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>Contrary to the common myth, thinking hard does not burn significantly more calories. (Demonstration: Start thinking hard, and watch as your heart rate does no
by serf 3mo ago
>Contrary to the common myth, thinking hard does not burn significantly more calories. (Demonstration: Start thinking hard, and watch as your heart rate does not increase.)
this is wrong [0] , it's just hard to measure.
[0]: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/32314956/ https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/32314956/
- Aurornis 3mo agoThe original claim is not wrong. Thinking hard does not burn significantly more calories. If it’s really hard to measure because the amount is so small that it requires precise equipment, it’s not significant relative to the rest of the body’s energy expenditure.
- kbelder 3mo agoThe increase due to thinking hard is small, but still, the amount of energy burned by your brain is very significant. It consumes around 20% of the total calories your body burns. It just doesn't spike due to intense concentration or mental activity.
- npilk 3mo agoInteresting. I had heard that chess players burn a crazy amount of calories during tournament matches, but when I looked it up just now it seems like that isn't true: https://statmodeling.stat.columbia.edu/2025/06/30/its-sapolsky-time-about-that-bogus-claim-that-chess-grandmasters-burn-6000-calories-per-day/ https://statmodeling.stat.columbia.edu/2025/06/30/its-sapols...