Victor Forge
Working out and exercising can leave your muscles feeling sore, which is a result of damage to the muscle's tissue and fiber. This is known as Delayed Onset Muscle Soreness (DOMS). While soreness does not indicate that your muscles are burning fat, sore muscles do burn calories. The number of calories burned depends on your body composition and basal metabolic rate (BMR). Muscle repair and rebuilding also burn some calories, but it is not a significant amount. Muscle is more metabolically active than fat, and having more muscle mass increases the number of calories burned at the same body weight.
| Characteristics | Values |
|---|---|
| Do sore muscles burn calories? | Yes |
| Do sore muscles burn fat? | No |
| What are sore muscles an indication of? | A good workout |
| What is the main driver of our metabolic rate? | Lean tissue (muscles, organs, connective tissue, and bones) |
| What is the role of body composition? | Plays a major role in the amount of calories burned every day |
| Does the body burn more calories when repairing and rebuilding muscles? | Yes, but it's not a lot of calories |
| Does muscle burn more calories than fat? | Yes |
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What You'll Learn
- Sore muscles do burn calories, but it may not be from body fat
- Muscle soreness is not an indicator of burning more calories
- Muscle repair requires energy and burns calories, but not a lot
- Muscle is more metabolically active than fat and burns more calories
- Strength training is important for losing fat and keeping your body strong
Sore muscles do burn calories, but it may not be from body fat
The number of calories you burn depends on your body composition and basal metabolic rate (BMR). According to a 2018 study in Clinical Nutrition Experimental, body composition plays a major role in the amount of calories you burn every day. 60 to 75 percent of energy expenditure occurs at rest, 15 to 30 percent comes from physical activity, and 10 percent is used for converting food into energy. Therefore, the amount of lean muscle tissue in your body determines how many calories you burn daily.
Burning calories is not the same as burning fat. Calories refer to energy and are found in all macronutrients, whereas fat is stored excess energy. You accumulate fat when you consume more calories than you burn daily. To burn fat, you need to exercise, eat clean, whole foods, eat a high-protein diet, improve your body composition, and be in a slight calorie deficit. Over time, you will slowly change your body composition and achieve your weight loss goals.
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Muscle soreness is not an indicator of burning more calories
Muscle soreness is not an indicator that you are burning more calories. Sore muscles do burn calories, but they do not burn more calories than muscles that are not sore. The number of calories you burn depends on your body composition and basal metabolic rate (BMR).
Muscle soreness is caused by microscopic tears in the muscle fibres, which the body repairs through a process called muscle protein synthesis. This process is triggered by intense workouts, particularly those involving weightlifting or HIIT, longer workouts, working out too often, or exercising beyond your level of fitness.
Delayed onset muscle soreness (DOMS) is a type of muscle pain that occurs 6 to 8 hours after physical activity and peaks within 24 to 48 hours. It can last up to 72 hours or even a week, and it is usually felt in the legs, arms, and back muscles. DOMS can be reduced by warming up and cooling down properly, and it becomes less intense as your muscles adapt to a regular exercise routine.
While sore muscles indicate that you have exercised, they do not directly burn fat. Burning calories and burning fat are different processes. Calories are energy, and fat is stored excess energy. To burn fat, you need to be in a calorie deficit, which means burning more calories than you consume through exercise and diet. Therefore, muscle soreness is not a direct indicator of burning more calories or fat.
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Muscle repair requires energy and burns calories, but not a lot
Muscle repair does require energy and burn calories, but the amount of calories burned is not significant. When you work out, you create tears in your muscle fibers, which need to be repaired. Your body uses the calories you eat to repair these tears. However, the number of calories burned during muscle repair is relatively low and is not directly related to muscle soreness.
Muscle soreness, known as Delayed Onset Muscle Soreness (DOMS), is caused by the same process that leads to muscle repair. However, the soreness itself does not indicate an increased number of calories being burned. The number of calories burned during muscle repair is not directly related to the level of soreness.
While muscle repair may burn a small number of calories, it is important to note that having more muscle mass increases your basal metabolic rate (BMR). This means that, at the same body weight, more muscle mass equates to more calories burned at rest. For example, 10 pounds of muscle would burn 50 calories in a day at rest, while 10 pounds of fat would burn only 20 calories.
Additionally, building muscle through strength training can help with weight loss. While it may not burn an extra 250 calories per day, it improves areas such as mood, sleep, and cognitive function, and reduces the risk of various diseases. Strength training is important for losing fat, gaining muscle, and improving overall fitness.
In summary, while muscle repair does require energy and burn calories, the amount of calories burned is not significant. The number of calories burned is not directly related to muscle soreness, but rather to the amount of muscle mass and the body's basal metabolic rate. Building muscle mass through strength training can be an effective way to support weight loss and improve overall health.
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Muscle is more metabolically active than fat and burns more calories
Muscle and fat are both metabolically active and necessary for the body. However, muscle is more metabolically active than fat and burns more calories. According to Christopher Wharton, PhD, a certified personal trainer and professor at Arizona State University, 10 pounds of muscle would burn 50 calories in a day spent at rest, while 10 pounds of fat would burn 20 calories. This is supported by the National Council on Strength and Fitness, which found that muscle tissue at rest will burn approximately six calories daily per pound, while fat burns two to three calories daily per pound.
The number of calories burned depends on body composition and basal metabolic rate (BMR). BMR represents the minimum amount of energy (calories) needed to keep the body functioning and makes up 60 to 75 percent of the total calories burned each day. Body composition refers to the ratio of lean muscle tissue to adipose tissue (fat) in the body, and it influences the metabolic rate, or the number of calories burned daily. Lean tissue, which includes muscle, organs, connective tissue, and bones, is the primary driver of our metabolic rate.
While sore muscles do burn calories, they do not directly burn fat. Sore muscles are an indication of a good workout, and the number of calories burned by sore muscles depends on body composition and BMR. To burn fat, it is recommended to exercise, eat a balanced diet, and be in a slight calorie deficit. Over time, this will change body composition and lead to weight loss. Additionally, strength training can help build muscle mass and boost resting metabolism, further contributing to calorie burning.
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Strength training is important for losing fat and keeping your body strong
Strength training is an important aspect of losing fat and keeping your body strong. While cardio is often the go-to for weight loss, strength training is critical to weight loss as it helps with fat loss while building or maintaining muscle strength and size.
Muscle is a fat-burning machine, and the more muscle you have, the quicker your metabolism will be, and the more calories and fat your body will burn. Even at rest, muscle burns more calories than fat. For example, 10 pounds of muscle would burn 50 calories in a day spent at rest, while 10 pounds of fat would burn 20 calories.
A well-designed strength-training program can keep you burning calories and fat post-workout due to excess post-exercise oxygen consumption (EPOC). This means your metabolism remains elevated even after exercising. Two types of strength training can contribute to weight loss: pure strength training and metabolic resistance training (MRT), also known as HIIT.
MRT involves periods of intense work followed by short rest periods, which can be the best way to keep your body burning fat throughout the rest of the day. However, it's important to note that muscles need rest to grow, so be sure to leave at least a day in between strength training the same muscle groups.
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Frequently asked questions
Yes, sore muscles do burn calories, but the number of calories burned depends on the body composition and basal metabolic rate (BMR). The calories burned may or may not come from fat.
Yes, building muscle burns more calories than fat. Muscle is more metabolically active than fat and requires more energy to maintain. However, building muscle does not burn an extra 250 calories a day.
Yes, the healing process of muscles burns some calories, but it is not a significant amount. The body uses the calories consumed to repair the torn muscle fibres.
