Calories Burned Computer Surfing

How many calories can you burn while computer surfing? That depends on how you choose to do your web browsing. If you work at the computer all day long, it is definitely to your advantage to find ways to increase the calories you burn while on the computer. Consider this. The average web surfer burns only 102 calories an hour. That number assumes that you are working at a desk and weigh 150 pounds. You will burn a few more calories if you weigh more than 150 pounds. You will burn fewer calories if you are working from a prone position on your couch. Adjust accordingly.

Weight Gain from Computer Surfing

• When surfing on the computer, you are at risk of gaining weight. One reason is the low number of calories you are burning. If you are on the computer for most of the day, your overall calorie burn is going to be extremely low. Of course, you might burn a few more when you get up to take breaks, but overall, you have a sedentary lifestyle.

  What makes people really put on pounds, however, is the combination of burning few calories and eating too much. It is all to easy to sit with a laptop on the couch and eat snack food. What happens is that you end up with a surplus of calories every day, which will add pounds quickly.

Decreasing Caloric Intake when Computer Surfing

• If you computer surf for several hours a day, it is essential that you lower your caloric intake. You can do this by keeping a food journal in which you write down everything that you eat. Also write down the caloric content of these foods, calculating the total every day.

  You'll want to figure out your overall calorie expenditure, so take your other activities into account as well. Make sure that your caloric intake does not exceed your caloric expenditure. Fitday is a good site to monitor these numbers carefully.

  Also, you'll probably find that it's best to set a firm rule for yourself that eliminates all snacking while using the computer.

Increasing Caloric Expendature While on the Computer

• You can burn more than 102 calories an hour when computer surfing. Make sure that you get up every 10 minutes and move around some. Make sure that you are not moving in the direction of the refrigerator or snack machine. Consider using these mini breaks from web surfing to do a set of sit-ups, push-ups or jumping jacks.

  Sitting up straight burns more calories than lying on the couch. In a similar vein, standing up using more calories than sitting. Perhaps you can do part of your work while standing up. Countertops can make good impromptu computer desks.

Treadmill Desks

• If you spend such a significant part of your day computer surfing that minor changes in lifestyle are not likely to affect your weight and fitness, consider buying a treadmill that has a computer desk built into it. If you do your surfing while walking only two miles per hour, you will burn an additional 68 calories per hour. Over the day, this adds up, and you may find that you are losing weight while computer surfing.

Decreasing Time Spent Computer Surfing

• If you find that you are gaining weight because you are spending a great deal of time doing recreational computer surfing, you may want to cut down on the time you are spending on the computer. The next time you are surfing a particular site, ask yourself if it has value besides killing time. If the entertainment value isn't high for a particular computer activity, you'll easily be able to find other activities to do for fun that burn far more calories. Don't substitute watching television, though, because watching television only burns 68 calories an hour.

  Activities that you may want to add to your daily life include yoga, dancing, bike-riding, walking a dog, playing disk golf and other calorie burners. You'll find that once you are spending less time computer surfing, you'll feel that you are more engaged with life.

When Your Job is Computer Surfing

• You may have a job that requires you to do computer surfing much of the day. If so, you most likely find yourself sitting down at the computer for a minimum of eight hours a day. It's difficult to cut down on time computer surfing when it's your job. If this is the case, you'll need to watch eating high calorie meals with colleagues at lunch time, and have a plan for exercise after work.

  Standing up and stretching now and then, as well as taking a quick walk around the building can get your blood moving, and will burn a few calories as well, as long as the vending machine isn't involved. You may even want to set a timer to remind you to get up and move around every hour or so.

  The important thing is balance. If you have a computer surfing job, it's important to balance the time you spend on the computer with time spent doing more active things, especially after work.