🎾 Tennis Calories Burned Calculator

Tennis burns 330-590 calories per hour, depending on playing style, intensity, and body weight. Competitive singles tennis burns 480-590 cal/hour, while recreational doubles burns 330-380 cal/hour for a 70kg person. General singles play burns approximately 500 calories per hour.

Tennis provides an exceptional full-body workout that engages your legs for explosive movement, core for rotation and stability, arms and shoulders for serving and hitting, and cardiovascular system for sustained rallies. Research shows tennis players benefit from improved agility, coordination, and cardiovascular fitness.

Our calculator uses validated MET values from the Compendium of Physical Activities for accurate calorie estimates across all tennis activities. Compare with our badminton calculator for other racquet sports.

Tennis burns calories through high-intensity interval effort: explosive sprints to the ball, rapid direction changes, powerful serves and groundstrokes, and sustained rallies. Research published in Sports Medicine shows tennis provides excellent cardiovascular benefits while improving agility and coordination.

Singles tennis burns more calories than doubles due to increased court coverage—you’re responsible for the entire court, requiring more running and energy. Competitive play burns significantly more than recreational tennis because of higher intensity rallies, faster serves, and minimal rest between points.

Our calculator includes official MET values: 8.0 for competitive singles, 6.8 for general singles, 6.0 for competitive doubles, 4.5 for recreational doubles, and 5.0 for practice. Check our MET calculator to understand metabolic equivalents.

⏱️ Time-Based Calorie Estimates

Duration significantly impacts total calorie burn. These estimates use general singles tennis (6.8 METs) for reliable planning. Combine tennis with our BMR calculator and TDEE calculator for complete nutrition planning.

❓ How accurate is this tennis calculator?

Our calculator uses the scientifically validated formula: Calories = (Time × MET × 3.5 × Weight) ÷ 200, with MET values from the Compendium of Physical Activities. This provides accuracy within 10-15%, comparable to laboratory measurements for tennis activities.

🎾 Which burns more: singles or doubles tennis?

Singles tennis burns 13-78% more calories than doubles. A 70 kg person burns approximately 500 cal/hour with general singles versus 331-441 cal/hour with doubles. Singles requires constant full-court coverage, while doubles involves shared court responsibility and shorter sprints.

💪 Is tennis good for weight loss?

Absolutely! Tennis burns 330-590 cal/hour while being easier on joints than running due to varied movement patterns. Regular play (2-3 times weekly) combined with proper nutrition creates the calorie deficit needed for weight loss. Use our weight loss calculator for personalized goals.

⚡ How can I increase calorie burn during tennis?

Maximize calorie burn by playing singles instead of doubles, maintaining longer rallies, minimizing rest between points, incorporating serve-and-volley play, and staying active during changeovers. Consistent baseline play with aggressive court coverage significantly increases energy expenditure.