Does sweating burn calories? Is sweating good for you? What is sweat anyway? If you’re curious about any of these questions, stick around. We’ve got the answers plus, a look at the benefits of working up a good salty sweat. The answer to does sweating burn calories may surprise you but, that doesn’t mean a good sweat isn’t worth it. If you love a good powerful workout that will leave you soaked, we’ll share some ideas with you. Plus, we have ways that you can sweat more, dropping weight in just a matter of reps.
What Does Sweating Do?
For starters, what is sweat anyway?
Sweat is a liquid substance released by the body. When our body temperature starts to rise, the body reacts by releasing sweat to cool the body down. This natural way of cooling is thought to melt fat. Most people relate a good workout with a ton of sweat but,
does sweating burn calories?
The answer is, less than you might think. Let us explain.
We burn calories all day long, even while sleeping. Of course, when we’re pumping through an intense exercise or working under the sun, we start to work up a sweat. This does mean more calories are burned but, not so many. Most of the sweat that we release takes away from our water source and reduces water weight, which is only temporary.
This is not to say that you should do away with intense workouts. While sweating doesn’t burn as many calories as you might think, there are many benefits. Let’s take a look at what those are.
Benefits of Sweating.
We all sweat. Most of us feel great after a good sweat, feeling accomplished and healthy. While it is great for mood-boosting effects, what other benefits are there to working up a good sweat?
1. Natural Detox.
Because the body is releasing water and salt, the body gets a natural detox. Sweating is a way to release other toxins like alcohol and waste. This is the reason why we feel great after a good sweat, with a healthier body from the inside out.
2. Immunity Booster.
Part of the immunity boost comes from the release of toxins, allowing the body to naturally fight off illness. The other part comes from a peptide produced by the sweat glands that mimics an antibiotic. When we sweat, this natural antibiotic-copy works to rid the body of toxins.
3. Glowing Skin.
When we sweat, our circulation increases all over the body. This supplies more oxygen-rich blood to vital organs. This increased flow makes the body healthy from the inside out producing a natural glow of the skin. The skin will look brighter and healthier, feeling smoother to the touch after a good sweat.
4. Mood Booster.
Hormones released from a good sweat make us happy. Besides the euphoric feeling of making through a super tough workout, we feel accomplished and proud. All of these feel-good chemicals work together when we sweat to put a smile on our face and put us in a better mood.
With these four benefits, everyone should be encouraged to work up a sweat at least one time every day. While these benefits might be enough to convince some, others are probably still wondering, does sweating burn calories?
Does Sweating Burn Fat?
Many of us think the more we sweat, the more weight we lose. But,
does sweating burn calories?
Any workout burns calories. Some of the highest calorie-burning workouts include intense cardio or high-intensity intervals. Of course, the more work that we do, the more we sweat. It makes sense that we would put two and two together. But it is actually not so true.
Sweating alone does not burn calories. Plus, the amount of sweat we release often has nothing to do with the number of calories we burn. What we do lose when we work up a sweat is water. This water released from our bodies makes us weigh less but, it is only temporary. Once we re-hydrate, our body absorbs water again. Don’t let this news discourage you from working out harder, as the benefits are worth it in the end. But, keep in mind there are other ways to burn calories than sweating alone.
Sweaty Workouts That Will Leave You Soaked.
There are a lot of benefits that come with a good sweat. As we mentioned above, you can enjoy a boost to your mood and your body releasing sweat from your body. Some of us like to avoid sweating at all costs but, others that don’t feel accomplished without it.
For those that love a good sweaty workout routine, try these moves out. You could lose a pound a day just by doing this workout series. And the best part, you don’t need any equipment. Do keep in mind, however, what you eat plays a big part. Sweating profusely doesn’t mean that you can indulge every day. Enough with the lecture, let’s get to the routine.
Jumping Jacks – 30 seconds
10-second rest
Jump Squats – 30 seconds
10-second rest
Upper Cuts – 30 seconds
10-second rest
High Knees – 30 seconds
10-second rest
Burpees – 30 seconds
10-second rest
Switch Lunges – 30 seconds
10-second rest
Skaters – 30 seconds
What you want to do to work up the best sweat is power through each move as many times as you can in 30 seconds. When the time is up, you get a quick 10-second rest and it is on to the next move. While one time around is enough to get the sweat dripping, try making it through two or three rounds for maximum burning effects. We answered no to, does sweating burn calories but, with this workout, you’ll think we were fibbing.
How to Sweat More.
Does sweating burn calories is kind of a loaded question. On the one hand, sweating doesn’t directly burn calories but, one the other, intense workouts that do burn calories cause you to sweat. That’s why powering through the workout we mentioned above works for scorching calories. But there are ways to sweat more that will maximize the burn and increase the amount of sweat released in one go. If you want to tighten up quickly and lost some of that pesky water weight, try these tips to sweat more.
1. Waist Band.
Investing in a waistband, you’ll increase the amount of sweat around the abdomen. This slims the waist and cranks up the body’s release of salty sweat.
2. Wear a Jacket.
Layering on some clothes and hitting your workout, you’ll increase the amount you sweat. We know you may want to peel off layers as the intensity rises but, resist the urge and try to keep them on for more sweating power.
3. Workout in Intervals.
Going through workouts in short intervals of intense work followed by short rests is a sweat jerker. Any time that the body does through these quick changes, a large amount of work is performed and the fat melts away.
Sweat it Out.
We might have surprised you with the answer to, does sweating burn calories. But, all of the benefits make sweating totally worth it. While you can burn a ton of calories with high interval training, it is not the sweat that makes the fat melt away.
Does sweating burn calories?
No, not directly.
But the next time you’re looking for a burn, go for one of our workouts and add in a sweat boosting suggestion. You’ll notice a slimmer waist and wider smile in no time.
Thank you for this article. It answers a question we all have at one time or another. Yes sweating by itself doesnt help with weight loss. What works to bring down your weight is the actual workout and the calories burnt. If you burn more calories than you consume your weight will definitely go down. Sweating because you are feeling hot will not make you lose weight. Thanks for sharing
I got comfort from this statement ‘ We burn calories all day long, even while sleeping’ , some guilt was relieved Lol,
I am one of those that feels accomplished after sweating. All the sweating benefits that you mentioned makes it worth it I can do it all for the skin glow, mood boosting, detoxing and immune boosting . This make it a vital part of our everyday life.
sure, that will more help for everyday your life and thanks your comment