Is Roller Skating Good Exercise?

Article posted in: Fitness
roller skating woman

You know that getting in 30 minutes of daily activity helps stoke your metabolism, burning calories at a higher rate than when you’re at rest. Regular exercise also helps to tone up your body as you’re losing weight, so you look as good as you feel. What’s the best kind of exercise? The kind that you enjoy doing!

Mixing up your workout routine keeps you from being bored and skipping it. Roller skating is a fun way to be active and it offers you lots of unique benefits. These days, you don’t need to go to a rink to skate and feel the joy of rolling along on wheels. Here’s why roller skating can be a part of your weight loss plan and a few hints to help you get started.

How Many Calories Does Roller Skating Burn?

putting on roller skates

Roller skating at a casual pace for 30 minutes burns nearly 400 calories for a 155-pound person (more if you are heavier). That’s almost twice as much as jogging. Another big difference: you don’t feel as sweaty because the air is blowing in your face as you roll.

What Muscles Does Roller Skating Work?

When you roller skate, your legs grow stronger and leaner. Your abdominals and all the other muscles around your core are engaged to help you keep your balance. Your backside works to push you forward, tightening up the gluteus muscles.

A Low Impact Exercise

roller skating man

While your body’s lower half gets a real workout from roller skating, you are not putting the same level of pressure on your hips, knees and ankles that you do when jogging or even walking. Skating lets you avoid the pounding your joints get from other kinds of exercise, so you feel less sore when you’re done.

Is Roller Skating Cardio?

Maintaining a healthy weight is important for your heart and lungs, reducing the strain on them and keeping you feeling energized throughout your day. Roller skating helps strengthen your cardiovascular system by gently elevating your heart rate and breathing as you go. This builds up their capacity so that they don’t have to work as hard when you are at rest.

Get Better Balance

couple roller skating

Most people tend to become less stable as they age. Roller skating trains your sense of balance and helps you to maintain it longer as you get older. When your balance is stronger, you are less prone to falls and injuries.

Improve Your Flexibility

Aging also slowly decreases the flexibility of your muscles and joints. If you have not been active, that process starts even when you are in middle age. Flexible muscles help you to move freely and minimize soreness when you exercise. Roller skating gently extends the range of motion in your hips, backside, knees and ankles, improving your overall flexibility.

Skating for Beginners

Happy woman rollerblading in the park

Roller skating is not hard, but if you’ve never done it (or not for a long time), start slowly and limit yourself to about 15 minutes the first couple times so you get your body accustomed to the exercise. It can be helpful to have a partner in regular shoes alongside when you first get going to provide a steady shoulder as you find your balance on the skates.

One technique that can help: keep your feet in a V shape rather than both facing forward. This distributes your weight onto both feet, which helps you with balancing on the skates.

Types of Roller Skates

Roller skating offers you a couple of choices. Classic roller skates have four wheels on each skate, two in front and two in back. These kinds of skates are designed for roller rinks.

Many people today enjoy skating outdoors on a paved path. The best skates for that are called “inline” because all four of the wheels are in a straight line. The wheels are designed for rougher surfaces than indoor skates. You also can go faster and turn more easily on inline skates. With inline skates, you can go outside for a session whenever you have the time.

What to Wear Roller Skating

putting on roller skates

Whichever style you choose, be sure the skates fit you well so your toes aren’t crammed or your feet aren’t sliding around inside. Secure them tightly with laces or buckles (whichever the skates have) to help keep your ankles stable.

When you just start out or even when you are experienced, there’s the chance that you may fall when you are roller skating. Protect yourself with a helmet, knee pads, and gloves, especially when you are outside.

Have Fun!

roller skating woman

So, is roller skating a good workout? Sure, skating is a way for you to burn calories, but it also just feels good to do. You get all the weight loss benefits without pushing yourself to go harder, so you can just enjoy the experience again and again.