Kayaking can be an excellent way to have a good time while getting a pretty significant workout. If you’re a kayaking enthusiast or want to look more deeply into the hobby, you might be wondering just how good kayaking is as an exercise. If you want to discover how many calories you can burn by kayaking, then learning more about what kayaking can do for your body is in order.
Is Kayaking a Good Workout?
Yes, kayaking is a fantastic workout for your body. You’ll be working out many major muscle groups while you’re out on the water. It can be a good exercise for toning your arms, and you can also get your heart rate up quite nicely.
Many people like to go kayaking as a way to increase their upper-body strength. This is a fun and natural way to get stronger over time. Paddling in your kayak takes effort and will make you stronger.
The best aspect of using kayaking as an exercise is that it doesn’t feel as if it is work at all. Kayaking is very fun, and you get to enjoy the great outdoors. It’s an entirely different feeling than merely hitting the treadmill or lifting some weights.
You actually can get a pretty good cardiovascular workout by kayaking as well. If you decide to go very fast in your kayak, then you should be able to get your heart rate up significantly. Challenge yourself to keep that pace for a specific stretch of time, and it makes for a beautiful workout experience.
Just How Many Calories Can You Burn?
How many calories you will be able to burn while kayaking is dependent on how hard you go at it. If you attempt to do the cardiovascular workout method mentioned above, then you’ll be likely to burn a pretty substantial amount of calories. Even kayaking at a reasonable pace is going to burn calories pretty well, so it’s useful even in more casual doses.
People will burn 300 calories when they go out kayaking for one hour on average. Your amount of calories burned may differ as it isn’t something that you can be sure of due to variables. Regardless, it’s important to understand that you can burn a ton of calories if you commit to kayaking regularly.
Keeping up a rigorous pace while kayaking will allow you to exceed that general 300 calorie an hour statistic. If you’re worried about losing weight, then you may want to try to burn as many calories as possible. Don’t overdo it while you’re out kayaking but you shouldn’t have a problem keeping up a very steady pace for an hour or two, depending on your physical condition.
Making kayaking a part of your fitness routine can be a great way to mix up your workouts. Continuing to work out in the same old ways can get very dull after awhile. Using kayaking as a way to treat yourself to something fun while still burning calories makes sense.
Are There Other Benefits to Kayaking?
Several other benefits come from kayaking. One of the most important that people like to tout is the fact that it’s good for your mental health. People spend so much time cooped up inside of buildings either for work or in their home life that getting outside is nice.
Spending a little bit of time outdoors doing a fun activity such as kayaking can help to boost your mood. You’ll feel refreshed and will be ready to go back to work with a better attitude. Studies show that spending time outside can be very beneficial to your mental health.
Mental health is something that you need to concern yourself with. In modern times, people are having more problems with stress and anxiety than ever before. Being able to have an activity you can perform regularly that can make you feel more at ease is essential.
Kayaking is a perfect hobby for someone who is seeking a little serenity. You’ll be able to get some fresh air and enjoy the beauty of nature. Take advantage of this hobby as much as you can as you’ll see tangible benefits in your everyday life from the time you’ve spent kayaking.
To add to this, it’s an activity that you can do with your friends or family. Being able to take other people out kayaking with you can make things even more entertaining. You can enjoy laughs and good conversation while getting in an excellent workout.
You can also use friends to help motivate you to keep pushing yourself. If your friends would also like to use kayaking as a method to get into better shape, then you will be able to work together to meet your fitness goals. Being able to see your friends have success will allow you to feel good and push you to want to do better yourself.
You’ll find that kayaking will quickly become something that you look forward to considerably. Once people start kayaking, they tend to try to make as much time for the hobby as possible. Using it as a workout method might be just a good excuse to get out and enjoy yourself, but it does provide excellent health benefits.
Conclusion
Kayaking is an excellent source of exercise. You will be able to tone your arms while burning a pretty significant amount of calories. You can even turn it into a cardiovascular workout by pushing yourself to paddle with a certain amount of enthusiasm.
More importantly, kayaking is a really fun sport. Being able to burn those 300 calories every hour is a great benefit, but the real reward is enjoying the activity. This isn’t something that feels as if it is a chore or a burden in any way.
Finding ways to get exercise that are also fun can help people to get into better shape. Some people like to play sports such as basketball or tennis for this purpose. Kayaking works similarly in that you will have a great time, but you’ll also be working on your exercise routine.
Don’t take your time kayaking for granted. Get out there and enjoy yourself while burning some calories. You’ll find that losing a bit of weight is possible and gaining a healthy amount of muscle tone is inevitable.