Q: In the off-season, how many calories do I need per day?
A: In the off-season of your sport, you most likely will continue your training — or be involved with other activities — in order to keep your muscles fresh. But your workouts may be less intense than during the regular season, so you will be burning fewer calories from exercise. To prevent weight gain during the off-season, you will need to adjust your caloric intake accordingly.
The number of calories that you burn on an hourly basis will vary, depending on your primary sport. The following are a few examples of approximate numbers of calories burned in various sports for a 150-lb athlete:
Basketball: 261 calories per hour
Cycling: 261–326 calories per hour, depending on speed
Ice Hockey: 632 calories per hour
Running: 261–567 calories per hour, depending on speed
Swimming: 498–702 calories per hour, depending on stroke
For example, let's say you were a basketball player who trained and competed a total of 15 hours in a typical week. That's nearly 4,000 calories per week burned just from your workouts. During the season, you were consuming additional calories to maintain your training/competing weight and to keep up your energy level. Now, in the off-season, you're not burning as many calories. To prevent weight gain, consume fewer calories by having smaller portion sizes and cutting out some snacks. With this scenario in mind, reducing your calories by 500 per day will bring you back to your calorie needs without training. Again, if you continue to train in the off-season, but at a lower intensity, do not decrease your calories too drastically, as you will need some excess for energy for the workouts.
For more information on calories burned in a variety of different activities, please check out the
Activity-Calorie Calculator on the PowerBar.com website. For a customized food plan based on your activity level, go to PowerBar
® PowerCoach™.