CORRECTION - calories burned at rest - Jan/Feb cover story - Brief Article - Correction Notice

Nutrition Action Healthletter, April, 2000

In our Jan./Feb. cover story on exercise myths, we overstated the calories burned while sitting still. Most people burn 70 to 90 calories per hour at rest. That means that if you sit on the couch for ten minutes instead of running a mile, you'll burn just 12 calories instead of 100. If you sit for 20 minutes instead of walking a mile, you'll burn just 25 calories instead of 100.

And if you sit for the time it takes to walk five miles, you'll burn about 130 calories instead of 500. We apologize for the error.