Burn Off Alcohol Calories
Enter a drink and your body weight to see how many minutes of walking, running or cycling use the calories in it.
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How to use the burn off alcohol calories tool
The tool starts with one 12 fl oz can of 5% beer at 160 lb. Change one setting at a time and watch the result update so you can see what each one does.
- Open the Drink dropdown and choose a preset, such as beer 12 fl oz can 5% or wine 5 fl oz glass 12%. If nothing matches, choose Custom drink.
- Type your amount in the Size box, then pick the matching unit in the Unit dropdown.
- Check the Strength (% ABV) box and change it if your drink is stronger or weaker than the preset.
- For a custom drink, fill in the Carbohydrate (g per 100 ml) box, since carbohydrate adds calories alongside alcohol.
- Set the Number of drinks to the amount you want to measure.
- Enter your weight in the Body weight box, then choose pounds or kilograms in the Weight unit dropdown.
- Read the headline, the calories per drink and the activity table.
The Copy link button copies a link to your current settings, so you can share the same numbers or come back to them later.
To count more than one drink, change the Number of drinks box: the calories and every time in the table scale with it. All the activities in the table use the same body weight, so you can compare walking, running and cycling for the same drink.
How many calories are in a beer?
A 12 fl oz can of 5% beer contains about 149 kcal. Alcohol supplies 98 of those calories and carbohydrate supplies 51. The tool works out this split for every drink so you can see where the energy comes from.
Alcohol provides 7 kcal per gram and carbohydrate provides 4 kcal per gram. The strength setting sets how much alcohol is in the drink, and the carbohydrate setting sets how much sugar or starch it contains. Both feed into the total.
What is a MET?
A MET is a unit that compares how much energy an activity uses with the energy your body uses at rest. One MET is about 1 kcal per kilogram of body weight per hour. Walking at a moderate pace is 3.8 METs, so it uses roughly 3.8 times the resting rate.
The tool uses MET values from the 2024 Adult Compendium of Physical Activities:
| Activity | MET value |
|---|---|
| Walking, 2.8 to 3.4 mph, moderate pace | 3.8 |
| Walking, 3.5 to 3.9 mph, brisk | 4.8 |
| Running, 5.0 to 5.2 mph (12 min per mile) | 8.5 |
| Running, 6 to 6.3 mph (10 min per mile) | 9.3 |
| Cycling, 12 to 13.9 mph, moderate effort | 8.0 |
How does the tool turn calories into minutes?
The tool divides a drink’s calories by the calories an activity burns per minute. Calories per hour equal the MET value times body weight in kilograms, so minutes = calories ÷ (MET × kg) × 60.
Take the 149 kcal beer at 160 lb, which is 72.6 kg. Brisk walking is 4.8 METs, so the activity burns 4.8 × 72.6 = 348.5 kcal per hour. Then 149 ÷ 348.5 = 0.43 hours, or about 26 minutes.
Body weight matters. A person at 220 lb (99.8 kg) burns about 1.8 times as many calories per minute as a person at 120 lb (54.4 kg), so the same drink takes less time for the heavier person.
Does exercise get alcohol out of the body faster?
No. The tool shows how long an activity would take to use the calories in a drink. It does not show how long alcohol stays in your body, and exercise does not remove alcohol faster. The result is not a reason to exercise after drinking.
How long does it take to burn off a beer?
A regular can of beer is about 149 kcal. A 160 lb person uses it up in roughly 26 minutes of brisk walking, 15 minutes of moderate cycling or 13 minutes of running at 10 minutes per mile. The table shows the time for each activity, from MET x body weight.
| Activity | MET | Time for one 12 fl oz beer (149 kcal) at 160 lb |
|---|---|---|
| Walking, 2.8 to 3.4 mph, moderate pace | 3.8 | 32 min |
| Walking, 3.5 to 3.9 mph, brisk | 4.8 | 26 min |
| Running, 5.0 to 5.2 mph (12 min per mile) | 8.5 | 15 min |
| Running, 6 to 6.3 mph (10 min per mile) | 9.3 | 13 min |
| Cycling, 12 to 13.9 mph, moderate effort | 8 | 15 min |
How this tool works and where the numbers come from
Calories per hour = MET x body weight in kg, the standard definition of a MET. MET values are from the 2024 Adult Compendium of Physical Activities: walking 2.8 to 3.4 mph 3.8; 3.5 to 3.9 mph 4.8; running 5.0 to 5.2 mph 8.5; 6 to 6.3 mph 9.3; cycling 12 to 13.9 mph 8.0. Drink calories = 7 kcal per gram of alcohol + 4 kcal per gram of carbohydrate.
Sources
Frequently asked questions
How long do I need to walk to burn off a glass of wine?
A 5 US fl oz glass of 12% wine has 114 kcal. At 160 lb, that takes about 20 minutes of brisk walking at 3.5 to 3.9 mph. Change the Drink or Body weight settings to see the time for your own glass.
How many miles do I need to run to burn off a beer?
For a regular can (149 kcal) at 160 lb, running at 5.0 to 5.2 mph takes about 15 minutes. At a pace of 12 minutes per mile, that is roughly 1.2 miles. Running at 6 to 6.3 mph takes about 13 minutes.
Is the result exact for my body?
No. The result is an estimate for a typical adult, based on the MET value and your body weight. Your pace, fitness and the way you do the activity can change the actual time.
Does a smaller drink always take less time to burn off?
Usually, yes, because fewer calories need less activity. At 160 lb, a 5 US fl oz glass of 12% wine (114 kcal) takes about 20 minutes of brisk walking. One can of 5% beer (149 kcal) takes about 26 minutes.
Do I need to fill in the carbohydrate box?
Only for a Custom drink. Choosing a preset fills in the carbohydrate for you, and the tool then adds 4 kcal per gram of carbohydrate to the 7 kcal per gram of alcohol.
Related tools
- Alcohol calorie calculator: use it to work out calories for a drink before you convert them into activity time.
- Calories in alcohol: use it to compare calorie counts across different types of alcohol.
- Calories in a glass of wine: use it when you want the calorie figures for wine glasses of different sizes.
- Cut down drinking planner: use it to plan how many drinks you have over a set period.
- Drinks per week calculator: use it to count the drinks you have across a whole week.
- Money saved not drinking calculator: use it to see how much money a change in drinking could keep in your pocket.