Did you hear about the one rock band drummers being as fit as Premiership football players?

Well, apparently its true!

A collabrative study between the University or Glouchestershire and the University of Chichester has shown that drummers can burn upto 600 calories per hour and sustain average heart rates of 150 beats per minute, roughly the same as Premiership footballers, playing for such teams as Manchester United, Liverpool, Chelsea and Arsenal.

The science bit

Sports scienists, Dr Steve Draper and Marcus Smith, studied drummers, including Blondie drummer Clem Burke, over a number of years. This case study shows that drummers work extremely hard within their line of work.

The physical demands of drumming mean that some drummers hit heart rates of 190 beats per minute, they lose up to 2 litres of fluid, the same as someone who has just run 10,000 metres, and can lose as much as a stone per tour - as reported by Blurs drummer Dave Rowntree.

Rock vs Jazz

However, this research does indicate in the fitness stakes, all drummers are equal, but some are more equal than others. The research did show that while hard working rock drummers, with there 10 minute solos, can as fit as Olympic athletes, while jazz drummers, who physically put less into their drumming during gigs don\\\\\\\'t gain the same fitness levels as their rock and pop peers.