the answer depends on many different things since your weight the type of exercise how intense you are doing each exercise and how long you do each exercise will all influence how many calories you burn. simply put however i would say that you have the potential to burn the most calories by running followed by biking and lastly by using the elliptical. one way to measure how many calories you burn during exercise is to look at metabolic equivalents (mets). mets are a way to measure and gauge the amount of energy you burn during physical activity with 1 met being equal to the energy you burn simply being at rest. for instance running at a 10 minute mile pace is roughly the equivalent of 10 mets or ten times the calories you burn at rest. unfortunately there really is no good answer for how many mets you burn while using an elliptical. a study entitled “2011 compendium of physical activities: a second update of codes and met values” only lists using an elliptical at a moderate intensity which was the equivalent of 5 mets. for comparison bicycling with a moderate effort (12-13. 9mph) is 8 mets. you can find a comprehensive list of mets by doing an internet search for “compendium of physical activities tracking guide”. websites utilizing a formula involving these met values for each type of exercise along with your weight and the duration can help to estimate how many calories you will burn during exercise. keep in mind that these are just based off of averages but one such site is: <link>. play around with the types of activities and the duration of the activity to see what can provide you with the most calories burned.
does using an elliptical machine at the gym burn more calories than running on the street or bike riding?