Calories Burned Cutting Grass Calculator

Generally, you can expect to burn around 70 calories every ten minutes you spend mowing. However, how many calories you lose also depends on your mower and whether or not you push it. You can calculate the calories you burn cutting grass by using an MET formula along with your body weight.

This guide explains how you can accurately calculate calories burned by cutting grass. It also describes how the average caloric loss rate differs between different methods and types of mowing. So read on if you want to count calories better and optimize your routine!

How Many Calories Do You Burn Cutting Grass?

You can calculate how many calories you burn cutting grass through this formula:

MET x your weight in kg = calories burned per hour

MET stands for the metabolic equivalent of task. Basically, it’s a measure of how quickly a given physical activity burns through your energy.

Different activities have different MET levels. The baseline, sitting and doing nothing, is 1 MET.

Pushing a (not self-propelled) mower with moderate or vigorous effort a MET value of 5. Meaning, cutting your grass can shed calories 5 times faster than if you were at rest.

If you weigh around 170 lbs (~77 kg), the formula will look like this:

5 [MET value] x 77 [your weight in kg] = 385 calories burned per hour.

So, a person who weighs 170 lbs should expect 385 calories burned cutting grass per hour.

How Many Calories Do You Burn Mowing the Lawn for 30 Minutes?

Adjusting that formula for half an hour is easier than you might expect.

Since the formula for your caloric loss gives you the number of calories burned in an hour, you just need to divide it by 2. This is because an hour is 60 minutes, and 30 minutes is exactly half of that.

Let’s use the previous example and say you weigh 77 kg (~170 lbs).

5 (MET value) x 77 (your weight in kg) / 2 = 192.5 calories burned per 30 minutes

So if you weigh 170lbs, you’ll lose 192.5 calories for every half hour you cut your grass.

How Many Calories Do You Burn Mowing the Lawn for 2 Hours?

After you complete your MET-based formula, finding out the equivalent for 2 hours is straightforward.

All you need to do is multiply your calories burned per hour by 2 since the base formula equates to calories burned in 1 hour. Much like how you divide that number by 2 to find calories lost in 30 minutes.

Here’s an example:

Let’s say you weigh 140lbs (~63.5 kg) and want to see how many calories you shed in 2 hours of mowing (MET value of 5).

(5 x 63.5) x 2 = 635 calories.

So, you could expect 635 calories burned by cutting grass for two hours.

How Many Calories Are Burned With a Self-Propelled Lawnmower? 

Self-propelled lawn mowers burn fewer calories than a push mower will—the reason why is that they don’t require as much force to move as push mowers do.

We estimate the MET value for using a self-propelled mower is 4.5 since that’s the rating for light-effort push mowing. However, the number isn’t exact since the power of propulsion between mowers varies.

We’ll show another example below and assume again that you weigh 170lbs (~77kg):

4.5 (MET value) x 77 (your weight in kg) = 346.5 calories burned per hour

You’ll burn about 346.5 calories per hour with a self-propelled mower. Meanwhile, a push mower would make you lose about 385 calories in that same time.

But as we said, this might differ a bit between mowers.

How Many Calories Do You Burn on Riding Mowers?

Riding mowers require even less effort than self-propelled mowers. To find how many calories you burn cruising on yours, use a MET value of 2.5.

In this example, we’ll say you weigh 170 lbs (~77kg) again:

2.5 [MET value] x 77 [your weight in kg] = 192.5 calories burned per hour

So, about 192.5 calories burned cutting grass on a riding mower. That’s half of what you’d lose if you used a push mower.

Does Cutting the Grass Count as Exercise?

Cutting your grass definitely counts as exercise. Whether you’re using a push or self-propelled lawnmower, you can shed lots of calories tending to your yard.

According to the DHHS, you should get 150 minutes of moderate aerobic activity per week or 75 minutes of vigorous exercise.

Mowing your lawn certainly qualifies as moderate activity. And if you’re using a particularly heavy push mower on a hot day, it’d even be fair to say it’s vigorous work.

So next time you’re planning your exercise routine, don’t forget to factor in mowing your yard! You may be surprised at the total number of calories burned cutting grass.