Study Finds Gamers Burn As Many Calories in a Two-Hour Session as They Would Doing 1,000 Sit-Ups
We've known for a long time that there are benefits to gaming, like how it helps build visual-spacial and problem-solving skills, but a new study has suggested that being a gamer can help you burn fat too.
The study, which admittedly was carried out by video-game gambling firm Stakester, found that male gamers burn a whopping 420 calories over a two-hour gaming session which, according to Stakester, is the equivalent of doing 1000 sit-ups.
"We all know that competition increases our heart rate and most of us have experienced the 'gaming sweat' that happens when you're searching for a last-minute goal in FIFA or in a tight spot in Warzone," said Tom Fairey, CEO and founder of Stakester.
"It's no surprise that this burns calories, but we we're surprised to see just how many is burned during a two-hour session, it certainly beats doing 1000 sit ups," he added.
For Stakester's study, researchers tracked the heart rate and calorie burn of 50 gamers while they played FIFA and Warzone for two hours.
They found that male gamers burned an average of 210 calories per hour during an intense gaming session, which was similar to the number of calories they burned while performing 1000 sit-ups.
And while that may be surprising, Stakester's study isn't the first time gaming and a healthy lifestyle have been linked.
Last year, a Queensland University of Technology (QUT) study of 1,400 gamers from 65 countries discovered that players are 21% more likely to have healthier body weights than the average population. The survey also revealed that esport gamers smoke and drink less than the general public and are significantly more active.
"The findings challenge the stereotype of the morbidly obese gamer," said QUT esports researcher Michael Trotter.
"When you think of esports, there are often concerns raised regarding sedentary behaviour and poor health as a result, and the study revealed some interesting and mixed results."
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