AskMen discusses calorie-burning team sports for a fun workout, and includes insight from HSS sports medicine physicians James N. Robinson, MD and Brett G. Toresdahl, MD.

According to Dr. Toresdahl, playing sports can be an effective and fun way to burn calories. “We expend energy ('burn calories') throughout the day, even at rest. How quickly we burn calories is often described in 'METs' (metabolic equivalents). High-intensity sports have METs of 8 or more, meaning we burn 8 times as many calories while playing those sports compared to at rest. The more intense the activity and the more muscle groups involved, the higher the METs,” he explained.

He added, “Since many people find the competitive and social aspects of team sports to be exciting and fun, burning calories while playing sports may not feel as difficult as other forms of exercise.”

Dr. Robinson described sports like soccer and basketball involve periods of higher intensity and sprinting followed by periods of lower intensity such as jogging, and cited studies that put the caloric burn between 500 and 700 per hour (depending on body weight).

Read the full article at Askmen.com.