Do you like scary movies? Good news! Watching them might help you lose weight. A study from the University of Westminster found that a 90-minute horror movie can burn around 150 calories, similar to a quick jog or a 30-minute walk.
Ten people watched different scary movies while wearing devices that measured their heart rate, breathing, and how much oxygen they used. The study showed that watching these movies made their heart rates and metabolism go up, which helped burn more calories.
Different movies burned different amounts of calories, but on average, a 90-minute horror film burned 150 calories. The top three movies that burned the most calories were “The Shining,” “Jaws,” and “The Exorcist.”
These movies had lots of scary moments that made people’s hearts race and increased their adrenaline. This adrenaline rush lowered their appetite and boosted how many calories they burned.
Dr. Richard Mackenzie, an expert in cell metabolism and physiology at the University of Westminster, explained that the fast-acting adrenaline released during scary moments in movies lowers appetite, increases metabolism, and burns more calories.
Around Halloween, watching scary movies can be a fun way to burn some calories, but it’s important to keep exercising and eating healthy. Just watching these movies won’t help you stay healthy—you still need to work out and eat well.
Top 10 Scary Movies That Burn Calories:
- The Shining: 184 calories
- Jaws: 161 calories
- The Exorcist: 158 calories
- Alien: 152 calories
- Saw: 133 calories
- A Nightmare on Elm Street: 118 calories
- Paranormal Activity: 111 calories
- The Blair Witch Project: 105 calories
- The Texas Chain Saw Massacre: 107 calories
- [Rec]: 101 calories