Lately, with the heat, I’ve turned to Just Dance 4 on Kinect for my cardio. After playing it quite a bit, I’ve actually gotten pretty decent at the dance moves. I’m not quite Beyonce-level, but I’m definitely past the stage of just flailing my arms around. Usually, I dance for about 45 minutes and always break a good sweat. But, I’ve been wondering about the calorie burn.
The Just Dance 4 game itself says I burned around 106 calories in my last session, which seems low. This calculation is likely based on a generic body type. My Fitbit, however, clocked me at a much higher 800 calories burned. The discrepancy is significant, especially considering I currently weigh around 280lbs.
My Fitbit also recorded about 3,000 steps during that dance session. Thinking about all the dancing and body movement involved, 3,000 steps in 45 minutes could be accurate. With all that activity, burning 800 calories in that time frame, given my size, might be plausible.
Interestingly, when I compare Just Dance 4 to my usual one-hour walks, the dance game seems to burn more calories in less time, even with fewer steps. My heart rate is also higher during Just Dance 4.
Here’s a quick comparison of my Just Dance 4 session versus a typical walk:
Just Dance 4 Session: 3,700 Steps, (1.8 Miles) 51 Min Duration, 803 Calories, 125 BPM avg
Walking Session: 4,606 steps, 2.3 miles, 1 hr Duration, 685 Calories, 104 BPM avg
For context, I’m a 23-year-old male, 6’1″, and weigh 280 lbs.
So, I’m curious to know what others think. Does this calorie burn for Just Dance 4 sound accurate? Or is my Fitbit perhaps overestimating my calorie expenditure? I’m interested in hearing if anyone else has compared calorie burn between Just Dance 4 and fitness trackers.
