So, you’ve decided to tackle Yr Wyddfa (Snowdon). Perhaps it was for the breathtaking views or to add a tick to the bucket list. Or maybe, just maybe, you’re doing it so you can justify an extra-large portion of chips and a pint in Llanberis afterwards. Or Welsh cakes; just how many will you have actually earned?
You might wonder just how much room are you making for that post-walk feast? However, calculating the calorie burn on a mountain isn’t as simple as a flat walk in the park. It’s a complex cocktail of physics, biology and how many times you stop to pretend to take a photo while actually gasping for air.
Before we look at any of the paths, we have to consider our bodies. Our body is the engine, and three things dictate how much fuel that engine uses:
- Your weight: Physics can be a bit mean at times; put bluntly, the more you weigh, the more energy it takes to move your mass against gravity.
- Your fitness level: Here’s the irony — the fitter you are, the fewer calories you burn; your body becomes a fuel-efficient hybrid. If you’re a mountain goat who does this sort of thing very regularly, your heart rate stays lower, you’re breathing remains normal, your muscles are fine-tuned to what is being asked of them, and you simply won’t burn as many calories as others — in some cases far fewer calories than others. However, if you’re more of a “couch-to-summit” enthusiast, struggling to get your breath while your calves are burning and your heart is working like a frantic percussionist, you’ll be torching calories in the process.
- The ‘shiver’ factor: Yr Wyddfa is notorious for having its own micro-climate. If it’s cold and windy, your body spends extra energy just keeping your core temperature stable. Shivering is essentially your muscles doing a tiny, very annoying workout.
On Yr Wyddfa we need to remember that not all the routes to the top were created equal. Here’s how the following paths stack up for an average adult (approx. 75kg/165lbs):
- On the Llanberis Path you’ll burn an estimated 1,200 – 1,500 calories on a return trip.
- On the Pyg Track and Miners’ Track you’ll burn an estimated 1,400 – 1,800 calories.
- On the Watkin Path you’ll burn an estimated 1,600 – 2,000+ calories on a return trip.
If you know these paths well you’ll appreciate why the calorie counts work out like this; essentially, the harder the path, the more energy you will exert.
We said earlier that walking in the mountain wasn’t the same as walking in the park. The fact is, walking uphill can increase your calorie burn by 50% to 100% compared to walking on flat ground. Every time the gradient increases by 10%, your calorie burn roughly doubles. Then there’s the terrain. Even negotiating loose and uneven rocks requires micro-adjustments from your stabilizing muscles, which adds a sneaky extra burn to the total.
OK, so let’s get to the important part. If you’ve burned, say, 1,600 calories on your round trip up the mountain, what does that look like in “mountain currency”?
- Welsh cakes: About 8 to 10 cakes.
- Pints of local ale: Roughly 7 pints (though we don’t recommend testing this all at once).
- Fish & chips: One very large portion (with extra mushy peas for obvious health reasons).
In summary, whoever you are, you’ll likely burn anything from 1,000 to 2,500 calories depending on your route and your pace. (Just remember to make sure you have enough energy left to get back down safely.)
And don’t be too envious of your unfit, struggling, possibly overweight friends who can justify eating and drinking more than you afterwards to balance out the calories they’ve burned. No one said life was fair.