How Many Calories Does Muscle Burn?
The answer-7-12 calories per pound, depending on if you are resting or active.
This was a great update to the collective knowledge, as this questions has circulated for a long time, and there has never been a clear answer.
The old school claim was 20 to 50 calories a pound, quite high.
In contrast, the scientific research of recent times said it was only 6 calories per pound.
Which also seemed too low for anyone who has worked with clients, had them gain muscle, and seen the effects it has on bodycomp and food usage.
Muscle at rest might not increase metabolism that much. But during physical activity, the expenditure had to be higher.
Finally, someone worked out the difference
Finding the answer to this question involved some MATH....which oddly NO ONE in the fitness industry bothered doing until recently (myself included).
What practical relevance does this have?
Because we now know with CERTAINTY that adding muscle DOES boost metabolism, potentially up to 10% or more depending on how much muscle you gain
If you gain 20lbs of muscle mass on top of your current weight, we can say thats about 200 calories daily increase in metabolism, assuming you exercise.
And the more muscle you gain, the more your metabolism increases.
And even if you recomp, and replaced 20lbs of fat with 20lbs of muscle, without changing your weight, that would still be an extra 150-160 calories in metabolism increase.
Regardless of your goals, added muscle is a net positive for your metabolism, health, and staying lean long term.
So build muscle. Its good for you.