Activity calories · 2024 Compendium METs

Calories burned doing Pilates

Quick answer

A 70 kg (154 lb) person burns about 98 kcal in 30 minutes of doing Pilates (General), and about 196 kcal in an hour. That is 2.8 METs.

30 minutes: 98kcal; 70 kg (154 lb)
1 hour: 196kcal; 70 kg (154 lb)
1 hour: 168kcal; 60 kg (132 lb)
1 hour: 224kcal; 80 kg (176 lb)

The Compendium lists traditional mat Pilates and a general Pilates entry. Both are low-intensity ratings, which fits the slow, controlled movements of a class. Reformer work and fast fitness-style classes are not listed separately.

Calculate calories burned doing Pilates

Starts at 70 kg (154 lb) for 30 minutes of doing Pilates at 2.8 METs; enter your own weight and time.

Calories burned doing Pilates by weight and time

Kilocalories for doing Pilates at 2.8 METs (General), by body weight and minutes. Read across from your weight; the pace table below shows the other rows.

Calories burned doing Pilates at 2.8 METs, by body weight and duration
Body weight	15 min	30 min	45 min	1 hour	1.5 hours	2 hours
50 kg (110 lb)	35	70	105	140	210	280
60 kg (132 lb)	42	84	126	168	252	336
70 kg (154 lb)	49	98	147	196	294	392
80 kg (176 lb)	56	112	168	224	336	448
90 kg (198 lb)	63	126	189	252	378	504
100 kg (220 lb)	70	140	210	280	420	560
110 kg (243 lb)	77	154	231	308	462	616

Doing Pilates: calories by pace or effort

The Compendium rates doing Pilates on 2 lines, from 1.8 METs (Traditional mat) up to 2.8 METs (General). Each row below is one of those codes with the calories it works out to.

Calories burned doing Pilates by pace or effort
Pace or effort	Compendium code	METs	30 min, 60 kg (132 lb)	30 min, 70 kg (154 lb)	30 min, 80 kg (176 lb)	1 hour, 70 kg (154 lb)
Traditional mat	02103	1.8	54	63	72	126
General	02105	2.8	84	98	112	196

The Compendium’s own wording for each code: 02103, “Pilates, traditional, mat”; 02105, “Pilates, general”.

What changes the number for doing Pilates

Pace is the biggest lever. The hardest listed way of doing Pilates (General) is rated at 2.8 METs, 1.6 times the 1.8 METs of the gentlest (Traditional mat). For a 70 kg (154 lb) person that is 196 kcal an hour against 126 kcal.

Body weight is the second: the same 2.8 METs of doing Pilates for 30 minutes comes to 70 kcal at 50 kg (110 lb) and 154 kcal at 110 kg (243 lb). To reach 100 kcal at 70 kg (154 lb) takes about 31 minutes at the starting pace.

Laid out in half-hour terms for 70 kg (154 lb): traditional mat is 63 kcal; general is 98 kcal.

How the calories are worked out

The formula is calories = MET × body weight in kg × hours. A MET compares an activity with sitting quietly, which is 1 MET and is taken as roughly 1 kcal per kilogram per hour. That equivalence is an approximation, which is why every figure is rounded and called about.

For doing Pilates at 2.8 METs, a 70 kg (154 lb) person for 30 minutes: 2.8 × 70 × 0.5 = 98 kcal. This is a gross figure: it includes the energy your body would spend at rest in the same time.

The MET values are those of the 2024 Adult Compendium of Physical Activities (Herrmann SD, Willis EA, Ainsworth BE, et al., J Sport Health Sci 2024), read from its activity list on 2026-10-23 and copied with their codes. They are averages for adults; see how we calculate.

Frequently asked questions

How many calories does a 70 kg person burn doing Pilates in 30 minutes?

About 98 kcal at 2.8 METs (General). The whole range for doing Pilates on this page runs from 63 kcal (Traditional mat) to 98 kcal (General) in the same half hour.

How many calories does doing Pilates burn in an hour?

At 2.8 METs, about 168 kcal for a 60 kg (132 lb) person, 196 kcal at 70 kg (154 lb) and 224 kcal at 80 kg (176 lb). Heavier people burn more because they move more mass.

How long does doing Pilates take to burn 100 calories?

For a 70 kg (154 lb) person, about 31 minutes at 2.8 METs (General). At the gentlest listed pace (Traditional mat, 1.8 METs) it takes 48 minutes, and at the hardest (General, 2.8 METs) about 31.

Does the number for doing Pilates include the calories I would burn anyway?

Yes. Of the 2.8 METs, 1 is the resting cost, about 36% of the total here, so the activity itself adds about 63 of the 98 kcal in 30 minutes at 70 kg (154 lb).

Why would my watch show a different number for doing Pilates?

A watch uses its own model, often with heart rate, age and sex, while this page uses the Compendium’s average. For doing Pilates that average already spans 2 entries from 1.8 to 2.8 METs, a 1.6-fold range, so a gap between the two is normal.

Which line in the table should I choose for doing Pilates?

Pick the row that best describes how you did it: this page starts from “General”, about 100% of the way up the 1.8 to 2.8 MET range. The rows are separate Compendium entries (02103, 02105).

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These are estimates for healthy adults from average MET values. How much you actually burn varies with your fitness, body composition, technique, terrain and conditions, so use the figures as a guide, not a measurement. This is not medical advice.