Why doesn't people slim down from badminton compared to running?

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Eshiro

Regular Member
This has been on my mind for a while now. I'm not sure if my statement holds true, but generally, I have observed that a lot of good players that I play with are not in good shape although some of them play literally every day. If they take the 2 hrs per day (on average) and change it into 30 mins runs each day, I'm pretty sure they will be in much better shape than they are right now.

I want to give a background that the group that I have been playing with are at least intermediate level. My main group comprise mainly of Malaysians, some were ex-state players while others were from poly school teams. Their age range from 20 to 30. Hence I would say that we were not exactly playing at a low intensity that it won't break any sweat.

Basically, I have some theories in mind of why that is so:

1. Badminton games are just not helping with burning enough calories.
  • Perhaps with proper footwork and placement of shots, we reduce the amount of work our body needs to do to execute a shot to the minimum.
  • If this theory holds true, a player with less refined footwork and shot placement who joins a group at a slightly higher level than he is will be burning more calories than others.
  • Hence, only such players will reap the benefits of burning calories through badminton.
2. Doing 30 minutes of non-stop court shadowing will burn more calories than 2 hours of gameplay
  • This is why I bolded "games" in the first point because I assume badminton training and games will produce different results.
  • I have never tried this before but I am intending to try it out as part of my workout.
  • I wonder whether replacing 30 minutes of court shadowing will burn me as many calories as 30 minutes of running at (if possible) the same pace.
  • But one thing is for sure, I felt so much more exhausted doing court shadowing for 15 mins than playing a non-stop 2 hrs game (Happened before when one guy couldn't make it for our 5 men's session.)
3. Working on court fitness/ stamina just does not produce the same result as running
  • This is a scary area for me to dwell in. I do not want to believe it is true, and I do think that this assumption might be completely inaccurate.
  • But why is it that national and school team players are still made to run 2.4km to 4km every training session when it is already known that court stamina is different from running stamina?
  • If they invest the time running into doing more drills or shadowing, wouldn't it be more beneficial?
Although point 3 is the most controversial statement, it is also the one that I hope to seek clarification on the most too. I would appreciate any professional/non-professional opinions that can add to the discussion. Thanks for reading?
 
I play in a casual group against intermediate level players, and we play only 1 game that lasts about 10-15 mins. To add to this, during the game itself since we are not super pro, we don't really do a super duper great job of covering each other. Hence there is a ton of standing around. We're not really running all around all the time. So I think the fact that we play roughly 10 mins at medium intensity doesn't lend itself to a lot of calorie burn.

I am in my mid 30s with slight heavy build, but I swim and gym fairly regularly, and I find those to create better calorie deficit than simply playing badminton.
 
I dont think badminton help in body shape. Most of its movement are not much on belly part. So dont hope for slim or 6 spec just from badminton alone. Im super slim at young but start to bulk up when im start working. I guest 5 day behind desk & yummy on my table do contribute to my bulking up.

What do good on badminton are
1. Burning calories, its quick rapid movement definitely makes you sweat alot. At least my last medical check shown my colesterol are on the green side, i mean bottom green range which are surprising good for big belly bear like me.
2. Makes one hearth stronger (as long its not excesive i guest).
3. Improve daily balance & reflex. Being an all sport athlete since kids & now badminton, im not easily fall when tripped & able to recover immedietly with my reflex. Not sure if it help but i had a feeling when im driving a cars, my awareness for surounding are better than my non sports player & my feet & hand handling are more agile to response any sudden accident happen around me. Not just me but if i look at all my friend driving, they who are sportsman had better driving than non sports people.
 
Most badminton players don't play to burn calories, they play because they enjoy the game. Most people who run, do it to burn calories. Therefore, a greater subset of runners is interested in being healthy and will therefore also eat healthier and have healthy habits. Fewer badminton players are like this.

Also, badminton is more of an anaerobic sport compared to running. And anaerobic movement needs glucose, whereas aerobic movement can burn fat. That's not to say badminton is entirely anaerobic, so you can burn fat by playing badminton. However, if you run out of glucose playing badminton, you will lose your explosive edge and generally play like a wet towel. If you run out of glucose when running, it's not the best feeling in the world, but you can just keep going and burn fat, and there is no opponent to worry about. So, when it comes to losing weight, running could be the better choice. Of course, the best way to lose weight is to get into a significant caloric deficit and stay there.

I cycle to my badminton sessions, and I notice that the cycling beforehand doesn't affect my badminton at all, when I step on court I feel completely fresh. On the other hand, when I have to cycle home, I can definitely feel the badminton in my legs and I will take 5-10 mins extra to get home.
 
The mistake here is OP observing his very small sample of badminton friends and then extrapolating it into a broad general statement.


What helps people slim down the most is: 1. Diet. 2. Muscle Mass.

Cardiovascular activities like running and badminton helps but not too much. People who watch their diet and play badminton lose weight. People who eat a lot and play badminton don't lose weight. It's as simple as that.
 
SSSSNT said:
The mistake here is OP observing his very small sample of badminton friends and then extrapolating it into a broad general statement.


What helps people slim down the most is: 1. Diet. 2. Muscle Mass.

Cardiovascular activities like running and badminton helps but not too much. People who watch their diet and play badminton lose weight. People who eat a lot and play badminton don't lose weight. It's as simple as that.
Click to expand...

To add on this - do you see many fat single players? No. You can't get away with it. At casual level it's just painful and can lead to joint issues. At pro level - well there isn't one. Simply too slow.

You can get away with being lesser physical shape and still "good" at doubles if you're good with the racket. That's why the stereotype of fat old guys with crazy wrists is a thing. They make up for the lack of movement ability with racket ability. Now I'm guessing but these people think because they're playing a sport it means they're being healthy and lulls them into a sense of comfort...
 
Running or cycling is a staple in many sports. Boxers run. It is a foundation. A basic marker of cardio fitness. And you have full control over it, listening to your body. Not somebody on the other side telling you what to do and when to do it and how. You are listening to yourself. It's also good for the mind to have the motion and fresh air and sunlight and imagery.

Some say running isn't good for the knees but it wouldn't surprise me if badminton players had more knee problems develop than runners!
 
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