One of my favorite tests to do with each Beachbody workout is test out my calorie burn with my heart rate monitor. Shaun T developed Focus T25 a few years ago. This workout program has 11 different workout videos split between two levels (The Alpha and Beta Phase). I decided to track how many calories I burn doing the T25 workouts.
Each workout is only 25 minutes long, so initially I wondered if you could actually burn that many calories without investing in doing a 45-60 minute workout. But since the workouts are fast-paced right from the first minute, my heart rate skyrocketed and I was sweating like a mad man!
One of the things I love most about this program is that the moves are athletic based and easy to follow. No weird complicated choreography that is nearly impossible to do. They are quick, challenging and you start a new move just as you’re body is too tired to continue the current move!
Of course, my calorie burn isn’t going to be reflective of everyone’s. Depending on your personal fitness level, your calorie burn will vary. Men are more likely to burn more calories per workout than women. Other factors that affect this are your current weight, height, fitness level and how much effort you put into the workouts.
I tried to give each workout a 10 for effort to get a good estimate of what the highest calorie burn you could expect per T25 workout. Let’s start with the Alpha Phase!
Note: All of this was tracked using my Fitbit Charge HR 2. The screen shots are taken from the Fitbit App installed on my phone after tracking each workout.
T25 Calories Burned During the Alpha Phase
Length of Each Alpha Workout: 25 minutes plus a 2.5-3.5 minute cool down
Workout 1: Cardio
Average Heart Rate: 147 beats per minute (3 minutes in the peak zone; 24 minutes in the cardio zone)
Calories Burned: 277
Workout Summary: Cardio is a fast-paced workout that doesn’t stop! You begin a series of cardio moves including hop squats, jumping jack variations, skipping and more! You pretty much work non stop until the cool down. It is intense but a powerful workout!
Workout 2: Speed 1.0
Average Heart Rate: 152 beats per minute (8 minute in the peak zone; 18 minutes in the cardio zone)
Calories Burned: 296 calories
Workout Summary: Speed 1.0 is different from Cardio because it is more of a high intensity interval training style workout. You will do a series of “Speed” moves at a very high intensity. Then you’ll switch to active stretch moves while your heart rate decreases before powering through another “Speed” move. The break is needed but only lasts long enough to lower your heart rate before it soars again. After learning each sequence, you’ll do all of them together without stopping. It is one heck of a workout!
Workout 3: Total Body Circuit
Average Heart Rate: 151 bpm (7 minutes in the peak zone, 21 minutes in the cardio zone)
Calories Burned: 305 calories
Workout Summary: Ahh! This was by far the most difficult of the lot. Shaun T says himself that this is the most advanced/difficult workout all week, and he was right! You work your entire body from head to toe and it feels like the workout doesn’t stop! My heart rate was at its peak for most of the workout, but the calorie burn paid off!
Workout 4: Ab Intervals
Average Heart Rate: 136 bpm (14 minutes in the cardio zone, 5 minutes in the fat burning zone)
Calories Burned: 190 calories
Workout Summary: This is a great mix of both ab work and cardio interval training. You’ll do a series of ab routines to work your core and then mix it up with spikes of high intensity cardio.
Workout 5: Lower Focus
Average Heart Rate: 150 bpm (7 minutes in the peak zone, 20 minutes in the cardio zone)
Calories Burned: 295 calories
Workout Summary: I really enjoyed this workout. You do a variety of moves that are both high intensity and a few ow intensity as you work your butt, thighs, legs and calf muscles. You will learn one move, then the next one will be a slightly more intense version of the previous move. Finally you’ll do a super intense version of the original move. For example, basic squat, then a basic squat jump, etc.
Calories Burned Doing the T25 Beta Phase
Workout 1: Core Cardio
Average Heart Rate: 154 (21 minutes cardio zone, 7 minutes in the peak zone)
Calories Burned: 301
Workout Summary: This workout was awesome and much more difficult for me personally than the “Cardio” version from the Alpha phase!
