Jogging

How jogging burns calories

Jogging asks your cardiovascular system to sustain a steady, moderate effort for an extended period. It's fast enough to raise your heart rate well above a walking pace, but controlled enough that most people can hold it for 20-40 minutes.

At 6.0 MET, jogging burns calories at the same rate the formula assigns to weightlifting — a useful reminder that MET measures total energy cost, not just how hard an activity feels.

What changes the real number

• Pace: there's a wide range hiding under the word jogging, from 8 to 10 minutes per km
• Running surface: trail and sand cost more energy than pavement at the same speed
• Stride efficiency: a smoother, more economical stride lowers the energy cost per km as you improve
• Rest intervals: jog-walk intervals reduce the average burn rate compared to continuous jogging

Technique notes

• Keep your jogging pace conversational — if you can't speak in short sentences, you've drifted into running effort
• Land with a slight forward lean from the ankles, not the waist, to avoid overstriding
• Relax your shoulders and hands; tension in the upper body wastes energy without adding speed
• Build jogging volume gradually — most overuse injuries come from increasing distance too quickly, not from the pace itself

How it compares