Plank Calorie Calculator

Last Updated: Dec 10, 2025

Created by

Saqib Hanif

Saqib Hanif is the CEO and founder of Calculator Value. He builds calculators and educational content across sports, math, and science, and supports a limited set of construction-related calculators. Read full profile

Plank Calories estimates the energy cost of plank holds (isometric core work) using MET values, your body weight, and hold duration.

How it works

Energy rate (ACSM-style): kcal/min ≈ MET × 3.5 × weight(kg) / 200, the standard MET-based calorie equation used in ACSM texts and the Compendium of Physical Activities.
Total calories: kcal ≈ rate × minutes.
Plank intensity presets: Light, Moderate, and Vigorous map to MET levels in the range reported for moderate conditioning / calisthenics and core work; choose Custom to enter your own MET if you have lab or device estimates.

Plank MET Levels

Light: ~3.0 MET (modified planks, shorter holds).
Moderate: ~3.8 MET (standard forearm plank, based on calisthenics/moderate entries in the Compendium).
Vigorous: ~4.5 MET (harder variations or long, high-tension holds).

Example Calculation

Body weight 70 kg; Plank duration 60 seconds (1 minute); Intensity = Moderate (~3.8 MET).
factor = 3.5 × 70 / 200 = 1.225.
kcal/min ≈ 3.8 × 1.225 ≈ 4.655.
Total ≈ 4.655 × 1 ≈ ≈ 4.66 kcal.

Interpretation and Limitations

Plank MET values are approximated from research on calisthenics, conditioning, and core work. Actual energy cost can vary (~±20% or more) with hold duration, technique, body position (forearm vs high plank), and whether you add movement or load.
Because planks are relatively short, per-minute energy is modest; the calculator is best used to understand per-set and accumulated session calories, not to replace whole‑day energy tracking.
This tool is intended for training and planning, not for medical or diagnostic use.

Industry-Standard Formulas: The formulas and methods used in this calculator follow widely accepted standards in Sports.
Careful Verification: The calculator is tested to ensure it behaves correctly across a range of inputs.
Continuous Updates: The calculator is updated as needed to reflect better accuracy and usability.

Sources:

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This plank calorie calculator may satisfy your curiosity about how many calories a plank session burns. Whether you are an athlete, coach, or a fitness-focused person doing a quick 30-second hold or long and intense plank challenges, you can easily calculate plank calories burned to estimate how much energy your body is using.

What Are Plank Calories?

It simply means the amount of energy your body burns while you are holding a plank. While planks may seem like an isometric exercise (no movement), multiple muscle groups are actively engaged:

Core
Shoulders
Abs
Lower back
Glutes
Stabilizers
Legs
And even more muscles help support the plank hold.

What factors affect calories burned and weight loss in plank?

In plank calories burned calculation, there are two main factors that affect calorie burn rate and overall weight loss:

Body weight – the heavier you are, the more energy your body uses, so weight directly affects calories burned.
Plank intensity and duration – Holding longer and at higher intensity increases calorie burn.

How many calories does a plank burn?

To calculate plank calories burned, there is an ACSM-style MET formula that is science-backed and commonly used in physical activity to estimate calories burned.

ACSM, the American College of Sports Medicine is the world’s largest sports medicine and exercise science organization, with more than fifty thousand members and certified professionals.

Plank calories burned formula

The following equation from ACSM is widely accepted to estimate calories per minute:

kcal per minute = MET × 3.5 × weight(kg) / 200

Where:

MET stands for Metabolic Equivalent of Task
3.5 is the baseline used to define 1 MET
Weight is your body mass in kg
200 is a conversion factor to turn oxygen consumption (ml/min) into kilocalories

Then multiply kcal per minute by total time in minutes:

Total calories = kcal/min × total minutes

To obtain calories burned, the formula requires your body weight, duration, and intensity level (METs value) to compute the total calories burned.

Take a look at the following table showing the common MET values for plank exercises:

Plank Intensity	MET Value	Example
Light	~3.0	Modified plank / very short holds
Moderate	~3.8	Standard forearm plank
Vigorous	~4.5	Harder variations, RKC plank, long tension holds

Plank Calorie Example

To understand the calculation steps, consider the following simple example showing you how it works:

First, determine your body weight e.g., 80 kg, plank hold duration e.g., 3 minutes, and plank intensity e.g., Vigorous (~4.5 MET) based on the above table.

Now, let's apply the ACSM formula to estimate the calories burned per minute:

kcal per minute = MET × 3.5 × weight(kg) / 200
kcal/min = 4.5 × 3.5 × 80 / 200
kcal/min = 6.3 kcal/min

Finally, multiply the calories per minute by the total time in minutes:

Total calories = 6.3 kcal/min × 3 minutes
Total calories = 18.9 kcal

This shows that an 80 kg person holding plank at high intensity for 3 minutes burns about 18.9 kcal.

How Many Calories Does Holding a Plank Burn – by Duration?

In plank exercises, calories burned vary based on the factors explained earlier, but here are general estimates:

Duration	55 kg	70 kg	85 kg
30 seconds	1.7–2.0 kcal	2.2–2.4 kcal	2.7–3.0 kcal
1 minute	3.4–4.0 kcal	4.5–5.0 kcal	5.5–6.0 kcal
2 minutes	6.8–8.0 kcal	9–10 kcal	11–12 kcal
5 minutes	17–20 kcal	22–25 kcal	27–30 kcal

Frequently Asked Questions

How Many Calories in a 1-Minute Plank?

Generally, a 1-minute plank burns around 3 to 6 calories depending on weight and effort level.