based on the food we eat, our body will turn to our fat and use the calories there. 

The best way to burn calories, then, really depends on your fitness interests and goals. There is a huge variety of activities that will burn calories, so you need to think about what will work best for you. Most of the best activities to burn calories don’t even require any fancy equipment. You just need your home gym setup or a place outside to get moving. 

Once you’re ready to get started, check out the activities below to burn some calories! 

1. Running

Running often comes up in our lists because it is such an accessible activity and definitely burns a lot of calories. According to Healthline, running boasts the most calories burned per hour of any activity! 

All you need to get started is a pair of shoes and somewhere to run, whether that is your neighborhood, a local track, or the treadmill at your gym. If you’re interested in keeping track of how many calories you are burning, it might be beneficial to get a fitness tracking device or heart rate monitor that can use data to calculate your effort and burned calories for a specific workout. 

Just be mindful that running isn’t for everyone — especially if you have bad knees or ankles. Running is considered a high impact activity and can exacerbate any joint issues you might have. But do not fear as there are plenty of low impact, high calorie burning activities for you to participate in. 

2. Swimming

Even if you’ve never seen yourself as a swimmer, it might be time to hit the pool! Swimming can feel intimidating, especially if you’ve never swam for exercise before. You might feel that because you don’t know the proper technique and need to take a lot of breaks that this might not be for you, but it may surprise you! 

Swimming is one of the top calorie-burning activities. It’s also low-impact, which makes this a great fitness activity for anyone. 

If you’re just starting out as a swimmer, it’d be best to start swimming in a pool at a local gym or YMCA rather than trying for open water. You might also consider looking into swim classes, potential coaching, or swim-sports like water polo and underwater hockey! 

3. Dancing

Want something you can just do around your house? Let loose and start dancing! 

Spending 30 minutes to 1 hour dancing can burn hundreds of calories and also it will feel great to just move your body however it wants to move. Dancing is also really versatile, especially if you have a tight schedule. Consider scheduling 5-10 minute dance breaks every couple of hours to burn some energy throughout your work day. 

You don’t need to know how to do a specific kind of dance either, though you could certainly look into classes for aerobic dance, zumba, tango, or whatever else you’re interested in. 

4. Strength training

Burning calories does not mean you have to spend all of your time on cardio. When strength training, you are building muscle mass. Building this muscle mass can provide long-term benefits not just for strength, but also for burning calories because muscle burns more calories when resting than fat. So, if you build strength you’re setting yourself up to burn more calories all day everyday. 

Strength is also incredibly important for your overall health. Not only will you get stronger, but you’ll also increase your bone density and stabilize your joints, which can help you prevent injury during cardio exercises like running and cycling. 

Some other great ways to burn calories 

The list above is not the only way to burn calories. There are so many other activities that can also burn calories, too! 

If you’re an outdoorsy person, then you might consider hiking. Hiking is a great workout because you are going over varied terrain and often will hike at an incline which requires more effort than just walking on flat land. 

Cycling is also a great way to burn calories — and it’s very versatile. You can go on bike rides, or you can try to incorporate cycling into your daily routine by cycling to work or cycling to hang out with your friends. 

Whatever you decide to do, remember to choose activities based on what you are interested in and what works best for the fitness routine you’ve created for yourself. Also remember that it is important to crosstrain and vary the activities that you are doing to avoid fitness burnout and prevent injuries due to overuse. You can still run multiple days a week if you love running, but also consider throwing in the option to swim, dance, or cycle too. 

Still not sure how to get started? Seek out fitness classes and training groups to motivate you and provide you with some extra guidance on your fitness journey. 

See your progress

Nothing is more motivating than seeing your progress overtime — and seeing visual progress is even better. With the 3D body scanning technology in the ZOZOFIT app, you’ll be able to see just how your calorie-burning activities are impacting your body. 

All you have to do is put on your ZOZOSUIT and get your measurements taken! The app will be able to show you your body measurements and body fat percentage. As you take more and more measurements, you’ll even be able to compare measurements from different days, weeks, and months! 

Seeing this progress can show you just how these best activities to burn calories are impacting your overall fitness.