Workout 2: Speed 2.0
Average Heart Rate: 161 bpm (17 minutes in the peak zone, 10 minutes cardio zone) Wow!
Calories Burned: 317
Workout Summary: This was my absolute favorite workout of the entire series. My heart rate was in peak zone for most of the workout and it was SO fast paced. You do a series of rounds and repeat them each time for a shorter interval. The workout flew by and I was dripping in sweat!
Workout 3: Rip’T Circuit
Average Heart Rate: 143 (27 minutes in the cardio zone, 2 minutes in the fat burning zone)
Calories Burned: 260
Workout Summary: I found Total Body Circuit from Alpha to be more difficult than this workout. But I did like how you got to use free weights or resistance bands. I am big into lifting weights as you feel powerful and muscle definition really starts to pop at this stage.
Workout 4: Dynamic Core
Average Heart Rate:
Calories Burned:
Workout Summary:
Workout 5: Upper Focus
Average Heart Rate:
Calories Burned:
Workout Summary:
How Can I Figure Out My Own Calorie Burn?
Like I said at the beginning of this article, every individual is different. I might burn 300 calories in one workout and you could burn 400 doing the same one, or maybe only 200! It all depends on your current size, level of fitness and body type. I recommend investing in a heart rate monitor. 
My favorite being the Fitbit Charge HR 2. I purchased one this year and wear it EVERYWHERE. It is sleek, inconspicuous, and helps me maintain my goals.
Every day, I determine to burn 2,700 calories a day and try to do 7,000-10,000 steps. The Fitbit not only tracks how many calories you burn doing workouts but your activity throughout the day and accounts for calories burned during digestion as well. It really is an essential investment for anyone wanting to lose weight.
> Learn more about the Fitbit Charge HR 2 on Amazon by clicking here!
Thanks for reading and please let me know how many calories you burn in each Focus T25 workout. Together we can get an estimate of what the burn is and see if we match!
What heart rate monitor do you use? I have a fitbit HR now and it told me I burned 754 calories doing t25 cardio! That can’t be right.
Hi Patti! I have the Charge HR 2 – the newest one. Are you sure that calorie burn was from the timed exercise only and not for the entire day? If so, that is a calorie burn of over 30 calories per minute which is virtually impossible. I would try it again and see what the burn is the next time you do it. What kind of average calorie burns are you getting per day?
Are you going to update the three workouts that don’t have any calories burned? im using your calories burned as my benchmark on MyFitnessPal.
Hey Chris! Yes, I totally forgot to update those last three. You can bank on it that I’ll get it done by the end of the week! Check back! 🙂
Hi just wondering if you had calories burns for your last three beta routines?
Are you doing any of the lower-impact modifications when you do these workouts? Or are you doing the full-out routine? I am able to do some of the ‘hard’ (full-out) moves, but there are some parts where I have to do the modifications (even though I am still giving my maximum effort at all times). I am loosely basing my calorie burn on yours (understanding that there will be differences). But I am wondering if your results are based upon you doing any of the lower-impact modifications offered in the videos. Thanks and I love your blog!! 🙂 🙂
Thanks so much for your kind words, Regan!! I would say I was able to do 90-95% of the videos at the higher impact (when recording for the blog, I usually try to be consistent and give it my all) and for any moves where my heart rate was just too spiked, I’d do the lower impact move as you are! I would imagine that the calorie burn would be around the same. Once your heart rate is spiked like that, the calorie burn continues to be high even if you do a lower intensity move for a minute or so to calm down. For most of these videos which I have repeated several times again and again, (especially the 21 day fix ones), my calorie burn usually only varies between 10-30 calories each time I do it. If I’m super full of energy I might burn 320 in one short workout, and maybe the next time 290 if I was slacking a bit during a few moves.
Great job! Thank you!
What happened to the rest of beta? No updates?
I lost my cardio dvd can I do speed instead? Thank you