According to this article published in The Times today, British sports scientists have concluded that drummers are comparable in their physical prowess to world-class athletes.  The researchers followed the drummer for Blondie (?) for the past eight years and determined that he expended as much energy during a performance as runners and soccer stars.

Apparently, you can burn 400 to 600 calories an hour by drumming.  I had no idea.  I’ve been blaming my morbid obesity on an addiction to Boston cream doughnuts and pork rinds, but it turns out my weight gain can be attributed to a lack of practicing on my part.

One of my favourite things about drumming is its physical nature.  It requires the use of both legs, your arms, wrists, fingers – the whole body gets involved.  After a trying day, there’s really nothing like sitting behind a kit and “blowing your brains out” (that’s what I call it when I just try to play as fast and as hard as I can for a while).  After a few minutes locked away in a practice room, it certainly does begin to feel like a workout.

If people take this study seriously, I think drumming could be the next big fitness craze.  I can see classes of soccer moms sitting behind drum sets at GoodLife trying to harness their inner Keith Moon in an effort to flatten their tummies and tone their thighs.  Man, that would be ugly…

If you need some inspiration, check out these two monsters of the drumset engaging in an epic drum battle – notice how both guys are in incredible shape.