But in order to keep track of each time I play, I use a tool called RunKeeper that doesnt translate well to racquetball. It wants to know how far of a distance I ran? or hiked? or biked? But how far would I run if I could keep track of how far I move in a racquetball game? The court is only 40 feet by 20 feet. But if I run a bunch within the court... how far did I go?
What about calories burned? Ive read that in a competitive game one could burn up to 900 calories in an hour. This is a gauge I have been using for some time.
But today I found a website that has some descent information about the game and how it translates to other activities.
Here is the website. Here is the information.
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FITNESS BENEFITS
The average number of calories burned during racquetball play ranges from moderate at 640/hour (Prevention, 1995) to 794/hour (Men's Health, 1995) - to a high level at 822/hour (Sports Training Institute). At the UW Racquetball Club, according to commercial heart rate monitors, top players average between 1000 and 1200 calories burned in an intense hour long match.
An average game will take 20 minutes, during which a player will run a distance of approximately 3,650 feet - or over two miles in one hour of play. (U.S. Olympic Training Center).
Racquetball players work at a constant rate of 75% to 85% of their maximum heart rate for the duration of the typical racquetball game. (USRA Elite Training Camp, 1992).
Racquetball offers both aerobic and anaerobic benefits, with both sustained high level heart rate activity and quick bursts of energy required during play. The nature of the game, with intense bursts of exertion, is similar to high intensity interval training which has been shown to be the most effecient method to burn fat. (The main difference is that racquetball is fun!)
Racquetball works nearly every muscle group, including sustained, repetitive use of large muscles that increase calorie burn and reduce fat percentage.
PARTICIPATION (based on the 2005 SGMA study)
There are 5,533,000 Racquetball participants in the U.S.
The number of players increased by 13% in 2004.
69% of the participants are men.
Racquetball participants are more likely than the general population to engage in activities such as squash, scuba diving, volleyball, and rafting.
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According to this, an hour of racquetball gains me nearly 2 miles of running and almost 900 calories burned. Of course, if the level of play was less, these numbers would be less as well.
This I will use from now on, which will help me keep track of the numbers that RunKeeper likes. As well as notifying my of goals met or exceeded. If I play for 3 hours, at a high level, this would be a record, for example.
