I can answer the question is pickleball good exercise from the perspective of a tennis player, long range bike rider, and a casual lap swimmer. I was naturally skeptical at first like many others that ask this question, but I can answer beyond any shadow of a doubt that pickleball is a great workout for those that play. Let me share some of my firsthand thoughts from someone that plays pickleball now on a regular basis.
Does Pickleball Count as Cardio?
Some people new to the sport take one look at the small size of a pickleball court and say to themselves “there is no way I am getting a good workout playing the game of pickleball”. I thought the same thing when I first stepped on a pickleball court, and I even considered riding my bike to the court that morning because I was certain there was no way I am getting in a good workout playing pickleball.
But it turns out that pickleball is a great cardio workout, and compares favorably to tennis, racquetball, and walking. A pickleball player is always moving on the court from the front of the court to the back and from side to side. In addition, the upper body moves just as often and in line with the lower body, to provide the pickleball player an excellent all-around cardio workout.
But keep in mind that the level of workout you hope to get depends on how hard you play and what level of intensity you want to maintain while you play. The casual player that plays doubles with friends with the primary goal being a social activity rather than an active or competitive game, might not be optimizing their cardio workout. More on that later in the article.
Is Pickleball Good for Weight Loss?
The answer to this question is a firm yes, and I have a story to share with you about someone in a pickleball group that also plays at the local courts where I play and the results he experienced on his weight loss journey.
This pickleball player is in his 40’s and in a recent casual conversation in between games, he told me before the summer started he set a goal to lose 20 – 25 pounds and this (past) summer he decided not to walk to lose weight as he has done in the past, rather he was going to dedicate his summer to playing pickleball regularly – at least 3 days per week.
I would see him at our local pickleball courts on the days I was there and I asked him when I could how he was progressing with his weight loss goal. He looked like he slimmed down but I wanted to speak to him to get the real story.
He shared with me that he upgraded his diet to start eating healthy which was a must for his summer weight loss goal. With a better diet in place he shared that he had more energy at work, at home with the family, and on the court when he played. This allowed him to play at a higher level of intensity and his pickleball game improved as the summer progressed because he made a commitment to play regularly. The pickleball courts became his “gym” and the results began to show both in his weight loss goals and in the level of his pickleball play on the court.
Towards the end of the summer, I checked in with him and his slimmer frame, he had lost 26 pounds with a combination of eating right, lots of veggies, and 3 days per week playing pickleball. With this clearly un-scientific example, my fellow neighborhood player achieved excellent results following his program to achieve his weight loss goal – and then some.
I think most anyone can lose weight playing pickleball regularly if they have a plan and they stick to the plan for the long haul. Results take time and consistency in your efforts which are both key success factors that must be followed.
How Many Calories Do You Burn Playing Pickleball?
There hasn’t been a lot of research done yet on the health benefits of playing pickleball. Instead, most research up to this point naturally has been done on the benefits of playing tennis and the results are overwhelmingly positive on the benefits of playing that game.
Now, with pickleball participation growing by leaps and bounds, more players are asking about the benefits of playing the game of pickleball. Since the movements are similar in tennis and pickleball with the main difference being that pickleball is played on a smaller court with less ground to cover than tennis, we can develop good estimates on how many calories pickleball players burn when they play.
Pickleball court coverage might loosely be compared to the area a tennis player covers in a game of doubles. With that said, according to USA Pickleball, a player playing a casual game of pickleball may burn 250 calories in 30 minutes if you weigh 150 pounds, and if you weigh 200 pounds you can burn 335 calories.
If you are playing more competitively, then you may burn 360 calories in 30 minutes if you weigh 150 pounds, and 475 calories if you weigh 200 pounds. Sometimes recreation play might move at a slower pace both during and between games and players might play less games in an hour than a competitive player.
Tournament players and competitive players normally play the best 2 games out of 3, up to 11 to determine the winner of the set. In this case, the time to play three competitive games might last between 45 minutes to 1 hour. Depending on the pace of play, the calories burned in a competitive environment might be closer to 500 – 600 calories per set for these players.
You can also expect to get 4,000 – 5,000 steps in a competitive set as players have the skills to mix their shots all over the court requiring opponents to cover a wide area of the court on each point. Pickleball is a great workout for most any player and I can say from first hand experience I am dripping in sweat after playing three competitive games.
On a good weekend morning with the local pickleball group that I play with, I think most of us probably play between 6 – 8 games of good quality play. Throw in the social aspect that pickleball is known for and most players would agree that the sport is much more fun when compared to say walking or running as a cardio workout.
Is Pickleball a HIIT Workout?
In revisiting our initial question at the beginning of this article asking is pickleball good exercise, we know we can answer this with certainty by saying yes pickleball is great exercise. But the sport of pickleball may not make it to the level of HIIT training – and that may be a good thing for a majority of pickleball players today.
According to Harvard Health Publishing, a division of Harvard Medical School, HIIT training features short bursts of high-intensity exercise (usually lasting one to four minutes) interspersed with periods of lower intensity activity or rest”. This type of training may not be the best choice for older adults the study suggests. The study noted “HIIT is a great regimen for people who are young and healthy, (but) if you’re older or have heart disease check with your doctor before trying it”.
The prevailing theory is that while pickleball gives players a great workout in competitive games, there are not really consistent lengthy rallies that make the sport a HIIT workout. In spite of this fact, pickleball players enjoy a very good cardiovascular workout with the added benefit of socializing between games with their playing partners and the opponents.
Some of the Pickleball Health Benefits of Playing Regularly
According to a recent article published by the Silver Sneakers organization, there are several hidden health benefits of playing pickleball for older people. In addition to the obvious benefit of pickleball being a great cardio workout for participants, there may be several mental and emotional benefits that participants gain from playing pickleball.
The article noted that the socialization aspect of playing pickleball is one of the things that keeps people playing regularly. The article notes “pickleball is a great social outlet. And that desire to connect with friends will keep you coming back again and again”.
For some people, pickleball might be the only opportunity they have to socialize on a regular basis with a group of friends with the same shared interests. That social interaction between players that is so strong in the game of pickleball is one of the big reasons why so many continue to play.
The Silver Sneakers article also cited a study published in Leisure Studies that showed playing pickleball may lower the risk of depression in older adults. “I believe it makes older adults lives richer and happier” according to Jungsu Ryu, Ph.D, and author of the study. “Engaging seriously in playing pickleball may buffer any type of negative emotions that people have during transitions to retirement and later life”.
Because pickleball allows regular socialization with a large group of people at the same time while players are getting a good cardio workout, we are seeing many golfers make the transition from the golf course to the pickleball court. Golf takes quite a bit of time to play a round of golf and the cost of equipment and a round of golf continues to increase at most courses. These are only some of the reasons why many golfers are making the switch to pickleball.
For these reasons and more, the sport of pickleball continues to attract new players at a steady pace and the rate of growth for the sport shows no signs of slowing any time soon.